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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 28, 1983)
This building at Cableayatema Pacific was ra modeled using 100% MBE contractor«. Cablesystems Pacific reports Internship program offers oppor tunities for students from local col leges to earn college credits in their area o f study. A m ajority o f these interns are concentrated in our pro gramming department. Each intern receives a training stipend. This is a special report to the mi nority com m unity—affirm ative ac tion and minority business enter prise utilization program update d prospects fo r the future. Affirm ative Action WORKFORCE M in o rity Business Enterprise As o f M ay 31. 1983, Cablesys tems Pacific's workforce consisted of 172 employees constituting 23.8% minorities and 41.2% fe males. From the inception our M B E pro gram through our last reporting period o f February 28. 1983, Cable- systems Pacific has spent in excess o f S I.2 million with the minority community. Our program gained its initial momentum by a 100% MBE remodeling program for our present facility. That project, at a cost in ex cess o f $700,000, utilized the many and varied talents o f minority archi tectural, engineering and contract ing firms. It visibly demonstrates our commitment to the program and the abilities within the minority community. We feel that our head quarters are an ongoing tribute to our joint endeavors. Since those initial capital expendi tures our minority business enter prise program has matured and ex panded, both in terms o f the num ber of M BEs involved and partici pating in the program and the var iety o f goods and services which they provide. Over 4 5 % o f our subscriber in stallations are performed by two m i nority installation contractors. Tw o minority companies exclusively pro vide the fuel and body repairs re- TRAINING Cablesystems Pacific has comm it ted to a $10,000 annual stipend to train a minority in television pro duction. In M arch o f this year the first trainee was hired. Due to a lack o f skilled resources throughout the cable industry, a m ajority o f Cablesystems Pacific employees receive training on the job. A n in-house technical training program is conducted by technical personnel and is available to any employee on a voluntary basis. C.E.T.A. According to schedule, to date Cablesystems Pacific has success fully placed eight (8) C .E .T .A . trainees in various positions includ ing the technical area. A t least 30% o f these placements are minority and 37.3% are females. 8UMMER YOUTH EMPLOYMENT AND INTERNSHIP PROGRAMS Cablesystems Pacific continues to provide learning experiences for young people by employing youth during the summer months. The quired to maintain our growing number o f fleet vehicles. W e con tinue to contract solely with local minority companies for our janitorial and refuse disposal needs. Our interior and exterior plantings are maintained by a minority service company. And. we have established a number o f ongoing accounts with local MBEs for miscellaneous goods and services. The Future for M inority Business Enterprise Involvem ent Over the last two years Cablesys tems Pacific has concentrated on es tablishing sound, ongoing relation ships with local MBEs to insure that our relationship with the minority community will continue to prosper as we evolve into a mature cable television system. The main thrust o f our program has been to insure continuity and growth potential for the minority businesses that have entered this industry. Now, with the prospects o f a con tiguous Multnom ah County build, we project an even greater potential for expanded M B E involvement and growth. New, separate facilities will be re quired. a new fleet o f vehicles will require fuel and service. Over 80,000 potential new subscribers will require installation. Therefore, the future for minority business en terprise involvement is bright and promising and our track record es tablished and dependable. Native American business unite by Lanita Duke Grassroot News, N. W. — The N a tive American Business Alliance (N A B A ) has served the Native North American businessman and woman for over three years. N A B A is the Chamber o f Commerce for the Indian business community in Oregon and Washington. According to board member Joe D unford, “ N A B A was started in 1979 by three Indian business people. A t that time I was working at the Urban Indian Council and we felt that N A B A was a good idea." Dunford said N A B A ’as first task was to amass a mailing list from scratch. "W hen Reaganomics came into being we were not wiped out be cause we had never received any monies other than dues. The only problem we have faced was when we had to move from the Urban Indian C ouncil.” Among the main accomplish ments o f N A B A was their ability to persuade the M inority Business En terprise Agency to expand into all o f Oregon and Washington. Dunford stated, " M y reason for working with