(Two new eateries — The McArthur and Three Finger Jack Tavern — opened in July | Photo courtesy of Andrea Hine)
“If you don’t have space, you don’t have options, and can’t even start a conversation.” That was the situation facing Eric Strobel when working in Sisters as EDCO’s area director in the mid-2000s: “No one wanted to build — it was rough. That has now changed.”
“What we’ve been seeing falls under three themes — movement, availability of building space and consolidation,” he said, underscoring EDCO’s effort to create more stable long-term economic growth by attracting traded-sector companies and jobs to the Sisters area.
(A traded-sector business sells its goods or services to customers beyond the immediate region, bringing new revenue into the local economy, and supporting non-traded sectors like retail and restaurants.)
Strobel began by pointing out that in the town’s light industrial park on the north side of town, “three buildings are going up at the same time. Currently, a total of approximately 50,000 square feet is available for lease, with plans for 21,000 square feet to be constructed. There are lots of plans.” And he summed up, “Our industrial park is getting filled up; there aren’t going to be many lots left in the coming years.”
The expansion of BASX into Sisters also stands at the top of Strobel’s list. “The company, Deschutes County’s largest commercial employer, is leasing a 27,000-square-foot building to assemble critical field modular surgical suites for various healthcare and high-tech applications,” he said. The expansion is expected to create about 25-30 living-wage jobs.
“Although the loss of Metabolic Maintenance (which produces high-quality nutritional supplements) after its acquisition by a Florida-based firm was a real bummer, the expansion of BASX will create the same number of jobs that were lost. Had we not found space for BASX, the company would have expanded elsewhere — we kept them in the region,” Strobel said.
“GFP (a major employer with 27 full-time employees in Sisters that provides base camp assets and resources) is expanding its space from a 10,500-square-foot office/warehouse building to 43,000 square feet by acquiring two buildings previously owned by Metabolic Maintenance and Three Creeks Brewing, whose shutting down reflects how the craft beer industry has become so difficult due to increased costs, slowing consumer demand and intensifying market pressures.”
Calling GFP “a great company,” Strobel explained that it couldn’t find anything within the city limits, and was going to move out of the region before this space came online.
Strobel continued: “Personalized Nutrients moved into [a]new 16,000-square-foot production and office building in April. We had a heck of a time leasing Laird’s space, which had been built to the company’s specific production requirements,” Strobel admitted, “and it stood empty for a while.”
Other examples include the Third Garage project, which offers leasable space in two buildings, for about 12,000 square feet total, with off-street parking for 32 cars. “The anticipated leased space ranges from 900 square feet up to bays of 1,326 to 7,376 square feet,” he said. The ClearPine Building also has leasable space available, that would be “perfect for a headquarters or
technology company.”
That’s not all in terms of movement with stores and businesses that is keeping Strobel occupied. “In terms of consolidation, GFP — in moving its main operation to Sisters — is bringing a lot of equipment from other facilities, and Cascade Spirits is leasing the former Laird warehouse and constructing a new tasting room downtown.”
He cited other examples:
- Two new eateries — The McArthur and Three Finger Jack Tavern — opened in July.
- The French-themed Famille opened in the space formerly occupied by Chops; it was created by the owners of Ski Inn Taphouse and Hotel.
- The Hub, which is designed to serve as “the center of civic life in Sisters Country,” leased space at 291 Main Avenue to nonprofits C4C (Citizens4Community) and Explore Sisters.
- After 20 years of operation, The Sisters Athletic Club — which consists of a 24,000-square-foot building on 1.5 acres of land — is for sale for $7.1 million. As Strobel noted, “That’s a lot of space.”
In representing EDCO and providing resources and connections to companies at all stages of their development to help them thrive, Strobel has clearly found his niche. “I love the job, and I love the people, including my EDCO team and the really collaborative Sisters community. We’re all working toward the same things.”
David Moore, president of the Sisters Business Association, agreed. “Our business community is also a stakeholder in attracting people to the downtown corridor, and we are working to strengthen local resilience. Naturally, we all compete, but there is room for collaboration as well. A telling example comes from two local restaurants — both association members — that initially scheduled separate bingo games that competed on the same night. Instead of splitting the crowd, they decided to join forces to alternate the venue each week. Customers loved it.”
EDCO will be hosting its first-ever Sisters Country Economic Development Mixer on September 18, 4-6pm, at The Hub. For more information, contact Strobel at 541-410-8630.
