Johnson Economics

JOHNSON ECONOMICS and Mackenzie worked for a regional consortium of public and private stakeholders— including Metro, the State of Oregon, Port of Portland, Portland Business Alliance and the Oregon Chapter of NAIOP, the national commercial and industrial development association—to inventory and identify infrastructure and policy strategies for industrial land in the Portland metropolitan area.

Performed in two phases, the project produced a GIS-based industrial site inventory based on development readiness. Work included identifying the ten most strategically important industrial sites and conducting a detailed analysis of development constraints, detailed actions/requirements/costs for addressing the barriers to development readiness in the context of highest market opportunity. Work specifically included identification of short and long-term transportation infrastructure needs and developing planning level cost estimates to construct necessary improvements. JOHNSON ECONOMICS developed a model to evaluate the marginal impacts of infrastructure investments on market readiness as driven by investment return. This model also estimated the economic benefits in terms of jobs, output, and payroll as well as state and local fiscal impacts.

Key outcomes from this project included an identification of three sites with immediate market opportunities, two of which are currently under development agreements. Further, our evaluation model and methodology is being replicated elsewhere in the region, with 21 sites currently under study in Clackamas County and funding in place to study over 20 additional sites in Clark and Washington Counties.

JOHNSON ECONOMICS prepared a market analysis for the Port’s Troutdale Reynolds Industrial Park.  The analysis evaluated the demand for industrial space by product type, as well as projected market balance and achievable pricing.  The outcome was a recommended development program for parcelization of the site, driven by projected industry trends. 

JOHNSON ECONOMICS has worked on a series of due diligence analyses for Specht Development for speculative  industrial development within the Portland metropolitan area.  Use types have included speculative office space, flex space, warehouse/distribution and industrial condominiums.  Markets evaluated include Airport Way/Columbia Corridor, Tigard Triangle, Tualatin and Salem markets. 

JOHNSON ECONOMICS evaluated the retrofit and redevelopment of a historic building at NW 3rd and NW Davis Street in Portland’s Chinatown into a 30-room European style boutique hotel.  The project offers a range of room types from hostel type bunk rooms to private queen suites, totaling over 100 beds. Other features of the project include a rooftop gastropub, common meeting area, bike rentals, and other services. The hotel is currently independently operated.  

JOHNSON ECONOMICS completed a market analysis of overnight lodging and conference demand within the City of Beaverton.  The analysis included an assessment of opportunities for various submarkets within the City and evaluated a range of lodging options within each submarket.  Our work for Beaverton also included a financial analysis of a downtown hotel/conference center. 

JOHNSON ECONOMICS prepared a market analysis for the Port’s 203-acre Vista Business Park.  The analysis evaluated the demand for industrial space by product type, as well as projected market balance and achievable pricing.  In addition, the analysis evaluated the appropriateness of current zoning on the site and recommended modifications.  The firm was subsequently hired to prepare a marketing strategy for the Park as an Eco-Industrial concept, including identification of targeted industries and strategic approaches to market the Park. 

JOHNSON ECONOMICS prepared a market feasibility analysis for a planned 450-acre business/industrial park in Richland, Washington.  The project included a development program/strategy with phasing, mix of lot sizes and prices, and likely target industries.  Specific issues dealt with on this assignment included the impact of federal leasing restrictions on the project.  The project was developed along with the Horn Rapids master planned community, a high-end golf-oriented community in Richland.  Key tenants to-date include manufacturers and government contractors.

In 2015 JOHNSON ECONOMICS and Mackenzie teamed with Business Oregon to update and modernize Business Oregon’s Industrial Site Certification Program. This comprehensive three-phase project combined data analysis and interviews with local/state recruiters and site selectors to determine a range of targeted relevance to the Oregon economy. The project also included a complete overhaul of the program application process, and a marketing strategy for promoting certified sites on a global scale. Key deliverable for this project included a model to inform industry specific workforce needs and development of a new Business Oregon Industrial Site Need Matrix. The previous version of this matrix, also produced by Mackenzie, is a broadly referenced by communities and other firms to address the employment site needs element of the Economic Opportunities Analysis.

Mackenzie prepared a development strategy for the North Industrial Area within the Hillsboro UGB - including infrastructure improvements, a comprehensive natural resource mitigation strategy, aggregation strategies and public financing tool options - for parcel-specific projects to create five development-ready sites. JOHNSON ECONOMICS identified alternative funding options and analyzed appropriate target industries and markets based on site configuration, utility services, transportation/circulation, and proximity to suppliers and customers.

Market and financial analysis was completed for The Allison Inn and Spa, a boutique hotel and conference center in one of Oregon’s premier wine regions.  The property has 12,000 square feet. of dedicated function space.  Our analysis included case studies of similar properties in the Napa Valley area, as well as financial analysis of the project.