{"id":99,"date":"2014-03-11T01:34:46","date_gmt":"2014-03-11T01:34:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/reports.cityofsandy.com\/economicdevelopment\/?p=99"},"modified":"2014-03-12T17:35:26","modified_gmt":"2014-03-12T17:35:26","slug":"economic-development-%e2%80%93-monthly-report-%e2%80%93-february-2014","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/reports.cityofsandy.com\/economicdevelopment\/2014\/03\/11\/economic-development-%e2%80%93-monthly-report-%e2%80%93-february-2014\/","title":{"rendered":"Economic Development \u2013 Monthly Report \u2013 February 2014"},"content":{"rendered":"

General notes:\u00a0 <\/strong>It\u2019s almost time to get First Friday going again, and that\u2019s what we\u2019re focusing on at Sandy Main Street right now.\u00a0 We\u2019re having a bit of a rough go at the moment with getting our volunteers to assist us (see below under \u201cSandy Main Street\u201d), but Aubrey and I are not going to let that deter us from putting together the best FF series yet.\u00a0 Some of our local downtown businesses are so amped up for FF that they held their own unofficial version in March, and it was delightful to see the number of people that turned out that evening at SACC, the Library, Sandy Organic, Ox & Marley, the Beer Den and Dita\u2019s.\u00a0 That, my fellow Sandyites, is a great sign for the future\u2026<\/p>\n

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Commercial Properties (vacancies, new businesses, etc.):<\/strong><\/p>\n

Heidi\u2019s Unique Boutique\/Wholesale Payments, Inc.:<\/span>\u00a0 Cyndi McKenna\u2019s building (Cool Printing) is now fully occupied!\u00a0 The couple that owns Wraptitude in Welches has decided to open a few more unrelated businesses, and have chosen the upstairs segment of Cyndi\u2019s building to house their new ventures.<\/p>\n

The rear portion of the space will house Heidi\u2019s Unique Boutique, a women\u2019s accessories retail store.\u00a0 Owner Heidi Campbell will sell leggings, leg warmers, socks, scarves, tank tops and the like, and will branch out into belts, purses and other accessories once the store gets established.\u00a0 Her unique designs are her own creation, and much of her inventory is made locally.\u00a0 Heidi\u2019s husband Ryan Cummings has opened Wholesale Payments Inc., a business-to-business check and credit\/debit processing business.\u00a0 Both businesses have been through their initial fire\/life safety inspection, and the required changes were so minimal (change front door handle to lever, install fire extinguisher, remove barriers to electrical panel) that Terre has approved their respective business license applications pending re-inspection.\u00a0 They should receive their licenses and certificates of occupancy any day now.\u00a0 [ps: my 1st<\/sup> question to the couple was \u201cSo when are you going to open a Wraptitude in Sandy?\u201d\u00a0 Their response: \u201cAs soon as we can find an available space with a commercial kitchen!\u201d\u00a0 Now wouldn\u2019t that be cool\u2026]<\/p>\n

Iris Healing Arts<\/span>:\u00a0 Just a quick note to supplement last month\u2019s report on this business\u2026I have recently had occasion to speak with Ms. Michet (she is also a SACC board member), and she informs me that her bottom line has GREATLY improved with this move.\u00a0 Her overhead has been dramatically reduced (50%+), her customers find her new practitioner\u2019s space to be quite comfortable, and Ms. Michet and Ms. Zell are working together quite well.\u00a0 A positive move for all involved.<\/p>\n

Two Bros. Mexican Restaurant<\/span>:\u00a0 Victory!\u00a0 We have uncovered the story behind why this establishment has been closed for lunch recently, and the story has a happy ending.\u00a0 The owner of the restaurant had some health issues that left him unable to drive for a couple of months, and he was commuting to his restaurant from his home on Sauvie Island by bus.\u00a0 He was not able to arrive at the restaurant in time to get food prep done for the lunch crowd, so he served dinner only during that period.\u00a0 However, last week he started driving again and Two Brothers is now back open for lunch.\u00a0 We were also able to address another issue with him (he had received a backflow testing letter and didn\u2019t know what it was \u2013 I explained the letter to him, assured him that the testing required was not expensive, and gave him the number of Montgomery\u2019s Backflow Testing, a local business that does this kind of work), and even posted a notice at his request on the City of Sandy\u2019s Facebook page informing that Two Brothers is once again open for lunch.\u00a0 Special thanks to Councilor Gerberg for visiting the restaurant with me and addressing the owner in his native tongue\u2026this was critical to get to the heart of the issue, as well as to assure the owner that we were there to help.\u00a0 Muchas gracias<\/em>, Olga!<\/strong><\/p>\n

