Economic development happens in a lot of rooms. In the past month, Collaborative EDO made Lane County’s case in three of them.

The first was a trade show floor in San Francisco. In October, we joined Oregon’s biggest delegation yet at SEMICON West, the semiconductor industry’s big annual show. Oregon showed up as one team, and Eugene showed up with something to sell. A simple map of Oregon packed with chipmakers and suppliers did the talking. As UO’s Tony Schaffer put it, visitors kept telling us they “had no idea there was so much semiconductor industry in the state.” My job was to put the former Hynix fab in west Eugene in front of the right companies. Warm handoffs from partners turned into real leads. There is reason to be hopeful.

The second was Springfield City Council, which voted 5-0 Monday night to annex land for a behavioral health campus: Lane County’s 24-hour crisis stabilization center and PeaceHealth’s 96-bed Timber Springs Behavioral Health Hospital. CEDO made the economic case in a column for Lookout Eugene-Springfield. The stabilization center alone is projected to support 93 jobs averaging about $113,000 a year. The full campus is expected to generate about $2 million a year in property taxes for the City of Springfield, Willamalane, our schools, Lane Community College and Lane County. More importantly, when it opens, our neighbors in crisis will get care close to home, and young people who are now sent to Portland for psychiatric care will have beds here.

The third is the job search itself. Bringing good jobs to Lane County is only half of economic development (when done well). The other half is making sure local people can land them. That’s why today CEDO and Lane Workforce Partnership launched the public beta of Lane County Hot Jobs, an ad-free job board with more than 1,400 local openings from more than 350 employers, refreshed every night. The openings reach from Oakridge to Florence and everywhere in between, including 184 in our most rural communities.

Nearly every listing shows pay. Many show whether a bus can get you there, and most link to training paths for that line of work. Start at laneworkforce.org/hot-jobs 

Different rooms, same goal: good jobs close to home, and local people in them.

-Matt

Finding work in Lane County shouldn’t mean checking a dozen websites, guessing what a job pays, or learning after you’re hired that no bus runs when your shift ends. Today, Collaborative EDO and Lane Workforce Partnership launched the public beta of Lane County Hot Jobs, a free job board built around the questions that decide whether a job will work for you.

Hot Jobs brings more than a thousand current openings from nearly 350 local employers into one place, from Oakridge to Florence and everywhere in between, including hundreds in rural communities. The list refreshes every night, and most listings link straight to the employer’s own application. There are no ads and no account to create.

Nearly every listing shows pay, either the employer’s posted wage or a clearly labeled local estimate. For jobs near a Lane Transit District stop, Hot Jobs shows how often buses run and flags shifts that start or end when they don’t. Most listings link to relevant training programs in and near Lane County, along with any Oregon license the work requires. Filters point to jobs that don’t require a degree, jobs with training provided and fair-chance employers. Veterans can search by their military job code, and anyone can pick jobs they’ve held to see which jobs hiring today use similar skills.

Community testers shaped those features. “Hot Jobs is the first job site that felt like it was built for me,” said Abbey Nelson, a Lane County job seeker who tested it before launch. “I found a job that fit, clicked straight through to the employer’s own application and applied that same afternoon.”

Employers don’t need to do anything new. Hot Jobs reads the hiring sites of more than 1,100 employers every night. If yours isn’t included yet, send your careers page link to info@collaborativeedo.org. Job seekers and those who support them can save openings to a shareable list, and partners can add the Hot Jobs widget to their own websites with one line of code.

Start searching at laneworkforce.org/hot-jobs 

Lane County’s healthcare workforce challenges, from creating meaningful career pathways to helping patients stay connected to care, require organizations to work together. At the October 15 convening of the Lane County Healthcare Sector Partnership at the PeaceHealth Riverbend Annex, employers, educators, providers and community partners reviewed progress and identified practical next steps across workforce, advocacy and collaboration.

Workforce discussions focused on what employers need to attract, prepare, hire and retain staff. Participants named priorities including physician recruitment support, stronger workplace readiness, insurance-navigation skills, and training and retention support for community health workers and peer support specialists. The partnership is working toward 100 single-shift student observations countywide, with a shared readiness standard. More than 100 young people registered for job-shadow opportunities in the first wave, and education partners are collecting placement needs to match with employer capacity.

Advocacy conversations produced volunteers willing to share expertise through testimony and written input on issues such as behavioral health, credentialing and healthcare costs. Participants also considered how the partnership can offer useful pathways into the legislative process and connect community experience with policy discussions.

