Aug 1, 2016

August 1, 2016

Fred Wahl Marine Construction 25 Years 40 Industry Leading Vessels

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A few words from Greg: We are now in our second year of publication and enjoying the experience more than we imagined possible.

The Southern Oregon Business Journal is now being seen by some 10,000 readers from Ashland to Eugene with many more in the northern Willamette Valley expressing their appreciation for the information they receive every month. Our subscribers east to west from Klamath Falls to the Oregon Coast are likewise sending us frequent feedback and compliments for the quality and variety of information you see in each issue. We are indebted to the contributing authors of material you see. They come from across America from every industry you can think of—and they are extremely qualified in their industries.

Our featured article this month is about Fred Wahl Marine Construction in Reedsport, Oregon. Be sure to read about the excitement they are experiencing with a 38-acre expansion that will add at least 40 jobs to the area while increasing capacity to serve customers.

The Southern Oregon Business Journal is free to our readers. If you happen to know someone who would be interested in receiving a copy of the journal please mention that connecting through our website at www.southernoregonbusiness.com will allow a very simple sign-up to be a subscriber. Please feel free to forward a current copy for their review so they can see what will be sent on the first day of every month.

Please feel free to contact me with comments, questions or suggestions. We would like to provide a perfect publication but we know that is probably only a target that we will continue to come closer to hitting, though likely never will. You can help to make our effort more successful with each issue.

Have an excellent summer!

Take care,

Greg Henderson Greg Henderson, Publisher greg@southernoregonbusiness.com

Twenty years from now, you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do, so throw off the bowlines, sail away from safe harbor, catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore, dream, discover.

MARK TWAIN

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ASSISTING THE ECONOMIES OF THE SIX COUNTIES OF SOUTHWEST OREGON

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First year of publication comments

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Oregon Economic Indicators

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Elephant Graph Income Growth

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Featured - Fred Wahl Marine

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Thinking Big

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Recovering from Disaster -

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Mission Statement

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O&C Forest Committee Meets

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Trans-Pacific Partnership U.S. Chamber

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Coding and Collaboration

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Prosper Awards

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Oregon Income

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Construction on Schedule, on Time

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Coos, Curry and Douglas Growth

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UCC Healing from Tragedy

703 Divot Loop Sutherlin, Oregon 97479 www.southernoregonbusiness.com 541-315-6127 A JOURNAL FOR THE ECONOMICALLY CURIOUS, PROFESSIONALLY INSPIRED AND ACUTELY MOTIVATED

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Local Knowledge. Regional Leader.

AmeriTitle began as a single office in Klamath Falls, Oregon in 1985.

Today, AmeriTitle has 42 offices in 3 states: Idaho, Oregon and Washington.

1495 NW Garden Valley Blvd.

Roseburg, OR 97470 Ph: (541) 672-6651 Fax: (541) 672-5793 Barry Robinson General Manager barry@ameri-title.com 4

Oregon Economic Indicators University of Oregon State of Oregon Economic Indicators released July 5, 2016.

Oregon continues to grow at a pace similar to that of prior expansions. Highlights of this month’s report include:  The Oregon measure of economic activity slipped to 0.62, down from an upwardly revised April figure. The three-month moving average, which smooths month-to-month volatility in the measure was 0.77, where “zero” indicates average growth over the 1990-present period.  In a reversal from last month, the manufacturing made a positive contribution to the measure on the back of a rebound in average weekly hours worked within the sector. The construction sector impact was effectively neutral; housing starts remain low compared to the experience of prior expansions. The slow pace of construction is a supportive factor for housing prices.  The household sector made the largest contribution to the index, with low levels of initial unemployment claims, low unemployment, and solid consumer confidence all significantly contributing positively to the sector. The services sector was marginally supportive to the overall measure of activity.  The University of Oregon Index of Economic Indicators slipped 0.2% in May. Initial unemployment claims rose but remain in a range consistent with steady employment growth. Employment services payrolls (largely temporary help workers) fell back to December 2015 levels; national numbers have been soft in recent months as well, possibly reflecting the slowdown in manufacturing.  Residential building permits, the weight distance tax, and consumer sentiment all edged higher while hours worked in manufacturing jumped. Core manufacturing orders continued to trend down; the sector remains under pressure from a strong dollar and weak energy prices.

Together, these indicators suggest ongoing growth in Oregon at an above average pace of activity. The ongoing US economic expansion provides sufficient support to sustain Oregon’s economy for the foreseeable future.

SAVE THE DATE 13th Annual Oregon Economic Forum What’s Next After the Election?

Wednesday, November 16, 2016, Portland Art Museum. The doors open at 7am for breakfast.

Registration coming soon!

Join us for the 13th Annual Oregon Economic Forum where we will explore the aftermath of another brutal election cycle and what it means for the economy. We have invited a special guest, Stan Collendar, one of the most quoted pundits on all aspects of the federal budget and Washington’s response to economic and fiscal challenges to explore what the outcome of the election will mean for the ability of Congress and the President to keep our economy moving. In additional, we are hosting a panel on panel on Millennials and What They Mean For Your Firm with Sheila Martin, Director of PSU’s Institution of Portland Metropolitan Studies and Shaun Busse, CEO of Kinesis. And, finally, an Economic and Financial Review and Preview with Oregon Economic Forum Director Tim Duy and KeyBank Chief Investment Strategist Bruce McCain. We look forward to seeing you at this exciting event.

Special thanks to our Presenting Sponsor KeyBank and our bronze sponsors the Port of Portland and the Portland Business Alliance.

For information on sponsoring this event, please contact Tim Duy at 541-346-4660 or duy@uoregon.edu Tim Duy Senior Director, Oregon Economic Forum Professor of Practice Department of Economics University of Oregon Eugene, Oregon 5

The Elephant Graph A few months ago former World Bank lead economist, Branko Milanovic, released a new book titled Global Inequality. His work has taken the economics profession by storm since. One chart in particular, dubbed by some as the elephant graph, because, well, it looks like an elephant, tells a fascinating story. Branko has a new, very accessible article out today over on VoxEU. I am using that article and chart for this edition of the Graph of the Week.

