This month, we sat down with Maggie Bishop, Office Manager for the Alliance for Pioneer Square. As the Office Manager, Maggie is in charge of the administrative processes. This includes organization bookkeeping, incoming and outgoing invoicing, project support, payroll management, and other behind the scenes tasks that support the team to keep everything running on track.
Maggie shares how her first few weeks with the Alliance is going and what she’s looking forward in the coming months.
Could you tell us a little about yourself? What made you want to work with the Alliance?
I’m originally from Colorado Springs, Colorado. I’ve lived in Phoenix, Portland, and Denver working in the audio engineering industry. I ended up in Seattle after visiting from Portland and falling in love with the city; I have been here for about two years. A big priority for me has been volunteering free time to community projects I feel passionately about.
As I spent more time dedicated to community development and activism, I decided I wanted to pivot my career trajectory towards these goals. I was thrilled to see how the Alliance has worked to preserve and spotlight the historical and cultural diversity of Pioneer Square, while uplifting small businesses, welcoming newcomers to the community, and revitalizing the neighborhood along the way. It was exciting to see the range of accomplishments the Alliance has achieved and how many areas of development they are currently involved with.
Can you explain what your role at the Alliance entails?
I recently took over as office manager, where I will be taking care of administrative processes to support the Alliance’s many ongoing projects. This includes organization bookkeeping, incoming and outgoing invoicing, project support, payroll management, and other behind the scenes tasks that support the team to keep everything running on track.
What’s your favorite thing about the Pioneer Square neighborhood?
The history! Pioneer Square was the first neighborhood in Seattle when it was first being established as a city, so pretty much all Seattle’s history starts here. It’s fascinating to learn how the areas have rebuilt over the years through fires and floods and ended with the neighborhood we see today; I think it’s amazing how the Romanesque architecture has survived through the modern era. That’s not even to mention thousands of years of Indigenous Peoples’ history from those who cultivated these lands long before settlers arrived. There is a story around almost every block of the neighborhood, so you can frequently learn something new.
With winter just around the corner, do you have any recommendations for folks visiting the neighborhood?
A: The Holiday Market on December 8th – December 9th is a must, there is always a wide diversity vendors and creators to visit, you’ll be able to find unique holiday gifts for everyone on your list and be supporting local small business and creatives at the same time.
I’m a big fan of Rojo’s Mexican Food for lunch! The Underground Tour is a wonderful option year round, especially if you are interested in learning more about Pioneer Squares’ history, but is fantastic for winter if you want some shelter from the rain but still want to spend some time semi-outdoors.