10/08/2008 - Packet City of Tigard
City Center Advisory Commission — Agenda
MEETNG DATE: Wednesday, October 8, 2008, 6:30-8:30 p.m.
MEETING LOCATION: Tigard City Hall, Town Hall
13125 SW Hall Blvd., Tigard, OR 97223
1. Welcome and Introductions ....................................................................................................6:30— 6:35
2. Review / Approve Minutes ....................................................I................................................6:35 — 6:40
3. Housing— Goals / Objectives.................................................................................................6:40 —7:00
(Discussion)
4. Organizational Leadership—Downtown...............................................................................7:00 — 8:20
(Subcommittee / Discussion)
5. Other Business Items................................................................................................................8:20 — 8:30
J. Adjourn ......................................................................................................................................8:30 p.m.
CITY CENTER ADVISORY COMMISSION AGENDA— October 8, 2008
Cityof Tigard 1 13125 SW Hall Blvd.,Tigard,OR 97223 1 503-639-4171 1 www.tigard-or.gov I Page 1 oft
City Center Advisory Commission
= Meeting Minutes
Date of Meeting: October 8, 2008
Location: Town Hall
Called to order by: Chair Alice Ellis Gaut
Time Started: 6:38 p.m.
Time Ended: 9:10 p.m.
Commissioners Present: Chair Alice Ellis Gaut; Ralph Hughes; Kevin Kutcher; Peter
Louw; Thomas Murphy; Elise Shearer; Alexander Craghead (alternate); Linli Pao
(alternate)
Commissioners Absent: Lily Lilly; Carolyn Barkley, Martha Wong
Others Present: Marland Henderson, Lisa Olson, Mike Marr
Staff Present: Phil Nachbar, Downtown Redevelopment Manager; Doreen Laughlin,
Administrative Specialist II
AGENDA ITEM #1: Welcome and Introductions
Important Discussion and/or Comments: Introductions were made.
Action Items (Follow-Up or Votes): None
AGENDA ITEM #2: Review/Approve Minutes
Important Discussion and/or Comments:
Action Items (Follow-Up or Votes): Chair Ellis Gaut asked whether there were any
additions or corrections to the September 10, 2008 minutes. At this point, Ellis Gaut noted
the word "with" should be inserted into the minutes on page 3, top line, after `up' and
before `an' so it would read "Staff advised that the Commissioners had come up with an
earlier recommendation.. . etc." There was a motion by Commissioner Themas Murphy
(amended at 11-12-08 CCAC meeting), seconded by Commissioner Louw, to approve the
September 10, 2008 minutes, as amended. The motion was approved by a vote of 6-0.
CCAC Meeting Minutes for October 8,2008 Page t of 6
AGENDA ITEM #3: Housing— Goals / Objectives (Discussion)
Important Discussion and/or Comments:
Chair Ellis Gaut made reference to a Project Update that Phil Nachbar, Downtown
Redevelopment Manager, had sent out to the Commissioners earlier in the week
(Attachment 1). It was decided the written update would suffice and that, in light of the
rest of the business that needed to be discussed, no further discussion on the topic was
necessary. At this point, one of the Commissioners interjected that if there were dollar costs
associated with the projects on the sheet, he would like to see them. Nachbar said he could
add that and email it to them. Another Commissioner requested that he also include where
the money is scheduled to come from e.g. urban renewal dollars, a grant, or wherever.
Nachbar agreed to do that.
Ellis Gaut noted that last month they had been provided an affordable housing study. She
asked if anyone had questions or issues with regard to that. She noted that consultants had
suggested that "housing is the key to the redevelopment of the Downtown and that is what's
going to drive the market for everything else that happens there." She asked whether people
had specific things they wanted to address. With regard to the affordable housing program
study— one of the Commissioners asked whether it was based on current economic
conditions. He wondered if the 2002 data has any updates, or how it might be determined
what needs to be added or footnoted for 2008, and if the needs have changed. Nachbar
spoke to that. He said the Consolidated Housing Program Report is done annually. It's
done for all the Metro area and is broken up by county. They don't assess need; they just
basically talk about what's going on. He said it's hard to get a handle on need because
there's a seemingly endless need for affordable housing. He wasn't sure that by looking at
the studies they would come up with a number that would tell them what the need is for
Downtown. He said he'd talked this over with Sheila Greenlaw-Fink and that's her take on
it as well. He added that isn't to say we can't get a sense of how important affordable
housing may be for Downtown. That would be more of a policy issue that the commission
could address.
There was a lengthy discussion about how much affordable housing should be located
Downtown. There was another discussion about the goal for Downtown Tigard and the fact
that there needs to be traditional housing located Downtown as well.
The Commissioners discussed the amount of housing needed to support a healthy
downtown. Nachbar noted that, for any project, a developer conducts a market study to
support any financing needed. In addition, any market study has a limited period of
usefulness — typically 6 months. By matter of course, they do these for specific projects.
CCAC Meeting Minutes for October 8,2008 Page 2 of 6
There was a suggestion to do a Build-Out Study and get some estimates. There was also a
suggestion that Portland Development be contacted to see if they have any numbers they
could share so far as projecting the inclusion of housing into an urban renewal district.
Nachbar said he has some contacts there and will talk directly to them about it.
After a lengthy discussion, Ellis Gaut summarized the gist of what was being said by saying:
"What I'm hearing is that there are essentially two distinct paths being suggested: 1. Pursue
the data so they have some basis for making an evaluation, eventually, about numbers - or at
least enough to know what further data we might need, and from where; and 2. to do a
brainstorm either beginning soon, or delayed a bit until we get some of the data that would
have the goal of ending up with a list of principles related to housing and what this body
feels are important to consider as the City goes forward with redevelopment in Downtown."
The Commissioners were in agreement with those two thoughts. They said, yes — both of
those things would be going on— they are equally important. They're related, but vastly
different.
Ellis Gaut made a suggestion as to a way to proceed — first to Nachbar—What can you
capture from your contacts at PDC and anything that is readily available, and if that's
something that's able to be accomplished by the next meeting, that's great—or as much of it
as possible so we can get started looking at that. I think it will give us some ideas, and if you
can pull the Jerry Johnson stuff for the folks who might not already have it, and put it in the
packets again, that would be wonderful. Then perhaps next time we can begin discussing
that with a view towards the following meeting beginning to do a brainstorm of sorts.
Action Items (Follow-Up or Votes): Nachbar will email the costs that may be associated
with the projects he'd updated and will include where the money is scheduled to come from.
He will also talk to his contacts at Portland Development regarding projections of the
inclusion of housing into an urban renewal district. Next time the group will discuss this
with a view towards doing some brainstorming. Nachbar will include the Jerry Johnson
material in the next set of packets for those who don't already have it.
AGENDA ITEM #4: Organizational Leadership — Downtown (Subcommittee /
Discussion)
Important Discussion and/or Comment:
Ellis Gaut thanked Alternate Commissioner Craghead, and Commissioners Shearer, &
Murphy for the 9/18/08 Research Report on Downtown Associations in Oregon
(Attachment 2).
CCAC Meeting Minutes for October 8,2008 Page 3 of 6
There were two easels set up with information for the Commissioners to discuss. The first
had a set of-
Three
fThree Fundamental Questions:
1. Would a Downtown association benefit the city?
2. (If"yes" to #1) what would it look like? Would the City offer support?
3. (If"yes' how would City support (including funding and/or in-kind) be provided?
The second easel listed the following "Top Six Concepts:"
1. Broad net, inclusive, high representation
2. Organizational structure LLC, 5016, 501c6...
3. Transparency, accountability
4. Top down?—imposed / Bottom up? — organic
5. Relationship with City chamber, other organizations
6. Business development focus
There was some discussion as to whether the word "city" in the first question should be
replaced with the word "business" —as the intention was that they wanted the city—that is
Downtown Tigard / the Community— to benefit— not "the City" as in "City Hall or City
Staff."
The question was asked as to whether there is an advantage to an Association for the non-
retailers i.e. anything not retail... professional... repair... a broad mix. That's the group that
has to be sold on the idea if we're trying to have a successful Downtown organization with
participation.
They listed some of the advantages and disadvantages of having a business association for
the Downtown.
Advantages:
• Marketing the City/Downtown—possible use of a "business directory"
• Adequate Parking/Maintenance of streets (Practical)
• It would be a "Uniter" —become a voice on behalf of businesses
• Promoting and drawing of people to Downtown
• Making sure concerns & issues are heard and addressed
• Traffic issues could be addressed
• Create a "brand" image for Downtown Tigard — sense of community
• Program events at the Plaza —Possibly Farmer's Market or other events
CCAC Meeting Minutes for October 8,2008 Page 4 of 6
Disadvantages:
• Cost—businesses will not want to pay membership dues but there will most likely
have to be membership dues.
• Possible political mayhem... it becomes another body having to fight for "airtime"
• Some people may want to use it as a personal platform
• There appears to be no nexus in the research done between successful urban renewal
and a successful Downtown Association
At this point, one of the commissioners turned the attention of the meeting to the audience
members present and asked for their input into this subject:
Lisa Olson emphasized the fact that it was not "The City" that was responsible for getting
Urban Renewal, rather it was the citizens, in the form of PAC's (Political Action
Committees),who were responsible for doing the work for Urban Renewal. She noted that
the City has been there to provide meeting space, staff assistance, housekeeping tasks, etc. to
help with the process of selecting consultants, and providing education on how urban
planning works, etc. Olson said she's received a good education on urban planning and sees
that there's hope and a reason why it's important to institute an improvement plan.
Marland Henderson spoke a bit about reused water. He said he's appreciative of the City
pursuing grants in this regard. He brought this up as an example of the City talking to
citizens and working together to accomplish goals. He said he'd like to see this committee
work together with the City to accomplish other goals in equally successful ways.
Mike Marr said he's been working to improve the Downtown for about 20 years. He noted
that years ago it appeared the City wanted nothing to do with Downtown —it was a
neighborhood they'd just as soon ignore. He said a number of people, early on, were
participants, but they burned out—got tired of waiting for the City to do something. He
said that finally in 2001 or 2002 word came out that commuter rail was coming. Within the
association there was conversation about the impact that could have. As members of the
association talked about this, the City heard about it - and that was the creation of the Task
Force for Commuter Rail which led to the Task Force for Downtown Improvement. For
the next 4 years (not without some hard fights) the City stepped up to the plate and we had a
tremendous working relationship which resulted in the Downtown Improvement Plan
(TRIP). The Downtown Association has been, since its inception, for the representation of
the business and property owners. It's not another committee of the City, it's downtown
representation. Marr said he thinks any successful downtown, for its own promotion, for the
benefit of the property owners, needs to have some forum by which they can come together
as one voice to speak to the City; because the City is not made up of business people making
decisions that necessarily reflect their best interests. Marr believes there's a need for an
CCAC Meeting Minutes for October 8,2008 Page 5 of 6
Association— that we have a diamond in the rough [in the Downtown] just waiting for the
right group to make some things happen. He said we need to get through some thresholds
with regard to cooperation. He thinks the City needs to be more of a "listening post" rather
than a "talking post" and pay attention to what the needs of business are and work with
them. He noted the Downtown Association never intended to be an adversary — our whole
nature of inner relationship with the City has been trying to get some things done - but the
City—up until 2001, 2002, never even recognized that they had a partnership role in an
urban renewal environment—with or without urban renewal. He said that Tigard, in many
respects, is a few years behind most other communities and the TCBDA [Tigard Central
Business District Association] is there representing as many businesses & property owners as
possible to guide this process along. It's not that we have all the answers, that's what we seek
out consultants for, but we keep urging the City to move forward with these programs. He
said a vibrant downtown has a positive impact on the community.
Action Items (Follow-Up or Votes): It was decided to carry this discussion over to
another meeting. Nachbar will email the pros and cons the group had come up with. As a
placeholder for coming back to the discussion, the group agreed to change question number
1 to read: "Would a working relationship with a Downtown Business Association benefit
Downtown business?"
AGENDA ITEM #5: Other Business Items
Important Discussion and/or Comments: There was no other business discussed.
Action Items (Follow-Up or Votes): None
AGENDA ITEM #6: Adjourn
Important Discussion and/or Comments:
Commissioner Murphy moved to adjourn the meeting, Commissioner Hughes seconded the
motion. All were in favor. Chair Ellis Gaut adjourned the meeting at 9:10 pm.
DorL ughlin, drain. Speciali
ATTEST:
Chair Alice Ellis Gaut
CCAC Meeting Minutes for October 8,2008 Page 6 of 6
' ATTACHMENT 1
Project Updates—CCAC Meeting October 8`h
1. Burnham St. —There are 22 properties in total, 5 properties have been acquired, 5 are in the
works. The other properties are in various stages of progress. The goal is to be in a position
to bid the project in the spring 2009.
