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Columbia Economic Team reports regional activity, says Project Arcadia, Project Spice, and energy transmission work advancing
Summary
Paul Vogel of the Columbia Economic Team told the council the team is actively working across the county, connecting Project Arcadia with financing, expecting a Project Spice decision in Q1 and that the state will fund later phases of a transmission feasibility study tied to a potential plant.
Paul Vogel, representing the Columbia Economic Team, told St. Helens councilors on Feb. 19 that the organization is engaged countywide and that several economic-development efforts affecting St. Helens are progressing.
Vogel said the team had connected Project Arcadia with a potential lender and was supporting developers’ financing needs. He reported Project Spice — a prospective facility whose name was discussed in broad terms — is expected to reach a decision in the first quarter of the year in order to meet its development schedule.
On energy transmission and site readiness, Vogel said the first phase of a feasibility and facility study on transmission for the project is complete and that the state has agreed to pay for the second two phases. He said Columbia River PUD (CRPUD) and the City of Scappoose completed the first phase and that the state’s funding commitment will enable continued work on transmission analyses that are important to the project’s competitiveness.
Vogel also reported ongoing local work on tourism, small-business support, recruitment (including a project that the team connected with a lender that day), and outreach to downtown businesses affected by construction. Councilors thanked the team for regional coordination and for supporting downtown campaigns and small-business outreach programs.
Vogel and councilors noted the team’s efforts are countywide but include targeted activity in St. Helens, particularly around energy, tourism and small-business retention.
