Why is Chris Nordyke Doing This?
November 4, 2009 50 Comments
I have a strong sense that Corvallis is in a precarious position. Many articles and blog posts have already made similar assertions, so I’ll unpack that some more another day.
Let me quickly define my ideal for Corvallis, at a 30,000 ft view: that 10 years from now, Corvallis is a destination for young professional families and a hot-bed of growth companies. With OSU among us, this is one possible outcome for Corvallis, and one I feel is worth pursuing- aggressively.
As a community, we’ve spent countless resources on economic development, to virtually no avail thus far. We’ve had a smattering of small victories, but the net effect is modest at best. Something has to change.
I don’t have the answers per se, I’m simply willing and motivated to give my thoughts in an honest manner, give of my time, and according to my ability give my resources.
WeLoveCorvallis is a first step in identifying what we’re doing right, and what we’re doing wrong. To engage the community at large in conversations that until now, have previously been silo’d in meeting rooms, coffee shops, or board rooms. Transparency is a goal of WeLoveCorvallis, and that resonates with me.
The path to self-awareness is an uncomfortable process I myself am being challenged on as an emerging entrepreneur and community volunteer. It requires people who care about us to give us candid feedback and point out where we need to change. It demands transparency and candor.
I consider transparency, candor, and constructive criticism all highly valuable in the way I do business, in my friendships and my relationships with my family. I don’t see any reason why it won’t add value to our community, despite the fact it may occasionally be painful in the short run.
I have full confidence in those that have participated with me thus far on WeLoveCorvallis. There are no selfish personal agendas here. Just people that love Corvallis and are willing to give of their time in the hopes of it moving Corvallis forward.
I am fine receiving open criticism for my role here on WLC. If you feel I have wrong motives or the wrong approach, I’d love it if you would publicly comment, but if you aren’t comfortable doing that, please feel free to call me (990-8050).
To a stronger Corvallis…
Cheers,
Chris
Chris Nordyke, City Leadership, Community, Popular Posts
Well said, man. The conversations have to start somewhere and I think you are the guy to get it started.
Well said Chris.
Occasionally when I have a negative experience with a business, I don’t care enough to have a potentially uncomfortable exchange. I keep my thoughts to myself. By not providing that business with feedback to effect a positive change I am knowingly spiteful.
Do we as a community love Corvallis enough to have potentially uncomfortable discussions for the sake of positive change? I think we do.
Chris,
Thanks for sharing a bit of your vision, and your motivations. Corvallis is a complex town with a real conundrum around growth, where on the one hand, we want a high quality of life, and on the other, we want to limit the businesses that fund that quality of life. Its a fine balance. An open conversation that is honestly engaged in integrity can help us find the right point of economic vitality and/or to use the well worn phrase “prosperity that fits”.
The balance needs to be somewhere between a “chique” retirement community, and an “uncentered” college town. We need to have a community with families, workers, doers. Not just students, service jobs and retirees.
I think I speak for many folks in Corvallis when I say that I’d like a Corvallis that my kids could come back to if they chose, and find a job and raise a family. A Corvallis where if someone is laid off from HP or OSU due to restructuring there are options other than packing up the family and leaving town. One with enough living wage jobs so that the schools are vibrant (not shuttered), and residents enjoy a good quality of life, and don’t have to leave town to grab a meal, see a movie or buy underwear.
Lets see what it will take to achieve our common vision.
Thanks Katherine. Particularly the underwear part. You shouldn’t have to leave town for that :)
Honestly, I have left town for that for years. Its ridiculous.
Honestly, is it that you can’t find underwear at a brand-name store, or are you wanting something of the big-box variety? (store not the underwear, lol) I understand some of the complaints about the “lack of shopping in Corvallis” but truly, what is there that you can’t find from one of our local merchants if you’re not concerned with the logo on the tag?
In the recent past, citizens who love Corvallis have had open and honest discussions about this community and its future. From those public forums emerged the CSC plan, the PTF plan, and the overarching Vision 2020 Statement.
Who has read these documents? Do you agree with all/some/none of what is proposed for the future of Corvallis? Given a good grasp of the purpose, what do you think of the process? Are things being done too quickly, too slowly? Are the priorities mis-ordered?