What the elephant graph shows is “cumulative real income growth between 1988 and 2008 at various percentiles of the global income distribution.” While that’s a mouthful, these economic and income trends in recent decades are important. As discussed below, the elephant graph is also very relevant to our office’s recent work on prime working age Oregon men and women, including some more to come next week.

Branko labels 3 points (A,B,C) which are of particular importance:

surprising, given that Chinese and Indian GDP per capita has increased by 5.6 and 2.3 times, respectively, over the period… Such dramatic changes in relative income positions, over a rather short time period, have not occurred since the Industrial Revolution two centuries ago.”

Point C consists of the global top 1%, which is “overwhelmingly people from the advanced economies – one half of the people in that group are Americans…”

Point B has been getting the most attention because it shows, effectively, no income growth in recent decades. And the fact that “Seven out of ten people at that point are from the ‘old rich’ OECD countries. They belong to the lower halves of their countries’ income distributions, for in effect the rich countries’ income distributions start only around the 70th percentile of the global income distribution.”

This gets at the overall stagnating median household income figures seen in the U.S. and here in Oregon too. It also gets at the lower inflation-adjusted wages for prime working adults without a college degree, job polarization and the like. Again, I will have a bit more on this next week from an Oregon perspective.

The results show large real income gains made by the people around the global median (point A) and by those who are part of the global top 1% (point C). It also shows an absence of real income growth for the people around the 80-85th percentile of the global distribution (point B).

Branko goes on to explain which populations are at points A, B and C. “Nine out of ten people around the global median [point A] are from Asian countries, mostly from China and India. These gains are not

What Branko’s elephant graph clearly shows is how these trends compare to the global changes seen in recent decades. In his article today, and in various book reviews you can find online, the discussion broadens to talk about inequality and the impact of globalization and the like, in addition to some political ramifications of these trends. However, for today I just wanted to highlight this new important work and how it helps place some trends we’re seeing in the U.S. and here in Oregon in a global perspective.

By: Josh Lehner, Office of Economic Analysis www.oregon.gov/DAS/OEA

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$8,000,000 FWMC Bolon Island Expansion Fred Wahl Marine Construction (FWMC) is expanding to develop a year-round full-service shipyard.

The project consists of dock, rail, and site improvement, wash station, marine repair and construction building, and purchase of a travel lift with haul-out slip and piers. Marine transportation will be enhanced, a rail link created, and a barrier to marine and highway traffic minimized.

Current Fred Wahl Marine Construction Site

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New 38-Acre Additional Site

38-ACRE HAULOUT FACILITY 660 TON MARINE BOAT LIFT 50,000 SQUARE FOOT BOAT BUILDING WELDING AND FABRICATION SHOP 12,000 SQUARE FOOT PAINT SHOP LONG TERM BOAT STORAGE When you’re a “Just do it” kind of person having the patience to wait for the process of bureaucracy, moving at the pace of evolution will shade your feelings about the government departments that affect your livelihood and the jobs of your 80 employees. All that means to someone like Fred Wahl is that you have one choice, find someone in government who knows about being a business person – then work with him or her to put the wheels in motion. It turns out there have been a few of those helpful people eager to lend a hand to Fred Wahl in the process of running an important Reedsport business; Commissioners Susan Morgan and Chris Boice. Add in Reedsport City Manager Jonathan Wright and the team is complete.

Douglas County Commissioner Susan Morgan has been involved with the growth and expansion of Fred Wahl Marine long enough that she can tell the details of the history that belongs to this boat building company. It is also helpful that she is a former State Representative from Douglas County with a true vested interest in what her constituents need. She then knows about approval processes and all the paperwork that entails. Fred would rather turn a wrench than push a pencil. It’s good to have people like Commissioner Morgan around.

It’s been several years that the Douglas County Industrial Development Board (DCIDB) has been faced with finding the right business to buy the former Bolon Island property that was home to American Bridge. Susan Morgan was with Fred Wahl and his son Mike on one of those rare windy, rainy days in Reedsport when they agreed to take a tour.

It turns out that father and son talking alone in the rain came up with an idea that many families in the Reedsport area will long appreciate. Planning, discussing and fielding questions too early to answer has resulted in the acquisition of the 38-acre site that will soon enable Fred Wahl Marine to hire as many as 40 new employees to handle work they have had to turn away. The 25-year-old site that has been the workplace of about 85 employees can’t meet the demand of new orders that have been delayed.

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Fred Wahl Marine Construction is expanding in a very big way.

25 Years and 40 High Class Fishing Boats later, Reedsport Boat Manufacturer is looking forward to a very bright future.

Fred Wahl Marine is expanding facilities that will add at least 40 more employees and increase production and repair capacity from three boats at a time to as many as 30 boats.

The recent purchase of Bolon Island and the rail line improvements add potential customers, like the U.S. Coast Guard, to the marketing mix.

If this growth did not happen customers would be forced to go elsewhere, many out of state.

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Jim Zimmer explains the details of the engine room of a fishing boat.

Large fishing boat being manufactured at the new facility.

Client boats in the harbor for repairs and inspections.

The reputation of Fred Wahl Marine is so high that customers travel hundreds of miles and wait several weeks to get the best service in the business.

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Fred Wahl, President Fred Wahl Marine Construction

Coos Bay Oregon: A 58’ x 22 1/2’ FWMC fishing boat crossing the Coos Bay Bar during some extreme swells and breaking waves. The three birds you see are brown pelicans, large birds which helps give the photo a little scale.

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Keep Your Head in the Clouds: The Benefits of Lofty Thinking

We’ve all been in a brainstorming session or strategy meeting when someone presents an idea so crazy that you instantly dismiss it and move on with other more realistic ideas. But have you ever found yourself thinking about it later and starting to wonder if that idea that didn’t even seem to be based in reality might actually be crazy enough to work?

