Jefferson Smith
Portland can’t fix all global woes, but there are things we can do. Public works: We can invest in smart infrastructure and neighborhood-scale public works projects. We can work with partners to retrofit public buildings and homes.
Efficient Government: We can help government work well to solve problems and improve paperless permitting systems.
Workforce, health care, and basics: We can work with the State to help health care and education systems to compete in a global economy. We can work with County services to foster fairness and equity.
Fostering Homegrown Business: When talking about jobs, we often talk of “hunting” big companies to relocate. Most new jobs actually come from younger, smaller, homegrown companies. Through “economic gardening” strategies, like we’ve led with Grow Oregon, we can cultivate businesses already here. (Harvard Kennedy School recently named the concept a “Top 25 Government Innovation.”)
Smart Capital: We should for methods to better circulate local investment capital into the local economy. Concepts in the “idea” phase: 1) partnering with the new Oregon finance authority, 2) exploring better leveraging public retirement dollars, 3) expansion of the Portland Seed Fund, 4) a dedicated funding source for investment into B Corporations, 5) greater local circulation and investment of public deposits. Overall, Portland will compete by focusing on our distinctive strengths. By being a smarter, harder working, fairer, and better place to live. By having a strong middle class, by getting jobs for people who work with their hands and their minds. We should be wary of an over-reliance on tax breaks, boondoggles, and deregulatory schemes masquerading as jobs programs.
Mark White
The following is taken from my campaign Internet site. I am happy to discuss specific projects, of which I have several.
Job creation and economic development must be our number one priority. It should be pursued with vigilance as well as bold and aggressive leadership. And while some of the activities below are currently being pursued in some form, it is not with the full weight of the entire Council and not with the level of intensity necessary to reverse negative trends and bring about the level of prosperity desired for all Portlanders. In order for Portland to truly make a difference in job creation and economic development, we must have leadership with the capacity to focus the maximum amount of attention possible on it. To that end, I recommend:
• Portland City Commissioners be assigned Bureaus and Offices with the expectation that interactions with the Bureaus and/or Offices become more of a liaison role between the public and the Director and staff. Commissioners would hold the Bureau and/or Office accountable for Bureau and Office deliverables and interface with the public and the Director and staff to help prioritize all deliverables, including those above and beyond mission critical. Commissioner responsibilities should then expand to include:
• Collective oversight over: • Portland Development Commission (PDC) • Water Bureau and the Bureau of Environmental Services (BES) Possible activities include:
Portland Development Commission
• Frequent meetings with PDC Executive Director and relevant groups to brainstorm possibilities including new business opportunities, prevention of the collapse or take over of Portland-based companies, cluster development and expansion, Portland-based companies for targeted expansion, potential companies and businesses to pursue, opportunities and challenges for targeted economic development strategies, etc.
• Work with PDC staff and public to redesign urban renewal areas to focus more on industrial areas and major transportation corridors; major transportation corridors in communities with the highest need for economic improvement should be prioritized first.
• A city bursting at the seams with creative capital should have an equal, if not greater amount of start ups and new businesses. Discussion should include identifying the barriers to capitalizing on the extensive creative capital within the City and how to leverage and translate it into new business opportunities.
• Analysis and discussion of other successful city models such as Austin, TX and how to translate those strategies into something that will work for Portland.
Water Bureau and BES
• ThegoalwouldbetoensuretheexpensesCouncilcanaffect,suchaswater and sewer rates, are given as many eyes as possible in order to identify opportunities to increase efficiencies and pay back loans for our recent and current capital projects to reduce this debt and subsequent burden on the public. In addition, another goal will be to reduce the utility fee charged to Portlanders as quickly as possible and to the lowest rate possible. Reducing these costs for Portlanders will give them more spending power, which will in turn boost our economic viability
Further expansion of Commissioner responsibilities to include:
• Assignment of a specific industrial area in Portland — SE, NW, Columbia Corridor, etc. Commissioners would work with PDC staff to conduct SWOT analyses to identify strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats on the area; conduct visioning work with all stakeholders and brainstorm with other Commissioners in order to fully leverage any opportunities that may or could overlap.
