Our History 

The WAVA Chamber of Commerce was formed in early 2008 by a dedicated group of business owners, advocates, and professionals. They saw the need to develop the untapped potential of Vietnamese-American businesses by creating an organization that connected people to opportunities and resources. They also saw the need to have a voice on policies and decisions that would impact their community.

The WAVA Chamber is a direct evolution of VAEDA (Vietnamese American Economic Development Association). Our predecessor organization, VAEDA, began in 2000 as group of concerned small business owners located along Martin Luther King Jr. Way.  They banded together in hopes of getting their issues and concerns heard by decision makers with respect to the Sound Transit light rail project in the Rainier Valley. Eventually, they became a key player in getting the City of Seattle to establish the $50 million Rainier Valley Community Development Fund.

After successfully advocating for small businesses in the Rainier Valley, VAEDA saw a need for advocacy and organizing in the small business district of Little Saigon. In 2005, It became the lead organization in the effort to voice the concerns of Little Saigon small businesses with respect to the impacts from the Dearborn Street development. This proposed development would cover a 10 acres site mostly belonging to Goodwill Industries.

VAEDA became the first organization in 2006 to publicly hold the Dearborn Street developers accountable to the interests and concerns of the community. As one of the founding members of the DSCLN (Dearborn Street Coalition for Livable Neighborhoods), VAEDA and its coalition partners negotiated a historic (CBA) Community Benefits Agreement with the Dearborn Street developers. This CBA, signed in August, 2008, will provide about $2 million worth of benefits for the Little Saigon neighborhood. In addition, the DSCLN has gotten a written commitment from Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels that would allocate the Street Vacation fee from the Dearborn development (estimated to be worth between $4 to $8 million) to projects specified by the surrounding neighborhoods such as a  cultural/community  center.

The decision to transform VAEDA into a chamber of commerce arose from the need to have a platform that could give Vietnamese-American businesses a voice while also connecting them to the people, tools and resources they need to stay competitive.