Some people are just wired to think big, question the status quo, and go against established norms. Companies that fail to nurture these lofty thinkers may be doing themselves a disservice. Many of the world’s most groundbreaking and innovative products and ideas were likely considered crazy in the beginning.

Encouraging your employees to keep their heads in the clouds from time to time and let their imaginations go wild may be exactly the jolt of inspiration your business needs.

Embrace lofty thinking No two words have done more to drive creativity than “what if?” Curious minds are catalysts for innovation, and businesses that embrace abstract thinkers typically are the ones setting the bar for the rest of the field. Although Apple co-founder Steve Jobs did have some degree of technical aptitude, coding and programming weren’t his greatest strengths. His genius resided in his uncanny ability to not only envision groundbreaking products like the iPhone and iPad, but also build excitement for and dedication to their development-which, in the case of Apple, has led to setting the standard for many products that followed.

Thinking far outside the box can lead to industrydefining revelations for a business. Ignoring assumed constraints, letting your imagination roam free, and asking “what if” can help provide a change in perspective that opens a whole new realm of possibility.

Big thinking can be a powerful motivator Lofty thinkers have the power to energize a team.

If you’re going to achieve the unimaginable, you have to be able to rally the troops around a vision and convince the naysayers to embrace a crazy idea that

has the potential to lead to something truly revolutionary. Tesla co-founder and CEO Elon Musk is another big thinker who didn’t let the seemingly endless amount of obstacles that stood in the way of building a practical and stylish electric car dampen his vision. Now the Tesla brand has become a powerful, chic name in the automobile industry. In fact, just recently pre-orders for the newly announced Tesla Model 3 approached 400,000 in a market long considered niche and unfeasible on a large scale. It was a feat that would have been impossible without a dedicated team that not only bought into Musk’s vision, but believed that together they could achieve it.

Rallying around a wild goal creates a powerful sense of team synergy. Win or lose, you’ve all bought in to the same outrageous idea, and now you’re all in it together—relying on each other’s individual strengths and what everyone brings to the whole that will allow you to achieve unparalleled success.

Great discoveries are made along the way Even if a big thinker’s ideas stretch far beyond the realm of what’s currently possible, it’s likely they will spur many other ideas and innovations. Multiple organizations, including NASA, SpaceX, and Blue Origin, have announced plans to focus their resources on visiting Mars in some capacity in the near future.

It’s an incredibly lofty goal that has received the gamut of criticism and praise. In order to reach the red planet, however, a wide range of new technologies will have to be conceived and developed. And while the stated goal is reaching Mars, there’s no telling what other discoveries each new innovation will help achieve.

Even if you never achieve the big goal, progress made along the way that helps advance other areas of business may prove to be equally important to the overall success of the company. So, don’t shy away from chasing a few rabbit trails on the path toward a lofty goal.

And, really … it can be a lot of fun Operating within known confines is easy and safe, but it won’t necessarily lead to a groundbreaking idea.

Tossing out the rule book even for just a few minutes is not only fun, it can almost be therapeutic. Indulging in the absurd allows you to clear out the clutter in your brain and be better prepared to focus on the tasks at hand.

By: Jared Brox Executive Insights, Inspiration and Motivation

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If a disaster happens in my business, how do I recover?

First, let me say I’m glad you are being proactive in addressing potential business disaster before it happens. The best time to prepare for any problem is before you need to respond. Your business insurance agent is a good resource to help you create a disaster recovery plan.

Disaster is anything that causes your business to shut down for an extended period of time. It could be weather related, a natural disaster, a power disruption, a fire, computer failure, cybercrime, employee related or even inventory not being delivered in a timely manner. The first step to avoid a devastating effect is to prepare a disaster readiness plan. Be pessimistic and think about all the possible problems that could arise.

Now, determine the probability any one of these hazards will actually occur? Is this a critical shut down (long term) or a temporary inconvenience (a few hours)? How difficult will it be to recover quickly from the problem? Who needs to be a part of the recovery team? What other resources will be needed to recover quickly? What are the critical business systems that will need to be re-established? How will employees communicate, where will they go and how will they continue accomplishing their jobs?

Next brainstorm possible solutions to any problems that are probable and critical. Your

insurance agent may have ideas that can help overcome some of the problems. Other businesses in your industry may also have ideas.

Often information is available through an industry association. To find your industry association, check the local library for the Encyclopedia of Industry Associations.

The Federal Department of Homeland Security also has publications and information available to assist in preparing for disaster recovery at http://www.dhs.gov/how-do-i/prepare-mybusiness-emergency.

Determine what is necessary for your business to recover. Is it a facility, information systems, equipment, employees or inventory?

Put contingency plans in place so the most critical items can be available quickly when they are needed. Perhaps it’s creating a backup of computerized information and storing it in a different location. Perhaps the community has a plan to help businesses re-open in case of a natural disaster. The (SBA) Small Business Administration has a low interest, disaster loan program to assist in areas that have been declared disaster areas. Check the SBA website at www.sba.gov for more information about disaster recovery. You can also contact the local SBDC advisor (www.BizCenter.org) for more resources that are available to you. Educate employees on the part they will play in getting the business back on track.

Finally, don’t panic. Advanced preparation will help you be more effective in getting business operations back to profitability. It may also help you reduce insurance premiums. Planning is the key to operating a business in a proactive manner rather than always reacting to problems and worrying about the outcome.

By: Arlene M. Soto, Director Southwestern SBDC SBDC is a partnership of the U.S. Small Business Administration, the Oregon Small Business Development Center Network, the Oregon Business Development Department and Southwestern Oregon Community College 13

A look at small business questions from the Southwestern Oregon Community College Small Business Development Center (SBDC).



How will the organization meet the market needs?

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What principles or values guide the organization?

After the brainstorming session, it’s time to analyze the answers and group them into categories. Do any themes emerge? Are there ideas that make the participants feel inspired? If so, it’s time to start drafting the mission statement that fits your organization. If not, continue brainstorming.

By Arlene M. Soto CMA, CGBP, Southwestern SBDC Director

How do I write a mission statement for my business?

