The naming celebration is May 31st from 3-5. Please help spread the word. If you have the ability to help with planning or organizing the event, please contact the event organizer.

Finally, May 16th, at 9am, we will have a clean-up party. We hope to see some of you there. 

The space itself set the tone…active, and built around people showing up for their goals. BBA Members had the chance to meet new faces, catch up with familiar ones, and share what they are working on right now over lunch that was catered from Meta Pizza.

PDXFit was a fantastic host, giving everyone a glimpse into a local business that truly lives its values. We were challenged to start the year right and there continues to be a sense of momentum across the business district and mutual support throughout the event.

Special guest Jeff Lynott from City Councilor Novick’s office joined us to answer questions and provide insight into the current city government workings.

These meetups continue to strengthen the relationships that make the Brooklyn Business Association such a valuable community. We left feeling motivated, connected, and excited for what is ahead.

Economy in Multnomah County and the Portland MSA

Oregon’s total nonfarm payroll employment grew 0.5%, adding 10,100 jobs over the last 12 months ending in July. Multnomah’s nonfarm payroll employment contracted -0.9%, losing an estimated -4,700 jobs over the same time period. The Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro Metropolitan Statistical Area (Portland MSA) employment level shrank -0.7% year-over-year ending in June, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Las Vegas and Oklahoma City were the fastest growing among the 50 largest metros.

The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in Oregon held at 4.1% in July, moderately higher than last year when it was 3.6% in July 2023. Oregon’s unemployment is slightly lower than the U.S.’s unemployment rate of 4.3%. Notably, Oregon remains below the 10- and 20-year unemployment rate averages of 5.1% and 6.3%, respectively. Multnomah County’s and the Portland MSA’s unemployment rate held steady at 4.0% in July. Both rates are above where they were a year ago (both were 3.5% in July 2023) and both county and MSA remain below their 10-year averages, both of which are 5.0%.

Read more about the Multnomah and Portland economy on QualityInfo.org, Oregon’s website for labor market information.

Topic of the Month: Age of the Multnomah County Workforce

Multnomah’s workforce is aging. The number of Multnomah workers age 55 and over more than tripled in the 30 years from 1993 to 2022, increasing from 37,000 to over 110,000. The share of the workforce 55 and older more than doubled in the same time period from 10% to 22%. Driving this trend is that the youngest of the large Baby Boomer generation turns 60 in 2024, and they are more likely to be in the labor force than previous generations were at ages 55 and beyond. Many of these workers may plan to retire in the next 10 years, taking their skills and experience with them.

With the relatively smaller Gen Z generation entering the workforce, workforce aging is expected to continue in the coming years. Its impacts will be felt across industries, as there are fewer laborers available to replace retiring workers. It impacts employers, industries, and regions to varying degrees. Employers should know the age profile of their own workforce so they can plan accordingly for increased turnover and recruitment efforts due to retirements. At a broader level, workforce planners need to know the demographic profiles of entire industries and regions to help gauge the need for future replacement workers.

Read more about the aging workforce in Multnomah County here.

Data Request of the Month: Tree Trimming Portland Tri-County Occupational Wage Estimates

I was asked to provide wage estimates for a tree trimming company in the Portland Tri-County area. The Employment Department produces wage estimates for hundreds of occupations across Oregon, so I was able to provide the following data below. If you have similar questions, please reach out!

Good Reads

“Multnomah County reports surge in people moving from homelessness to shelter, housing in past year,” by Alex Zielinski, Oregon Public Broadcasting.

“An Out-of-State Investor Bought an East Portland Home. Then a Dozen Struggling People Moved In.” by Lucas Manfield, Willamette Week.

“The Anatomy of Labor Demand Pre- and Post-COVID,” by Richard Audoly, Miles Guerin, Giorgio Topa & Roshie Xing, Liberty Street Economics.

“School Food Policy Affects Everyone: Retail Responses to the National School Lunch Program,” by Jessie Handbury, University of Pennsylvania & Sarah Moshary, University of Chicago.

“Free meals at Oregon’s largest school district echo a statewide effort to serve students all over the state,” by Natalie Pate, Oregon Public Broadcasting.

Odd Months: Happy hour! First Wednesday of the month from 4-6pm. Location varies within business district.

Even Months: First Friday of the month. Coffee chat from 8:30-10 am. Location varies within business district.

Be sure and keep an eye on our calendar as we update meeting information with locations.

THANK YOU to all the business representatives that attended our first networking meetup last Friday! We had a great showing of support for restarting the GBBA and I am so happy to have a great group of businesses ready to make it happen.

On Friday, we decided to set up casual Monthly Meetups for now. These will be Happy Hours on the first Wednesdays of odd months, and coffee chats in the mornings on the first Fridays of even months. Hopefully each business can make at least one of those happen?

We are still looking for 2-3 more potential Board members to get this organization “officially” started and working on some important items that effect us all. No prerequisite is required to be a board member, just the interest in getting more involved in your community and the willingness to put in a 1-2 hours every other week at this time, time will reduce as we get settled in.

So, LET’S CONNECT – AGAIN!

Wednesday, May 3rd

4 pm-6 pm

Drop in and have a beverage and a snack and meet some of your fellow businesses in the neighborhood.

@ Hip Chicks Do Wine
4510 SE 23rd Ave
(RSVP would be helpful)

Like many organizations, the GBBA lost our momentum in 2020, and the memberships that we had built up from previous years. Currently, the GBBA doesn’t have any active Board Members other than myself as President and Janet Bartholomew as Treasurer, and the two of us have been just maintaining a holding pattern since early 2020 when the group went on hiatus. Many of our businesses, both established and newer, have asked over the past year or so if we are going to restart the GBBA back up.

We will not be asking for membership dues/renewals at this time, we will figure that out once we have a new fully functioning Board. We are looking forward to rebuilding a successful Business Association and seeing all of you very soon!!

Thank you to everyone who attended, volunteered, and donated to the St Patrick’s Day Celebration on March 16th! It was great to see our members, supporters, and some new friends!

We couldn’t do it without the support of the following businesses…

Classic Pianos provided their wonderful event space, snacks, and gave a tour of their unbelievable piano showrooms.

Artichoke Music entertained. What a great musical resource for the neighborhood. Go check them out!

Teutonic Wines poured one of their amazing wines for us.

Gigantic Brewing poured some tasty, unique brews!

Stone Barn Brandyworks shared what they produce in their small, amazing craft distillery!

Hopworks Brewery donated good beer that does good!

Hip Chicks Do Wine provided some bottles of wine from Portland’s original urban winery!