2. Lower Fanno Creek Park RFP / Contract—Walker Macy has been selected to provide final
construction document and permitting for Lower Fanno Creek Park, and is scheduled for
contract award on the October 14 consent agenda. The objective of this project is to get
ready for the start of construction of the Lower Park in Spring of 2009.
3. Stevens Marine- Plaza Site Acquisition -The City is negotiating with Stevens Marine to
develop an option agreement for the purchase of the property. So far,both parties are on
track to complete the agreement, but are discussing specific terms of interest. The City has
provided a legal draft to Stevens which has been reviewed,and is under consideration by the
City.
4. Transit Center Redevelopment—The City has drafted an Inter- Governmental Agreement
(IGA) between the City,TriMet and Metro to conduct a feasibility study of redevelopment
of the TriMet Transit Center on Commercial St. The project would be a mixed-used
(housing/ commercial/ office) on the site. An RFP will be issued by the City this fiscal
year,and TriMet has already indicated that the property will become available for
development. Developers will be contacted and included in the project as it progresses to
establish interest and potential investment.
5. Hall / 99W Study—The Leland Study identified this area as a prime location for
redevelopment and recommended that a development opportunity study of specific
properties be done to generate a real project. The project is scheduled to begin with
discussions with property owners to determine the level of interest, and the potential for a
project. If there is sufficient level of interest, a consultant will be used to assist in a
feasibility study. Developers will be contacted and a group assembled to work with the team
to provide guidance and a forum for future investment.
6. Hall / 99W Gateway Improvements - A concept plan for the first stage of a"gateway"has
been developed. The concept will be discussed with the CCDA,and the CCAC in late
November. The first stage of the plan includes widened sidewalks, street trees, and an area
for a gateway feature at the southeast corner of the intersection. Staff will evaluate the use
of development standards for a second stage of improvements that would take place when
redevelopment of the area occurs.
7. Median landscaping (Main EL)--A summary of the options for this median will be
presented to the Council for consideration in December. The CCAC will have an
opportunity to review the options and provide recommendations if desired.
8. Temporary Main St. Improvements (Potted Trees)—The addition of potted trees on Main
St. has been discussed by the CCAC and Staff. A proposal will presented to the CCAC and
Council for consideration by the end of 2008.
9. CCAC Recruitment—The recruitment has been open for two positions which will be vacant
at the end of December. The recruitment will remain open until November 1". Interviews
will take place in November for appointment by the end of the year.
ATTACHMENT 2
City of Tigard
City Center Advisory Commission
Research Report
on
Downtown Associations in Oregon
September 18, 2008
Prepared by
Subcommittee on Leadership Capacity in Downtown
Members: Alexander Craghead
Thomas Murphy
Elise Shearer
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 2
CONTENTS
Executive Summary 3
Research Questions 4
Needs Assessment 5
Leland's Context 8
Comparable Cities 10
Different Models 15
URD Only Models 19
Web Solutions 20
Failures 21
Appendix 22
Bibliography & Acknowledgments 25
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 3
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
In 2007, the City of Tigard hired the Leland Consulting Group to assist in the creation of a strategy
for implementing revitalization in its downtown core. In the resulting Downtown Strategy, Leland
recommends the creation of a downtown organization aimed at fostering private sector leadership.
This recommendation was forwarded by the City Council to the City Center Advisory Commission
(CCAC), with the charge of deterring if the recommendation should be implemented, and if so how.
The CCAC has been concerned with the complexity of such an effort, and created a subcommittee in
May of 2008 to investigate the issues surrounding the establishment of or support of a downtown
association. This document was created by that subcommittee to assist the CCAC in making a
recommendation on this subject.
What this document is not is a recommendation regarding the establishment or support of a
downtown organization. It provides no recommendation, and puts forth no specific opinion in favor of
or in opposition to downtown associations.
Summary of Findings
Downtown Tigard is a diverse environment with many interests and little community. This makes
communication between stakeholders and the city, as well between the stakeholders and other
stakeholders difficult. It also means that a coordinated vision of the future of downtown does not now
exist amongst staekholders.
The Leland Group made a recommendation of supporting an association partly in response to such
concerns. Additional concerns included providing a forum independent of the city government for
advocacy and conflict resolution, as well as a venue for the private sector to demonstrate their
support of downtown revitalization. While leland strongly favors an association, no specific form or
timeline for such an organization was advocated, except that such groups sometimes take time to
formulate.
A number of comparable cities exist within the state. In examining them, there is no clear route that is
chosen more than others; in short there are multiple ways of achieving revitalization goals. Some
cities have chosen to participate in established, traditional forms, such as the National Trust's Main
Street program, while others have chosen to create their own, innovative programs tailored to their
specific needs.
In very few cases did associations have a direct impact on urban renewal efforts, however, by their
nature they are often positioned well to undertake routine efforts such as promotion, maintenance,
advocacy, business outreach, and other "soft" skills that cities without economic development
departments general lack.
Failure is common in such associations, and is usually the result of a lack of broad leadership
(reliance on one or too few individuals), a lack of vision or purpose, and a lack of stable funding.
Funding levels seem less important than funding stability.
Conclusion
The creation or support of a downtown association in Tigard would be a challenging effort. Making
matters more complex is the high degree of failure rates that these associations experience, along
with the broad path of options available. One important fact to note is that regardless of whether the
city chooses to take a traditional role, or a more innovative path, there are other cities in the state
with similar experiences and with whom the city would likely be able to share knowledge for mutual
benefit.
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 4
RESEARCH QUESTIONS
At the May 14 meeting of the CCAC, the subcommittee was tasked with researching leadership
capacity within downtown Tigard. At the subcommittee's May 21 2008 meeting, seven research
questions were developed based on the questions raised by the CCAC, as well as on further
discussion within the subcommittee. They are as follows:
1.) Needs assessment. What are the needs of the downtown property owner, business owners, and
residents within downtown Tigard that are currently not being filled by the city? Also the reverse: what
are the needs of the city downtown that are not currently being addressed by downtown business
and property owners?
2.) Leland's Context. What is Leland's broader context for providing a recommendation that the city
support financing an association at this juncture?
3.) Comparable Cities. What are "comparable" cities doing in their downtowns; was an association
involved in those efforts, and if so how?
4.) Different Models. What are some different models of associations? How do they work, &c?
5.) URD only models. What are other cities (of any size/make-up) doing that have urban renewal but
do not have an association?
6.) Web solutions. How many associations utilize web-based solutions, and how?
7.) Failures. What are some examples of cities with associations that failed, and what are the
reasons for such failures?
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 5
NEEDS ASSESSMENT
Research Question:
What are the needs of the downtown property owner, business
owners, and residents within downtown Tigard that are currently not
being filled by the city?Also the reverse: what are the needs of the
city downtown that are not currently being addressed by downtown
business and property owners?
Downtown Survey 2004.
In Spring of 2004, the City conducted a citywide survey regarding Downtown Tigard. This survey took
the form of a single sheet of 8.5x11 inch paper that combined a multiple choice section, a scaleable
answer section, and an open-ended question section. Its focus was to determine how often and why
people visit downtown, as well as their impressions of it. Also on each survey sheet was a check box
interface asking if the respondent was a downtown property or business owner. Surveys were
distributed at the Tigard Farmer's Market, the library, selected downtown businesses, at Tigard
Chamber of Commerce meetings, and through the City's newsletter, the Cityscape. Survey data was
utilized during the formation of the Tigard Downtown Improvement Plan.
Of the 563 returned surveys, 22 came from individuals who identified themselves as either a property
owner in downtown, a business owner downtown, or a combination of both. Of these 22, three were
duplicates, making 20 unique respondents from the area.
Four (4) respondents indicated that the area needed more housing or offices in order to stimulate
economic activity. Generally these sorts of projects come as a result of city regulations (zoning,
design standards), city incentives (tax breaks, grants, subsidized property sales), and private sector
interest. Associations usually do not have a role in such projects, although they could provide
promotion and developer outreach that could lead to deals.
Another four (4) respondents identified parking, traffic, and pedestrian access as key areas that
need improvement in downtown. These are capital projects that are usually undertaken by a
government or an urban renewal agency, rather than an association.
Eight (8) respondents mentioned business mix as a primary concern. Typical requests came for
small specialty retailers, bakeries, coffee shops, and the like. Business recruitment is usually a task
handled by private property owners on a property by property basis, or by third party nonprofits such
as business or merchants associations.
One respondent utilized the survey as an opportunity to state his opposition to the City's plans and
his belief that the survey was a total waste of time. Another respondent mentioned opposition to any
plan that included tax breaks.
City of Tigard GIS Data /2008
The City Center Urban Renewal District consists of 193.71 acres, divided up into 183 parcels, and
hosting approximately 308 businesses.
According to records of business licenses issued in the URD, of the 308 businesses in place at
present, less than half (144) are registered with ownership shown as Tigard locations. Of these, most
show the same location as the place of business. Of the remainder of the businesses in the URD,
about half show owners registered at addresses in the Portland metropolitan area, while the
remaining half show as being registered out of state.
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 6
Of the 308 businesses registered in the URD, a little over a third (116) are retail in nature. The bulk of
businesses registered in the downtown core are service based or are professional offices.
Retail Uses. There are 116 retail type uses in the URD. These are defined as businesses where a
storefront is essential to business, and thus includes barbers, salons, and showrooms as well as
traditional retail stores, but does not include medical offices or the like.
Most retail uses are concentrated in the Hall/99W region (58), with another large concentration
located along Main Street (35). Notably there are no registered retail businesses in the Burnham
district. However, in both areas, retail uses are outweighed by non-retail uses, with the most striking
example being Main where the ratio of non-retail to retail begins to approach 2-to-1.
Ownership of retail tends to be primarily locally registered, with 27 out of 35 being "local" on Main
Street, and 40 out of 58 registered as "local" in the Hall/99W region.
Non-Retail Uses. There are 192 non-retail uses in the URD. These are defined as businesses of any
type that do not require a storefront presence. This includes a span from automotive repair to
industrial manufacturing to offices to professionally managed apartments.
Non-retail uses are fairly evenly spread across the URD. There are 49 non-retail uses on Main Street,
66 non-retail uses in the Burnham district, and 57 non-retail uses in the Hall/99W region. In the
Burnham district non-retail uses are the only licensed businesses on record. In the Hall/99W region,
they take nearly equal weight with retail uses (57 non-retail to 58 retail uses), while on Main Street
they outnumber retail uses (49 vs. 35).
Ownership of non-retail uses tends to be primarily registered as local. On Main Street, 41 out of 49
are "local"; in the Burnham district, 46 out of 66 are "local", and in the Hall/99W region, 41 out of 57
are "local".
Employment Downtown. Of the 308 registered businesses downtown, only 23 have ten or more
employees. The largest employer is Magno-Humphries, a manufacturer of vitamins and dietary
supplements, with 97 employees. The second and third highest are Luke-Dorf Inc, a healthcare
related firm with 74 employees, and Russ Chevrolet with 70 employees.
Limitations. This data is imperfect. In some cases, beauty salons (counted here as retail uses) have
multiple business licenses, one for each practitioner. Also, some duplications were noted in the data,
which was obtained from the City of Tigard's Geographic Information System (GIS), most likely
attributed to one business going out of business, and another taking it's place within a short time
span. Most of these discrepancies were in retail uses. Also, some businesses may be operating
either without a business license, or using a license listed at a location outside the URD.
Lastly, this survey of business license data only paints part of the picture, as it does not address
ownership of property, only of businesses and tenants.
Summary. Three notable facts stand out:
Most businesses in the URD are not retail. Non-retail uses outnumber retail uses even on Main
Street.
There is a significant geographic split. Burnham is entirely without retail businesses, and is
oriented towards auto repair and construction. Main Street is primarily non-retail uses -- mostly
professional offices -- with retail coming in second. Hall/99W, with its high visibility, has the highest
concentration of business activity, and is evenly split between retail and non-retail uses
There are few big employers downtown. Most employers have fewer than ten employees. Small
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 7
offices are typical of employment downtown.
Downtown Strategy -- Existing Conditions
In an appendix of the Downtown Strategy, the Leland Group include a summary of existing
conditions in downtown Tigard. Among their findings are:
Low overall improvement to land value ratio. The current value of commercial land in the URD was
estimated to be between $20 and $24 per square foot in 2007 dollars. This reflects "substandard"
conditions. As a result rates of rent are low, generally $12 to $18 per square foot, which is too low to
attract developers.
Broad land use mix. Leland identified Burnham as primarily industrial in nature, with Main and the
Hall/99W region being the primary commercial areas.