A business mission statement explains in a few words what your business is all about, what it stands for and what benefit it brings to customers. The most effective mission statements are short, inspiring, inclusive and memorable. To craft a dynamic mission statement, allow plenty of time to brainstorm ideas and include positive, supportive people who truly want to see your business succeed in the process.

Rhonda Abrams says in her book, The Successful Business Plan: Secrets and Strategies, “The best, most effective Mission Statements are not mere empty words, but principles and objectives that guide all other aspects and activities of the business.” Once the mission statement is created, goals and objectives that support it can be developed for the business.

Crafting a mission statement should start with brainstorming. Carefully consider the answers to the following questions: 

What market wants, needs, concerns or problems will the organization address?

Mission statements vary by company. For example, the mission statement for The Elephant Sanctuary is “A natural habitat refuge where sick, old and needy elephants can once again walk the earth in peace and dignity.” A simple mission statement that communicates a powerful message. The mission statement for the Southwestern Oregon Community College Small Business Development Center is “Strengthening and supporting an entrepreneurial culture.” Once again, simple but informative.

Once a mission statement is written it’s time to share it with stakeholders of the organization to see if they agree with it and can support it. This mission statement will be the basis for establishing goals and action steps to move the organization forward, so buy in from all stakeholders including employees, management and owners is necessary.

Mission statements may change if the company changes direction. They should be reviewed periodically to see if they are still the best fit for the organization. Most experts suggest a review every three to five years.

The SBDC is a partnership of the U.S. Small Business Administration, the Oregon Small Business Development Center Network, the Oregon Business Development Department and Southwestern Oregon Community College. Arlene M. Soto has been the Director of the Southwestern SBDC since July 2007.

Additional help is available at the OSBDCN Web page www.bizcenter.org.

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Forest Trust Land Advisory Committee Meets Hot topics include damaging State Forest Division budget reductions for FY 2017

July 8, 2016

The Forest Trust Land Advisory Committee (FTLAC), the group of county commissioners created by statute to advise the Board of Forestry (BOF), State Forester, and Department of Forestry (ODF) on matters related to the State Forests/County Forest Trust Lands, met today to receive a briefing from ODF and to prepare comments for the BOF meeting July 20th.

“ ...since the implementation of the current forest management plan the Division has been losing $2 million annually of revenues causing the projection that the Division will be operating in the red by about 2020. “ Topics on the FTLAC agenda drew Senator Betsy Johnson and the Governor’s Natural Resources

Adviser Brett Brownscombe. FTLAC members are Commissioners Tim Josi, Craig Pope, Bill Baertlein, Lianne Thompson, Tony Hyde, Will Tucker, and Faye Stewart.

The FTLAC members are the Board of Directors of the Council of Forest Trust Land Counties (CFTLC), a committee within AOC consisting of commissioners of counties that transferred lands to the state largely under the Forest Acquisition Act to be managed as forestlands for growing and harvesting wood products to produce jobs, revenues, and environmentally sound forests.

Revenues from production are shared with the trust land counties, the largest share of which goes to local schools.

Two topics of particular interest at the FTLAC meeting included: 15

Budget reductions to the State Forest Division of ODF for FY 2017. The Division is the manager of state forests, and with proper production is designed to be self-supporting. However, since the implementation of the current forest management plan the Division has been losing $2 million annually of revenues causing the projection that the Division will be operating in the red by about 2020.

Liz Dent, Division Administrator, stated three goals of the planned $1 million reduction of the division budget of FY 2017 and later actions: short term to gain “breathing room” to push the zero balance of the Forest Development Fund (FDF) beyond 2020; midterm to flatten the trajectory of resources in the FDF; and long term to gain resources for FDF. The 2017 cuts will hurt workforce capacity, defer pre -commercial thinning, and defer reforestation. Ms. Dent described the budget reduction as “not sustainable”.

Two prominent variables are the defense of the Linn County class action law suit, which will be paid out of FDF, and ultimate determination of the Elliott State Forest, i.e., will it be sold or managed under contract.

ODF Policy Option Packages (POP) make asks for state general funds: this drove Senator Johnson to caution against the view that there will be general funds available.

She added that ODF has the ability to raise its revenue, but the BOF through its decisions on state forest management has chosen not to.

FTLAC decided to support the POP related to state forests, but if it is not passed by the legislature, that ODF not make it up by cuts in forest management.

Contributed by: Gil Riddell, AOC Policy Director Public Lands & Natural Resources Policy Manager www.oregoncounties.org/advocacy/public-lands-and-natural-resources/

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US Chamber of Commerce Okay, what’s the issue?

One of the most prevalent and divisive topics in today’s political discourse is international trade.

While polls show that most Americans perceive trade as an opportunity rather than a threat, there’s a heated debate brewing over whether the movement of goods, services and capital across our borders is a net positive or net negative for America, what role it has on our economy, and whether we should be trying to expand or curb the business we conduct with other countries.

What’s the argument against trade?

There’s a growing faction of policymakers and political candidates pushing back against the expansion of international trade and investment.

Some critics point to studies suggesting that trade with China, in particular, has led to lost jobs in some industries. Others blame imports and trade deficits for our nation’s economic woes. Playing off these concerns, some political candidates have argued that the United States should wall itself off from global markets by enacting tariffs and erecting other barriers to siphon off the flow of goods into and out of our country.

Alright, what’s the argument for trade?

currently supports 41 million American jobs, including 6.2 million manufacturing jobs that are directly tied to exports of Made-in-the-USA goods, which represents more than half of the 12.3 million Americans employed in manufacturing.

In addition, it’s important to note that those manufacturing jobs linked to trade tend to have wages that are considerably higher than those positions not tied to U.S. exports.

Does this hold true for the new agreements I keep hearing about?

Absolutely. Let’s start with the Trans-Pacific Partnership, or TPP. Currently under review in Congress, the deal would help American businesses more easily access customers in 11 countries that collectively represent a staggering 40 percent of global GDP and are home to hundreds of millions of middle-class residents.