Given a good grasp of the purpose and the process, what is it you propose? What is being done we should do more of? What is being done we should cease? And what isn’t being done that needs doing?
Corvallis seems to love to have conversations. I think what would be more beneficial to getting Corvallis to the future it has already conversed long and hard about is for all those who love Corvallis to invest their passion and energy and brains and brawn in doing.
Corvallis loves having polite exchanges. Corvallis is a little afraid of candor. We tend to be passive/aggressive in my experience (26 years here).
Corvallis has a tough time wrestling through contentious issues.
I believe this is why we have a hard time taking action, because despite lots of conversations, we still haven’t dealt with the hard stuff publicly. We haven’t taken things head on.
One issue that falls under this assertion is the topic of “sustainability”. Many in Corvallis have an emotional, ney, religious vigor around “sustainability” that up to this point has slowed or prevented meaningful action steps.
“Sustainability” is the untouchable. If the business community decries a sustainability initiative due to it being impractical or damaging to economic vitality, that business leader or group is publicly marginalized as being draconian or self-serving.
Most of the time, these issues just simmer beneath the surface, people drag their feet, and everything remains hamstrung in a never-ending conversation.
No one wants to be the “fall guy”.
This needs to end. We’re going to have to make some tough, pragmatic decisions as a community, and it will require some constructive arguing, what might be perceived as “fighting”, and honest engagement that we’ve yet to have.
So , to address your point Curtis, I don’t believe we’ve done a good job yet of having good conversations in our community. I think they’ve been uber-polite and largely ineffectual.
And this stems from an overall lack of trust, or concern that if someone airs their honest opinion, they might be attacked personally. (as opposed to their view or opinion being rebutted.)
I’d love it if some people from PTF or Vision 20/20 would talk about the most important “Next Steps” that have yet to take place.
Perhaps some young, brawny upstarts like me would be willing to put some muscle behind them if we were pointed in the right direction.
Also, I’m curious, what does the PTF consultant that the Chamber hired have to say about our progress? Do they have any recommendations about what next? Are we doing what the suggested? I heard we were supposed fund a coordinator position to spearhead and manage the action items…
I have to admit that I’ve been hesitant to even comment here, not because I don’t have a strong opinion or certainly not because I don’t love Corvallis.
It just seems like in Corvallis (and probably everywhere, really) whenever someone suggests something that doesn’t fit the typical Corvallis mold, not only does he get immediately shot down and it often involves some kind of scolding or name calling.
I know Corvallis is great about planning and meetings and action groups and all that, but I have to agree with Chris, that doesn’t really seem to be getting us very far yet. It took almost 10 years to build the riverfront park for crying out loud.
Heaven forbid Katherine mention that sometimes you have to go out of town to buy something! As a long-time resident, I spend as much money as I possibly can in town, and if I can’t buy it here usually try for Albany next, and then *gasp* Salem, Eugene or most likely Portland. What’s wrong with wanting more choices here in town. I’m not looking for sprawl on the scale of Vancouver, Wash., but if a company wants to come to Corvallis, let’s let the market (the people, with their wallets) decide whether or not they can make it.
I think I fall in the category of most people that I don’t think I should have to forgo a brand of shoes, socks or underwear that I like just because it’s not sold here in town. I also don’t expect someone to use the services of our business just because we’re local. If you think you can get better service, product or value elsewhere, that’s great. That’s what makes us all better at what we do, and in the end, that might be the best kind of sustainability any of us in Corvallis could hope for.
Well said, Ryan!
Thank you for contributing Ryan. I’d like to share something I think is related to supporting local businesses.
I go out of my way to eat at El Sol de Mexico on 9th. They don’t have the best food (though I like it) and it is not the lowest cost meal. I also have to drive across town to get to it.
I choose to spend money at El Sol because I like supporting the owner and his staff. That provides value to me that trumps service, quality and price.
Hope we see more of you here Ryan!
I love shopping at Peak Sports. I used to think I had to spend more money to shop there. Always thought I was “taking one for the team” by paying the extra 10% or so- in fact I mentioned that to them last time I bought something. (Something to the effect of, ” they had this on sale at abc.com, but you guys are great and local, so here I am.”)
