“She started very small, with the Marwa Restaurant, and just built her way out,” he says, pointing to the building. “She worked three, four jobs, honestly, to the point where she raised money because she didn’t believe in taking loans or interest. So she worked hard.”

Now Abdulle owns SeaTac Market — a space taking up a big portion of a City of SeaTac-owned SeaTac Center. SeaTac Market’s stores sell a variety of East African wares, from furniture to food to decor. She and family, like Mohammed, have been in the city since 1999. But when Mohammed first heard that SeaTac City Council had plans to issue a request for proposals (RFP) seeking to develop the building in which SeaTac Market resides, he feared a similar fate as the Marwa Restaurant.

He’s not alone: Many of the owners of businesses in the building began actively worrying when they received a letter about the building’s potential sale back in March. If the city sells it for redevelopment, they wondered, what would that mean for their tenancy?

The letter detailed SeaTac’s hope to “have a purchase and sale agreement in place by the end of 2018 with a buyer of the property with their plan for the construction of a new development.” That building could become a mix of anything, from retail to apartments to offices. It added that, in the tenants’ leases, a redevelopment clause allowed the city to cancel the remaining term of their lease if it gave nine months advance warning.

“This letter is NOT a request that you vacate your suite(s) by any specific date, we just wanted to be sure you had the latest information,” wrote SeaTac City Manager Joseph Scorcio in the letter. “We encourage you to explore opportunities to remain in SeaTac, and will offer what assistance we can with your efforts.”

Some businesses had been in the same place for years, and families worried that they’d lose customers in the event of a move. Worse, they weren’t certain they could afford one. So, a group of business owners — many are immigrant Somali women — and advocates for keeping the center formed the SeaTac Community Coalition.

The coalition has since launched a “no displacement” campaign. Members have appeared multiple times at King County Council, advocating to put some of the lodging tax revenue, which will finance Safeco Field improvements, toward an international market in SeaTac. They regularly show up at SeaTac City Council meetings for public comment.

In the months since the coalition began their campaign, some city council members have voiced increased interest in retaining the SeaTac Center property and having the city do any development itself — keeping the concerns of the coalition in mind during redevelopment.

Last Thursday, tenants and members of the coalition saw their own proposal considered alongside submissions from developers like Inland Group before the Planning and Economic Development Committee. The committee included only two SeaTac council members — Peter Kwon and its chair, Rick Forschler — since its third member, Michael Siefkes, stepped down from his position as council member and mayor earlier this month.

After presentations from those with proposals, Forschler suggested holding off on selling the property in order to discuss plans for it further. However, Kwon moved to take his recommendation to start negotiations with Inland Group to full council, where both his and Forschler's recommendations will be heard on Sept. 25.

Anab Abdi, spokesperson for her family’s business in SeaTac Center called Bakaro Mall, says that the coalition has provided a voice for the businesses during a tense time.

“These businesses mean a lot to us and not just because this is an area that celebrates diversity,” Abdi says. “It’s because families depend on these businesses.”