Large lot locations. Most lots over one acre in size are located either in the Burnham district or in the
Hall/99W region. These areas would be most attractive to developers.
Downtown Strategy -- Developer Interviews
In order to assemble the Strategy, Leland Consulting Group interviewed a group of developers in the
Portland area, asking for input on redevelopment in the URD. A summary of these interviews was
attached to the Strategy as Appendix B. Among the mentioned items were:
Business mix. A series of business types were mentioned as being needed in the URD, including
specialty grocers and other high quality and specialty retailers.
Property owner engagement. It was recommended that the property owners need to be engaged
by the City to discuss alternative means of redeveloping sites that will bring profit to existing owners
while benefitting the community.
Downtown ombudsman. It was suggested that the City have a key individual whose sole role is
communicating with downtown business and property owners with a goal of championing retenanting
or improving businesses.
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 8
LELAND'S CONTEXT
Research Question:
What is Leland's broader context for providing a recommendation that
the city support financing an association at this juncture?
Development Strategy for Downtown Tigard, Oregon ("Leland Report")
Funding and support of a downtown focused association was identified as a recommended project
by the Leland Group in the Development Strategy for Downtown Tigard, Oregon, dated October
2007. Leland identifies this project as a short term, high priority project which would cost the city
approximately $40,000 annually, with the primary responsibility being in the private sector
(Redevelopment Strategy, p. 18).
Leland suggests that such an organization would take on a leadership role to champion projects in
the private sector. They further note that the existing association, the Tigard Central Business District
Association, lacks both broad membership and funding, while the Tigard Chamber of Commerce lacks
a focus on downtown. They advocate an association that is born from the private sector and then
initially funded by the City, with an eventual goal of being completely self-funding from the private
sector. This recommendation takes the form of Organizational Task 1 in the Strategy.
The "Leland Memo"
In late 2007, the Tigard City Council requested from Leland a list of projects that they would advise
be undertaken with the first six months or first $500,000. In a memo dated 19 November, 2007,
Leland replied with a series of recommendations pulled from the Strategy. Although organizational
tasks such as increasing outreach are identified, Organizational Task 1 was not identified as a priority
for the early implementation of the Strategy.
Q&A With Leland
The subcommittee forwarded to Leland a series of questions seeking greater context for their
recommendations. In one of their responses, they note that a downtown association can take on
projects that the city cannot complete on their own, such as marketing, outreach, and advocacy.
Regarding timing, Leland notes that "the timing of forming such an organization is a consideration
that Tigard will have to figure out". (Memo from Sean Farrelly to CCAC, dated 2 June 2008).
Leland also stated that the City should set criteria against which to measure performance of such an
organization before dispersing funds.
One of the primary roles that Leland sees such an association fulfilling is an advocacy role. An
association, being made up primarily of members of the private sector, can advocate for projects with
the public and other staekholders to a greater degree than can staff. Leland notes that an
association "could serve as a forum to work through contentious issues and to resolve differences",
and also notes that they can engage in marketing and economic development activities for which the
city is not as suited (Memo from Sean Farrelly to CCAC, dated 7 July 2008).
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 9
Additional Leland Recommendations
Leland added a condensed recommendation as follows:
His belief is that Downtown Tigard could really use an organization
and the City should play a role in forming it. It could start with a part
time director with seed money from the City. It should eventually
support itself with a BID, which the City (as a major property owner)
would be a part of. Early projects to focus on could be grant writing
(Main Street and arts grants), developing a web site, helping to
develop a parking plan, and improving city-business communication.
(Memo from Sean Farrelly to CCAC, dated 7 July 2008).
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 10
COMPARABLE CITIES
Research Question:
What are "comparable"cities doing in their downtowns; was an
association involved in those efforts, and if so how?
Initial Comparison Factors
Three factors were used to identify key cities with similarities to Tigard; population, budget, and size.
Due to limitations on population number availability, data used dates to 2006/2007.
In 2006, Tigard was home to 41,223 people. It has a surface area (citywide) of 10.86 square miles.
Its total adopted city budget for Fiscal Year 2006/2007 was $77.7 million.
Cities with similar populations
Cities with similar populations to Tigard were chosen based on total populations ranging from 35,000
to 60,000 residents. This resulted in just four other cities:
City 2000 Pop 2006 Pop
Albany 40,852 46,610
Corvallis 49,322 53,900
Lake Oswego 35,278 36,350
Springfield 52,864 57,065
TIGARD 41,223 46,300
Of these four, two are freestanding cities (Albany and Corvallis) while the other two are suburbs (Lake
Oswego to Portland, Springfield to Eugene).
Albany has a significant historic district and a downtown plan crafted in the 1980s that was very
ahead of its time. To accomplish their goals, the city created an Urban Renewal District (URD) of over
900 acres, including the waterfront, the traditional downtown, and large swaths of adjacent areas
that are industrial or strip commercial in nature. Although significantly larger than Tigard's URD,
Albany's major geographic diversity is similar in character to Tigard.
Albany has a downtown association known as the Albany Downtown Association (ADA). The
association concentrates just on the traditional downtown and not the entire URD. The city provides
ADA with funding by allowing the association to run the city's parking meter program downtown and
keep the revenue for operating expenses. The ADA also relies on funding via an Economic
Improvement District (EID) that assesses properties in the traditional downtown area. This EID is a
voluntary EID, meaning that individuals can opt out via remonstrance. Although there are a
significant number of remonstrances the association has managed to receive significant funding from
this source.
Corvallis has a downtown association but no urban renewal district. Their association, like Albany's,
utilizes a voluntary EID to fund their programs. The association also receives a stipend of less than
$90,000 annually from the City.
Currently Corvallis is seeking to create an urban renewal district that will encompass both the
traditional downtown and nontraditional areas where the City hopes to expand their urban core. The
Downtown Corvallis Association is a key player in advocating for urban renewal. The city gave grant
money to the DCA to create a downtown plan and an urban renewal plan. Once the process begins,
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 11
however, it is foreseen that the DCA will step away from this role and that an advisory commission will
be appointed for the URD.
Lake Oswego has a thriving urban renewal district located in their historic downtown core. Most
buildings, however, are more modern in both age and character. The city does have a downtown
association, the Downtown Business District Association, formed after the urban renewal plan was
enacted by local businesses. They have had little to no role in the URD's redevelopment efforts, and
are completely self-funded.
Currently the City has been looking into the Main Street program put out by the National Trust for
Historic Preservation. The City is currently leaning against participation as it feels the program is
duplicative and redundant with efforts the City has already taken on.
Springfield has many similarities to Tigard. Their URD is relatively new and encompasses a traditional
downtown main street of 6-8 blocks long as well as light industry, strip-mall development, and a
mobile home park. This creates a significant geographic diversity within the URD.
Springfield did have an association until recent times, known as the Springfield Downtown
Association. The SDA was formed in the late 1970s and was a strong promoter of downtown projects
with a close working relationship with the City. They were dependent on a single leader, however,
who succumbed to Cancer last year. As a result the association foundered and has been unable to
revive itself.
In addition there is a private nonprofit in Springfield known as the Springfield Renaissance
Development Corporation. The SRDC is privately funded and does not focus exclusively on
downtown, but has placed a lot of its projects in the downtown area.
When the advisory board for the URD was created, the City was swamped with over forty
applications. The City hopes to capture the enthusiasm of those applicants and get them involved in
the formation of a new association of some kind. In the meanwhile, their advisory board has a strong
majority representation of stakeholders within the downtown area.
Cities with similar budget numbers
Cities with similar budget size to Tigard were chosen based on adopted budget numbers for FY
2006/2007 between $70 million and $100 million. This resulted in seven other cities:
City FY 2006/2007 Budget (Millions)
Ashland $84.4
Beaverton $93.5
Corvallis $84.1
Grants Pass $97.9
McMinnville $86.7
Redmond $92.2
Tualatin $91.5
TIGARD $77.7
Of these seven, only two are suburbs (Beaverton and Tualatin, both suburbs of Portland). In
addition, Corvallis also appeared on the list of cities with similar populations to Tigard. Interestingly,
only three cities have urban renewal: Grants Pass, Redmond, and Tualatin.
Ashland has no urban renewal and no downtown association. The City does have a historic district
defined and administered by the City, and protected by a design standard developed by the City.
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 12
Beaverton has no urban renewal and no downtown association. There used to be an association
but it became inactive five or more years ago, and most promotional work that it used to do is now
undertaken by the Beaverton Chamber of Commerce.
Corvallis was described in the section above dealing with cities with similar populations to Tigard.
Grants Pass has an urban renewal district but it is scheduled to sunset within the next few years.
The City considers it to be successful and is considering starting another. There is no active
downtown association, instead the City contracts with the local Chamber of Commerce to provide
outreach and soft services.
McMinnville has no urban renewal but has a strong downtown association. They receive the bulk of
their funding through an EID and an associated Business Improvement District. The City also
provides a small stipend of approximately $15,000 annually to the association.
Redmond has urban renewal and has a young downtown association. At present the City is
attempting to determine a role and a funding level for the association, which is fully funded by the
City at this time. The association recently made a request for a five-year, $500,000 stipend from the
City to be used primarily for overhead and for organizational development. City staff are proposing a
significantly lower number over a shorter three-year period and are requesting the association spend
more time on events to get shoppers to return to the downtown.
Tualatin has an urban renewal district encompassing its downtown. It does not, however, have an
association, nor does it have a citizens advisory group for the URD.
Cities with similar citywide size
Cities with similar surface area size to Tigard were chosen based on a surface area between 8 and
12 square miles. This number was pulled from the 2000 U.S. Census, the most recent number
available. This resulted in nine other cities:
City Surface Area (2000)
Coos Bay 10.59
Lake Oswego 10.35
McMinnville 9.9
Newport 8.88
Oregon City 8.14
Pendleton 10.05
Redmond 10.24
Roseburg 9.22
The Dalles 8.45
TIGARD 10.86
Of these nine, only two are suburbs (Lake Oswego and Oregon City, both suburbs of Portland). In
addition, Lake Oswego also appeared on the list of cities with similar populations to Tigard, and
McMinnville and Redmond both appeared on the list of cities with similar budget sizes to Tigard. All
but two -- Coos Bay and McMinnville -- have urban renewal.
Coos Bay has no urban renewal but has an association, the Coos Bay Downtown Association.
CBDA is funded through dues and is stand alone from the city.
Lake Oswego was discussed under cities with similar populations, above.
McMinnville was discussed under cities with similar budget sizes, above.
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 13
Newport had an urban renewal district that included part of downtown, called the North District. This
URD sunsetted recently and the City is now only paying down debt. Newport does have an
association, the City Center Newport Deco District. This association is completely self funded.
Oregon City has an urban renewal district encompassing the traditional downtown as well as larger
expansion areas. There also was a preexisting downtown association focused on events.
Currently the City is looking at becoming involved in the Oregon Main Street Program, part of the
overall program overseen by the National Trust for Historic Preservation. The City contacted the
preexisting association to determine if they were interested in participating but they decided they
would rather retain their autonomy and focus on events. To administer the program the City is helping
to form a new nonprofit. This involved getting many stakeholders both within and adjacent to
downtown to meet and get on board with the project. The bylaws of the new association are crafted
to explicitly require the association to work with the URD and be a partner with the City. They also
have a very carefully crafted board makeup that includes representation from the City, the Chamber
of Commerce, the two largest employers citywide, and various arts, culture, and preservation
interests. Representatives from the business community are to be voted on by the businesses, and
property representatives are similarly voted on by area property owners.
Pendleton has an urban renewal district that encompasses downtown plus expansion areas. They
did have a merchants association but it faltered many years ago.
Redmond was discussed under cities with similar budget sizes, above.
Roseburg has an urban renewal district that encompasses its downtown as well as various
expansion areas, including the airport. There are also two separate business associations within the
URD, the Roseburg Town Center Association, and the Downtown Business Association. Neither
receives funding from the City.
The Dalles has urban renewal encompassing downtown and other areas. They also have an
association, the Downtown Business Association. DBA is freestanding and receives no City funding.
Overview
In the cities listed above, when both a URD and an association are present, in very few cases did the
associations provide any meaningful impact on urban renewal efforts. It is only Corvallis that stands
out as an example where the association had a direct hand in the formation or implementation of
urban renewal.
Cities with successful and established downtowns such as Ashland and Lake Oswego have weak or
nonexistent downtown associations, but so too did cities with unfocused downtown efforts, such as
Beaverton. Common to these cities is a reliance on capital investment and centralized control.
Cities actively pursuing the establishment of an association tended to be cities with significant
difficulties in achieving redevelopment goals, such as Oregon City and Springfield, or cities with very
young programs, such as Springfield (again) and Redmond.