They then informed me that they are happy to match prices, that they appreciate me giving them the business and are more than willing to make a bit less to give me a great deal.
Not only is dang near every employee in that store uber-knowledgeable and wears the stuff they sell, but the store wants to be competitive on price.
Great Corvallis business. Happy to feed my tech-clothing addiction there.
I think there is an unnecessary conflagration for some people of “growth” and “allowing more chain stores” into Corvallis. This isn’t the only thing being discussed here, but one thing I like about Corvallis is that we don’t look like every other generic town in the U.S. yet, even with all of the corporate chains on 9th St.
I get disgusted by the sameness encountered when I drive across the country. Nearly every town, every suburb looks like the next one, mostly because distinguishing characteristics of each place have been destroyed as more efficient corporate chains have come in and wiped out local, independent competition by virtue of said efficiency and marketing dollars. Why? Because people do vote with their dollar and many are either too selfish or don’t have the means to spend more at a local shop instead of heading to a chain. Let more chains in and more local businesses will suffer.
I think we’re fortunate to have a community in Corvallis that attempts to maintain the character of the town, sometimes at the expense of the growth that has turned many other towns into clones of one-another. I have no problem with supporting or promoting growth, but growth does not need to mean inviting in more corporate retail establishments.
Thanks for your comments Sean.
Interesting though- Robnett’s Hardware and many community folks swore that Home Depot was going to put them out of business and how many years ago was that?
Also, what impact do you think Borders had on Book Bin? Because many people were afraid and angry about the prospect of Borders putting them out of business. Interesting that Bob Baird invested in a new location (bought a building) and has had some of his best years ever since Borders moved to town.
I am sure there are other examples of this.
Worth re-considering our dogmatic positions on local vs chain. Just sayin…
Chris, from what I’ve seen, there is no statistical evidence that chain stores help local businesses, aside from anecdotes like the ones you mentioned. Certainly local anecdotes are powerful, but they shouldn’t trump scientific study when it comes to decision-making. One such study that has been widely reported, and I suspect you’re familiar with, is in regard to how Wal*Mart systematically kills local business when it moves into a new town.
If there has been any research done to support the idea that bringing in chains actually helps local businesses, I’d be happy to reconsider my opinion. Until such research is presented, however, the “dogma” of chains being bad for local business is actually the most rational position available, based on available facts.
Dogma is a better description for the idea that “growth is always good.” Although not explicitly stated here, this assumption ought to be questioned in light of the limited resources available on this planet.
Thanks for starting this discussion.
Sean-
Google Pleasanton, CA. It is a town somewhat like Corvallis. 66k people, a bit closer to metro San Fran than we are to Portland. Very wealthy- similar to Corvallis.
They have a Walmart and other box chains. They also have a vibrant downtown association with over 700 members- most local or regional businesses.
Again, anecdotal. However, I believe it’s a great story of a town faced with transition, responding well. The local businesses decided to compete on something other than price.
My guess is they worked out a way to fill niche needs- stuff you can’t get at Home Depot or Walmart. And they worked to create a value-filled shopping experience for their customers.
My whole point, is not that Big Boxes help local businesses, but rather that big box and local can co-exist successfully. The net effect is more money staying in town.
Pleasanton, CA may be comparable to Corvallis, OR in size. I don’t know if one can compare it in many other ways. It is home to Safeway corporate headquarters. Oracle and Kaiser Permanente have offices in the Hacienda Business park.
If you look at the census data for both cities in th year 1999, you find that the median household income for Pleasanton, CA is $90,859, while Corvallis, OR had $35,236. That’s much more than twice as much median income, which means there’s a lot more money there to support local business.
Also of note in the census data, Pleasanton, CA had only 1,619 individuals and 283 families below poverty level, while Corvallis, OR had a whopping 9,166 individuals and 975 families below poverty level. I wouldn’t be surprised if there is or was a bit of an economic disparity between the people who shop at a WalMart for clothing and other household items and the people whom support Pleasanton’s local businesses.
