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EDUCATION/WORKFORCE
1. Chambers of Commerce and
Worksystems, Inc.
Join Forces
Worksystems, Inc. and three Portland area chambers
of commerce have entered into a unique partnership to
help facilitate school-to-work experiences for both
students and employers. The Portland Business Alliance
and the Hillsboro and Salem chambers of commerce will
each receive funding from Worksystems, Inc.'s WIRED
grant to fund the new program.
Funds will be used to hire staff that will work with
businesses, schools and students to identify opportunities
for school-to-work experiences such as job shadows,
site visits, internships and others. The new staff will
also compile a database of opportunities and work with
teachers and students on how to access and use the database.
"This seemed like an obvious fit," said Sandra McDonough,
President and CEO of the Portland Business Alliance.
"The new staff will work closely with the chambers and
our members to identify opportunities for career-related
experiences. It should make the whole process more efficient."
The Oregon Department of Education recently adopted
new high school graduation requirements directed at
ensuring that all graduating seniors have had experiences
in the work environment. Students will now have to demonstrate
that they have participated in job shadows, internships
and other activities that expose them to the working
world.
"One of the top priorities of the Regional Business
Plan is to promote business participation in offering
students career-related work experiences," said Eileen
Drake, Vice President of PCC Structurals and Chair of
the Education and Workforce committee of the Regional
Plan. "This new partnership will help prepare students
for work and give employers a way to efficiently participate
in providing students work experiences."
Employers interested in participating in the school-to-work
program are encouraged to contact one of the following
chambers:
Portland Business Alliance, 503-224-8684
Hillsboro Chamber of Commerce, 503-648-1102
Salem Chamber of Commerce, 503-581-1466
2. Oregon University System
Budget Request Includes Regional Business Plan Priorities
The Oregon Board of Higher Education announced that
they have approved a budget request for 2009-2011 biennium
that includes a number of priorities for the Regional
Business Plan. The recommendation adopted by the Board
calls for a continuation of the 10-year investment strategy
begun last legislative session, expansions to meet student
population growth and added faculty to reduce student-faculty
ratios, among others. Among the budget requests included
in the Regional Business Plan approved by the OUS Board
were:
- $250 million from the capital budget for the South
Waterfront Life Sciences Center, a proposed multi-university
research center and business incubator.
- Work toward a federal designation of a National
Center on Sustainability Research through a request
for $7 million.
- Creation of a $1.6 million PSU University Center
at Portland Community College. This Center will broaden
access and create options for both transfer and career-technical
education and increased bachelor degree attainment
for PCC students.
- Engineering & Technology Industry Council (ETIC)
investments of $39.7 million for research, teaching
faculty, facilities and pre-college outreach programs.
- An $850,000 allocation for the Oregon Metals Initiative
(OMI) to create increased collaboration between Oregon
university research faculty and manufacturers.
The budget request now goes to the Governor for his
consideration. If approved by the Governor, the requests
would be included in the Governor's budget for consideration
by the 2009 legislature. More information can be obtained
at http://www.ous.edu/news_and_information/news/071108.php
FREIGHT MOBILITY
3. Columbia
River Crossing moves forward
The Columbia River Crossing project reached an important
milestone, with sponsoring agencies in Oregon and Washington
adopting a locally preferred alternative that includes
a replacement bridge and light rail, as well as tolls
and improved bicycle and pedestrian facilities. The
crossing, the largest public works project in the region's
history, is a highway, transit and bridge project aimed
at improving safety and addressing congestion growth
in a 5-mile stretch of Interstate 5. Should this project
fail to move forward, congestion on the I-5 bridge and
its approaches is expected to increase from 4-6 hours
each day to as many as 16 hours each day. The resulting
impact to our regional and national economy cannot be
overstated. This will limit access to workforce and
marketplace opportunities and have negative impacts
on our quality of life.