McMinnville has a very strong downtown program that takes the lead in downtown matters. This
seems to be an aberration, with most programs being either weak and freestanding, or a smaller
scope partner in a URD, such as with Albany.
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 14
Key example cities to watch
Albany. Although larger by many times than Tigard's efforts, Albany has a similar land use mix within
its URD and is focusing on similar URD goals. Their association focuses just on the smaller traditional
downtown rather than the entire URD.
Springfield. Similar in population to Tigard, Springfield hosts a URD with a similar land use split,
including the concentration of the traditional downtown on a single, 6-8 block long strip within the
URD. Springfield's URD is also a fairly new one, and they are dealing with many of the same outreach
challenges.
Oregon City. Similar in physical size to Tigard, Oregon City has an older URD which has experienced
many challenges over the years. To achieve goals, the City is establishing a new association that is
broad based, with a carefully composed board of directors aimed at ensuring high quality and
cooperation between all parties. Although the historic character of Oregon City is not evident to any
great extent in Tigard, their approach to achieving downtown leadership goals has application to
Tigard's fractured status.
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 15
DIFFERENT MODELS
Research Question:
What are some different models of associations? How do they work?
Association Roles.
Downtown associations perform a variety of roles, but generally most take on economic development
functions for their districts. As Catherine Corner, Economic Development Director for the City of Canby
puts it, an association "can tackle projects that aren't capital projects. You can't use urban renewal
funds for promotion or maintenance." Canby, which currently has an urban renewal district but no
downtown association, is considering the establishment of an association to help with these non-
capital projects.
One way of looking at it is that while a URD can invest in building things over a long period of time,
associations are seen as a way of taking care of day-to-day tasks. "Urban renewal is focused on
larger economic restructuring and major projects," says Oregon City's Christina Robertson-Gardiner.
"Urban renewal has the power of the purse, but the association is more advocacy."
In his white paper, Mead outlines a typical "ideal" association:
The most logical and effective structure is that of a Board of Directors
and a dedicated Association paid staff person. The Board would have
at least one city staff liaison position. The Board, association and city
staff and other stakeholders/members create a vision, goals, and an
implementation strategy and associated tasks.... (Mead, 2008).
According to the web site for the National Trust for Historic Preservation, most programs nationwide
are less than a decade old (63%), affiliated with a statewide program (90%), and organized as a
501c3 (61%), with the next most common organization method being the form of a government
agency (17.4%). Nationally, most programs receive public sector funding via grants or general fund
expenditures from their local municipalities, (38% and 42% respectively), as well as private sector
funding, mostly from memberships, sponsorships, and events. Nationwide, relatively few (16%) utilize
special taxation districts.
Baker City & McMinnville.
Advocates of downtown associations in Oregon frequently point to Baker City and McMinnville as
examples of the strengths of the model. While both cities do indeed have strong associations,
research has shown that these cities are the exception and not the norm. Both cities are county
seats of non-urban counties with populations between 10,000 and 25,000. Neither city has an urban
renewal program.
Additionally, both Baker City and McMinnville have a strong tourism market, with the former being in
the middle of major recreational opportunities, and the latter being in the middle of Oregon's "wine
country". Both cities also have strong historic downtowns consisting of multiple blocks of large vintage
structures. Both began their downtown programs decades ago to combat a plague of empty
storefronts and vacant buildings.
Sadly, research shows that the typical association in Oregon is a standalone association with weak
power, little membership, and poor funding, focused on the occasional public event.
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 16
Funding Associations.
Downtown associations achieve their funding in a variety of ways. Most are self-funded, either
through memberships and donations, or through assessment programs such as Economic
Improvement Districts. Very few receive direct funding from their municipal governments.
The predominant form of funding for associations in Oregon is the Economic Improvement District
(EID). This is a form of assessment similar to a tax, assessed against properties within a defined
district. Ids are usually administered by the local municipality, however, the program is usually
instigated by the association. Ids can be made voluntary -- allowing a property owner to opt out if
he/she feels the program will not benefit them -- or involuntary, where all properties in the district must
pay if the EID survives passage.
Adoption of an EID usually consists of an EID proposal being made by an association to their local
municipality. The municipality then handles the paperwork for formation, and notifies the land owners
within the proposed district of the assessment and gives them the option of declining, known as
remonstrance. If property owners representing up to or in excess of 33% of the proposed assessed
value remonstrate, the EID can not be implemented. Surprisingly, very few associations are using
involuntary Ids, and those using voluntary Ids have reported respectable compliance levels.
Another funding method similar to the EID is the Business Improvement District. This is a form of
assessment similar to a business license tax, assessed against businesses within a defined district.
BIDs are usually administered by the local municipality, however, the program is usually instigated by
the association. BIDs can be made voluntary -- allowing a property owner to opt out if he/she feels
the program will not benefit them -- or involuntary, where all properties in the district must pay if the
BID survives passage.
Adoption of BIDs usually consists of an BID proposal being made by an association to their local
municipality. The municipality then handles the paperwork for formation, and notifies the business
owners within the proposed district of the assessment and gives them the option of declining, known
as remonstrance. If business owners representing up to or in excess of 33% of the proposed
businesses in the district remonstrate, the BID can not be implemented. The BID seems to be a less
popular funding choice, perhaps due to the lower dollar amount that is usually assessed by them.
Initial research seems to indicate that few associations are using both EID and BIDs together.
Some cities provide direct stipends to their associations. Oregon City, Albany, Hillsboro, and Corvallis
all provide direct funding, but in almost every case officials from the local governments described this
funding as "a small stipend", usually ranging between $10,000 and $50,000 annually. Currently,
Redmond is considering a request from their association for a 5-year, $500,000 stipend.
In some cases, the local municipality provides funding assistance to their associations through
indirect means. As an example, Albany allows their association to implement a parking meter program
and retain the profits for their operations. In Grants Pass, the city contracts out visitor information and
tourism services as well as the administration of a downtown historic district program to its local
Chamber of Commerce. Hillsboro has created a Local Improvement District (LID) to fund capital
projects that support the vision of their downtown association.
Many associations receive no stable funding source, relying on memberships and/or donations to
continue operations. Such groups rarely can afford to hire a staff person, and most of their funds
tend to go towards public events. In most of these cases, the association either had no working
relationship with their local municipality, or had a history of conflicts with the municipality.
None of these methods provide significant funding. In most cases, the funding raised is just enough
to cover the costs of association staffing, overhead, and events. Major programs -- including
storefront grant programs -- tend to be paid for through the local municipality.
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 17
Membership & Business Associations vs. Downtown Associations.
Membership, as mentioned above, is sometimes relied upon as a funding source for downtown
associations. It should be noted that this is the primary role of membership in such organizations.
Business associations and downtown associations or downtown organizations are not the
same. Unlike a business association, downtown associations exist to represent geographic areas,
not just their members. Although the ability to vote or hold office in the organization is typically tied
to membership, most municipalities will expect that a downtown association will represent the interest
of their entire downtown, not only their paid members.
The term "business association" and "downtown association" should not be used as if they are
Interchangeable, due to this fundamental difference.
Main Street Programs.
Associations are welcome to join the Main Street program from the National Trust for Historic
Preservation (NTHP). This program is aimed towards downtowns with a strongly historic character that
have need of both physical and economic improvement. This program provides benefits such as
technical assistance and training. In exchange, the program requires extensive record keeping that
must be submitted to the NTHP, who use it to monitor the performance of the nations downtowns as
well as use it as support for advocacy with national policymakers.
The program consists of the so-called "four points" approach. These four principles are considered
absolutely required by the NTHP, and consist of organization, promotion, design, and economic
restructuring.
Baker City's Don Chance notes that their historic district had been very successful in partnering with
the city and disbursing grant money to renovate the city's downtown. Many of the structures in the
area were empty or derelict when the district began its efforts more than twenty years ago.
In Oregon, the program is currently administered by the Oregon Economic & Community
Development Department (OECDD). The program had a good track record of many years, but fell
victim to budget cuts in the late 1990s. Governor Kulongoski's 2007-2009 budget has provided
money to reestablish the program.
The reaction of various cities in the state has been mixed. While some cities are embracing the new
program, others -- such as Lake Oswego --are choosing not to. Partly this is due to the fairly rigid
structure of the national program, and its focus on historic matters.
The Oregon program, however, is somewhat more flexible. Program coordinator Gary Van Huffel
indicated that he is open to modifying the state's program to meet the needs of individual
communities. Although cities with a modified program would likely not meet the requirements of the
full national program, they would still enjoy certain advocacy and support benefits with the state.
Oregon City's highly tailored version of the Main Street program -- mentioned earlier-- is an example
of such a modification. With many towns lacking a surviving historic center, as well as some cities
(such as Damascus) starting from scratch, such flexibility will be needed.
Leland on Other Models.
Leland notes that there are numerous other models besides the Main Street program. Other models
include public/private economic development associations. Another idea that was suggested was to
include the 99W corridor businesses in a broader organization, as this would allow pooling of
resources. (Memo from Sean Farrelly to CCAC, dated 7 July 2008).
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 18
Additional Models of Note
A number of cities both in and outside of the region are notable examples of differing approaches
and may warrant further investigation. The following list includes links to profiles for these cities, for
further reading:
Holland, MI: Main Street/Downtown Development Authority
http://www mainstreet org/content aspx?page=6075§ion=3&kbentry=1700
New Bern, NC: Swiss Bear, Inc.
http://www mainstreet org/content aux?page=7132§ion=3&kbentry=1706
Pittsburgh, PA: Pittsburgh Cultural Trust
http://www mostlivable org/paying-for-it/pittsburgh-cultural-trust.html
St. Paul, MN: Lowertown
http://www.mostlivable.orci/leadership/lowertown.html
http://www.lowertown.Da/
Sonoma, CA: Sonoma County Business Environmental Alliance
http://www mostlivable orciaying-for-iUsonoma-county-business-environmental-alliance.html
http://www.sonoma-county.orci/bea/
Winston-Salem, NC: Winston-Salem Alliance
http://www.livable.com/prqms model/leadership/Winton Salem.html
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 19
URD ONLY MODELS
Research Question:
What are other cities (of any size/make-up) doing that have urban
renewal but do not have an association?
URD Without Associations.
A number of cities utilize urban renewal programs to enhance their downtowns without using a
downtown association component. These towns tended to be small and rural, as in Brookings,
Coquille, and Pendleton -- or suburban, as in Canby, Keizer, and Tualatin. In interviews with
members of city staff in these communities, each city had a strong urban renewal program, or had a
strong economic development department. A significant financial commitment towards infrastructure
from the city was a common feature of these models.
When a city did have both urban renewal and a downtown association, there was rarely any
coordination between the association and the city. Few Oregon associations receive funding from
their local municipalities, and many were described by city staff as being "in existence" but "not doing
much"; rarely was an association described as a vital or highly active partner.
Regarding the use of urban renewal and downtown associations, Don Chance, planning director at
the City of Baker City had some interesting comments. He mentioned that, in retrospect, they wish
they had not gone the historic downtown association route, and had instead concentrated on urban
renewal. According to Chance, there are a number of streets within downtown that are adjacent to
the historic district but not included within it. The city is considering the use of Urban Renewal to
finance and revitalize these streets. Said Chance: "we've been wondering if we had just included all
this in one urban renewal district years ago rather than going the historic district route if we could
have just done all this under one umbrella".
Non-URD, Capital Intensive Programs.
Some cities have neither an association nor urban renewal, but still have a financial commitment to
their infrastructure or to historic preservation efforts. In Beaverton's case, the city has invested
significant funds into their downtown through direct expenditure, without using urban renewal; this is
the result of a city charter that forbids the use of urban renewal financing. (Currently there is an effort
to rewrite or remove this provision.)At the opposite end of the spectrum is Ashland, which has no
urban renewal and which has concentrated on historic preservation. In Ashland's situation, the
historic preservation program is coordinated entirely "in house" at the city in a topdown approach.
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 20
WEB SOLUTIONS
Research Question:
How many associations utilize web-based solutions, and how?
General Comments.
As a general statement, most associations have some form of web presence, but rarely do these
presences go beyond a simple web site. There are many different web-based tools -- such as e-mail
lists and online forums -- that would be available to an association, but their use does not seem
common at this time.
Further research into this subject would be of use to an existing or prospective association, however,
such research was precluded due to a shortage of time for this report.
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 21
FAILURES
Research Question:
What are some examples of cities with associations that failed, and
what are the reasons for such failures?
Typical Failures.
