Greetings,
The Oregon coast is a gem. With all the natural beauty Oregon has to offer, the stretch of Pacific shoreline from Yachats to Netarts is still my favorite place on the planet.
I was was born in England, grew up in California, attended college in Corvallis and Salem, and have spent the last 35 years traveling with my wife to every corner of the globe performing with our large show kites at international festivals.
But at the end of a trip, I always look forward to returning to our beautiful home in Otis overlooking Devils Lake and the Pacific Ocean.
This is where Susan and I started our life together and built a successful business.
Every day I see people using their creativity, experience, and raw economic courage to forge better lives for themselves and their families. In this, Lincoln County is very much like other parts of rural America.
But I'm not the only one seeing all this. Governing Magazine recently did a feature article on the challenges facing our region and the unique strengths we bring to bear on those difficulties.
READ THE ARTICLE HERE:
The author points to our natural beauty, access to the Pacific Ocean, strong fishing fleet, resilient paper mill, growing marine research and education sector, and expanding maritime services industry as sources of strength.
At the same time, we face many challenges. The cost of housing is high and rising; drug use, poverty, and domestic abuse rates are high; there is a disconnect between the folks who need work and the skills required to earn a living; many young people move to Portland or Eugene at high rates; and it is often difficult to attract young professionals to fill crucial roles in healthcare and education.
Many of these problems are interrelated and there are no simple “silver bullet” answers.
That said, the article calls out the strength of the connections and collaborative spirit of our state, county, and local government leaders. Together with industry and nonprofit organizations, we have a remarkably robust system. As the author notes “In many struggling communities, various jurisdictions will jealously fight over every scrap. In Lincoln County, a couple of calls is enough to start people working on ways of lining up financing to get a project going.”
I would like to thank the County Commissioners, Port Commissioners, OSU Hatfield Center leaders, City leaders throughout the county, our Small Business Development Centers, the Yaquina Bay Economic Foundation, and the Chambers of Commerce in Newport, Toledo, Depot Bay, Lincoln City, and Waldport for being a part of this incredible collaborative effort to make our region an even more incredible place to live, thrive, and raise a family.
Yes we face challenges, but as a kite flier I understand that steady headwinds are the best opportunity to launch something beautiful.
As we head into the 2017 session, I remain focused on how to help small businesses grow, create opportunities for working families to prosper, strengthen our schools, and protecting the most vulnerable among us.
Warm regards,
Rep. David Gomberg
email: Rep.DavidGomberg@state.or.us I phone: 503-986-1410
address: 900 Court St NE, H-371, Salem, OR, 97301
website: http://www.oregonlegislature.gov/gomberg
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