Editors note: This article was updated on July 3.

The newly formed Spokane Business Association has announced the members of its board of directors, which has interviewed candidates for CEO of the organization, and had expected to be operational earlier in the week.

The association is formed to advocate for businesses located in the city of Spokane for the benefit of city residents, says Lawrence Stone, one of the association's founding board members and president of Spokane-based Stone Group LLC.

Other board members are Chris Batten, founding principal and designated broker at RenCorpRealty LLC; Danny Beard, retired senior vice president of NBC Camps; Jack Heath, CEO of Washington Trust Bank; Susan Horton, president and CEO of Wheatland Bank; and Tom Simpson, CEO of Ignite Northwest.

Stone says the association's first full board meeting had been scheduled for Tuesday, July 2—after the Journal's press time—with the potential to select its CEO at that time.

“We’ve been interviewing great candidates, and we’re getting down to a shortlist,” he says.

The board also was expected to select an office location for the association at its first meeting, Stone says, adding, “We’ve been offered three office sites.”

The association supports the work of other business advocacy groups such as Downtown Spokane Partnership and Greater Spokane Incorporated, but will have a citywide focus, whereas DSP efforts are concentrated on downtown, and GSI has a regional footprint, Stone says.

“Spokane businesses need a voice that’s really concentrated on the city of Spokane,” he says.

In a listing of key initiatives, the Spokane Business Association emphasizes support for a safe, clean, and economically robust community that welcomes visitors, residents, and investors.

The initiatives also include calling for enforcement of anticamping measures, supporting affordable housing, moving the Spokane Transit Authority Plaza, and building a new jail with integrated services more distanced from residential, retail, and office areas.

The nonprofit association will be funded through business memberships and fundraising events.