One recent study forecasted that the deal would raise real incomes in the U.S. by $131 billion and increase American exports by $357 billion per year.

Wait a minute, how does one deal do all that?

While the aforementioned concerns are understandable and in many cases legitimate, the conclusion that many have drawn – that our country should rein in global trade and pull back on new free trade agreements – is shortsighted and self-defeating. On the whole, international trade represents one of the most powerful opportunities America’s small, mid-sized and large businesses have to find new customers. In fact, 95 percent of the world’s consumers live outside our borders, representing nearly limitless expansion opportunities for U.S. businesses and entrepreneurs.

For starters, TPP would eliminate job-killing tariffs and other trade barriers that too often deny a level playing field to American exporters trying to break into growing markets in the Pacific region. The deal would eliminate tariffs on more than 18,000 products made in the USA, and it features 4,000 pages of tax cuts for American exporters. Without the deal, U.S. companies will be left on the outside looking in on major expansion opportunities.

Of course, more customers means more demand, and more demand requires more workers. So when American companies break into new markets and find new buyers in other countries, they tend to create new, good-paying jobs back home. How many new jobs? Well, global trade

Correct. U.S. leaders also are working with our partners in Europe on what’s known as the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, or TTIP. While it’s not quite as far along, TTIP holds similar promise in that it could help more

Okay, but TPP isn’t the only deal in the works, right?

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American businesses access more customers overseas, grow the American economy, and accelerate job creation back here in the United States.

As long as we continue to negotiate agreements that are consistent with our values of innovation, hard work and fairness, trade will continue to be a big win for America.

So more trade means more jobs – is that it?

That’s a big part of the story, but that’s not trade’s only benefit. For U.S. consumers, more trade means more access to the affordable goods we depend on every day. After all, no one country – not even the U.S. – can efficiently produce all of the products and services its citizens need; thus, no country can have a prosperous economy and a high standard of living without trade.

About the Author J.D. Harrison

Sounds like a win-win for everybody.

On the whole, yes. However, it’s important to acknowledge that while trade benefits our country and our economy by creating many more winners than losers, it does create some losers, especially in the near term. That’s because with any exchange of goods and services between two nations, there are bound to be some jobs lost. So while it’s important to bear in mind that the benefits of the TPP are more than 100 times the costs, according to a recent study, we must do everything we can to help those hurt by the deal.

How do we help them?

We can start by improving our job retraining programs, which will help ensure that workers who lose their jobs have every opportunity to learn the skills necessary to land one of the even better jobs created by new trade deals. Right now, our workforce training programs and our education system are deeply flawed, leaving too many people without jobs and jobs without people. U.S. business leaders and government leaders have to work together to address this challenge.

Senior Editor, Digital Content jharrison@uschamber.com J.D. Harrison is the senior editor for digital content at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, where he writes extensively about health care, immigration, infrastructure, regulations and a host of other issues that influence the decisions of executives, employers and entrepreneurs.

So what’s the bottom line on trade?

Trade is tricky, and trade has its challenges.

However, we cannot lose sight of the overwhelmingly positive benefits our country will see if we keep expanding our reach around the world. At its core, trade plays to our country’s strengths.

Our innovation, our competitiveness, and our entrepreneurialism cannot be fully unleashed if they are bottled up inside our borders.

A chamber of commerce is a form of business network, e.g., a local organization of businesses whose goal is to further the interests of businesses.

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ADAM CUPPY

COO Founding Partner

TREVER YARRISH

Managing Director Founding Partner

Ask Adam Cuppy, Trever Yarrish, and Sean Culver why they are building a coding company in Southern Oregon and they respond with, “Why not?” Then, inquire about their firm’s 1,400 percent growth in just over two years and they smile and say, “Great, right?”

The Medford-based company, Coding ZEAL, is a global web and mobile application development firm.

With a focus on agile development, pair programming and lean methodologies, the Coding ZEAL partners have discovered their edge. And their 11 employees enjoy being on the edge with the firm’s superheroinspired branding and extraordinary zeal, or as they call it, “gross unadulterated enthusiasm.”

SEAN CULVER

Managing Director Partner

They are not naive. They are not first-time business owners. In fact, the partners were entrepreneurs before they created Coding ZEAL. Cuppy and Yarrish, former Dutch Bros. marketing and creative directors, started a Grants Pass marketing company in 2007, and Culver spent time in Thailand where he headed up a cutting-edge development project. Former founder and partner Robert Head was a senior engineer at Amazon.com and Pivotal Labs in San Francisco.

Choosing Southern Oregon as their headquarters was easy. “In this industry you can be anywhere and work with anybody,” Trever explains. “We’re here because we love it.”

541) 773-8946 19

From their downtown Medford office, Coding ZEAL team members have worked on projects for a variety of companies, including Amazon.com, Pivotal Labs, Mavenlink.com, SweetyHigh.com, SilverCloud, Inc., Dutch Bros. Coffee, Scratch-It.com, One Site, Iterate.io, Argen Corp, Wonderful.com, VIP PetCare, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Long Distance Voter, Sleadd and ZipLineGear.com

The Coding ZEAL team was able to share that diversity with a group of 55 digital artisans from four countries at the 1st Rogue Rails Conference in October 2013. The “Open Space Agile Summit” shared best practices in pair programming and other agile development concepts with participants from Facebook, Pivotal Labs and Railscasts—all industry thought leaders.

From their downtown Medford office, Coding ZEAL team members have worked on projects for a variety of companies, including Amazon.com, Pivotal Labs, Mavenlink.com, SweetyHigh.com, SilverCloud, Inc., Dutch Bros. Coffee, Scratch-It.com, One Site, Iterate.io, Argen Corp, Wonderful.com, VIP PetCare, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Long Distance Voter, Sleadd and ZipLineGear.com

According to Trever, that kind of sharing is common in Southern Oregon. He explains it like this: “As an entrepreneur, or somebody starting or running a business, you benefit from a feeling of community and of sharing. Business owners want to talk, they want to share, they want to learn and connect with each other.

