HomeMy WebLinkAboutItem 2: Economic Development Subcommittee Report
JEO
OINT LECTED FFICIALS
AIS
GENDA TEM UMMARY
Regional Economic Development
Meeting Date: June 1, 2009 Agenda Item Number: 2
Department: Planning and Development Staff Contact: Jon Ruiz, Gino Grimaldi, Jeff Spartz
www.ci.eugene.or.us Contact Telephone Number for Jon Ruiz: 682-5336
ISSUE STATEMENT
At the March Joint Elected Officials (JEO) meeting, members expressed interest in holding a Regional
Economic Summit to coordinate a collaborative response to the current situation and formed a sub-
committee (ED Task Force) for this purpose. The ED Task Force, composed of members from the City
of Eugene Council, City of Springfield Council and Lane County Board of Commissioners has been
working together over the past few months to create a framework for a regional economic development
plan that will better position our regional economy to take advantage of economic opportunities that
align with our area’s assets and values. The ED Task Force recommends that the JEO approve the
framework described below to ensure continued and timely progress on creating a regional economic
development plan.
BACKGROUND
The citizens of the Eugene-Springfield metro area have felt the burden of the financial crisis more so
than in other counties and other states. The decline in local jobs, coupled with an increased demand for
social services, is putting a strain on city, county and state programs. The Eugene-Springfield metro
area unemployment rate in April 2009 was 13%, a 7.9 percentage point increase over the last year,
which is slightly higher than the state unemployment rate of 12.1%. The decline in the availability of
local jobs has put increased pressure on social services. The number of cases in the federal Temporary
Assistance for Needy Families program for our local district has increased 18.5 percentage points over
the past year. The number of applications for low-income housing in Lane County in 2008 increased 13
percentage points compared to the previous year. These programs are indicative that the economic crisis
has significantly impacted our local economy and that the need for a regional, long-term plan is present.
Designing Our Next Economy
#1. Process:
The framework for designing our next economy is a multi-step process and will include
input from industry experts, representatives from various organizations/affiliations and outreach to the
broader community. See Attachment A for the flow chart.
In the first phase of the process, a technical advisory group (TAG) of experts will compile an initial
recommendation for the second phase on specific economic opportunity areas based upon our goal and
principles. The second phase of the process will include outreach to a broader community through focus
groups with representatives from a broad array of organizations to get feedback on the economic
opportunity areas. The TAG will then present its final recommendation to the JEO for final approval.
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The ED Task Force reviewed and gave feedback on a list of potential TAG members at their May 21
meeting; the process of finalizing the TAG members is underway.
The next economy design process will conclude with an economic summit, where information will be
presented on the economic opportunity areas and on the potential support structures. Businesses,
organizations, and interested community members will discuss the support structures and provide
feedback. The goal for the TAG and the JEO is to select a limited number of economic opportunity
areas on which to focus. The goal for the Economic Summit is to gather input on the support structures
that should be used for the economic opportunity areas. Following the Economic Summit, elected
officials and others will a) review the input and refine a regional strategy and b) ratify the regional
strategy and initiate implementation to build our next economy.
#2. Goal:
By 2020, create 20,000 net new jobs in the chosen economic opportunity areas; reduce the
local area unemployment rate to, or below, the state average; and increase the average annual wage to,
or above, the state level.
#3. Principles:
The principles that will guide the development of our next economy were discussed at
length by the ED Task Force.
Healthy Living
– Championing businesses and entrepreneurs that promote a healthy, safe, and
clean community while enhancing, protecting, and making wise use of our natural resources.
Smart Growth –
Encourage a culture of entrepreneurship and re-investment into our local
community.
Be Prepared –
Develop the region’s physical, social, educational, and workforce infrastructure to
meet the needs of tomorrow.
Local Independence –
Promote local businesses and entrepreneurs that lead our area to a higher
level of economic independence and resilience.
Regional Identity –
Create a stronger economic personality that celebrates our region’s attributes
and values.
#4. Metrics:
Three metrics are recommended to measure our regional economic progress. The metrics
are relevant to our local area, timely, and have a sufficiently long history. The Lane County Business
Index, calculated by the University of Oregon, is a thorough metric to track the region’s overall
economic performance. Average employment and the unemployment rate calculated by the Oregon
Employment Department will measure our economy’s progress for the first and second components of
the goal – job creation and unemployment. To track our region’s progress towards the third component
of the goal, increasing our economy’s average wage, the average annual wage calculated by the Oregon
Employment Department is the recommended statistic. See Attachment B for additional information on
the metrics.
