Corvallis‑Benton economic office outlines five‑point growth plan, readies South Corvallis food‑hub RFP

Christopher Jacobs, director of the Corvallis‑Benton Economic Development Office, told the Benton County Board of Commissioners on May 7 that the office will pursue five core strategies to spur local investment, growth and workforce alignment. The plan emphasizes growing property‑tax revenue, a modernized business retention and expansion program, bolstering target sectors including food systems, competitive benchmarking of peer communities, and regional workforce partnerships.

Jacobs introduced newly hired economic development officer Lily Bender and said the office has reached 74 businesses since his start in August 2023 and expects to exceed its annual contact target. He urged building a business registry and tracking outcomes from outreach ‘‘to articulate what outcomes were reached from each of those contacts’’ and to report on the use of incentives such as enterprise zones and tax‑increment financing.

The presentation named several near‑term, actionable items: a $75,000 wetland delineation study tied to airport industrial park readiness, auditing Oregon Prospector listings to certify shovel‑ready properties, and pursuing a county CPACE (Commercial Property Assessed Clean Energy) program. Jacobs said the county holds about 12 acres of advanced mitigation credits in the Airport Industrial Park and intends to market frontage once records and environmental conditions are documented.

A major program update focused on a South Corvallis food hub. Jacobs said the consultant team will deliver a facility needs assessment, feasibility study and gaps analysis to the board on May 21. He said an RFP would be released within a week and left open for roughly 1½ to 2 months to attract collaborative proposals from nonprofits, food businesses and other operators; the Small Business Development Center will provide proposal‑writing support for potential applicants. Jacobs said contracts would be negotiated and executed before the county’s ARPA obligation deadline at the end of 2024.

Commissioners asked for clearer, more frequent communication with regional partners and universities, including updates from OSU and technology hub initiatives (microfluidics and mass timber). Jacobs said the office—now fully staffed—would step up interim communications and provide direct updates from those tech‑hub partners at future meetings.

The board did not take formal action beyond accepting the update, but commissioners asked staff to return with the Oregon Prospector audits, a list of priority parcels, and improved reporting formats that show funding sources, segment status and outstanding gaps.