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Oregon Stadium Campaign
News
Portland, Play
Ball!
April 15, 2003
:: Issue #2
Welcome to the second edition of "Portland, Play
Ball!", an e-newsletter brought to you by the Oregon Stadium Campaign. The
exciting beginning of the baseball season - including the 12-1 start by the San
Francisco Giants and the 10-1 run of the Kansas City Royals - is mirrored by
exciting developments and growing support for Major League Baseball in
Portland. Here's the latest…
MLB Supporters Heard in
Salem
Several hundred MLB supporters have contacted legislators in Salem
to encourage support of HB 3606, dubbed the MLB Jobs Bill, which would generate
approximately $150 million in funding for a new baseball stadium in Portland.
The contacts have come by email, phone and through letters and postcards. An
initial hearing took place last week in the House of Representatives, with a
full debate and vote expected before the end of the month. Representative Vic
Backlund supports the jobs and economic growth aspects of the bill. "It's going
to earn more general fund moneys," said Backlund.
Oregon Stadium
Campaign leader David Kahn is enthusiastic about the bill's fate. "I've heard
very positive feedback in the House of Representatives," said Kahn. "We're
taking this one vote at a time. As soon as HB 3606 passes in the House, we will
work to build the same strong support in the Senate."
Baseball Will
Generate Thousands of Jobs
An economic impact study completed by
University of Oregon economics professor Larry Singell projects that
construction of a MLB ballpark in Portland will create more than 1,500
full-time construction jobs, and will indirectly create 1,800 additional jobs.
Singell's assessment is consistent with estimates by Turner Construction, the
nation's largest sports facility builder, which estimates that 1,300 to 1,600
construction-related jobs will be created through the construction of a stadium
in Portland.
Oregonians Hear About MLB Over the Airwaves, On the
Web
The Oregon Stadium Campaign is taking its message to Oregonians over
the airwaves and on the web. Starting three weeks ago, television and radio ads
started airing on stations in the Portland metro area. The adds can also be
viewed and heard on the OSC website at
www.oregonstadiumcampaign.com/news.htm. The OSC website, which
debuted on March 3, has experienced tremendous activity. The site had more than
110,000 page views during the month of March, and continues to see a steady
influx of new visitors.
Take Your Swings - Join Oregon Stadium
Campaign Supporters at Pumpkin Ridge
On May 22, hundreds of MLB
supporters in Oregon will take their swings - golf swings that is - at the
Oregon Stadium Campaign Celebrity Golf Tournament. The shotgun scramble starts
at 1:45 p.m. at Pumpkin Ridge Golf Club and will be followed by a banquet,
auction and awards ceremony. Celebrity golfers include White Sox and Orioles
great Pete Ward; St. Louis and Arizona Cardinals All-Pro Quarterback Neil
Lomax; former Trail Blazers Bobby Gross, Jerome Kersey and Nick Jones and 1962
Heisman Trophy Winner Terry Baker.
If you would like to participate in
the tournament - or serve as a tournament sponsor - visit
www.oregonstadiumcampaign.com/golf.htm or contact Les Fahey,
Fahey Ventures LLC at faheyventures@earthlink.net or
(503) 323-0502.
The proud founding
sponsors of the Oregon Stadium Campaign are:
Pacific Power,
Platt Electric,
The Confederated Tribes of
Grand Ronde, Oregon
Sports Authority and
Moffatt/Rosenthal.
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