Other places I’ve been, there’s a feeling of secrecy, standoffishness or inaccessibility because it’s just harder to make it there.”

Coding ZEAL is just one of many global companies whose leadership has chosen to embrace a culture of “Why not?” in Southern Oregon. Others include Harry and David, Motorcycle USA Superstore, Lithia Auto Stores, Brammo, Carestream Health, Linx Technologies, Met One Instruments, Quantum Innovations, Darex and Rogue Valley Microdevices to name a few.

Adam Cuppy, Tever Yarrish, Sean Culver Coding ZEAL 220 Middleford Alley Medford, OR 97501 www.CodingZeal.com

Adam says he sees an unbelievable amount of opportunity and potential in Southern Oregon. “If you get down to the logistics of it, we’re equidistant between Portland and San Francisco. As a tech company, you almost can’t be better placed than that. We’re right up the I-5 corridor so shipping and accessibility is as good as it is almost anywhere in the country.”

As for finding skilled programmers? “I think that because the environment and culture here are so great, you’re going to easily attract talent. We get people who are tired of a 45-minute drive to work.” Adam smiles, adding, “The other thing is that we have nearly 300,000 people here and there’s a cultural and social pace to Southern Oregon that is very diverse depending on where you are.”

541) 773-8946

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employ more than 150 employees. Their plans to add an additional 24,000 square feet to their existing 40,000 square foot Ashland facility, in order to meet demand for their popular products is the very definition of prosperity.

SOREDI Honors Locals with PROSPER Awards Medford, Oregon – At the 2016 Annual Meeting, held June 29 at the Ashland Hills Inn, SOREDI recognized four companies and one individual with awards for their exceptional qualities.

Each year, SOREDI recognizes four companies in our region that exhibit the qualities of Collaboration, Prosperity, Tenacity and Ingenuity. These are the defining characteristics that SOREDI recognizes as vital to successful business growth in our region.

The 2016 Collaboration Award went to Zeal, in recognition of their attitude of encouraging and embracing others in their industry, who might otherwise be viewed as competitive threats. They have been the hub of an enthusiastic tech collective that cultivates future talent in the industry by reaching out to students from Oregon Tech, SOU and RCC. From their new co-working space in downtown Medford to their outreach to the next generation of technology workforce, Zeal embodies the quality of collaboration.

The Ingenuity Award went to ICWUSA this year, in recognition of their latest innovation. If you’ve been to a doctor or dentist lately, you may have noticed that they are looking at a monitor or typing on a keyboard supported by a moveable arm. ICWUSA manufactures these arms here in Southern Oregon and offers them to countries all over the world. Most recently, they have also invented a coating that allows your healthcare professional to write notes directly on the arm and then wipe it off before seeing the next patient.

This constant drive for improvement and excellence provides an environment where ingenuity flourishes.

Ashland’s Darex received the Prosperity Award for continuing to thrive into its 4th generation as a familyowned company. Beginning as a drill bit sharpening manufacturer in 1973, expanding to become the famous Drill Doctor, Darex has now added the WorkSharp brand of knife sharpeners and has grown to

This year’s Tenacity Award went to Rogue Valley MicroDevices, a gem of highly specialized manufacturing currently located in Medford. After their arrival in 2004, they started up with just 2,400 square feet and four employees to offer a wide variety of surface applications, including semiconductor, biotechnology, nanotechnology and MEMS to customers all over the world. Now, after experiencing 300% growth and earning the reputation as a global industry leader, they have experienced some growing pains. Now in an 11,000 square foot facility with 22 employees, they are at maximum capacity. Plans to expand to a new location in Southern Oregon, with an expectation of adding 20 additional employees and growing into 50,000 square feet of production space illustrate the tenacity they have demonstrated over the last twelve years.

Dr.PeterAngstadt was honored with SOREDI’s 2016 Inspiration Award. SOREDI and others have been inspired by his efforts to secure a $20 million campus expansion for Rogue Community College’s Table Rock Campus in White City, adding capacity for key curriculum studies that will directly provide workforce to our local business community. Having served as the President of RCC for the last twelve years, Dr. Angstadt has also served as board member for SOREDI. He was also a vital part of a team working in partnership with Southern Oregon University, Rogue Community College and the Medford Chamber of Commerce to create a higher education center in downtown Medford, the first partnership of its kind in Oregon, between a community college and a university. Dr. Angstadt continues to be a highly involved member of the business community, paying close attention to workforce needs in our region, but he is also personally inspiring, as an engaged foster and adoptive parent.

About SOREDI: SOREDI is a private, membershipbased, non-profit organization, governed by a board of directors. Its staff is charged with local business expansion and new business recruitment efforts, financial assistance to start-up companies through its business loan fund, and management of Enterprise Zones in Jackson and Josephine Counties. The agency was formed as a regional economic development agency in 1987. Learn more at http://www.soredi.org

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Oregon Income, A Discussion Posted by: Josh Lehner

A lot has been made of and discussed about the fact that Oregonians have lower incomes than the nation overall. However, I find myself reaching for various measures of income when the need arises, or to answer specific questions. Are we talking about wages, or about household income, or about the potential tax base for revenues? There is no one measure to rule them all. Each has both pros and cons about its usefulness, depending upon the question being asked.

Below I have pulled together a handful of income measures to show how Oregon stacks up. Interestingly enough, the differences shown below are pretty important. Note that the graph shows Oregon’s income by category as a share of the national figure. Values below 100% indicate that Oregon has lower incomes than the nation.

manner, which is an important distinction) I would argue that per capita personal income is a very important measure when discussing tax revenues, or the potential tax base. It shows the average ability to pay, more or less, of a given region’s residents. However it is also an average and susceptible to both demographic shifts and to the distribution of the incomes across the population. As such, even though per capita personal income is widely cited, it is probably not the best measure to use when talking about how Oregonian incomes compare to the nation overall. I am not saying, however, that per capita personal income is not an important measure, rather that it has a time and place to be used.