The project now has a green light to move into the
Final Environmental Impact Statement phase, which will
entail further evaluation, analysis and design of the
preferred alternative. This project is one of the most
important, complex and costly public works projects
in the Pacific Northwest. A broad base of support throughout
Oregon and Washington will be necessary to move the
project to and through the construction phase. To that
end, a Columbia River Crossing Coalition has been formed
to demonstrate to federal, state and local officials
that a broad community believes the crossing project
is essential to the economic prosperity of the region,
the west coast and the nation. For more information,
or to sign on as a supporter of the Coalition, please
visit www.crossingcoalition.com.
LAND USE
4. Big
Look Task Force releases preliminary recommendations
The Big Look Task Force, created by the Oregon Legislature
through Senate Bill 82, has issued preliminary recommendations
regarding the future of the state's land use system.
The report, "Choices for Oregon's Future", outlines
five categories and study areas, including: Resource
Lands & Rural Areas; Growth Management; Governance;
Economic Prosperity; and Climate Change. Task Force
members are conducting public outreach across the state
to present and discuss these recommendations. In addition,
an online survey is available to solicit public comments.
The 46-page report and questionnaire can be viewed by
linking to: www.oregonbiglook.org.
5. Regional growth forecasts
and reserves planning
takes shape
The population of the seven-county Portland Metropolitan
Statistical Area (PMSA) is expected to grow steadily
over the next 50 years, but at a slower rate than recent
trends might suggest. According to revised population
projections for our region, published this month by
Metro, the PMSA will grow by at least one million more
people in the next 25 years from just over two million
people currently, showing population projections to
be between 3.5 and 4.2 million people by the year 2060.
The forecast will be used to inform land use policies,
transportation priorities, and infrastructure investments
throughout the region.
Among other initiatives impacted by the forecasted
growth, a 30-member Reserves Steering Committee, made
up of elected officials, public service agencies, business,
land-use and environmental interests, has been meeting
to identify urban and rural reserves, land located outside
the current urban growth boundary that will protect
land for urban and natural resource, rural and forest
uses over the next 50 years. More information on the
process for studying and designating urban and rural
reserves can be found online at www.oregonmetro.gov/reserves.
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
6. Greenlight
Greater Portland releases Prosperity Index
In contrast to Metro's projections of slow growth,
Greenlight's first-annual Greater Portland Prosperity
Index presents a different picture. With forecasting
by Global Insight, the worldwide experts in economic
and financial analysis, the Prosperity Index projects
significant growth over the next five years. After a
flat 2009, the pace will pick up, Global Insight says,
bringing the Portland metro a 30 percent increase in
GRP and an eight percent increase in population by 2013.
With that growth will come some 100,000 new jobs to
the region, the majority of them in professional, financial
and information services, Greenlight and Global Insight
report.
The 2008 Greater Portland Prosperity Index also compares
the region on a wide range of economic, demographic
and quality of life metrics with nine competitive metros:
Seattle, Sacramento, San Francisco, San Jose, San Diego,
Los Angeles, Albuquerque, Austin and Denver.
The entire report can be downloaded from www.greenlightgreaterportland.com.
7. U.S.
Department of Commerce releases updated export figures
The region's economic development strategy places great
emphasis on traded sector industries that bring new
dollars into the region. A new report by the US Department
of Commerce has good news on that front. On July 14,
the Commerce Department released figures on the value
of exports from regions around the country for the first
half of 2007. During that period the Portland-Vancouver-Beaverton
metropolitan area was the 14th largest export market
in the U.S., with sales totaling $7.6 billion - on pace
to beat 2006 sales of $14.6 billion. Canada was the
leading export destination for Portland's exports of
goods in the first half of 2007. Other leading destinations
were Japan and China. In the first half of 2007, Portland
exported $1.7 billion to Canada and Mexico. Twenty-two
percent of Portland's merchandise exports go to NAFTA
countries. Computer and electronic products was the
top Portland export category for the first half of 2007,
accounting for $2.8 billion, or 37 percent, of exported
goods. Other top exports were crop production ($1.2
billion, 16 percent); machinery, except electrical ($879
million, 12 percent); and transportation equipment ($780
million, 10 percent).
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