Over the course of this research, it is undeniable that more associations in Oregon have experienced
or are experiencing failure than are not. As a clarification, such failure tended to be defined as:
• Inadequate funding to continue operations
• Inadequate membership
• Lack of leadership from more than one individual within the association
• Lack of leadership in general in the association
• Lack of association vision or purpose
• Poor organization
Such features are typical of most associations in the state. Only a very few associations have
remained strong enough to avoid such failures. They have tended to be associations in historic,
stand-alone cities such as Baker, McMinnville, or Albany.
The most common problem encountered surrounded leadership issues. Springfield, for example, had
a strong association, but it was built around the leadership of a single individual. When that individual
passed away, the association failed. Sometimes, leadership failure occurs when personalities
become stronger than issues. In Grants Pass, for example, personal conflicts came between the
leadership of the association and members of city staff, disagreements that were not resolved until
there were personnel changes on both sides.
Leland on Association Leadership.
Leland echoes these concerns, noting that leadership -- along with funding -- are crucial to
maintaining an association's health. Leland points out as an example Bellingham, Washington. "The
City provided seed money for a couple of years, but after that was phased out there was no stable
funding, since a BID was never formed. There was early committed leadership, but when that person
left, the organization declined." Leland further notes that there needs to be not just a single
individual, but a pool of people capable of providing leadership (Memo from Sean Farrelly to CCAC,
dated 7 July 2008). This sentiment is echoed by Oregon City, whose efforts to create a very broad-
based board of directors is an attempt to engineer an environment that will promote a healthy
spectrum of leadership.
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 22
APPENDIX
The following are summaries taken from Main street renewal: A handbook for citizens and public
officials. This book is an extremely valuable resource, and cannot posibly be sumarized in only three
pages, however, the following material stood out as particularly relevant to this fact-finding mission.
Ten Myths of Downtown Revitalization
Myth Reality
1. Build it and they will come! (Physical Need a market analysis & business plan
improvement approach). implemented by newly formed partnership of
city hall and businesses.
2. Demolish it and they will come! (Clean it up Building preservation combined with intensive
approach). business recruitment does attract developers.
3. Complete a major project and they will Sucess requires multi-faceted effort
come! (Build in isolation approach). addressing all of downtown's key issues.
4. Need a department store to anchor the Redefine anchors as government complexes,
downtown! (Traditional anchor approach). cultural/entertainment facilities, tourist draws,
housing units, specialty retail, office buildings.
5. If there is no department store, then no Specialty retail works. Bringing pedestrians
retail of any kind can flourish. (Big retail or downtown requires a mix of services, retail,
no retail approach). and dining/entertainment facilities that adress
needs of customers.
6. Competition is bad business. (Head in the Sucessful commerical districts have similar &
sand approach). compatible businesses in groupings (clusters
such as antique stores, furniture, clothing,
auot, personal services, professional services,
etc....)
7. Downtown must keep uniform business Not advantageous to retailers as hours
hours. (Lets pretend we're a mail should be "market driven" to serve needs of
approach). targeted customers. Shift to different hours
rather than keep longer hours.
8. Be lenient or developers won't do business Developers will do business in communities
with us. that demand quality projets as their
investments are protected.
9. Be tough as possible or developers will Unreasonably stringent & demanding
take advantage of us. communities cause developers to locate
projects elsewhere.
10. If we had more parking, they would come! Successful businesses found you need to
(Scapegoat approach). provide what the customer wants (special
products, great service, unique atmosphere)
in order to get customers to come downtown
and use the parking.
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 23
Seven Secrets of Success
• Form partnerships among businesses, with the public sector, civic organizations, and
community residents.
• Have a defined clear vision of where you want to go shared by all in body.
• Be market driven! Who are your customers, potential customers, & what do they want today
and what will they want tomorrow? Provide for them!
• Create & use a business Plan! City could help businesses to develop business plans (as well
as the commissioned body having a written visionary plan) with 5, 10 & 20 outlooks.
• Dare to be different. Carve a market niche in the marketplace, so you don't compete with
malls and descanters.
• Focus! Concentrate resources in well-defined focus areas as resources are scarce. Results
will become more visible quickly. What resources are already available for you to share? See #1.
• Follow the "5 M's"
Management of downtown should be like a business.
Marketing campaigns for downtown
Maintenance of private and public property
Market knowledge to create niche
Money for ongoing enhancement
Lessons from Birmingham
The following are key points from the Birmingham, Alabama "Beacon" project:
• Revitalize active merchant's associations
• Reduce blight caused by existing businesses and vacant space
• Preserve the historic character of the neighborhoods
• Recruit new tenants that enhance the quality of the neighborhoods
and promote cohesiveness
• Encourage development transactions within the districts
• Assist entrepreneurs in opening local businesses
• Receive, buy and develop key properties
For more information on the Beacon project, see:
http://www.livable.com/pr-qms model/place/BEACON Initiative html
http://www.mainstreetbham.or
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 24
Goals & Vision
Some possible goals for an association might include:
• Vision — 5, 10 & 20 year plans
• Economic Stability
• Use Current Business Management & Research Techniques
• Strategic Economic Development to build solid foundation
• Sound Priorities:
a) quality jobs
b) quality education
c) economic development
d) housing
The larger question is, how does Tigard see its downtown as relating to local, state, national, and
international economies? As shown by the needs analysis section of this report, non-retail uses are
predominate in the URD. In the global economy of the 21st century, many of these companies do
business not just locally. but regionally, nationally, and beyond. What are their needs and how might
downtown Tigard be relevant to them?
One of the factors that town centers use to compete for business is the "quality of life" factor. This is
especially true of areas where housing is a key aspect of the downtown mix. Quality of life, however,
has many definitions. Nationally, the term is usually defined as a loop that starts with jobs and
economic development, linked to quality education, which then links back to jobs. In the Pacific
Northwest, quality of life is usually seen as a trifecta of housing, education, and employment.
A key goal of an association in downtown Tigard might be to define what quality of life means for this
specific place. Such a definition might include housing, access to healthcare, culture & cultural
amenities, the environment, and transportation.
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 25
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Farrelly, S., City of Tigard. memo to City Center Advisory Commission dated June 2, 2008,
Farrelly, S., City of Tigard, memo to City Center Advisory Commission dated July 7, 2008.
Kemp, R. Main street renewal: A handbook for citizens and public officials (2nd ed.). Jefferson, North
Carolina: McFarland & Company, 2006.
Leland Consulting Group. (October, 2007). Development Strategy for Downtown Tigard.
Marcus Mead / City of Tigard. (April, 2008). Summary of Research on Downtown Associations:
Structure, Funding, Effectiveness.
National Trust for Historic Preservation Main Street Program (Web site), Retrieved from
http://www.mainstreet.ora/
Oregon Department of Revenue. (April, 2007). Oregon property tax statistics: Fiscal year 2006-2007.
Population Research Center, Portland State University. (December 15, 2006). PRC Certified Cities.
State of Oregon. Oregon Blue Book Online (Web Site). Retrieved from http://bluebook.state.or.us/
U.S. Census Bureau. (2000). Oregon -- place GCT-PH1. Population, housing units, area, and
density: 2000. Washington, D.C.
Zahas, C., Leland Consulting Group. Letter to Tigard City Council, dated November 19, 2007/
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Many people helped in the creation of this report. it is not possible to thank them all, but the following
individuals should be acknowledged for their contributions:
Jacki Yoder, Oregon Economic Development Department
Arthur Fish, OEDD
Linda Ludwig, League of Oregon Cities
Stephanie Foley, LOC
Gary Van Huffel, OEDD
Don Chance, City of Baker City
Catherine Comer, City of Canby
Sean Farrelly, City of Tigard
Courtney Griesel, City of Springfield
Christina Robertson-Gardiner, City of Oregon City
Chris Zahas, Leland Consulting Group
City Center Advisory Commission
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City of Tigard
City Center Advisory Commission
Research Report
on
Downtown Associations in Oregon
September 18, 2008
Prepared by
Subcommittee on Leadership Capacity in Downtown
Members: Alexander Craghead
Thomas Murphy
Elise Shearer
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 2
CONTENTS
Executive Summary 3
Research Questions 4
Needs Assessment 5
Leland's Context 8
Comparable Cities 10
Different Models 15
URD Only Models 19
Web Solutions 20
Failures 21
Appendix 22
Bibliography & Acknowledgments 25
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 3
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
In 2007, the City of Tigard hired the Leland Consulting Group to assist in the creation of a strategy
for implementing revitalization in its downtown core. In the resulting Downtown Strategy, Leland
recommends the creation of a downtown organization aimed at fostering private sector leadership.
This recommendation was forwarded by the City Council to the City Center Advisory Commission
(CCAC), with the charge of deterring if the recommendation should be implemented, and if so how.
The CCAC has been concerned with the complexity of such an effort, and created a subcommittee in
May of 2008 to investigate the issues surrounding the establishment of or support of a downtown
association. This document was created by that subcommittee to assist the CCAC in making a
recommendation on this subject.
What this document is not is a recommendation regarding the establishment or support of a
downtown organization. It provides no recommendation, and puts forth no specific opinion in favor of
or in opposition to downtown associations.
Summary of Findings
Downtown Tigard is a diverse environment with many interests and little community. This makes
communication between stakeholders and the city, as well between the stakeholders and other
stakeholders difficult. It also means that a coordinated vision of the future of downtown does not now
exist amongst staekholders.
The Leland Group made a recommendation of supporting an association partly in response to such
concerns. Additional concerns included providing a forum independent of the city government for
advocacy and conflict resolution, as well as a venue for the private sector to demonstrate their
support of downtown revitalization. While leland strongly favors an association, no specific form or
timeline for such an organization was advocated, except that such groups sometimes take time to
formulate.
A number of comparable cities exist within the state. In examining them, there is no clear route that is
chosen more than others; in short there are multiple ways of achieving revitalization goals. Some
cities have chosen to participate in established, traditional forms, such as the National Trust's Main
Street program, while others have chosen to create their own, innovative programs tailored to their
specific needs.
In very few cases did associations have a direct impact on urban renewal efforts, however, by their
nature they are often positioned well to undertake routine efforts such as promotion, maintenance,
advocacy, business outreach, and other "soft" skills that cities without economic development
departments general lack.
Failure is common in such associations, and is usually the result of a lack of broad leadership
(reliance on one or too few individuals), a lack of vision or purpose, and a lack of stable funding.
Funding levels seem less important than funding stability.
Conclusion
The creation or support of a downtown association in Tigard would be a challenging effort. Making
matters more complex is the high degree of failure rates that these associations experience, along
with the broad path of options available. One important fact to note is that regardless of whether the
city chooses to take a traditional role, or a more innovative path, there are other cities in the state
with similar experiences and with whom the city would likely be able to share knowledge for mutual
benefit.
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 4
RESEARCH QUESTIONS
At the May 14 meeting of the CCAC, the subcommittee was tasked with researching leadership
capacity within downtown Tigard. At the subcommittee's May 21 2008 meeting, seven research
questions were developed based on the questions raised by the CCAC, as well as on further
discussion within the subcommittee. They are as follows:
1.) Needs assessment. What are the needs of the downtown property owner, business owners, and
residents within downtown Tigard that are currently not being filled by the city? Also the reverse: what
are the needs of the city downtown that are not currently being addressed by downtown business
and property owners?
2.) Leland's Context. What is Leland's broader context for providing a recommendation that the city
support financing an association at this juncture?
3.) Comparable Cities. What are "comparable" cities doing in their downtowns; was an association
involved in those efforts, and if so how?
4.) Different Models. What are some different models of associations? How do they work, &c?
5.) URD only models. What are other cities (of any size/make-up) doing that have urban renewal but
do not have an association?
6.)Web solutions. How many associations utilize web-based solutions, and how?
7.) Failures. What are some examples of cities with associations that failed, and what are the
reasons for such failures?
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 5
NEEDS ASSESSMENT
Research Question:
What are the needs of the downtown property owner, business
owners, and residents within downtown Tigard that are currently not
being filled by the city?Also the reverse: what are the needs of the
city downtown that are not currently being addressed by downtown
business and property owners?
Downtown Survey 2004.
In Spring of 2004, the City conducted a citywide survey regarding Downtown Tigard. This survey took
the form of a single sheet of 8.5x11 inch paper that combined a multiple choice section, a scaleable
answer section, and an open-ended question section. Its focus was to determine how often and why
people visit downtown, as well as their impressions of it. Also on each survey sheet was a check box
interface asking if the respondent was a downtown property or business owner. Surveys were
distributed at the Tigard Farmer's Market, the library, selected downtown businesses, at Tigard
Chamber of Commerce meetings, and through the City's newsletter, the Cityscape. Survey data was
utilized during the formation of the Tigard Downtown Improvement Plan.
Of the 563 returned surveys, 22 came from individuals who identified themselves as either a property
owner in downtown, a business owner downtown, or a combination of both. Of these 22, three were
duplicates, making 20 unique respondents from the area.