Mike\u2019s Tire Service<\/span>:\u00a0 Work on this business is coming along \u2013 Terre has approved his business license with conditions, and he is free to open for business for the time being.\u00a0 The only remaining work that has not been signed off on yet is the housing for his exterior air compressor, which still needs a coat of paint (to match the building per code), some siding and some seismic straps to secure it to the ground.\u00a0 Mike has until May 2014 to complete this work before re-inspection.\u00a0 Also, Terre has confirmed that the illegal loft in the upstairs of this property has been properly posted and is not in use \u2013 research on that issue continues, but should not affect Mike (building owner\u2019s responsibility!)<\/p>\n

Country Companies<\/span>:\u00a0 This new insurance agency has moved in to the upstairs of the Web Steel building, and had a ribbon cutting on 2\/21 that was fairly well attended. \u00a0The offices look very professional, and the ladies that run this office are delightful.\u00a0 They have passed inspection, have their certificate of occupancy, and are open for business.<\/p>\n

AntFarm Cafe<\/span>:\u00a0 Our friends over at AntFarm celebrated the grand opening of their new Caf\u00e9 becoming full service early in the month \u2013 they now offer sandwiches and home-made soups along with their espresso, pastries and gelato.\u00a0 Although the ribbon cutting was an 8am affair, this was the best attended ribbon-cutting ever!\u00a0 There were between 50-60 people present all told, and the pride was buzzing in the air.\u00a0 Nunpa introduced all of the kids that worked on the project and currently staff the caf\u00e9, and gave a little of the history of the project.\u00a0 Mayor King then gave a brief speech that gave thanks to Nunpa and AntFarm for being an invaluable asset to the community, and I can attest that there were a more than a few moist eyes in the house when he finished.\u00a0 Rumor has it that the Mayor was in danger at one point of becoming emotional himself, but valiantly regained his composure before anyone noticed.\u00a0 Of course, that is just a rumor… \u00a0\ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n

Sandy Area Chamber of Commerce<\/span>:\u00a0 Due to the end of both the City of Sandy and pending Clackamas County annual contributions, the Chamber is looking to its lower overhead costs.\u00a0 As part of this operation, the Chamber has greatly pared\u00a0 back its gift shop operations, and will cease to have a gift shop on July 1.\u00a0 As this will greatly reduce the square footage requirements for the organization, the SACC is also looking for a smaller, less expensive space somewhere in the downtown couplet to move to.\u00a0 We have talked about several different locations, and are currently doing our due diligence to determine availability, rents and terms to see which might be the best fit.\u00a0 More to come\u2026.<\/p>\n

Bunsenbrewers<\/span>:\u00a0 I have finally made it in to see the current operation, and I believe that Aaron is beginning to hit his stride.\u00a0 He has hired several bartenders, and the one I was conversing with over a pint seemed very knowledgeable about the brewing process, was very personable (he gave me a quick tour of the facilities upon request) and had a positive outlook on both the business and the community.\u00a0 The chemistry theme runs strong through the business \u2013 the bartenders wear chemistry lab coats, the furniture is all surplus high school chem lab desks and chairs, and the beers are all named after famous scientists (I need to try \u201cNye \u2013 the Science Rye\u201d, named after Bill Nye, the Science Guy).\u00a0 I told him when he names a beer after my favorite scientist, Neil DeGrasse Tyson, I will buy a keg from him. \u00a0\ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n

Aaron is looking to add food to his establishment as the next step.\u00a0 He is looking at either building a commercial kitchen, or possibly looking to set up Bethy Rossos and her waffle cart as a food vendor IF there is a change in the code in the near future to allow carts on private property.\u00a0 The Planning Department is currently studying the viability of this option, and will bring the results of that study to Council soon.<\/p>\n

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Sandy Main Street:\u00a0 <\/strong>We now have our new website<\/a> up and running.\u00a0 It is still in the build out stage, so not all of the content has been added yet.\u00a0 However, there is infinitely more content there now than there was on our old website, which we had been \u201clocked out\u201d of by the company that designed it.\u00a0 We also purchased sandymainstreet.org<\/a><\/em><\/strong> in the process of setting the new site up, so both that address and sandymainstreet.com<\/a><\/em><\/strong> direct to the same page.\u00a0 In related news:<\/p>\n