To be very honest, I can’t afford to shop downtown, I really wish I could. I just haven’t been able to bring in a steady income for myself, and there’s a long story behind that fact that I may share one day. For many people, it’s not a matter of getting a Mountain Hardware rain coat at Peak Sports or online; it’s a matter of obtaining the cheapest, possibly not even entirely water resistant, coat vs. something more expensive with less money left for other necessities. This means they are going to the cheapest place, like Fred Meyer, WalMart, Target, Ross, ARC Resale, OSU Thrift, or even Vina Moses (the last three in the case of Corvallis). Even the first three stores mentioned may be a stretch for some people in Corvallis.
We may have the HP campus, OSU, Good Sam, ONAMI, AVI Biopharma, Strands, Fiserve, Marvell and Nypro; but we don’t have the capability to employ the number of people in well paid positions needed to support the downtown businesses.
How do we create a model of businesses and education and attract the funding to be able to move towards being more like Pleasanton, CA?
Corvallis, OR Census Info
Pleasanton, CA Census Info
Chris, I still haven’t seen the case for why it’s important to have more chain retailers in Corvallis. There appears to be some pretty good reasoning for that position that it’s better to keep them out.
As previously mentioned, I’m not aware of any general study that shows inviting chain retailers to a town actually helps the people that already live there. To the contrary, I’ve read articles on WalMart hurting town after town and seen the negative, homogenizing impact of chain stores invading every place I’ve lived. I’ve also read that, in order to attract the “creative class” which often precedes economic growth, a town needs to foster unique, interesting places to shop, eat, and hang out by nurturing independent businesses. I don’t see how big box retailers or chain stores could help in that regard.
One point you haven’t contradicted is that, as more chain stores come to a town, that town starts looking more like generic Anytown, USA. Would you be okay with that? I would prefer to live in a place that is interesting and quirky, even if that means slower growth.
I understand that growth for the sake of growth would be good for your business – it means more potential customers. However, I would bet that people who live here and don’t depend on local customers for their livelihood, like me, would far prefer to maintain character at the expense of some growth. And there are probably more than a few local business owners who would prefer to keep the chains out.
Also, Jillian makes some excellent points. The median income has got to affect how willing people are to spend extra money to support local businesses. I think the goal should be to foster more high wage positions here rather than sacrificing the character of Corvallis for more minimum wage jobs. If minimum wage jobs are the goal, let’s figure out how to support unique independent businesses that can serve markets the corporate chains are after.
Excellent points all around.
I spoke too soon in drawing a comparison between Corvallis and Pleasanton. I humbly stand corrected.
I should point out though, at no point did I say I was in favor of big box stores and chains. In fact, I choose to spend my money as often as possible at locally owned shops and restaurants.
In no way am I asserting that we ought to pursue big retail. I am suggesting that we should not make it our position as a community to keep them out.
I think it is possible to co-exist, if a community, that is voting with it’s dollars says they want/need a particular big box retailer. I don’t think big retail is the enemy. I also don’t think they’re a friend. They are simply a reality of our business landscape.
I think it’d be particularly comfortable if several of the online insurance outlets went away. I don’t think we need them. I prefer my brand of local business and think that generally it benefits the community at large more significantly.
Would I be party to banning them from Corvallis or Oregon, or doing business in the US because they’ve found a way to compete with me. No!
I instead respond by upping my game, differentiating, and seeking to better connect with my customer in a more meaningful way than they can manage at their scale.
I support independent business with my words and my cash.
If I am johnny lunch bucket and I have a cool shop, what if I’m successful and I grow? I build a bigger shop because people want to buy more from me. Then I build a store in Albany, an even bigger one, and then in Eugene, then in New York.
At what point do I fall out of favor with my community? I say, it’s when I cease to cherish my customer, and at that point, the next guy down the street has an opportunity to compete, regardless of my size.
The issue for me is excellence. No business deserves a free pass because they are local, or big, or rich , or needy.
Again, because somehow this was lost in translation of my earlier comment. I am a wholehearted supporter of local independent businesses. Anyone who knows me personally can vouch for that.
The one issue you haven’t commented on is that limited big box stores actually draw business to the smaller businesses. I know a lot of people who go to Albany to go to Costco. Because they are there already, they have lunch at a local Albany restaurant – if they need shoes because they are in Albany already they’ll go to an Albany shoe store. If they happen to be downtown looking for shoes or having their lunch, they’ll drop in on the local antique shops.