Median household income is my go-to measure when someone asks to compare incomes across regions. The simple reason is that, by definition, the median household income represents the typical household, so it is much less susceptible to outliers, distribution issues and household/family/population composition. In my view, it is a more accurate reflection of what the typical Oregonian earns.

Oregon’s median household income has largely tracked the national figure in recent decades, which is to say it is unchanged or declining after adjusting for inflation. Outside of the timber industry’s peak and restructuring in the 1970s and 1980s, Oregon’s median household income has pretty consistently been 2-3 percentage points lower than the national figure.

Clearly there is a wide range of outcomes when looking at the data. Median earnings for full-time workers in Oregon are just a notch below the national figure, however the state’s per capita income is 10% below the national figure. There are some important reasons for why these patterns happen, based on the underlying demographics, economy, share of full-time vs part-time workers and the like. However I want to focus on two measures in particular: per capita personal income and median household income.

Per capita personal income is a measure that simply adds up all the personal income in the state and divides by the population. Oregon’s per capita personal income has eroded over time, relative to the nation, as research from both the business community and the Employment Department has documented. (Quick aside: our average wages have not eroded in a similar 22

What is really interesting is to look at the distribution of household incomes in Oregon relative to the nation.

The final graph does just this for incomes across the entire distribution, based on percentiles. For example, Oregon households at the 20th percentile earn about $21,000 while a U.S. household at the 20th percentile earns $21,700. As noted in the graphs above, the median Oregon household income is about 5 percent below the national median ($51,100 vs $53,700).

"It's a done deal" After 18 years and many rumors, hopeful conversations and business development meetings International Paper has accepted an offer from a Tacoma company for its former mill site in Gardiner Industrial Harbor USA LLC from Tacoma, WA made the offer.

Owner, George Heidgerken, has been involved in several redevelopments of old industrial sites, such as the Blue Heron paper mill in Oregon City. The IP Site is now added.

What really stands out is the widening gap at the highest income levels. To be in the Top 5% of household income in Oregon it takes roughly $185,000 per year, whereas to make it nationally it takes roughly $207,000 per year, or a gap of 11 percent. In fact, the Oregon-US gap among the highest 10% of incomes is twice that of the bottom 90% of incomes. Why exactly this is the case is not entirely clear. However we do know that Oregon is not a financial center, so we miss out on some of those really high-paying occupations. It is also true that our high personal income tax rates likely play a role as well in deterring some, but not all, high-income households and businesses from locating or operating in our state. But what is very clear is the fact that the widening gap in incomes at the top end of the spectrum mathematically weighs on average incomes, but not medians. Go back to the first chart and see how much further away from the national figures the averages are relative to the medians. The differences there are being driven by the widening gap at the top. Is this a problem? Well, that depends upon the question you are asking.

A big thank you to Kanhaiya, our state demographer, for pulling the historical Census data and the distribution figures for the latest ACS! Josh Lehner, Oregon Office of Economic Analysis

According to Umpqua Discovery Center Director Diane Novak, International Paper broke ground on the Gardiner site in 1962. The company was dominant in the Gardiner-Reedsport area for decades, employing 300 employees in its paper mill and 700 in its sawmill at its peak. It closed for good in 1998.

There may be an aquaculture facility planned for a small portion of the property and active marketing of it for other options immediately. They had to sign an agreement with IP that will not allow any wood products industries to exist on the property moving forward.

The redevelopment of the site will take more time than hopeful Gardiner and Reedsport residents prefer, but this time it looks like progress has been made.

Greg Henderson, Publisher, Southern Oregon Business Journal

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UCC CONSTRUCTION ON SCHEDULE AND UNDER BUDGET By: Lee Paterson, Project Coordinator Groundbreaking for the Bonnie J. Ford Nursing, Health and Science Center happened just 13 months ago, but the building is already very near completion.

Located on campus between the Physical Education Complex and Jacoby Auditorium, this 35,000 square foot, two story building will visually complement the existing campus buildings. Being the only two-story building on campus, it will also stand out as a beautiful and dramatic focal point. The building was designed by Portland firm, Opsis Architecture in cooperation with UCC, and built by Andersen Construction Company of Eugene. The Center will house programs, classrooms, offices, labs and meeting spaces to support Nursing, Dental, Medical Legal Resolutions, Physics, Geology, Anatomy, Physiology, Chemistry and

Biology replacing the 50-year old science building which will be vacated and repurposed. The building will be completed on August 8th, in plenty of time for classes to occupy the new spaces on the first day of the Fall Term. Some of the most striking features in the complex, are the staircase under an expansive skylight, wood ceiling treatments and polished flooring throughout the building. The labs, medical stations and classrooms are very modern, flooded with natural light and equipped to emulate the professional nature of the disciplines they support.

The project is being completed using the alternative building strategy known in the construction trades as CM/GC or “Construction Manager/General Contractor�.

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This method augments the traditional role of the general contractor with the college’s own construction manager under a single contract with the college. It also utilizes the services of the architectural team throughout construction from an early point in the design phase. Having the architects, the general contractor and the owners’ team working cooperatively, facilitated by the owner’s project coordinator, toward the same goals throughout the process is intended to increase communications, save money and save time. And it has. It is the duty of the General Contractor to select and manage subcontractors in the trades, all within the guaranteed maximum price.

Whenever possible throughout construction, the trades were represented by local firms which keeps funds circulating in our local economy. “It was recently estimated that fifty cents of every subcontractor dollar awarded was spent locally. And that’s something we’re very proud of”.

Andersen Construction Company, a regional firm, with offices in Eugene and Corvallis, was selected by the Board of Trustees through the public bidding process in 2014. Representatives of the college construction team report that the working relationship throughout this project with the Andersen and Opsis teams has been extremely productive. “The General Contractor and Architects have been quite responsive and helped control costs throughout the process.”

The total of all costs for the project as budgeted is $17

million. This funding was made possible by a State grant of $8.5 million and an $8.5 million match raised locally. The local match was achieved through a combination of donor gifts, pledges and borrowing, without seeking additional tax support from voters.