For collaboration, participants identified priorities including insurance-navigation training, resource sharing and stronger connections with existing community groups. This builds on the October 2 Resource Navigator Toolbox, which brought more than 55 people together for learning and relationship-building. A proposed office-manager and small-practice group could give frontline staff time to share challenges and shape practical support.

The table discussions will inform the committees’ work in the months ahead. The shared goal is to turn local knowledge into coordinated steps that help strengthen healthcare access, careers and services across Lane County.

Want to get involved? Email Info@CollaborativeEDO.org to learn more and get plugged in. 

Creswell High School’s new 20,000-square-foot Career and Technical Education building is moving toward completion after breaking ground this spring. The project grew from community support: voters approved an $18.21 million bond in 2023, and R&M Steel donated the building structure.

“When students walk in for the first time, I hope they feel that this space was built for them, and that the people of this town see their potential and are investing in it,” says Superintendent Amy Aguero.

The building will give Creswell’s seven CTE pathways modern labs for students to weld, build, design and run enterprises. It will also house a new auto shop program, supported by a $125,000 Oregon Department of Education grant. Aguero hopes local employers will get to know students’ skills and help open routes to internships, apprenticeships and jobs.

That connection matters across Lane County: the construction-aggregate sector is projected to have 8,803 new and replacement openings by 2032. As CEDO prepares for its upcoming biannual Construction Aggregate Sector Partnership convening on November 17th and our work with Lane ESD on their CareerReady Lane platform, Creswell’s investment is a timely example of career pathways taking root in a rural community.

Want to get involved in the Lane County Construction Aggregate Partnership? Learn more about the upcoming convening HERE!

A good business idea can start anywhere. Access to the people and resources that help it grow should, too.

On September 29, Collaborative EDO brought Oregon Entrepreneurs Network's PubTalk program to Veneta in partnership with the City of Veneta. At Smitty’s, local entrepreneurs had a chance to share their work, learn from experienced business voices and connect with organizations that support business growth across Lane County.

Shannon Baldwin’s House of Ember offered one example of the creativity in the room. After friends encouraged her to sell the chili crisp she made as a holiday gift, she found a way to help customers taste it: pairing it with fresh bread from her Huggenkiss Bakery. That idea became Chili Crisp Focaccia. Baldwin formed House of Ember LLC this summer and began selling at the Eugene Saturday Market.

The evening also brought a wide range of support into one community: Cascades West Innovation Hub, Lane SBDC, SCORE Mentors, WorkSource Oregon, Mid Lane Cares, Jones & Roth, ODR.com and RAIN Catalysts. The business formation panel, moderated by Peter Thorsson, added practical legal, financial and business perspectives.

PubTalk returns tomorrow, November 4, 5–7 p.m. at Claim 52 Brewing, with pitches from Todd Edman of ClearlyEV and EmpowerPitch graduate Angelique Allen of Dreams of a Scientist. The planned panel will explore buying an existing business and growing it through innovation. Save the date!

Bridge Lane is returning to Cottage Grove! This FREE, community-centered career and resource fair connects job seekers, students, and families with local employers, education and training opportunities, and essential community resources where they are.

We’re inviting hiring employers, resource organizations, and education and training providers to take part. Meet community members, share your services or opportunities, and help make useful connections close to home.

Thursday, November 19 | 3:00–6:00 PM

Cottage Grove Armory

Interested in tabling at Bridge Lane? Register today!

Startup Coffee is your monthly stop for conversation, collaboration, and caffeine. Held the second Thursday of every month at 9 a.m. at our new location - LCC Downtown Campus. this recurring meetup brings together innovators and community members. No registration, no agenda, no pressure, just meaningful connections in Oregon’s startup scene.

Peer Wellness Specialist Training Program Launch Party 15th Night

Join 15th Night on November 12, from 4–6 p.m. at LCC's Longhouse (4000 East 30th Avenue, Eugene, OR 97405, Building 31) 

This gathering is an opportunity to thank the community partners and advocates who helped bring this new training program to life. Together, we're creating new pathways for people with lived experience to turn their knowledge, compassion, and connection to community into meaningful careers supporting others. 

We'll celebrate this collective accomplishment, share what's ahead for the program, and explore opportunities to stay involved as we continue building a strong and sustainable Peer workforce.

Light refreshments from a local organic farm will be provided! Please register here so we can plan for food and ensure there's plenty for everyone.