There is such a thing as wanting to be too “isolationist”. I also shop local as much as I can and have always advocated doing so. Our local businesses support our community and the money stays here and benefits the community. But when Dr. Ringold told us that OSU students spend more than 30 million a year outside of our town and that the biggest segment of business for Enterprise Rent-A-Car is OSU students on shopping trips to Eugene or Salem or Portland, it was time to review Corvallis policy.
Since then the mall on 9th street has opened with the Dress Barn as well as some smaller independents downtown with really cute things. I’d love to know if the stats have changed at all.
Katherine – by the way – have you tried Donna Bella’s for underwear – really knowledgeable staff – lovely stuff – bit pricey but worth it.
Donna Bella’s is a great place. They do have some good values there, but I will agree most of it is a bit pricey.
Corvallis’ low (compared to Pleasanton) household income numbers, and high poverty numbers are a function of the large number of un-and-under-employed college students here. Approximately 20,000 OSU students as part of a city of approximately 54,000 people will dramatically skew all manner of demographic and psychographic data.
I find it ironic that “chain stores” are so widely condemned by some of our community who are embracing Trader Joe’s with open arms.
That was a general observation, by the way, not a comment directed at anyone here.
And since there is a thread of discussion regarding shopping, i would really like to see local store stay open a bit longer. Radiance by Design (awesome new store in the Renaissance building by Enoteca) is open until 7pm They are busy in the evening. Why does most of downtown close at 5:30?
If I work from 8 until 5, and want to do some shopping after work where do I go? Fred Meyer?
Marcy,
We only blacklist the chains that we don’t like. Trader Joes happens to be a “unique” chain that gets our stamp of approval.
Curtis,
Thank you for bringing that up- I had forgotten that. I thought $35k seemed extremely low given the wealth of our community. Your reminder also brings perspective to the 9k individuals below the poverty line. Makes sense, given those numbers include university students, over 30% of our community population.
To see a break down of income by population and industry, take a look at http://bit.ly/CVOdata . All values for industry pay are from 2001 and are an average of private and government data for Benton County. All population values are taken from the 2000 census. I might get around to breaking down the values for Pleasanton, CA for comparison, but there is preliminary data. Take a gander at all three worksheets.
Retail, Really?! Is that all we should be talking about here? I recognize that the Chamber’s focus is on retail, but surely, there are deeper, more systemic issues we could be focusing on.
Difficult questions were asked at last week’s WIN event about what the economic development focus of Corvallis is. Is it really to become the best place to go shopping?
Sure, we all want to be able to go out and find the things we want and need as easily and readily as possible, but is setting up new stores, big or small “box” the full answer to creating a thriving, vital community.
I saw a lot of excitement last week at WIN throughout the day, and very little of it had to do with the thought of having one more boutique store in town (I DO like a nice boutique store BTW).
The exciting things were those that piqued poeple’s interest and belief that maybe something different could be done. What that difference is, I don’t know… That’s where I trust my tax dollars are going – to leaders and organizatinos that KNOW how to spark economic development and not continue doing the same ol’ same ol’… Where is THAT leadership?
The Chamber is NOT only focused on retail. Please let me disavow you of that notion.
We have more traded sector non-retail business members than not, and significant resources, time and effort are spent on economic development.
There are committees focused on what is called “retail” which are the businesses that make and/or sell products and services predominantly locally.
There is also an economic development team focused on “traded sector” which are those businesses that predominantly make and/or sell products and services that are exported outside of the local community.
The two groups have quite different needs for their participation in the Chamber, and hopefully folks from both groups will feel welcome here, and will answer Chris’s open question about what services they would value.
To do a bit of a primer on Corvallis-Benton Chamber Coalitions Economic Development charter…which we brought in from the former Economic Development partnership when the organizations merged 3 years ago to reduce the combined overhead and deliver greater services to the community,
The core concept for the economic development model for Corvallis/Benton County is economic gardening, and the chamber staff and volunteers works with a large number of regional partners, including the BEC, WNHS and LBCC to serve hundreds of members and non members annually on everything it takes to go from a person with a concept to a fledgling business to a larger entity. This includes advice and support on everything from writing a business plan, to finding key staff members, to legal connections, to start up weekends, to business boot camp, to peer networking groups (e-tailing for example) to finding funding (SWOT and Willamette Angel Conference). That is in addition to the work done under separate contract on behalf of the Airport Industrial park and Enterprise Zone in South Corvallis. If you’d like more information, contact me, or John Sechrest, and we’d be happy to share a whole lot more.
