The Downtown Seattle Association released new monthly figures for worker traffic, with the percentage of returning workers (compared to 2019 levels) climbing 4% month-over-month in June, from 50% to 54%.
- The 54% number is a record for Seattle since the pandemic began, but still lags behind most large U.S. cities.
- Amazon’s return-to-office mandate, implemented in May, is certainly boosting worker traffic, which can help spur revenue for restaurants and other service providers downtown.
- It’s unclear if additional workers will return to the office as companies settle into hybrid work policies and the commercial real estate market continues to struggle.
- DSA said there were nearly 3 million visitors in June to downtown Seattle, the second-highest month since March 2020, and 96% of June 2019 levels. The Seattle area led all U.S. markets in hotel occupancy from June 11 – 17.