Four (4) respondents indicated that the area needed more housing or offices in order to stimulate
economic activity. Generally these sorts of projects come as a result of city regulations (zoning,
design standards), city incentives (tax breaks, grants, subsidized property sales), and private sector
interest. Associations usually do not have a role in such projects, although they could provide
promotion and developer outreach that could lead to deals.
Another four (4) respondents identified parking, traffic, and pedestrian access as key areas that
need improvement in downtown. These are capital projects that are usually undertaken by a
government or an urban renewal agency, rather than an association.
Eight (8) respondents mentioned business mix as a primary concern. Typical requests came for
small specialty retailers, bakeries, coffee shops, and the like. Business recruitment is usually a task
handled by private property owners on a property by property basis, or by third party nonprofits such
as business or merchants associations.
One respondent utilized the survey as an opportunity to state his opposition to the City's plans and
his belief that the survey was a total waste of time. Another respondent mentioned opposition to any
plan that included tax breaks.
City of Tigard GIS Data /2008
The City Center Urban Renewal District consists of 193.71 acres, divided up into 183 parcels, and
hosting approximately 308 businesses.
According to records of business licenses issued in the URD, of the 308 businesses in place at
present, less than half (144) are registered with ownership shown as Tigard locations. Of these, most
show the same location as the place of business. Of the remainder of the businesses in the URD,
about half show owners registered at addresses in the Portland metropolitan area, while the
remaining half show as being registered out of state.
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 6
Of the 308 businesses registered in the URD, a little over a third (116) are retail in nature. The bulk of
businesses registered in the downtown core are service based or are professional offices.
Retail Uses. There are 116 retail type uses in the URD. These are defined as businesses where a
storefront is essential to business, and thus includes barbers, salons, and showrooms as well as
traditional retail stores, but does not include medical offices or the like.
Most retail uses are concentrated in the Hall/99W region (58), with another large concentration
located along Main Street (35). Notably there are no registered retail businesses in the Burnham
district. However, in both areas, retail uses are outweighed by non-retail uses, with the most striking
example being Main where the ratio of non-retail to retail begins to approach 2-to-1.
Ownership of retail tends to be primarily locally registered, with 27 out of 35 being "local" on Main
Street, and 40 out of 58 registered as "local" in the Hall/99W region.
Non-Retail Uses. There are 192 non-retail uses in the URD. These are defined as businesses of any
type that do not require a storefront presence. This includes a span from automotive repair to
industrial manufacturing to offices to professionally managed apartments.
Non-retail uses are fairly evenly spread across the URD. There are 49 non-retail uses on Main Street,
66 non-retail uses in the Burnham district, and 57 non-retail uses in the Hall/99W region. In the
Burnham district non-retail uses are the only licensed businesses on record. In the Hall/99W region,
they take nearly equal weight with retail uses (57 non-retail to 58 retail uses), while on Main Street
they outnumber retail uses (49 vs. 35).
Ownership of non-retail uses tends to be primarily registered as local. On Main Street, 41 out of 49
are "local"; in the Burnham district, 46 out of 66 are "local", and in the Hall/99W region, 41 out of 57
are "local".
Employment Downtown. Of the 308 registered businesses downtown, only 23 have ten or more
employees. The largest employer is Magno-Humphries, a manufacturer of vitamins and dietary
supplements, with 97 employees. The second and third highest are Luke-Dorf Inc, a healthcare
related firm with 74 employees, and Russ Chevrolet with 70 employees.
Limitations. This data is imperfect. In some cases, beauty salons (counted here as retail uses) have
multiple business licenses, one for each practitioner. Also, some duplications were noted in the data,
which was obtained from the City of Tigard's Geographic Information System (GIS), most likely
attributed to one business going out of business, and another taking it's place within a short time
span. Most of these discrepancies were in retail uses. Also, some businesses may be operating
either without a business license, or using a license listed at a location outside the URD.
Lastly, this survey of business license data only paints part of the picture, as it does not address
ownership of property, only of businesses and tenants.
Summary. Three notable facts stand out:
Most businesses in the URD are not retail. Non-retail uses outnumber retail uses even on Main
Street.
There is a significant geographic split. Burnham is entirely without retail businesses, and is
oriented towards auto repair and construction. Main Street is primarily non-retail uses -- mostly
professional offices --with retail coming in second. Hall/99W, with its high visibility, has the highest
concentration of business activity, and is evenly split between retail and non-retail uses
There are few big employers downtown. Most employers have fewer than ten employees. Small
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 7
offices are typical of employment downtown.
Downtown Strategy -- Existing Conditions
In an appendix of the Downtown Strategy, the Leland Group include a summary of existing
conditions in downtown Tigard. Among their findings are:
Low overall improvement to land value ratio. The current value of commercial land in the URD was
estimated to be between $20 and $24 per square foot in 2007 dollars. This reflects "substandard"
conditions. As a result rates of rent are low, generally $12 to $18 per square foot, which is too low to
attract developers.
Broad land use mix. Leland identified Burnham as primarily industrial in nature, with Main and the
Hall/99W region being the primary commercial areas.
Large lot locations. Most lots over one acre in size are located either in the Burnham district or in the
Hall/99W region. These areas would be most attractive to developers.
Downtown Strategy -- Developer Interviews
In order to assemble the Strategy, Leland Consulting Group interviewed a group of developers in the
Portland area, asking for input on redevelopment in the URD. A summary of these interviews was
attached to the Strategy as Appendix B. Among the mentioned items were:
Business mix. A series of business types were mentioned as being needed in the URD, including
specialty grocers and other high quality and specialty retailers.
Property owner engagement. It was recommended that the property owners need to be engaged
by the City to discuss alternative means of redeveloping sites that will bring profit to existing owners
while benefitting the community.
Downtown ombudsman. It was suggested that the City have a key individual whose sole role is
communicating with downtown business and property owners with a goal of championing retenanting
or improving businesses.
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 8
LELAND'S CONTEXT
Research Question:
What is Leland's broader context for providing a recommendation that
the city support financing an association at this juncture?
Development Strategy for Downtown Tigard, Oregon ("Leland Report")
Funding and support of a downtown focused association was identified as a recommended project
by the Leland Group in the Development Strategy for Downtown Tigard, Oregon, dated October
2007. Leland identifies this project as a short term, high priority project which would cost the city
approximately $40,000 annually, with the primary responsibility being in the private sector
(Redevelopment Strategy, p. 18).
Leland suggests that such an organization would take on a leadership role to champion projects in
the private sector. They further note that the existing association, the Tigard Central Business District
Association, lacks both broad membership and funding, while the Tigard Chamber of Commerce lacks
a focus on downtown. They advocate an association that is born from the private sector and then
initially funded by the City, with an eventual goal of being completely self-funding from the private
sector. This recommendation takes the form of Organizational Task 1 in the Strategy.
The "Leland Memo"
In late 2007, the Tigard City Council requested from Leland a list of projects that they would advise
be undertaken with the first six months or first $500,000. In a memo dated 19 November, 2007,
Leland replied with a series of recommendations pulled from the Strategy. Although organizational
tasks such as increasing outreach are identified, Organizational Task 1 was not identified as a priority
for the early implementation of the Strategy.
Q&A With Leland
The subcommittee forwarded to Leland a series of questions seeking greater context for their
recommendations. In one of their responses, they note that a downtown association can take on
projects that the city cannot complete on their own, such as marketing, outreach, and advocacy.
Regarding timing, Leland notes that "the timing of forming such an organization is a consideration
that Tigard will have to figure out". (Memo from Sean Farrelly to CCAC, dated 2 June 2008).
Leland also stated that the City should set criteria against which to measure performance of such an
organization before dispersing funds.
One of the primary roles that Leland sees such an association fulfilling is an advocacy role. An
association, being made up primarily of members of the private sector, can advocate for projects with
the public and other staekholders to a greater degree than can staff. Leland notes that an
association "could serve as a forum to work through contentious issues and to resolve differences",
and also notes that they can engage in marketing and economic development activities for which the
city is not as suited (Memo from Sean Farrelly to CCAC, dated 7 July 2008).
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 9
Additional Leland Recommendations
Leland added a condensed recommendation as follows:
His belief is that Downtown Tigard could really use an organization
and the City should play a role in forming it. It could start with a part
time director with seed money from the City. It should eventually
support itself with a BID, which the City (as a major property owner)
would be a part of. Early projects to focus on could be grant writing
(Main Street and arts grants), developing a web site, helping to
develop a parking plan, and improving city-business communication.
(Memo from Sean Farrelly to CCAC, dated 7 July 2008).
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 10
COMPARABLE CITIES
Research Question:
What are "comparable"cities doing in their downtowns; was an
association involved in those efforts, and if so how?
Initial Comparison Factors
Three factors were used to identify key cities with similarities to Tigard; population, budget, and size.
Due to limitations on population number availability, data used dates to 2006/2007.
In 2006, Tigard was home to 41,223 people. It has a surface area (citywide) of 10.86 square miles.
Its total adopted city budget for Fiscal Year 2006/2007 was $77.7 million.
Cities with similar populations
Cities with similar populations to Tigard were chosen based on total populations ranging from 35,000
to 60,000 residents. This resulted in just four other cities:
City 2000 Pop 2006 Pop
Albany 40,852 46,610
Corvallis 49,322 53,900
Lake Oswego 35,278 36,350
Springfield 52,864 57,065
TIGARD 41,223 46,300
Of these four, two are freestanding cities (Albany and Corvallis) while the other two are suburbs (Lake
Oswego to Portland, Springfield to Eugene).
Albany has a significant historic district and a downtown plan crafted in the 1980s that was very
ahead of its time. To accomplish their goals, the city created an Urban Renewal District (URD) of over
900 acres, including the waterfront, the traditional downtown, and large swaths of adjacent areas
that are industrial or strip commercial in nature. Although significantly larger than Tigard's URD,
Albany's major geographic diversity is similar in character to Tigard.
Albany has a downtown association known as the Albany Downtown Association (ADA). The
association concentrates just on the traditional downtown and not the entire URD. The city provides
ADA with funding by allowing the association to run the city's parking meter program downtown and
keep the revenue for operating expenses. The ADA also relies on funding via an Economic
Improvement District (EID) that assesses properties in the traditional downtown area. This EID is a
voluntary EID, meaning that individuals can opt out via remonstrance. Although there are a
significant number of remonstrances the association has managed to receive significant funding from
this source.
Corvallis has a downtown association but no urban renewal district. Their association, like Albany's,
utilizes a voluntary EID to fund their programs. The association also receives a stipend of less than
$90,000 annually from the City.
Currently Corvallis is seeking to create an urban renewal district that will encompass both the
traditional downtown and nontraditional areas where the City hopes to expand their urban core. The
Downtown Corvallis Association is a key player in advocating for urban renewal. The city gave grant
money to the DCA to create a downtown plan and an urban renewal plan. Once the process begins,
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 11
however, it is foreseen that the DCA will step away from this role and that an advisory commission will
be appointed for the URD.
Lake Oswego has a thriving urban renewal district located in their historic downtown core. Most
buildings, however, are more modern in both age and character. The city does have a downtown
association, the Downtown Business District Association, formed after the urban renewal plan was
enacted by local businesses. They have had little to no role in the URD's redevelopment efforts, and
are completely self-funded.
Currently the City has been looking into the Main Street program put out by the National Trust for
Historic Preservation. The City is currently leaning against participation as it feels the program is
duplicative and redundant with efforts the City has already taken on.
Springfield has many similarities to Tigard. Their URD is relatively new and encompasses a traditional
downtown main street of 6-8 blocks long as well as light industry, strip-mall development, and a
mobile home park. This creates a significant geographic diversity within the URD.
Springfield did have an association until recent times, known as the Springfield Downtown
Association. The SDA was formed in the late 1970s and was a strong promoter of downtown projects
with a close working relationship with the City. They were dependent on a single leader, however,
who succumbed to Cancer last year. As a result the association foundered and has been unable to
revive itself.
In addition there is a private nonprofit in Springfield known as the Springfield Renaissance
Development Corporation. The SRDC is privately funded and does not focus exclusively on
downtown, but has placed a lot of its projects in the downtown area.
When the advisory board for the URD was created, the City was swamped with over forty
applications. The City hopes to capture the enthusiasm of those applicants and get them involved in
the formation of a new association of some kind. In the meanwhile, their advisory board has a strong
majority representation of stakeholders within the downtown area.