Thank you for that information Katherine. Its clear that there is an opportunity for information and understanding to be delivered here.
I am very interested in the economic development team focused on “traded sector”. Is there a window into that activity that you can direct me to?
Katherine and John, Please treat this entire website as a standing request for more information. John, yourself and many other leaders have recieved personal invitations to post articles here. Those invitations are standing.
I am really hoping that John and other Chamber staff will join us here soon.
We want to know what is going on. Anything that can help that effort is valuable and desired.
[...] outreach here at http://www.WeLoveCorvallis.com from two committee members, Curtis Wright and Mark [...]
Chris, thanks for the conversation here and thanks to all of you for sharing. I was born and raised here and left for 35 years and then returned five years ago. Corvallis is one of the most “interesting” places I have lived. It is also unique in many ways.
But what I observe again and again is partly touched upon in an unintentional way, I am sure. by you Chris in your initial vision for Corvallis, “…that 10 years from now, Corvallis is a destination for young professional families…”
What is so often missing from conversation are the voices of the 9,166 individuals and 975 families below poverty level that Jillian mentioned. Corvallis may be a destination for young professional families (in other words, someone just like you Chris), but what about those who pump gas, wait tables at El Sol de Mexico, or ring up your bill for underwear or a screwdriver from Home Depot or Robinett’s? A quarter of our elementary school children qualify for free or reduced price lunch. Housing costs in Corvallis are well beyond many working families. I chose to buy a home in Albany because I could not afford and would not pay the high home prices in Corvallis. So I commute and have Corvallis school administrators who live a block or two from me in Albany for the same reason and some teachers down the street.
We have rising underemployment in Corvallis (anecdotal on my part, but I would have to be convinced this isn’t true). We are a community of retirees, upper middle class professionals, students and the working (hopefully) poor. Class divisions as well as racial and ethnic divisions are as pronounced here as any place that I have lived.
We talk about retail and shopping locally while a quarter of our community can’t afford to buy school lunches and make the drive to Lebanon to shop at Walmart.
I have no solutions to recommend. I am not even sure that I can identify the problems very well. But, I do know that there is far more poverty in Corvallis than when I was growing up here. One consequence is that our public schools have become the largest social service provider in the city and county. Schools provide more free meals than any other organization in addition to clothing, counseling, and a specialist who works with homeless students to meet their medical, housing, food and personal needs to try and keep them in school. Meanwhile we are concerned about Bald Hill Farms and their ground beef for $4.59 a pound. You can buy organic bones for $1.79 a pound there when a fourth of the families in Corvallis are struggling to buy hamburger at Winco on sale for less. What is wrong with this picture?
Welcome Fred, good to see you here. I believe I understand your point and would generally agree. The opportunity to “say no to Walmart” is a privileged condition that many in Corvallis do not have. Any conversation about “big box” in Corvallis should keep that in mind.
I do not think it is fair to mix the Bald Hill issue in with this point however. The price of beef at Bald Hill Farms has nothing to do with the City’s decision to close their businesses. I oppose the City in this case because I don’t want them closing any business in Corvallis without an extremely clear and good reason.
I suspect that Bald Hill Farms would create a few jobs that would enable a local family to afford school lunch for their children.
Need to chime in here on the cost of housing in Corvallis, since Fred brought it up. Corvallis was the first city in Oregon to have annexation by vote. That came about because during the City Council annexation hearings for HP locating in Corvallis in the ’70s, a consultant testified that if HP did come to Corvallis the population would grow to 110,000 in 10 years. (Not an exact quote — relying on memory here.) No one wanted rampant growth like that, so a grass roots effort to have growth determined by the people went into play and was successful.
Of course since that time Corvallis has come nowhere near 110,000 residents. However, the annexation by vote process has created an implied climate of no-growth and has kept housing prices in a bubble. It’s simple supply and demand.
