Clean air and water, beautiful lakes and streams, spectacular mountain views, creative restaurants, great skiing, biking, hiking, rafting and fishing. Are they really worth the price of walking a financial tightrope in a struggling Central Oregon economy?
On the other hand, could it be that quality of life attributes and a productive economy with competitive wage jobs are not not mutually exclusive?
That’s the hypothesis underpinning the Deschutes Economic Alliance, a diverse group of business and community leaders who have mobilized in an effort to guide the region to economic recovery.
The DEA was co-founded by Lawnae Hunter, owner of Hunter Properties and Plus Property Management and Dave Lewis, chief executive of Jarno International of Bend.
The desired result, DEA leaders believe, should be an economy that extends beyond recent growth that mostly relied on housing construction driven by the retirement and vacation home markets.
Their objective is to leverage the region’s considerable natural attributes and human capital to target new businesses for the area as well as create an environment for growing existing ones.
Rather than “poverty with a view,” the pejorative label some stick on Central Oregon , they want to turn a new phrase, “possibilities with a view.”
For the past three years the Center for Economic Research and Forecasting under the direction of Phd Bill Watkins has presented forecasts for the Central Oregon economy.
In January of 2011 the center’s assessment was presented in connection with a 1000 Day Road Map to Regional Transformation and Economic Vitality by Praxis Strategy Group, an national economic consultant with government and private clients.
On April 30 the Deschutes Economic Alliance kicked off the first phase of the “road map” as leaders for teams focusing on six economic initiatives gathered in a training session for a 100 Day Jumpstart to Recovery lead by former Deschutes County Sheriff Les Stiles, who teaches leadership development in the Concordia College
The six initatives identified in the recovery plan are:
· A systems-built housing effort that would focus on development of a systems-built, “green” housing industry.
· A Warm Springs Tribes partnership to develop joint busines opportunities.
· An applied research and creative activities center to promote professional development and support for for public-private research and partnerships.
· A leadership roundtable to promote business, government, educational and civic cooperation to tackle new and emerging opportunites.
· A task force to address DURT, or delay, uncertainty, regulations and taxes that impede economic growth.
· An elite athletic initiative to explore and develop an industry drawing on the region’s recreational resources.
The teams will work on strategies to implement each of the initiatives and deliver their findings at an Action Summit scheduled for August.