Cities with similar budget numbers
Cities with similar budget size to Tigard were chosen based on adopted budget numbers for FY
2006/2007 between $70 million and $100 million. This resulted in seven other cities:
City FY 2006/2007 Budget (Millions)
Ashland $84.4
Beaverton $93.5
Corvallis $84.1
Grants Pass $97.9
McMinnville $86.7
Redmond $92.2
Tualatin $91.5
TIGARD $77.7
Of these seven, only two are suburbs (Beaverton and Tualatin, both suburbs of Portland). In
addition, Corvallis also appeared on the list of cities with similar populations to Tigard. Interestingly,
only three cities have urban renewal: Grants Pass, Redmond, and Tualatin.
Ashland has no urban renewal and no downtown association. The City does have a historic district
defined and administered by the City, and protected by a design standard developed by the City.
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 12
Beaverton has no urban renewal and no downtown association. There used to be an association
but it became inactive five or more years ago, and most promotional work that it used to do is now
undertaken by the Beaverton Chamber of Commerce.
Corvallis was described in the section above dealing with cities with similar populations to Tigard.
Grants Pass has an urban renewal district but it is scheduled to sunset within the next few years.
The City considers it to be successful and is considering starting another. There is no active
downtown association, instead the City contracts with the local Chamber of Commerce to provide
outreach and soft services.
McMinnville has no urban renewal but has a strong downtown association. They receive the bulk of
their funding through an EID and an associated Business Improvement District. The City also
provides a small stipend of approximately $15,000 annually to the association.
Redmond has urban renewal and has a young downtown association. At present the City is
attempting to determine a role and a funding level for the association, which is fully funded by the
City at this time. The association recently made a request for a five-year, $500,000 stipend from the
City to be used primarily for overhead and for organizational development. City staff are proposing a
significantly lower number over a shorter three-year period and are requesting the association spend
more time on events to get shoppers to return to the downtown.
Tualatin has an urban renewal district encompassing its downtown. It does not, however, have an
association, nor does it have a citizens advisory group for the URD.
Cities with similar citywide size
Cities with similar surface area size to Tigard were chosen based on a surface area between 8 and
12 square miles. This number was pulled from the 2000 U.S. Census, the most recent number
available. This resulted in nine other cities:
City Surface Area (2000)
Coos Bay 10.59
Lake Oswego 10.35
McMinnville 9.9
Newport 8.88
Oregon City 8.14
Pendleton 10.05
Redmond 10.24
Roseburg 9.22
The Dalles 8.45
TIGARD 10.86
Of these nine, only two are suburbs (Lake Oswego and Oregon City, both suburbs of Portland). In
addition, Lake Oswego also appeared on the list of cities with similar populations to Tigard, and
McMinnville and Redmond both appeared on the list of cities with similar budget sizes to Tigard. All
but two -- Coos Bay and McMinnville -- have urban renewal.
Coos Bay has no urban renewal but has an association, the Coos Bay Downtown Association.
CBDA is funded through dues and is stand alone from the city.
Lake Oswego was discussed under cities with similar populations, above.
McMinnville was discussed under cities with similar budget sizes, above.
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 13
Newport had an urban renewal district that included part of downtown, called the North District. This
URD sunsetted recently and the City is now only paying down debt. Newport does have an
association, the City Center Newport Deco District. This association is completely self funded.
Oregon City has an urban renewal district encompassing the traditional downtown as well as larger
expansion areas. There also was a preexisting downtown association focused on events.
Currently the City is looking at becoming involved in the Oregon Main Street Program, part of the
overall program overseen by the National Trust for Historic Preservation. The City contacted the
preexisting association to determine if they were interested in participating but they decided they
would rather retain their autonomy and focus on events. To administer the program the City is helping
to form a new nonprofit. This involved getting many stakeholders both within and adjacent to
downtown to meet and get on board with the project. The bylaws of the new association are crafted
to explicitly require the association to work with the URD and be a partner with the City. They also
have a very carefully crafted board makeup that includes representation from the City, the Chamber
of Commerce, the two largest employers citywide, and various arts, culture, and preservation
interests. Representatives from the business community are to be voted on by the businesses, and
property representatives are similarly voted on by area property owners.
Pendleton has an urban renewal district that encompasses downtown plus expansion areas. They
did have a merchants association but it faltered many years ago.
Redmond was discussed under cities with similar budget sizes, above.
Roseburg has an urban renewal district that encompasses its downtown as well as various
expansion areas, including the airport. There are also two separate business associations within the
URD, the Roseburg Town Center Association, and the Downtown Business Association. Neither
receives funding from the City.
The Dalles has urban renewal encompassing downtown and other areas. They also have an
association, the Downtown Business Association. DBA is freestanding and receives no City funding.
Overview
In the cities listed above, when both a URD and an association are present, in very few cases did the
associations provide any meaningful impact on urban renewal efforts. It is only Corvallis that stands
out as an example where the association had a direct hand in the formation or implementation of
urban renewal.
Cities with successful and established downtowns such as Ashland and Lake Oswego have weak or
nonexistent downtown associations, but so too did cities with unfocused downtown efforts, such as
Beaverton. Common to these cities is a reliance on capital investment and centralized control.
Cities actively pursuing the establishment of an association tended to be cities with significant
difficulties in achieving redevelopment goals, such as Oregon City and Springfield, or cities with very
young programs, such as Springfield (again) and Redmond.
McMinnville has a very strong downtown program that takes the lead in downtown matters. This
seems to be an aberration, with most programs being either weak and freestanding, or a smaller
scope partner in a URD, such as with Albany.
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 14
Key example cities to watch
Albany. Although larger by many times than Tigard's efforts, Albany has a similar land use mix within
its URD and is focusing on similar URD goals. Their association focuses just on the smaller traditional
downtown rather than the entire URD.
Springfield. Similar in population to Tigard, Springfield hosts a URD with a similar land use split,
including the concentration of the traditional downtown on a single, 6-8 block long strip within the
URD. Springfield's URD is also a fairly new one, and they are dealing with many of the same outreach
challenges.
Oregon City. Similar in physical size to Tigard, Oregon City has an older URD which has experienced
many challenges over the years. To achieve goals, the City is establishing a new association that is
broad based, with a carefully composed board of directors aimed at ensuring high quality and
cooperation between all parties. Although the historic character of Oregon City is not evident to any
great extent in Tigard, their approach to achieving downtown leadership goals has application to
Tigard's fractured status.
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 15
DIFFERENT MODELS
Research Question:
What are some different models of associations? How do they work?
Association Roles.
Downtown associations perform a variety of roles, but generally most take on economic development
functions for their districts. As Catherine Corner, Economic Development Director for the City of Canby
puts it, an association "can tackle projects that aren't capital projects. You can't use urban renewal
funds for promotion or maintenance." Canby, which currently has an urban renewal district but no
downtown association, is considering the establishment of an association to help with these non-
capital projects.
One way of looking at it is that while a URD can invest in building things over a long period of time,
associations are seen as a way of taking care of day-to-day tasks. "Urban renewal is focused on
larger economic restructuring and major projects," says Oregon City's Christina Robertson-Gardiner.
"Urban renewal has the power of the purse, but the association is more advocacy."
In his white paper, Mead outlines a typical "ideal" association:
The most logical and effective structure is that of a Board of Directors
and a dedicated Association paid staff person. The Board would have
at least one city staff liaison position. The Board, association and city
staff and other stakeholders/members create a vision, goals, and an
implementation strategy and associated tasks.... (Mead, 2008).
According to the web site for the National Trust for Historic Preservation, most programs nationwide
are less than a decade old (63%), affiliated with a statewide program (90%), and organized as a
501 c3 (61%), with the next most common organization method being the form of a government
agency (17.4%). Nationally, most programs receive public sector funding via grants or general fund
expenditures from their local municipalities, (38% and 42% respectively), as well as private sector
funding, mostly from memberships, sponsorships, and events. Nationwide, relatively few (16%) utilize
special taxation districts.
Baker City & McMinnville.
Advocates of downtown associations in Oregon frequently point to Baker City and McMinnville as
examples of the strengths of the model. While both cities do indeed have strong associations,
research has shown that these cities are the exception and not the norm. Both cities are county
seats of non-urban counties with populations between 10,000 and 25,000. Neither city has an urban
renewal program.
Additionally, both Baker City and McMinnville have a strong tourism market, with the former being in
the middle of major recreational opportunities, and the latter being in the middle of Oregon's "wine
country". Both cities also have strong historic downtowns consisting of multiple blocks of large vintage
structures. Both began their downtown programs decades ago to combat a plague of empty
storefronts and vacant buildings.
Sadly, research shows that the typical association in Oregon is a standalone association with weak
power, little membership, and poor funding, focused on the occasional public event.
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 16
Funding Associations.
Downtown associations achieve their funding in a variety of ways. Most are self-funded, either
through memberships and donations, or through assessment programs such as Economic
Improvement Districts. Very few receive direct funding from their municipal governments.
The predominant form of funding for associations in Oregon is the Economic Improvement District
(EID). This is a form of assessment similar to a tax, assessed against properties within a defined
district. Ids are usually administered by the local municipality, however, the program is usually
instigated by the association. Ids can be made voluntary -- allowing a property owner to opt out if
he/she feels the program will not benefit them -- or involuntary, where all properties in the district must
pay if the EID survives passage.
Adoption of an EID usually consists of an EID proposal being made by an association to their local
municipality. The municipality then handles the paperwork for formation, and notifies the land owners
within the proposed district of the assessment and gives them the option of declining, known as
remonstrance. If property owners representing up to or in excess of 33% of the proposed assessed
value remonstrate, the EID can not be implemented. Surprisingly, very few associations are using
involuntary Ids, and those using voluntary Ids have reported respectable compliance levels.
Another funding method similar to the EID is the Business Improvement District. This is a form of
assessment similar to a business license tax, assessed against businesses within a defined district.
BIDs are usually administered by the local municipality, however, the program is usually instigated by
the association. BIDs can be made voluntary -- allowing a property owner to opt out if he/she feels
the program will not benefit them -- or involuntary,where all properties in the district must pay if the
BID survives passage.
Adoption of BIDs usually consists of an BID proposal being made by an association to their local
municipality. The municipality then handles the paperwork for formation, and notifies the business
owners within the proposed district of the assessment and gives them the option of declining, known
as remonstrance. If business owners representing up to or in excess of 33% of the proposed
businesses in the district remonstrate, the BID can not be implemented. The BID seems to be a less
popular funding choice, perhaps due to the lower dollar amount that is usually assessed by them.
Initial research seems to indicate that few associations are using both EID and BIDs together.
Some cities provide direct stipends to their associations. Oregon City, Albany, Hillsboro, and Corvallis
all provide direct funding, but in almost every case officials from the local governments described this
funding as "a small stipend", usually ranging between $10,000 and $50,000 annually. Currently,
Redmond is considering a request from their association for a 5-year, $500,000 stipend.
In some cases, the local municipality provides funding assistance to their associations through
indirect means. As an example, Albany allows their association to implement a parking meter program
and retain the profits for their operations. In Grants Pass, the city contracts out visitor information and
tourism services as well as the administration of a downtown historic district program to its local
Chamber of Commerce. Hillsboro has created a Local Improvement District (LID) to fund capital
projects that support the vision of their downtown association.
Many associations receive no stable funding source, relying on memberships and/or donations to
continue operations. Such groups rarely can afford to hire a staff person, and most of their funds
tend to go towards public events. In most of these cases, the association either had no working
relationship with their local municipality, or had a history of conflicts with the municipality.
None of these methods provide significant funding. In most cases, the funding raised is just enough
to cover the costs of association staffing, overhead, and events. Major programs -- including
storefront grant programs -- tend to be paid for through the local municipality.
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 17
Membership & Business Associations vs. Downtown Associations.
Membership, as mentioned above, is sometimes relied upon as a funding source for downtown
associations. It should be noted that this is the primary role of membership in such organizations.
Business associations and downtown associations or downtown organizations are not the
same. Unlike a business association, downtown associations exist to represent geographic areas,
not just their members. Although the ability to vote or hold office in the organization is typically tied
to membership, most municipalities will expect that a downtown association will represent the interest
of their entire downtown, not only their paid members.
The term "business association" and "downtown association" should not be used as if they are
interchangeable, due to this fundamental difference.
Main Street Programs.
Associations are welcome to join the Main Street program from the National Trust for Historic
Preservation (NTHP). This program is aimed towards downtowns with a strongly historic character that
have need of both physical and economic improvement. This program provides benefits such as
technical assistance and training. In exchange, the program requires extensive record keeping that
must be submitted to the NTHP, who use it to monitor the performance of the nations downtowns as
well as use it as support for advocacy with national policymakers.
The program consists of the so-called "four points" approach. These four principles are considered
absolutely required by the NTHP, and consist of organization, promotion, design, and economic
restructuring.
Baker City's Don Chance notes that their historic district had been very successful in partnering with
the city and disbursing grant money to renovate the city's downtown. Many of the structures in the
area were empty or derelict when the district began its efforts more than twenty years ago.