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JEO OPTIONS
Option 1: Approve the framework as described in this AIS and have the ED Task Force and Technical
Advisory Group bring a recommendation for economic opportunity areas to the September
JEO meeting and hold an Economic Summit in October.
Option 2: Modify the goal statement, principle statements, metrics used, and/or the process and have the
ED Task Force and Technical Advisory Group bring a recommendation for economic
opportunity areas to the September JEO meeting and hold an Economic Summit in October.
Options 3: Decline approving any framework for designing a regional economic development plan and
provide new direction for the ED Task Force.
JEO ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT TASK FORCE’S RECOMMENDATION
The ED Task Force recommends option one, which will provide the framework for the creation of a
regional economic development plan to design our area’s next economy and have the ED Task Force
and Technical Advisory Group bring a recommendation for economic opportunity areas to the
September JEO meeting and hold an Economic Summit in October.
SUGGESTED MOTION
Move to 1) approve the framework, goals, principles, and metrics presented in the AIS and 2) direct the
Joint Elected Officials’ Economic Development Task Force and staff to bring a recommendation for
economic opportunity areas to the September JEO meeting and hold an Economic Summit in October.
ATTACHMENTS
A.Designing Our Next Economy Flow Chart
B.Additional Information on the Metrics
FOR MORE INFORMATION
Staff Contact: Jon Ruiz
Telephone: 682-5336
Staff E-Mail: jon.r.ruiz@ci.eugene.or.us
Staff Contact: Gino Grimaldi
Telephone: 726-3700
Staff E-Mail: ggrimaldi@ci.springfield.or.us
Staff Contact: Jeff Spartz
Telephone: 682-4207
Staff E-Mail: jeff.spartz@co.lane.or.us
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Attachment A
Designing Our Next Economy Flow Chart
JEO 1st Meeting
Introduce Goals, Principals, Metrics, Process (June 1)
Phase1:TechnicalAdvisoryGroup
Phase1:TechnicalAdvisoryGroup
Initial compilation of five economic opportunity areas for Phase 2
Phase 2: Focus Groups
Technical Advisory Group solicits input from broader community
Final Recommendation: JEO Approval
Technical Advisory Grouppresents final recommendation in September
TechnicalAdvisoryGrouppresentsfinalrecommendationinSeptember
Economic Summit
Gather input on support structures needed for economic opportunity areas
Final Product
Regional strategy that governing bodies can ratify and implement for Our Next Econom
y
Attachment B
Additional Information on the Metrics
Lane County Business Index
The Lane County Business Index (LCBI) provides a snapshot of economic activity, on a
quarterly basis, and takes into account nine different statistics for Lane County, including Lane
County nonfarm payrolls, our local area unemployment rate, Lane County lodging revenue, and
building permits. The LCBI is updated by the University of Oregon and is specifically relevant
to our regional area. In addition, the nine components of the index create a fairly comprehensive
view of the local business activity, and thus, can be a good measure of our economy’s
performance in the absence of a timely regional Gross Domestic Product (GDP) metric. The
nine indicators are (The most recent update of the LCBI, fourth quarter 2008, and the list of nine
components is at the end of this attachment.)
Unemployment Rate Calculation
The Oregon Employment Department calculates the state and metropolitan area unemployment
rates on a monthly basis. The calculation is an estimate of the civilian labor force, follows the
Bureau of Labor Statistics definitions and technical procedures and is calculated for Lane
County.
Historical Unemployment Rate for State of Oregon and Lane County
Jan-08Apr-08Jul-08Oct-08Jan-09 Apr-09
State of Oregon 6%5.3%6.1%6.8%10.7%12.1%
Lane County 5.7%5.1%6.6%7.5%11.8%13%
Average Employment and Average Annual Wage Calculation
The Oregon Employment Department (OED) calculates the average employment and average
annual wage on an annual basis by county. The calculation includes all industries and
employment within the County that is covered by unemployment insurance. Payroll data is
submitted by all firms through their unemployment insurance tax reports. By using this detailed
reporting mechanism to calculate the average employment and average wage, OED is able to
include payroll data for the area in which the work physically takes place and where the
economic impact of the job(s) is the greatest.
Historical Average Annual Employment for Lane County:
2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
137,583 137,969 136,455 139,483 145,226 148,850 151,086 147,828
Historical Average Annual Wage for Lane County:
2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
$28,982 $29,427 $30,325 $31,339 $32,302 $33,240 $34,324 $35,367