Salem highlights solar energy
Solar panels on the Salem Conference Center were purposefully placed so that they would be partially viewable from the street.
Oregon Business Team
Forest Grove offers business incentives
The Forest Grove city council approved new business incentives that they hope will attract entrepreneurs away from nearby Beaverton and Hillsboro.
A mini-boom in commercial real estate
Oregon economist Bill Conerly says we are currently under-building commercial real estate, which will lead to a mini-boom. The pipeline of new buildings is thin, so as the economy improves, there will be very little additional space coming to market. Occupancy rates and rents will rise. The resulting increases in operating earnings will cause the mini-boom. However, a true boom requires easy money, which is not part of our future, at least over the course of the upcoming cycle.
State budget committee recommends deep cuts
The three co-chairs of Oregon’s Ways and Means Committee recommended deep cuts to schools and other programs to deal with the state’s severe budget shortfall.
Oregon paper industry losing to mills overseas
Oregon’s once-booming paper industry is losing out to overseas mills, as more and more recycled paper is being shipped to China.
Agilyx lands $22M
Tigard-based Agilyx Corp. landed $22 million in venture capital for its method of turning waste plastic into crude oil.
Fort George Brewery celebrates new canning line
Fort George Brewery in Astoria celebrated the end of a yearlong, million-dollar project to launch their beers statewide with a special Lager off their new canning line.
SakeOne worries about shipments from Japan
SakeOne President Steve Vuylsteke worries that decimated infrastructure in Japan and radiation concerns will have a negative economic impact on his company.
Championing micro-hydro development
A bipartisan group of senators, including Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR), recently introduced legislation that seeks to remove barriers to national hydropower development. The legislation, geared toward fulfilling renewable energy portfolio goals, includes language that would remove regulatory hurdles for untapped conduit hydropower in urban and rural Oregon.
High-tech poised for rebound
Oregon Employment Department figures show the state’s high-tech sector has grown recently, including several companies in Deschutes County.