In Oregon, the program is currently administered by the Oregon Economic & Community
Development Department (OECDD). The program had a good track record of many years, but fell
victim to budget cuts in the late 1990s. Governor Kulongoski's 2007-2009 budget has provided
money to reestablish the program.
The reaction of various cities in the state has been mixed. While some cities are embracing the new
program, others -- such as Lake Oswego -- are choosing not to. Partly this is due to the fairly rigid
structure of the national program, and its focus on historic matters.
The Oregon program, however, is somewhat more flexible. Program coordinator Gary Van Huffel
indicated that he is open to modifying the state's program to meet the needs of individual
communities. Although cities with a modified program would likely not meet the requirements of the
full national program, they would still enjoy certain advocacy and support benefits with the state.
Oregon City's highly tailored version of the Main Street program -- mentioned earlier -- is an example
of such a modification. With many towns lacking a surviving historic center, as well as some cities
(such as Damascus) starting from scratch, such flexibility will be needed.
Leland on Other Models.
Leland notes that there are numerous other models besides the Main Street program. Other models
include public/private economic development associations. Another idea that was suggested was to
include the 99W corridor businesses in a broader organization, as this would allow pooling of
resources. (Memo from Sean Farrelly to CCAC, dated 7 July 2008).
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 18
Additional Models of Note
A number of cities both in and outside of the region are notable examples of differing approaches
and may warrant further investigation. The following list includes links to profiles for these cities, for
further reading:
Holland, MI: Main Street/Downtown Development Authority
http://www.mainstreet.ora/content.aspx?page=6075§ion=3&kbentry=1700
New Bern, NC: Swiss Bear, Inc.
http://www.mainstreet.org/content.aspx?page=7132§ion=3&kbentry=1706
Pittsburgh, PA: Pittsburgh Cultural Trust
http://www.mostlivable.orQ/paving-for-it/12ittsburah-cultural-trust.html
St. Paul, MN: Lowertown
http://www.mostlivable.org/leadership/lowertown.html
http://www.lowertown.org/
Sonoma, CA: Sonoma County Business Environmental Alliance
http://www.mostlivable.orci/payinQ-for-it/sonoma-county-business-environmental-alliance.html
http://www.sonoma-county.orci/bea/
Winston-Salem, NC: Winston-Salem Alliance
http://www.livable.com/prQms model/leadership/Winton_Salem.html
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 19
URD ONLY MODELS
Research Question:
What are other cities (of any size/make-up) doing that have urban
renewal but do not have an association?
URD Without Associations.
A number of cities utilize urban renewal programs to enhance their downtowns without using a
downtown association component. These towns tended to be small and rural, as in Brookings,
Coquille, and Pendleton -- or suburban, as in Canby, Keizer, and Tualatin. In interviews with
members of city staff in these communities, each city had a strong urban renewal program, or had a
strong economic development department. A significant financial commitment towards infrastructure
from the city was a common feature of these models.
When a city did have both urban renewal and a downtown association, there was rarely any
coordination between the association and the city. Few Oregon associations receive funding from
their local municipalities, and many were described by city staff as being "in existence" but"not doing
much"; rarely was an association described as a vital or highly active partner.
Regarding the use of urban renewal and downtown associations, Don Chance, planning director at
the City of Baker City had some interesting comments. He mentioned that, in retrospect, they wish
they had not gone the historic downtown association route, and had instead concentrated on urban
renewal. According to Chance, there are a number of streets within downtown that are adjacent to
the historic district but not included within it. The city is considering the use of Urban Renewal to
finance and revitalize these streets. Said Chance: "we've been wondering if we had just included all
this in one urban renewal district years ago rather than going the historic district route if we could
have just done all this under one umbrella".
Non-URD, Capital Intensive Programs.
Some cities have neither an association nor urban renewal, but still have a financial commitment to
their infrastructure or to historic preservation efforts. In Beaverton's case, the city has invested
significant funds into their downtown through direct expenditure, without using urban renewal; this is
the result of a city charter that forbids the use of urban renewal financing. (Currently there is an effort
to rewrite or remove this provision.) At the opposite end of the spectrum is Ashland, which has no
urban renewal and which has concentrated on historic preservation. In Ashland's situation, the
historic preservation program is coordinated entirely "in house" at the city in a topdown approach.
City of Tigard I Downtown Associations in Oregon... 20
WEB SOLUTIONS
Research Question:
How many associations utilize web-based solutions, and how?
General Comments.
As a general statement, most associations have some form of web presence, but rarely do these
presences go beyond a simple web site. There are many different web-based tools -- such as e-mail
lists and online forums -- that would be available to an association, but their use does not seem
common at this time.
Further research into this subject would be of use to an existing or prospective association, however,
such research was precluded due to a shortage of time for this report.
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 21
FAILURES
Research Question:
What are some examples of cities with associations that failed, and
what are the reasons for such failures?
Typical Failures.
Over the course of this research, it is undeniable that more associations in Oregon have experienced
or are experiencing failure than are not. As a clarification, such failure tended to be defined as:
• Inadequate funding to continue operations
• Inadequate membership
• Lack of leadership from more than one individual within the association
• Lack of leadership in general in the association
• Lack of association vision or purpose
• Poor organization
Such features are typical of most associations in the state. Only a very few associations have
remained strong enough to avoid such failures. They have tended to be associations in historic,
stand-alone cities such as Baker, McMinnville, or Albany.
The most common problem encountered surrounded leadership issues. Springfield, for example, had
a strong association, but it was built around the leadership of a single individual. When that individual
passed away, the association failed. Sometimes, leadership failure occurs when personalities
become stronger than issues. In Grants Pass, for example, personal conflicts came between the
leadership of the association and members of city staff, disagreements that were not resolved until
there were personnel changes on both sides.
Leland on Association Leadership.
Leland echoes these concerns, noting that leadership -- along with funding -- are crucial to
maintaining an association's health. Leland points out as an example Bellingham, Washington. "The
City provided seed money for a couple of years, but after that was phased out there was no stable
funding, since a BID was never formed. There was early committed leadership, but when that person
left, the organization declined." Leland further notes that there needs to be not just a single
individual, but a pool of people capable of providing leadership (Memo from Sean Farrelly to CCAC,
dated 7 July 2008). This sentiment is echoed by Oregon City, whose efforts to create a very broad-
based board of directors is an attempt to engineer an environment that will promote a healthy
spectrum of leadership.
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 22
APPENDIX
The following are summaries taken from Main street renewal: A handbook for citizens and public
officials. This book is an extremely valuable resource, and cannot posibly be sumarized in only three
pages, however, the following material stood out as particularly relevant to this fact-finding mission.
Ten Myths of Downtown Revitalization
Myth Reality
1. Build it and they will come! (Physical Need a market analysis & business plan
improvement approach). implemented by newly formed partnership of
city hall and businesses.
2. Demolish it and they will come! (Clean it up Building preservation combined with intensive
approach). business recruitment does attract developers.
3. Complete a major project and they will Sucess requires multi-faceted effort
come! (Build in isolation approach). addressing all of downtown's key issues.
4. Need a department store to anchor the Redefine anchors as government complexes,
downtown! (Traditional anchor approach). cultural/entertainment facilities, tourist draws,
housing units, specialty retail, office buildings.
5. If there is no department store, then no Specialty retail works. Bringing pedestrians
retail of any kind can flourish. (Big retail or downtown requires a mix of services, retail,
no retail approach). and dining/entertainment facilities that adress
needs of customers.
6. Competition is bad business. (Head in the Sucessful commerical districts have similar &
sand approach). compatible businesses in groupings (clusters
such as antique stores, furniture, clothing,
auot, personal services, professional services,
etc....)
7. Downtown must keep uniform business Not advantageous to retailers as hours
hours. (Lets pretend we're a mall should be "market driven" to serve needs of
approach). targeted customers. Shift to different hours
rather than keep longer hours.
8. Be lenient or developers won't do business Developers will do business in communities
with us. that demand quality projets as their
investments are protected.
9. Be tough as possible or developers will Unreasonably stringent & demanding
take advantage of us. communities cause developers to locate
projects elsewhere.
10. If we had more parking, they would come! Successful businesses found you need to
(Scapegoat approach). provide what the customer wants (special
products, great service, unique atmosphere)
in order to get customers to come downtown
and use the parking.
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 23
Seven Secrets of Success
• Form partnerships among businesses, with the public sector, civic organizations, and
community residents.
• Have a defined clear vision of where you want to go shared by all in body.
• Be market driven! Who are your customers, potential customers, & what do they want today
and what will they want tomorrow? Provide for them!
• Create & use a business Plan! City could help businesses to develop business plans (as well
as the commissioned body having a written visionary plan) with 5, 10 & 20 outlooks.
• Dare to be different. Carve a market niche in the marketplace, so you don't compete with
malls and descanters.
• Focus! Concentrate resources in well-defined focus areas as resources are scarce. Results
will become more visible quickly. What resources are already available for you to share? See #1.
• Follow the "5 MY
Management of downtown should be like a business.
Marketing campaigns for downtown
Maintenance of private and public property
Market knowledge to create niche
Money for ongoing enhancement
Lessons from Birmingham
The following are key points from the Birmingham, Alabama "Beacon" project:
• Revitalize active merchant's associations
• Reduce blight caused by existing businesses and vacant space
• Preserve the historic character of the neighborhoods
• Recruit new tenants that enhance the quality of the neighborhoods
and promote cohesiveness
• Encourage development transactions within the districts
• Assist entrepreneurs in opening local businesses
• Receive, buy and develop key properties
For more information on the Beacon project, see:
http://www.livable.com/prgms model/place/BEACON Initiative.html
http://www.mainstreetbham.ora/
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 24
Goals & Vision
Some possible goals for an association might include:
• Vision — 5, 10 & 20 year plans
• Economic Stability
• Use Current Business Management & Research Techniques
• Strategic Economic Development to build solid foundation
• Sound Priorities:
a) quality jobs
b) quality education
c) economic development
d) housing
The larger question is, how does Tigard see its downtown as relating to local, state, national, and
international economies? As shown by the needs analysis section of this report, non-retail uses are
predominate in the URD. In the global economy of the 21st century, many of these companies do
business not just locally. but regionally, nationally, and beyond. What are their needs and how might
downtown Tigard be relevant to them?
One of the factors that town centers use to compete for business is the "quality of life" factor. This is
especially true of areas where housing is a key aspect of the downtown mix. Quality of life, however,
has many definitions. Nationally, the term is usually defined as a loop that starts with jobs and
economic development, linked to quality education, which then links back to jobs. In the Pacific
Northwest, quality of life is usually seen as a trifecta of housing, education, and employment.
A key goal of an association in downtown Tigard might be to define what quality of life means for this
specific place. Such a definition might include housing, access to healthcare, culture & cultural
amenities, the environment, and transportation.
City of Tigard / Downtown Associations in Oregon... 25
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Farrelly, S., City of Tigard. memo to City Center Advisory Commission dated June 2, 2008.
Farrelly, S., City of Tigard, memo to City Center Advisory Commission dated July 7, 2008.
Kemp, R. Main street renewal:A handbook for citizens and public officials (2nd ed.). Jefferson, North
Carolina: McFarland & Company, 2006.
Leland Consulting Group. (October, 2007). Development Strategy for Downtown Tigard.
Marcus Mead / City of Tigard. (April, 2008). Summary of Research on Downtown Associations:
Structure, Funding, Effectiveness.
National Trust for Historic Preservation Main Street Program (Web site), Retrieved from
http://www.mainstreet.org/
Oregon Department of Revenue. (April, 2007). Oregon property tax statistics: Fiscal year 2006-2007.
Population Research Center, Portland State University. (December 15, 2006). PRC Certified Cities.
State of Oregon. Oregon Blue Book Online (Web Site). Retrieved from http://bluebook.state.or.us/
U.S. Census Bureau. (2000). Oregon -- place GCT-PH1. Population, housing units, area, and
density: 2000. Washington, D.C.
Zahas, C., Leland Consulting Group. Letter to Tigard City Council, dated November 19, 2007/
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Many people helped in the creation of this report. it is not possible to thank them all, but the following
individuals should be acknowledged for their contributions:
Jacki Yoder, Oregon Economic Development Department
Arthur Fish, OEDD
Linda Ludwig, League of Oregon Cities
Stephanie Foley, LOC
Gary Van Huffel, OEDD
Don Chance, City of Baker City
Catherine Comer, City of Canby
Sean Farrelly, City of Tigard
Courtney Griesel, City of Springfield
Christina Robertson-Gardiner, City of Oregon City
Chris Zahas, Leland Consulting Group