K
ramers/metro
mailing service
3201 N.W. YEON
PORTLAND, OREGON 97210
(503) 274-1638 FAX (503) 227-1245
THE ONLY UNION MAILER
IN OREGON
Visit our Web site at www.kramersmailing.com
MEMBERS OF TEAMSTERS LOCAL 223
— Eric Brending, Owner —
ENJOY
LABOR DAY
YOU’VE EARNED IT!
IBEW
Local 659
4480 Rogue Valley Hwy.
Central Point, Oregon
Ron Jones
Business Manager
541-664-0800
Hardhats want Pepsico plant in
Albany to be built by local workers
ALBANY — Construction workers
— plumbers, laborers, electricians, op-
erating engineers, carpenters and oth-
ers — are opposing a proposal by the
City Council to create an urban re-
newal district that would primarily
benefit a multi-billion-dollar corpora-
tion.
PepsiCo wants to build a $250 mil-
lion Gatorade Thirst Quencher and
Propel Fitness Water facility in Albany
that it says will create 250 jobs.
The problem is, SVC Manufactur-
ing, a division of PepsiCo, has hired
the design/build firm Haskell Company
of Florida to construct the plant.
Haskell, an affiliate of the anti-union
Associated Builders and Contractors,
says it will use out-of-state contractors
to do the work.
According to city officials, a de-
velop ment agreement has already
been signed by the city, Linn County,
the State of Oregon and PepsiCo. That
agreement obligates the city to provide
public improvements at an estimated
cost of $22 million. City officials now
want to form the urban renewal district
to help finance the street and utility
work needed for the project.
If the urban renewal district is not
created, the city will have to find an-
other way to raise the money, City At-
torney Jim Delapoer told the Albany
Democrat-Herald newspaper.
For its part, PepsiCo is obligated to
build a 900,000-square-foot factory to
produce Gatorade and Propel Fitness
In salute to working families
throughout the West
Happy Labor Day!
water, as well as a 400,000-square-foot
bottle-making plant.
At a public hearing Aug. 8, 31 peo-
ple testified. Of those, 26 said they
were against the project.
Even the Albany Planning Commis-
sion voted 5-2 to reject the formation
of the district. A majority of commis-
sioners thought the financing plan was
too one-sided in favor of PepsiCo.
A lawyer representing two property
owners located within the proposed
URB told the City Council that his
clients would pay all the tax costs. “All
the benefits accrue to one owner
(Pepsi),” said Kris Gorsuch, who then
proposed enlarging the boundary to in-
clude more residential areas.
“An urban renewal district is not a
bad idea, but when it is used to benefit
the tearing down of industry standards,
industry wages, industry benefits, it’s
something we have to stop,” testified
Lou Christian, secretary-treasurer of
the Salem Building Trades Council.
“We are being used as fodder. We
get very little out of this,” he continued.
Christian, of Creswell, said transi-
tory workers and their families can put
a burden on public schools, emergency
room facilities and other public serv-
ices.
“They’re going to make the money,
then they’re going to leave,” he said.
Christian then asked the council to
include language in the development
agreement that would address con-
struction issues “and not throw our
construction workers under the bus.”
Steve Carlson, president of Carpen-
ters Local 1065, asked the council to
put a face on their decision.
“We’re taxpaying citizens who live
in this community. To some, our piece
(of this project) is very small. But it’s
big to us. We contribute to — not im-
pact — local services.”
Proponents of the urban renewal
district (the Albany Chamber of Com-
merce and the Willamette Association
of Realtors) cited the economic benefit
of bringing in an estimated 250 jobs,
averaging 150 percent of the median
Southgate Mobile & RV Park
7911 SE 82nd Ave.
Portland, Oregon
Spaces Available up to 35’
503-771-5262
Quarry 8”
Safety toe or reg.
Gortex/Vibram. Black
Try a pair on, you’ll like them.
Tough boots for the Northwest.
503-248-9188
SEATTLE N PORTLAND N SPOKANE N SAN DIEGO N ANCHORAGE
AL’S SHOES
5811 SE 82nd, Portland 503-771-2130
Mon-Fri 10-7:30 Sat 10-5:30 Sun 12-6
PAGE 16
NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS
wage in Linn County.
Several opponents questioned a
$47,868-a-year average wage PepsiCo
would pay its workforce — as sug-
gested by John Pascone, president of
the Albany-Millersburg Economic De-
velopment Corporation.
Albany citizen Diane Hunsaker said
she read that more than 100 of the pro-
posed 250 jobs would pay between
$13-15 an hour. “I keep hearing 50
thousand a year. We need a breakdown
of the number of jobs and the wages,”
she said.
Joe Baron, a business representative
of the Pacific Northwest District Coun-
cil of Carpenters, said he’s heard it all
before. “Pepsi says it will pay this and
pay that. There is not enough informa-
tion for this. I think there should be
some guarantees. And the work should
be done locally,” he said.
PepsiCo has already asked for a de-
lay in groundbreaking for up to three
years, claiming market growth wasn’t
what it expected. Some citizens in the
area, however, believe the proposed lo-
cation may have issues with endan-
gered species and that PepsiCo is
awaiting the outcome of an impact
study before spending any more
money.
Following the public hearing, the
City Council voted to modify its agree-
ment with SVC Manufacturing to ac-
commodate the delay.
John Paul Williams, representing
Workers for a Livable Oregon, a group
opposing the plan, said the city should
have been accepting public comment
and input and completing studies re-
lated to noise, water, traffic, growth
projections, financing mechanisms,
wetland and environmental impacts be-
fore any agreement or amendments
were ever brought to the council.
“This is bad public policy,” he testi-
fied. “(You’ve) essentially already au-
thorized the construction of the Pepsi
plant without the necessary checks and
balance system that is in the City Code
and the comprehensive plan. This
should not be done without public
comment.”
Wade Thompson of Albany said
PepsiCo already is “abandoning” a
community in California to come to
Oregon. “Wherever they can make the
best sell. They’ve got ways out. Some-
body offers a better deal, they’ll take
it.”
Rick Nys, an engineer hired by
Workers for a More Livable Oregon,
said transportation studies also were in-
complete and not based on industry
standards.
He said some reports “don’t even
come close to meeting the city’s re-
quirements for tracking” and that fu-
ture land-use development projects
likely would be denied by the Oregon
Department of Transportation.
The City Council is expected to
make a decision on the formation of an
urban renewal district at its Aug. 22
meeting.
AUGUST 17, 2007