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MCEDD
serves Klickitat, Skamania, Hood River, Wasco, and Sherman
counties. We promote the creation of family-wage jobs, the
diversification of the economic base, and the growth,
development and retention of business and industry within the
five-county district.
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Greetings!
Welcome
to MCEDD’s first monthly newsletter of 2007! In an effort to
keep you informed of regional events related to economic
development, we have included news from across our five-county
district. Have a great month!
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Office Space, Port of
Skamania |
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The
Port of Skamania has 2,200 square feet of office space for
lease on the waterfront in Stevenson, Washington. The office
space has spectacular views of the Columbia River and Gorge
mountains from 144 square feet of south facing windows. In
addition to the breath-taking views, this office space offers
a variety of telecommunication infrastructures including
phone, cable, wireless and fiber optics. The fiber optic cable
is connected to the Northwest Open Access Network (NoaNet).
More information including a floor plan and lease rates are
found at: http://portofskamania.org/tichenor_bld.htm. A
downloadable pdf is available at:
http://portofskamania.org/images/tichenor.pdf.
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Port of The Dalles |
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Two
new buildings are under way at the Port of The Dalles;
Tum-A-Lum Lumber and the new Hage Electric building. The Port
of The Dalles continues to be contacted by new businesses
looking at The Dalles and especially the possibility of river
connections. Watch for an article about The Dalles in Oregon
Business Magazine in the near future, as Robin Doussard of the
magazine is putting together a story. She was especially
interested in how The Dalles has been successful in economic
growth and also the efforts to reconnect the community to the
river. |
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Farmer's Market prepare for 2007
season |
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Farmer’s
Markets are a growing enterprise in the Gorge. Gorge Grown
Food Network is one of many organizations working to bring
locally grown food to the consumer. Contact for Gorge Grown
Food Network is Katie MacKendrick, katie@gorgegrown.com. The
Dalles Farmer’s Market has chosen to offer the delights of
locally grown and produced foods on Friday mornings, 8:00 am
to 2:00 pm, beginning in April and running weekly through
mid-October. Vendors are needed; please contact market manager
Lorrie Fricke at 541-296-5800. Lorrie’s email is restricted,
but call and leave your email address if she is not available
and she will get back to you. Look for a listing of additional
farmer’s markets in the Gorge here next month. If you manage a
market and would like it listed, please send details to us by
responding to this email. |
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Wireless Broadband |
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MCEDD
has entered into a contract with Q-Life, the fiber optic
backbone organization managed by the City of The Dalles and
Wasco County, to develop an RFP for a wireless broadband
network in The Dalles. The project will start with a pilot in
the downtown area and if successful, expand to cover a
majority of the city. Lessons learned here can be used by
other communities in our service area.
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Support Requested for Gorge Future
Forum |
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How
will the complementary issues of growth and sustainability
affect life in the Columbia River Gorge over the next 20
years? The
Gorge Future Forum will be a one day event held in September
or October 2007. It will consist of two distinct parts: (1) a
discussion with community leaders and experts from a variety
of fields to identify key changes which have occurred in the
Gorge over the last 20 years and important trends that will
influence the Gorge’s future; and (2) an interactive community
dialogue about how Gorge citizens and stakeholders envision
the Columbia Gorge in the next 20 years. The Gorge Commission
and the Forest Service Scenic Area Office will include
information from the forum in development of measurements to
assess how the Scenic Area Management Plan is fulfilling the
purposes of the Scenic Area Act. The event planners are
looking for financial assistance as well as input. Please
contact Jessica Metta at 509-493-3323 extension 228 for more
information. |
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High Prairie prepares for a new fire hall/community
center |
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Klickitat
County has received a $389,000 Community Development Block
Grant from the Washington Department of Community Trade and
Economic Development to build a fire hall and community center
in High Prairie. The 6,000 square foot building will house
fire and emergency vehicles and will include a
training/meeting room, kitchen area, and restrooms with
showers. MCEDD is currently working with the community to
provide grant administration for the project.
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Gorge Technology Alliance promotes Gorge
businesses |
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The
Columbia Gorge Technology Alliance, a growing cluster of
technology companies in the Washington-Oregon region of the
Columbia River, has announced that several of its members are
building beneficial business affiliations within local
communities by providing services to each other and to their
customers. MCEDD provides project management services to the
Gorge Technology Alliance to support and promote high tech
companies in the Columbia Gorge region. Currently, the GTA is
composed of more than 30 high tech companies and organizations
in the Gorge and membership continues to grow. For more
information about monthly meetings, GTA activities, or
membership, please contact Amanda at amanda@crgta.org or visit
http://www.crgta.org. The GTA also has a great video promoting
the Gorge on their homepage!
