local frozen food company. This agreement led to an estimated 80 new jobs at an hourly rate of $7.30. The food processor saved $110,000. The poultry farmer became eligible for Targeted Jobs tax credits, thus saving $189,000 in federal income tax. Despite their successful work, the Buy Eugene campaign found itself without the sort of money it would need to continue. By the founders’ own admission, there was a greater emphasis on facilitating matches than collecting fees. Perceiving the possibility of implementing a similar program state-wide and looking for a more stable funding base, NEDCO approached the state legislature. Oregon Marketplace was bom in 1986 through an initial contract of $441,000 from the Oregon Department of Economic Development. Regional programs began in 29 of Oregon’s 36 counties. In the first full year of the program, matches totaled one million dollars. In the following year, through a unanimous vote of the legislature the organization was reauthorized and the matches climbed to $1.2 million. Oregon Marketplace has continued to grow. Between 1987 and 1989 it brought approximately 3 million dollars worth of new business to the state. Between 1989 and 1992 this figure skyrocketed to over $70 million, with roughly the same budget. This dramatic change was the result of an expanded program to identify and screen global opportunities for Oregon industries. For instance, the Marketplace has worked very closely in assisting local environmental industries to secure contracts for the cleanup of the aquifer in Hanford, Washington. The Marketplace found an international market for the straw that grass seed farmers have traditionally burned, making it more economically feasible to remove a serious air pollution hazard in the Willamette Valley. No local production at the time could accommodate the straw. Oregon has a long history of shipping raw logs out of state for processing. The Marketplace works actively to secure out-of-state contracts for value-added wood products, which would keep more jobs and monies local. The current executive director of the Oregon Marketplace, Rollie Wisbrock, argues that this move into the international arena is essential. “We can only create the sustainability, meaning the long-term diversity that an economy depends on, by supporting our local vendors globally.” The success of the Oregon Marketplace experiment has led to its adoption in other states and regions, including Nebraska, Minnesota, Washington and many parts of Canada. Oregon Marketplace does not see these other programs as competition. On the contrary, for very modest consulting fees, they have helped most of these organizations start-up. Wisbrock is “excited about tbe possibility of RAIN Spring 1993 Volume XIV, Number 3 Page 21
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