ECONOMY & FINANCE ●Decreased motor function. Medford-based dealership group Lithia Motors became the latest Oregon-based Fortune 500 company to announce layoffs, after Dutch Bros did so earlier this year. Lithia hopes to save $150 million in a “targeted” staff reduction that will affect some underperforming general managers and sales managers. HEALTH CARE ●Surgical strike. More than 3,000 nurses from six hospitals in Providence’s Oregon network participated in a strike in late June. It was the largest nurses’ strike in the state’s history. When this issue went to press, the nurses had returned to work but still didn’t have a contract. TRANSPORTATION ●Backup alert. All lanes of Interstate 5 were closed at the Terwilliger curves south of Portland for three days while crews constructed a new bridge deck over SW 26th Ave. The bridge carries more than 100,000 vehicles per day. RESTAURANTS & RETAIL ●Food stall. A citizen review board recommended that the Oregon Health Authority deny a $24.6 million proposal by Kroger to acquire rival Albertsons. The board warned the proposed sale could reduce competition between pharmacies in the state and would not improve access to pharmacy services in Oregon. ●Wet bar. Portland’s women’s sports bar the Sports Bra made waves in June when it opened a poolside pop-up at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity in southern France. B-ball phenom and rapper Flau’jae Johnson performed a song. Located on NE Broadway in Portland, the women-centric sports bar announced plans to franchise earlier this year. MANUFACTURING ●In the soup. Tualatin’s Pacific Foods plant, which employs 330 people, will close by 2026, the brand’s parent company, Campbell Soup Company, announced in May. ●Tire chains. Prinevillefounded Les Schwab Tires has acquired commercial tire manufacturer CMC Tire. Founded in 2014, CMC — based in Colorado, Utah and Nevada — employs around 200 people, while Les Schwab employs more than 8,000 people at 540 locations. POLITICS ●Dem changes. Oregon Senate Democrats elected Sen. Kathleen Taylor, D-Portland, as the next senate majority leader. The legislative body’s Republicans will also have a new leader in Sen. Daniel Bonham, R-The Dalles, who replaces Tim Knopp, R-Bend, who was barred from reelection by ballot Measure 113 for his participation in the 2023 Senate walkout. ●Sea change. A new scientific assessment found that rising oceans could threaten dozens of water-treatment plants, police stations, fire departments and other critical infrastructure along the Oregon Coast. Twenty-six sites could flood twice per year, according to a recent paper by the nonprofit Union of Concerned Scientists, which assumes the seas rise 3.2 feet by 2100. TOURISM & HOSPITALITY ●Hit the road. Travel Portland’s CEO, Jeff Miller, announced his retirement after 19 years leading the marketing and promotion organization, a period that saw record-breaking tourism numbers for Portland. He will leave in December. FARMS & FORESTS ●Hothouse growth. The state’s greenhouse and nursery industry retained the top spot on the state’s list of top agricultural commodities, followed by cattle and calves, hay, and milk. The greenhouse and nursery industry is valued at $1.22 billion. MISCELLANEOUS ●Hangin’ out. Twenty-eight people were trapped upside down on the AtmosFEAR ride at Oaks Park Amusement Park for around 20 minutes before firefighters rescued them. ●Good boy. A Halfway man was rescued with help from his dog after driving off a forest road and down an 85-foot ravine in remote Baker County. Blue, a whippet-pit bull mix, ran 4 miles back to a campsite where he and his owner had stayed recently. That led to the rescue of his owner, Brandon Garrett, and Garrett’s three other dogs. ●Dead to the world. Oregon politician Neil Goldschmidt, whose legacy includes major infrastructural changes and admitted sexual abuse of a teenage girl who babysat his children, died at 83. ENTERTAINMENT ●Red giant. NBA Hall of Famer and Trail Blazers legend Bill Walton died of colorectal cancer in May at age 71. Walton, the Finals MVP in the Blazers’ lone championship run in 1977, followed his NBA career with a decades-long turn as a sports broadcaster. ENERGY & ENVIRONMENT ●Fish out of water. Fish fans flocked to Gearhart Beach near Seaside to view a rare 7-foot-long, 2,000-pound mola tecta, or hoodwinker sunfish, that washed up. It’s thought to be the largest example of its species ever recorded. Discovered in 2017 near New Zealand, the species is typically found in the southern hemisphere. ⁄Newsfeed⁄ Jenny Nguyen is owner and founder of the Sports Bra, the first allwomen’s sports bar, which announced plans to franchise earlier this year. JASON E. KAPLAN 10
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