N A B A is that I see an opportunity to use my skills to work in a situation where something can come out o f it ." He said he believed the Native American Business A lli ance is one o f the most important organizations to come out o f this era. " W e have hopes that it will go national." Terry Fasthorse, a contractor, said his reason reason for joining N A B A was that the Native North American business person never fo r got the tremendous hardship for a Native American to get bonding. “ The Native American contractor was presumed to be unreliable. It was hard work trying to get the gov ernment to believe that a Native North American could do what he said he could d o ." Fasthorse wants N A B A to enable 415 BOARD OF TRADE BUILDING 310 SW FOURTH AVENUE PORTLAND, OREGON 97204 TK. Mat Cnabtor TELEPHONE (503) 225-0403 YOUR DOWNTOWN BLACK ENTREPRENEURS BUSINESS COMPLEX the Native American to have a larger voice in the Pacific Northwest to "gel these choice jobs open to us. They are bidded out before we know about them ." Fred Cooper from Cooper and Associates, the largest minority- owned Architectural Engineering Firm in the country, said he sup ports the principles and ideas behind N A B A . "W e are able to get to gether and share inform ation with MBEs and Indian firms who are just starting. I've taken a few under my wings and assisted them with ac counting practices and how to ob tain M B E certification.” Both Cooper and Dunford believe N A B A has a useful and productive future in the Pacific Northwest. For more inform ation on the Native American Business Alliance, call Joe Dunford, (503) 254-2688 or (206) 941-4669 (in Seattle); or write P .O . Box 5794, Portland. OR 97228. b STSI Q ASSOCIATES S outhw est Business Com plex M em bers C S S a n d A aaociaU a Cordially requett your pretence at an Au nrd Luncheon in recognition of Oregon Buameaa Service« • N .T .I. Supply • H A. • Conatructora Interior Supply • The J. Hill Gallery Me., Enterpria M in o r ity B u t i n e tt E n te rp ris e W eeh Wednesday, October 5, 1983 12 noon until 2:00 p m. Suite 1100, Board of Trade Building 310 Southuieit Fourth Avenue Portland, Oregon 97204 Specutl G ie r* .S e e A e *« Ruatnett C o m p iti M em berg I ¿Ute W e M rr Cemmaeaeswr 6’iWys A/rCey f tew T Wtlgom A consortium of M B E /FB E Businesses T h is e v e n t i s c o -sp o n so r e d by the N a tio n a l B u s in e s s L eagu e, Oregon C hapter S p e c ia l N o te: I f govern m en tal r e g u la t io n s a n d /o r adgency p o l i c i e s p r e v e n t the a c c e p ta n c e o f g r a t u i t i e s , c o s t o f lun ch eon i s $ 6 .0 0 Thanks to all who made this the best Birthday Party o f my life and to all o f my friends and supporters.. Commissioner Charles Jordan TRI-MET joins the Portland Observer in recognizing the Valuable Contributions made by Minority Entrepreneurs K Tri-Met has set its overall agency goals for federal fiscal year 1983-1984 (October 1, 1983 to September 30, 1984) at 10% for MBE/DBE and 1% for WBE. Individual goals will be set for each contract, based on the subcon tracting opportunities to be generated by each contract and the availability of qualified MBEs in areas of work to be generated by each contract. Tri-Met will continue to outreach to MBEs concerning upcoming contract opportunities through notices in the Daily Journal of Commerce and minor ity-oriented print media, as well as through MBE Business Development Centers and minority organizations. Contracts anticipated to be advertised and let during the next fiscal year include: BA N F IE L D ^ T R ANSIT WAY /? W /7 S W PROJECT Contract: Advertised: Line Section 2B (146th to G atew ay)............................... November 1983 Line Section 2B Landscape Coordination Services........ November 1983 Line Section 3 (1-205 to Holladay/Banfield Transition).......... April 1984 Line Section 4A (Holladay/Banfield to Steel Bridge). . . . November 1983 Line Section 4B (Steel Bridge to Downtown, SW 11th). . December 1983 Banfield Light Rail Graphic Design ............................... September 1983 Stations and Park & Ride Lots........................................... February 1984 NOTE: The above dales are tentative and may vary since work on these segments of the Ban- field Project hinge on completion of work on other related construction phases and on coordi- nation/approval of plans by local jurisdictions. Other Tri-Met Upcoming Procurements Laundry Service • Uniforms • Batteries • Tire Chains Advertisement by Minority-Owned Newspaper Bus Brake Blocks • Janitorial Services Repair &. Refurbish Mall Shelters • Bulk Fuel Mall Shelter Maintenance (MBE-only bid in the past) NOTE; These purchases and contracts w ill depend on level of funding sources. • • • * I f you are an M BE and have not been certified by Tri-Met or submitted your Vendor's list, we encourage you to contact Tri-Met M BE Specialist, Angie Chatham, at 15031 238-4872. »TRI-MET Portland Observer, September 28, 1983 Section II Page 9