• Assignment of a specific part of the City — North, Southeast, Northeast, East, and West, including downtown — to conduct a SWOT analysis of that area; conduct visioning work with all stakeholders and brainstorm with other Commissioners in order to fully leverage any opportunities that may or could overlap; emphasis should be placed on how to ensure that existing lower income residents are not displaced by revitalization efforts and are fully integrated into the redevelopment process and benefit equally.
• Assignment to a specific economic cluster such as food, athletic wear, green technology, etc. These efforts to be focused on how best to cultivate and enhance as well as expand each respective cluster to include collateral and supporting businesses. Efforts should also include identification of any leveraging opportunities with other clusters and business growth efforts.
• Assignment of ambassador responsibilities to neighboring municipalities in Oregon and SW Washington in order to deepen and strengthen relationships, but with the underlying mission to seek out opportunities for job creation and economic development partnerships. Significant emphasis should be placed on creating jobs in the $12 to $17 per hour pay range with particular emphasis on Portland-based companies and creating employment for those with minimal to no professional skills in order to reduce the number of those typically left out of economic improvement.
To help accelerate the overall discussion, I offer a few specific suggestions — some new, some not so new — for job creation and economic development:
• Focus on food as an economic cluster and expand to include food processing and manufacturing. Strongly pursue niche markets of higher profit margin organic products, which will dovetail well with our existing emphasis on using fresh seasonal produce. Incorporating community kitchens into our redevelopment projects will give local residents an opportunity to supplement their income by contributing products to Farmer’s Markets, local food stores, and possibly to a burgeoning food processing and manufacturing cluster. Having a robust food economy will also be of tremendous value in the event of a major natural disaster as a steady pipeline for food will be well established.
• Provide opportunity through urban renewal to retool existing shopping mall business model to a much smaller footprint with a focus on microbusinesses for entry level entrepreneurial opportunities. This model will be especially helpful in neighborhoods with little to no commercial development.
• Establish a headquarter hotel for the Oregon Convention Center and increase efforts to increase tourism. A professional convention that fills 2,500 rooms at $200 per night for both Friday and Saturday nights will add $50,000 to the general fund for both nights and doesn’t include all of the collateral private sector benefits from spending by attendees. Pursuing professional groups for conventions and conferences with an underlying strategy to get folks to come back and vacation with their families for longer periods of time will be of tremendous value to Portland’s economy as well as the surrounding area.
• Focus on retention and strengthening of local employers. The loss of US Bank, Fred Meyer, and other long time Portland businesses to outside takeover should be of great concern to all Portlanders. Strong locally-based businesses, both large and small, is the cornerstone of economic sustainability. Wealth created in the community should stay in the community. We will receive the highest return on investment by making sure local employers, especially high wage employers, create future jobs in Portland rather than elsewhere. We might also consider discussing with them incentives for them to move their nonPortland jobs to Portland. The use of limited business investment dollars with local companies that just need a little help to grow will be invaluable in creating long term sustainable economic growth.
Collateral activities include:
• Collaborate with state and other municipalities to identify short and long term ways for Portland to strengthen and expand our position as a major import destination.
• Pursue legislative agenda at the state and federal level that will strongly support our economic development strategy.
• Increase educational and vocational training opportunities for higher level employment. Pursue with vigor the Gateway Educational Center.
• Design and implement visitor point of purchase options. Online and via kiosks located throughout the city and at the airport for locally-produced products. Consumers would be able to purchase products throughout their stay with free or reduced cost delivery to the airport where their products would be preloaded and waiting for them upon arrival at their final destination. The program should also include negotiated discounts on deliveries of Portland produced products with USPS and other shippers; collaborate with the Port of Portland for the mayor to record a welcome to incoming passengers as well as promote Portland and locally produced products.