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Read
on... |
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Sherman County Housing |
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Sherman
County has a problem – more than 100 new jobs will be created
over the next 2 years by Azure Standard, Auscrete and the two
major wind farm projects in Biglow and Klondike. Very few
homes are available for sale or rent in the County but there
are a number of platted lots within the Urban Growth
Boundaries of their communities. In an effort to jump start
some affordable housing, a roundtable meeting on January 24th
was attended by over 36 people including realtors, bankers,
investors, USDA Rural Development, Farm Credit Services, land
owners, builders, developers, planners and representatives
from the major employers. Participants gained enthusiasm as
the meeting progressed and a strategy developed to get the
various parties together and begin locating new residents in
Sherman County! |
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Tourism or livability- does it have to be one or the
other? |
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No.
Some of our communities are experiencing almost explosive
growth. Some continue to shrink. During the course of most
tourism planning meetings someone inevitably asks, “Are you
guys sure you want more tourists here?” Those feelings make it
challenging to promote tourism for the sake of economic
development while at the same time respecting the wishes, and
in some cases the property, of the permanent residents.
Sherman County will face this issue during the next few months
as we assist them to develop a new comprehensive tourism plan.
There is a hidden benefit in developing activities, tours,
entertainment and parks to attract more tourists – that is to
draw more permanent residents by making the community more
‘livable’ and attractive. The first two steps prospective
residents usually take are to contact the Chamber and the
school. Those glossy ‘tourist’ brochures go a long way toward
making a community attractive! For information contact
link@mcedd.org. |
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Coordinated Transportation
Planning |
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MCEDD
is working with local transportation providers to develop
coordinated transportation plans for Hood River, Wasco, and
Sherman counties. The aim of the coordinated plans is to
improve transportation resources for individuals with
disabilities, individuals with lower incomes, and seniors. The
plans will also guide the investment of available
transportation funds and the acquisition of future grants. For
comments on the Hood River or Wasco County plans, please
contact Amanda at amanda@mcedd.org or visit
http://www.mcedd.org. For comments on the Sherman County plan,
please contact Link at link@mcedd.org. In addition, MCEDD
facilitated a regional transportation meeting on January 17,
2007 with Community Transportation Association of America.
Over 40 individuals participated in this first meeting,
identifying transportation needs in the Gorge. The next step
in the process involves hiring a consultant to identify
opportunities to meet the diverse transportation needs of our
region. |
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BizTalk |
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BizTalk
is an informal event where business professionals and business
owners network and hear from a guest speaker. These events are
sponsored by the Mid Columbia Economic Development District,
the Oregon Entrepreneurs Forum, the Erin Glenn Winery, Hood
River County Chamber of Commerce, and The Small Business
Development Center. The next BizTalk will be held on February
6, 2007 from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the Erin Glenn Winery in The
Dalles. It is titled “Your Business Legal Entity—Positioning
Your Business for Growth.” Presenter: Chad Holloway and Chuck
Toole from Dunn, Toole and Carter, LLC. ADMISSION: $5
admission - Includes program and snacks RSVP: Chris LaDouceur
at the SBDC 541-506-6121 |
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Upcoming Events |
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2/6/07
– Your Business Legal Entity—Positioning Your Business For
Growth 5:30-7:30 p.m. at the Erin Glenn Winery Tasting Room in
The Dalles, Oregon
2/8/07
– Oregon Investment Board meeting. 10:00 a.m. at the Columbia
River Gorge National Scenic Area Office, 902 Wasco Avenue,
Hood River, OR
2/27/07
– Gorge Technology Alliance Meeting. 6:30 p.m., location TBA.
This month will feature a discussion with Steve Maier of
Innovative Composite Engineering. Networking starts at 6:30
p.m. Visit http://www.crgta.org or contact Amanda Remington at
amanda@crgta.org for more information.
2/28/07
– Sherman County Tourism Planning Meeting – Moro. Details TBA
– link@mcedd.org
4/6/07
– Mid-Columbia Workforce Housing Summit. Details TBA
4/14/07
to 4/15/07 – Gorge Artists Open Studio self-directed tours –
10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Visit http://www.gorgeartistopenstudios for
locations to purchase tickets/directories or for more
information. |
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Submit your news! |
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Reading
this newsletter is a good thing, having your news included is
even better. Send it to us! Items are needed by the third week
of each month. |
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