This was also the case with the recently completed Lang Center on campus. “We thank the many members of our community who supported this college project, for their confidence and generosity. Donors will be recognized permanently on the entry way Donor Wall. “ The Guaranteed Maximum Price from Andersen Construction for all direct construction costs, (including change orders) amounts to roughly $13.9 million. The rest of the budget is divided between architectural services ($1.6 million) and the College’s direct responsibilities ($1.5 million).

With only one month to go until the college expects to receive the Certificate of Occupancy, the construction team is confident that the construction budget will be underspent, and all remaining funds will be returned to the college, allowing the administration to reserve a modest fund for unanticipated building expenses following construction. “This project hasn't been without its challenges, but in the grand scheme of things, I can’t imagine that we could have so done so much for our students, faculty and community without the vision and commitment of all involved to complete this project on time and under budget.”

A public open house and building dedication ceremony is currently being planned by the College Foundation and Administration.

Announcements to that effect will be published in August.

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Coos, Curry and Douglas Counties Forecast: Health Care Pushes SW Oregon’s Long-Term Employment Growth

by Annette Shelton-Tiderman

centers. Leisure and hospitality is expected to add 500 jobs – reflecting tourism and travel's importance to the area's economy.

Although these three counties are viewed as one workforce area, each has its own economic character. Douglas County is often considered as a nearly stand-alone labor market. The combined Coos-Curry labor shed is an area with aging populations where in-migration is the crux of population growth. It is not surprising that each of these labor markets is expected to see strong growth in health care. Private educational services is a small share of the private education and health services industry. Not only is this sector expected to add the most jobs between 2014 and 2024, the growth rate (11%) exceeds that of the overall region(7%).

Coos and Curry Counties: Health Services, Manufacturing, and Leisure and Hospitality Lead

The 2014 to 2024 employment projections for Southwestern Oregon's Coos, Curry, and Douglas counties reflect the continuing recovery from the Great Recession, which officially ended in June 2009.

Employment is forecast to grow by 4,800 jobs between 2014 and 2024. The overall 7 percent increase in employment includes private-sector gains of 4,300 jobs, growth of 200 jobs in government, and an additional 30 self-employed jobs.

Big Industries Add The Most Jobs—Southwestern Oregon's largest industries are generally expected to add the most jobs over the decade. Private education and health services will add 900 jobs, the most of any sector. Manufacturing is projected to add 800 jobs. The trade, transportation, and utilities sector is expected to add 700 jobs, 600 of which will be in retail trade. Also adding 600 jobs is the professional and Business services sector, which includes a broad range of business activities, e.g., accounting services, engineering offices, temporary help services, and call

Projected Job Growth— 2024 - - - Private education and health services will add the most, with a 400 job increase.

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The beleaguered manufacturing industry has experienced a long-term employment decline. This is due primarily to increasing uses of new technologies as well as relocation of manufacturing plants to locations outside the country. The anticipated 9 percent growth rate will put the sector roughly 7 percent above pre-recession levels.

Leisure and hospitality, a core industry for these coastal counties, will not be so fortunate. Coastal counties Coos and Curry reflect the importance of tourism in that leisure and hospitality ranks third in adding 210 jobs, but ranks seventh for fastest growing industries. The 210 additional jobs will not be enough to bridge the gap between pre-recession peak employment and the projected 2024 levels. The industry will still be 5 percent below the pre-recession peak.

The fast-growing construction sector will also lag pre-recession employment levels (-33%) by 2024.

Douglas County: Health Services, Trade Related and Manufacturing Lead Projected Job Growth

Trade, transportation, and utilities is projected to add 520 jobs, an 8 percent growth rate. This is a large industry; 80 percent of the jobs are in retail trade.

Although it will add a substantial number of jobs, it does not make the top three fastest growing industries. The fastest-growing are construction, professional and business services, and the eversteady private education and health services.

The Great Recession's adverse impacts on construction and manufacturing led to substantial losses in those industries. Even with an anticipated 13 percent growth rate in construction employment, this sector will still be nearly 42 percent below pre-recession employment levels. Manufacturing, with a 12 percent growth rate, will remain 24 percent below its peak in 2024.

Declining Industries - Projections show slow growth or decline in all broad areas of government. Federal government declines reflect continuing losses in federal postal employment. State government employment is expected to be flat over the decade. Local government in our coastal counties is expected to show slow growth. This reflects, in part, the important role public education entities and public health districts play in the area. Douglas County's community college employment is included in local government projections.

All Industries Need Workers—Whether growing rapidly or showing a net loss of jobs by 2024, all broad industry sectors provide employment opportunities for job seekers. The demand is clear in some industries more than others. Together, the fastergrowing manufacturing, health care, professional and business services, and construction sectors will account for over half of all new jobs in Southwestern Oregon. Even slower growing sectors and declining industries still offer job opportunities though, as they need to replace retiring workers or others leaving the industry.

Projections show Douglas County adding a total of 3,050 jobs between 2014 and 2024. The largest gain is anticipated in private education and health services +560 jobs).

More information about Oregon and regional long-term employment projections can be found on the Publications page at QualityInfo.org.

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The healing of a college and its community after the tragic killings of nine UCC students on October 1, 2015 It’s not the fault of the place. Snyder Hall on the Umpqua Community College campus just happened to be the convenient location where students were gathered in a classroom at the time a heavily armed gunman with horrendous intentions decided to take out his frustrations. The nine deaths, and wounds of ten others coupled with a community in shock and pain demands answers and a cure for the hurt.

Arrangements that come with much discussion were made for the destruction of Snyder Hall and a replacement to modernize the fifty-year old building. Upgrades to the building are badly needed regardless of these recent circumstances and this seemed to be yet another reason to move forward on its replacement.

Some believe a significant remodel with memorial designations are a better idea. The school’s leadership is reviewing dozens of ideas, some filled with understood emotion, and some concerned about the logical necessity of keeping this excellent college as fine as it has ever been.

The wooden sign announcing Snyder Hall stands today looking like two sets of arms in a constant embrace; a pair of crosses that make memories last a little longer, causing heads to bow and eyes to tear.

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