Official says Ontario at development crossroads
Malheur County Economic Development Director says he sees a bright future for area
By William Lundquist
Argus Observer
Wednesday, November 7, 2007 11:18 AM PST
Ontario - The identity of the “big” company interested in building a large facility in west Ontario is still a mystery, but Malheur County Economic Development Director Jim Jensen said he sees the proposed venture as a turning point for the area.
In an Argus Observer interview, Jensen said representatives of the company have visited Ontario three times and have put it on a short list of two or three communities as a site for a new facility.
Jensen said Ontario will be crossed off that list, however, if the identity of the company is released to the public before the firm is ready to make the announcement.
Regardless of whether that particular company is the first to take advantage of the 2,300 acres recently added to Ontario’s Urban Reserve Area, Jensen predicts big things for the region.
“I personally believe we need to grow the tax base,” Jensen said. “But we need housing to go with the jobs.”
The newly available land south of Ontario has made that goal possible, he said.
“This is the most important piece of land use planning work in Malheur County in 15 years,” he said. With Ontario at a transportation crossroads in a broad region including Oregon, Idaho, Washington, Nevada and Northern California, Jensen said he would not be surprised if industries and distribution centers start sprouting as quickly as the onions in the fields they will replace.
Thanks to long-range planning completed by city officials, he said, land is now available and can go from farmland in the Urban Reserve Area to being pulled within the city’s Urban Growth Boundary to being annexed and zoned industrial in short order. Some property can be put into the city’s enterprise zone, where companies can get a break on local taxes. The city’s accomplishment is remarkable, Jensen said, because with frequent turnovers in leadership during each election, cities are just not good at long-range planning. For example, he said, a company that will build a facility in Nyssa within the next 18 to 24 months looked first at building in Vale, but Vale did not have the needed 20 acres of land properly zoned. Jensen said he told the Vale City Council opportunity may only come once, and the town has to be ready for it.
Jensen said an old saying in his line of work is, “You can’t do the deal if you don’t have the dirt.”
Ontario has been proactive, he said, but is only “part way there” in planning for its future.
“We have the land, but do we have the infrastructure?” Jensen said. He said he wondered what would happen now that Ontario Public Works Director Steve Gaschler had resigned. Jensen said one piece of property on the west end of town would be attractive to big companies if not for the ditch running through it. The estimate to reroute that ditch was $150,000 to $200,000. He said Gaschler thought the city’s own crew could accomplish the project for $50,000. Jensen also said Ontario needs to balance its inventory of low-, middle- and upper-priced housing. Most of what is available right now, he said, is in the low range.
“I want two or three subdivisions out there so people can make a choice,” he said. As Ontario’s industrial district grows, Jensen said he would like to see Vale and Nyssa market themselves as bedroom communities for the employees the big companies will hire. He said Idaho communities will also play a role, but he would rather see Malheur County towns take advantage of the opportunity. Sometimes, Jensen said, the state puts unnecessary roadblocks in the way of development. He said Ontario has 200 acres zoned residential, but the owners of those acres are not willing sellers. He does not understand why that land has to be included as available land in the city’s master plan, when it belongs in the city’s reserve area.
