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About Northwest labor press. (Portland , Ore.) 1987-current | View Entire Issue (April 18, 2014)
Union investment brings new development, jobs to Portland Workers, elected officials and com- munity leaders will gather in Northeast Portland to acknowledge Workers Me- morial Day on Monday, April 28 — and take part in a ceremonial ground- breaking on a new union-funded con- struction project. The $43.2 million Lloyd District Commons is a six-story, multi-family apartment complex that will be located adjacent to the Oregon Convention Center at 330 Multnomah Street. The project is funded by the AFL- CIO Building Investment Trust (BIT), and will be built, serviced and main- tained 100 percent with union labor. Construction is expected to be com- pleted in July 2015. Lloyd District Commons will have 186 rental apartments, 190 parking spaces, and 3,500 square feet of street- level retail space. Starbucks has al- ready signed a lease for 1,850 square feet of space. “It is very encouraging to see union pension dollars in Portland put to work to create hundreds of new jobs in our community. And Lloyd District Com- mons is something that workers can be especially proud of for this reason,” said John Mohlis, executive secretary of the Oregon State Building and Con- struction Trades Council. Mike Stotz, president of the AFL- CIO Investment Trust Corporation, said that as the nation honors workers who died on the job, “it is essential that the labor movement lead by example and set the standard for good, safe, and skilled job creation. The AFL-CIO Building Investment Trust does this with all of its projects.” The BIT has 10 projects currently in development across the country, with total development costs of ap- proximately $1.1 billion. The projects are expected to create some 5,500 union jobs throughout the course of construction. Additionally, hundreds more union maintenance, retail, and service jobs will be created once those projects are completed. Tom Chamberlain, president of the Oregon AFL-CIO, said projects such as those funded by the BIT create safe jobs, and safe jobs save lives. “We know that strong training leads to safe jobs. The Lloyd District Com- mons is making sure the construction jobs we create in Portland are highly trained, with never-compromised, stringent, job-safety standards,” he said. “It is essential that we do more — through legislation and through hold- ing a few bad-acting employers ac- countable to address workers dying needlessly on the job each year,” said Bob Tackett, executive secretary-treas- urer of the Northwest Oregon Labor Council. “Workers Memorial Day puts a spotlight on this crisis, and projects like Lloyd District Commons are essential to demonstrate what the bar should be in terms of creating safe and healthy working conditions on construction projects.” The memorial service and ground- breaking ceremony are sponsored by the Oregon AFL-CIO, the Northwest Oregon Labor Council, the Columbia Pacific Building Trades Council, the Oregon State Building and Construc- tion Trades Council, BIT, project de- veloper Legacy Partners Residential, Inc., project manager Rembold Com- panies, PNC Realty Investors, Inc., and the AFL-CIO Investment Trust Corpo- ration. The ceremony is slated to begin at 10 a.m. at the construction site, 330 NE Multnomah St. Portland. IBEW’s Ed Barnes a finalist for Clark Co. Commission seat VANCOUVER, Wash. — Ed Barnes, a retired business manager of IBEW Local 48, is a finalist to succeed Steve Stuart on the Clark County Board of Commissioners. Stuart, a Democrat, resigned his District 3 seat this month for a job as Ridgefield city manager. His term as Clark County commissioner expires at the end of this year, which means the seat is up for election in November. Under Washington law, the political party of the resigning county official must submit a list of three names to the Board of Commissioners, in order of preference, to complete the term. Clark County Democrats chose Craig Pridemore, a former county com- missioner and former state senator as their top choice. They picked Kelly Parker, president of the Greater Van- couver Chamber of Commerce and a former news reporter for KGW Chan- nel 8 in Portland, as their second choice. Barnes was their third choice. Both Parker and Barnes support Pride- more, and Pridemore intends to run for election. Now it’s up to Clark County Com- missioners David Madore and Tom Mielke, both Republicans, to select the replacement. They have 60 days to do so. The clock started ticking April 7. If the commissioners do not make an appointment in that time, the gover- nor makes the choice. Social Security Disability benefits: You paid into the system while you worked, and if you can’t work anymore, it’s time to obtain them. APRIL 18, 2014 NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS PAGE 5