Now, I’m not saying that I want residential growth at a pace that is unsustainable, but the unintended consequence of controlling growth in this way has created an economic disparity by keeping “affordable” housing outside Corvallis. We still need workers in lower wage positions. They can’t afford to live here because we can’t get housing developed here. (Witham Oaks, anyone?)
It isn’t about develpers being greedy (hey, they have to pay 60% of the costs of development!) but about a reluctance to increase available affordable housing in Corvallis through development codes and annexation by vote.
We have engaged in this conversation for many, many years in the Chamber and business community. Not much has changed!
Marcy, thanks for your comment! You put your finger on the core issue with housing as I see it. It isn’t greed. It really is supply and demand and supply is strongly influenced by development codes and annexation by vote!
Many decisions have been made over the years as a reaction to what was believed would be significant population growth in Corvallis. That is why Crescent Valley High School was built back around 1970 at that location. I know of churches then that bought property around CVHS for future church development and later sold it when it became clear that the projected growth in that area was not going to happen.
Loyan, thanks for the welcome. My point about Bald Hill Farms wasn’t clearly stated in my “personal emotive moment.” :-) What I really was getting at is that there is significant energy around the issue of Bald Hill Farms. That appears to me to be in sharp contrast to the energy expended on making Corvallis a prosperous community in which lower wage workers can “fit.” That simply stands out for me in the conversations that I hear around the community. It seems to me to be sometimes sound more like prosperity that “fits” the vision of a privileged segment of our city.
I really have no beef with Bald Hill Farms or its customers (pun intended) and regret that the code may not accomodate their business. I know there is a deeper issue there and that it could be nearly any business (other than a big box chain) that the code is effecting adversely. Although I have to wonder if that is really true? What if it wasn’t an organic farm selling its products? What if it was a corn dog stand? I just wonder, that’s all… Go Beavs!
Fred,
I am sympathetic to your concern and compassion for the poor. However, the numbers actually tell a very different story in Corvallis.
The university students dramatically skew the poverty numbers in Corvallis, hence the 9100ish “individuals” under the poverty line. Being a university town means that we have also have lots of families “living below the poverty line”, many by choice. Cara and I count many of these families as friends.
Often these people supplement their income with student loans and credit cards. Obviously this is not preferrable, but it is their choice, and it is for a season of time. Most of these families enter the “middle income” bracket after 4-6 years of time here in Corvallis.
There is no doubt that we have poverty in this town, and probably much more than people realize, but I believe the data is heavily skewed.
I am also very closely aware of abuse of the school lunch program. We can argue about this, but people in the school district would confidentially acknowledge the same thing.
Fred, thanks for participating on the site. Please keep contributing, your perspective and feedback is needed and appreciated, even if we occasionally disagree.
Cheers, Chris
@ChrisNordyke, I agree that most of the data is skewed in some manner. Part of what is skewed is the poverty line itself. It is actually really high in Benton county. The other part that might be skewed is the household income, and per capita income is quite skewed. The data I think is a little less skewed are the data from families in the table in the following link (mind the margin of error though):
http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/ADPTable?_bm=y&-geo_id=16000US4115800&-qr_name=ACS_2008_3YR_G00_DP3YR3&-ds_name=ACS_2008_3YR_G00_&-_lang=en&-_sse=on
If you want some data on how the employment numbers in Corvallis has changed over time, go see http://bit.ly/CVOecon (numbers in light grey represent numbers from before the 2000 NAICS was implemented)You can also find comparisons between here and Pleasanton, CA.
Speaking of Pleasanton, CA: I actually think it is a good model to look at and draw contrasts and comparisons. I know I’m contradicting what I said in earlier posts, but I’ve looked at the data more. I think we can see a few areas that really need be focused on — those are highlighted in green and yellow in the Industry Comparison tab. They’ve have done a good job with keeping an amazing set of industries in their city. As a side note, I have a relative who just recently moved from Oregon for a job in Pleasanton. I don’t know his exact job, but I’m sure it’s in the Information sector. What could Corvallis do to attract more jobs and more talent like that?
Chris, Yes, it is OK to disagree, my friend!
I recognize that the statistics for those in Corvallis living below the poverty line are skewed by lower income university students.
