I can't help wondering how much it'd be worth to them for me to stay here. Or leave.

Looks like they're related to the movie biz.

Since Portland is all about image and false fronts, I'm sure the bribe offered to keep them in town will wind up being handsome.

It's another example of how 'desireable' employers can be 'persuaded' from going someplace else while 'undesireable' ones get the hint to go elsewhere.

By doubling SDC and building permit fees, Sam and Randy have 1) encouraged some businesses to leave because as they relocate SDCs and fees are substantially cheaper outside of Portland, and 2) prevented many businesses to coming here to begin with.

I'm not a huge fan of development, but Sam and Randy have single-handedly killed the construction industry in Portland by doubling these fees, and there are many, many, many jobs that depend on that.

At election time, less than two years away, I will remember how Sam and Randy mad Portland the most unfriendly place to do business in the western US...

Rentrak, Vestas, and other headline generators are just that, and serve only to mask the damage Randy and Sam have done.

It's the same refrain, all over again. "You've got a nice city here, and it'd be a real shame if we, like, had to leave and take jobs with us..." Of course, this always works best with city or state officials whose sole response to this sort of extortion is to yell "Come and get it like a big funky sex machine!"

This is getting sickening - They nickel-n-dime taxpayers with fees, ratepayers with water and schools with TIFs.

Then all of sudden the give it all away to Rentrak (remind again how this fits the creative/green jobs template) or Vestas (aka Gerding-Edlen West.) Meanwhile they are shooting themselves in the foot by killing any future jobs.

Congratulations Rentrak! I would've done the same thing jerking Randy and Sam around to get a rebate.

They lease that building from the Port of Portland. The taxes they will exempt themselves from total $133,834.00 per year.

Nice little saving right out of the box.

Tell to go "F" themselves. Let them all commute to Vancouver. They still live here, have to pay Oregon income tax and they surely will buy thier stuff here. So what is the downside besides the Port loosing some rent revenue.

If they leave the downside is P'land (a pun?) can't say they have a piece of the entertainment industry HQ'd here.

"Image is everything"

"which pay an average of $65,000 a year"

Wow, they have 230 jobs that pay the above! Just exactly what do they do again?

Wow, they promise to hire 5 additional employees for the next five years! What exactly are we taxpayers paying for these jobs? When is Sam's economic insanity going to stop?

Under applicable law, EZ property tax exemptions for qualified businesses run 3-5 years and only apply to tax on the value of the new improvements to the property. Whatever the existing property is worth will still be subject to tax. That may change the numbers somewhat . . .

"Tell to go "F" themselves. Let them all commute to Vancouver."

Hey, what diff does it make Sam/'Randy didn't fix the original reason they wanted to leave (if they have a clue), they just threw a bucket of money at them/

Vote no on every bond request from any govt agency.

I say call their bluff and tie the deal to Rentrak committing to spinning up all new servers in Portland.

If The Dalles is good enough Google...

Rentrak can show their commitment to Portland by creating even more jobs and moving some hardware here as well. If not, chances are there employees who own houses in Portland can not sell them and will have to commute anyway.

As for Rentrak averaging $65,000 - did they leave out the bulk of there low paying work force who answer phone in there call center?

Breaking news:

http://media.wweek.com/attach/2010/12/08/FY_11-12_5-year_Forecast.pdf

CoP's tipping point happens in 2014 (which probably means it actually happens in 2012).

"Rentrak can show their commitment to Portland by creating even more jobs"

Nice thought, they only got them to keep the curernt jobs for the next 5 years by cancelling their property taxes. They don't have to grow here at all and will probably ask for another subsidy before then because their business will be bad.