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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 3, 2018)
Minority & Small Business WEEK Special Edition ‘City of Roses’ Volume XLVII • Number 39 www.portlandobserver.com Wednesday • October 3, 2018 Established in 1970 Committed to Cultural Diversity photo by D anny p eterson /t he p ortlanD o bserver Raimore Construction, an African-American owned and majority black company, is blazing the trail for small, minority-owned businesses by landing major contracts for construction work, including TriMet and the City of Portland. Pictured (from left) outside their northeast Portland headquarters are members of the diverse Raimore team, Jesse Jackson, Jeff Moreland Jr., Mike Taylor, Ashley Henry, Co-founder and Owner Jeff Moreland Sr., Deangelo Moaning, Bill Bruce, Lauri Moreland, and Deb O’Dell. Biggest Chair at the Table D anny p eterson t he p ortlanD o bserver From humble beginnings to win- ning multi-million dollar contracts, the black-owned construction compa- ny Raimore Construction of northeast Portland has proved what positive benefits can happen to communities of color when government agencies and other private contractors invest in con- tracting with small and minority busi- nesses. Raimore Construction was formed by Jeff Moreland Sr. and Andre Rai- ford, whose last names combined to form the company’s namesake. The by Black-owned firm grows into major employer firm’s ties to TriMet started in 1999 when it provided flagging and trucking services for the transit agency’s Inter- state Max project. Since then they’ve grown from just two employees to 80 and expanded their skill sets, providing streetscape and structural steel work. The company is now in line to land the largest ever contract for a Disad- vantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) in the state of Oregon for TriMet’s new Division Transit Project, a contract that is estimated to be worth $60-$65 mil- lion. The size of the job is expected to graduate Raimore out of its status as a DBE. “We’re just super excited. To us, it’s like the biggest chair to the table that we’ve ever had,” said Bill Bruce, Rai- more project manager and the compa- ny’s second-in-command. The business relationship between Raimore and TrMet is 20 years in the making and has brought economic sta- bility to a minority-owned firm that has a workforce that is more than 50 per- cent minority based. Raimore also has gained the ability to manage multiple subcontractors who are often fledgling minority business- es themselves, mentoring and helping them grow along the way. Members of Moreland’s family also work for the company. C ontinueD on p age 7