I know that there is certainly some abuse of the free and reduced price lunch program in the school district. It has informative for me that this past year the annual random sample in which 3% of the families are required to document their resources led to no changes in the status of those sampled. That indicates to me that the free or reduced price lunch rates have some strong validity as an indicator of economic conditions.
I am looking right now at the latest student count and find that nearly a third of public school students are in that category. So I am not quick to claim that, “…the numbers tell a very different story here.”
@marcye435 Thanks for what you said. I’ll reiterate, Corvallis needs to find what will really work for the city and for encouraging the right industries to move in and employ the talent that we have here without causing excessive growth?
Why do people here fear growth so much? It can be controlled in other ways to prevent it from being discordant with the towns current feel. What do you think it will take to change peoples’ minds about the annexation by vote? What else has the city ruled that makes it hard on growth?
To any local entrepreneurs: What is it about Corvallis that makes it hard to start a business?
About 20 years ago, Pleasanton, CA looked a lot like we do now industry, income, and population wise. They have only grown to have approximately 65,000 people. They are a very good model of what Corvallis could do.
Can anyone tell me how many stores have had to shut down because Home Depot came to town? How many people have a job because of Home Depot instead of having to go elsewhere for a job? How many restuarants have shut down because of Applebee’s or Ruby Tuesday? If you want to talk “Big Box” impact you need not look further than a click away right now, the internet! Let’s get real, if you have a good product or service and people are willing to pay for it you will be successful. American Dream Pizza is a prime example this. Block 15 is an unbelievable success story. If we took every “Chain” store/restuarant away, it doesn’t mean the locals would be booming. They need to be good at what they do. Those that are good will be successful, chain store in existance or not.
Jillian, one thing Pleasanton has that we don’t is an International Airport 30 miles away. One of the greatest complaints I have heard over the years from business leaders about Corvallis is the distance to PDX. For company execs, 4+ hours of down time to get to the airport, check in and try to find a place to plug in your laptop waiting for your flight is a killer. Shuttles don’t have privacy for conference calls or even using your laptop.
A flight out of PDX always used to cost me an extra day in travel time. Flying out of Eugene is easier, but much more expensive and with fewer desinations. For most trips, you wind up going to PDX or SEA anyway!
The international nature of high tech businesses requires access to airports. That’s just one stumbling block for Corvallis since we can’t change geography, but one we have to be cognizant of as we try to recruit businesses for economic stability.
Jillian, there may also be some external topographic and boundary limitations to Pleasanton’s growth that we don’t face here. Pleasanton has the regional park and Pleasanton Ridge to the west, the cities of Dublin on the north and Livermore on the east and hills to the south and southeast. Pleasanton is a major Bay Area center for corporate headquarters and centers even beyond those that you listed.
Still, it would be interesting to consider what cities we would consider as models or benchmarks for our development? Who has done development well and how?
The Chamber actually did a study several yearss ago of college communities similar to Corvallis and the business composition of those towns. It was the basis for one of our business plans. Perhaps we can unearth it and update it? Anyone at the Chamber know if it’s still in the archives?
Marcy, that would be interesting and it would be equally interesting if some time has passed to see how those communities have changed since the study was done. It would be fascinating to know which communities were studied and what criteria were used to select them!
@Todd W. Tum-a-lum and Copeland’s were already gone or on their way out, but since Home Depot we’ve lost the large contractor’s hardware on 53rd and two Corvallis Hardware Stores. I don’t know the exact circumstances behind their closures, but the only independent’s left are Robnett’s and Spaeth’s–which, by the way, has gone out of its way to improve its customer service with a Pirate Theme.
Todd is absolutely correct — locally owned businesses need to be good at what they do. That goes beyond a quality product; they have to be responsive to customers and provide a level of service the chains don’t or can’t provide. Businesses fail for a lot of reasons, but if they face competition by reinventing and differentiating themselves rather than fight it, they can flourish.
Reinvention is an art. Look at The Inkwell Home Store. How many of you were in Corvallis when it was just an art supply store? Pat & Amy have grown that business into a downtown achor, but they had to adapt and change to keep it going. We lost the Happy Cooker in Timberhill, and Pat & Amy picked up the merchandise they carried to ensure customers could continue to get those product lines.
Perhaps we need to help our local businesses celebrate their successes more.