Westside Economic Alliance

04/29/2026

💫 Today Westside Economic Alliance hosted a candidate forum for the Washington County Chair's race. Our thanks to KGW-TV and Chief Anchor David Molko for his top-notch moderation. And to Nafisa Fai for Washington County Chair and Pam Treece for Washington County Chair for taking time out of their busy schedules to join us.

✅ Topics ranged from taxes to land use to leadership style. And, while WEA doesn't endorse in candidate campaigns, we work hard to ensure our members have access to the information they need to cast an informed vote.

One place both candidates agree? They are both voting "YES" to support the transportation funding proposal on the May ballot.

👍 Thanks to MACC-TVCTV, we will soon have a recording of the forum to share.

📺 Tune into KGW-TVKGW-TV this evening to catch a quick chat with each of the candidates.

💡 To learn more about the candidates check out their websites:
https://www.nafisaforwashingtoncounty.com/
https://www.pamforwashingtoncounty.com/

📣 A shout out to Perlo Construction for use of your amazing space. And, of course, to our Forum Series sponsor Legacy Health for your years of ongoing support.



NOTE: The third candidate, Jenny Kamprath, was invited but declined the invitation due to scheduling constraints.

04/22/2026

📣 It's not too late to grab your seat!

💥 💥 Next week WEA is hosting one of the most important forums of the year, the Washington County Chair's Candidate Forum.

🚨 The next Washington County Chair will have to lead hard, public conversations about funding for countywide transportation, critical infrastructure, a new Courthouse and growth. Not to mention ensure the county can balance their budget while still meeting the needs of the county's most vulnerable residents. While WEA does not endorse in candidate races, we will do our best to ensure we are providing opportunities to educate and inform our members.

All registered attendees will have the chance to submit questions online which will then be provided to our moderator, KGW-TV Chief Anchor David Molko. 🎤

💫 Take a minute to sign up today. (Lunch is included with your ticket.)

Sign up today: https://bit.ly/WEA_CandidateForum_26


Nafisa Fai for Washington County Chair

Pam Treece for Washington County Chair

Join Westside Economic Alliance for a lunch forum with the candidates for Chair of the Washington County Board of Commissioners. David Molko, KGW’s Chief anchor, will moderate a discussion with the candidates.

03/25/2026

💫 Registration is now OPEN for our Washington County Chair Candidate Forum.

Join us for a lunchtime forum with the candidates for Chair of the Washington County Board of Commissioners moderated by David Molko, KGW-TV's Chief Anchor.

The next Washington County Chair will shape major countywide decisions on transportation and infrastructure funding and help determine the future of a new Courthouse, while serving as a key voice in our push for smart regional growth. Don’t miss this chance to hear directly from the two leading candidates for this influential elected role.

Event registrants will have the opportunity to submit questions in advance to help shape the conversation.

Sign up today: https://bit.ly/WEA_CandidateForum_26

Join Westside Economic Alliance for a lunch forum with the candidates for Chair of the Washington County Board of Commissioners. David Molko, KGW’s Chief anchor, will moderate a discussion with the candidates.

03/12/2026

With our 2026 Policy Conference just around the corner, we'd be remiss if we didn't shout out our amazing sponsors who help make this work happen.

⚡ Thank you to Comcast, Energy Trust of Oregon, NW Natural, Portland General Electric, City of Hillsboro - Local Government, Espousal Strategies, LLC, IBEW Local 48, Hubbell, Intel, Jupiter Power, Oregon-Columbia Chapter, NECA, Legacy Health, Key Bank, Rembold, City of Sherwood, Oregon Government, and City of Tigard and Worksystems

You power the work we do, pun intended! 💡

💥 Tickets are still available! https://bit.ly/26_WEA_PolicyConf 💥

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03/11/2026

💡 At Westside Economic Alliance, we believe it's not just the speakers that make a good program. We also need top notch moderators and emcees who can help us tie the ideas and information all together.

📣 That's why we are especially proud to announce our Moderator line up for our 2026 Policy Conference. This top-notch line up will help us move through conversations around Energy Planning, Strategy and Challenges.

🎤 Join the conversation as we here from experts about what's next for our region - and our state - when it comes to delivering safe, affordable and reliable energy. Are we both meeting the needs of our ambitious green energy policy goals and the needs of our business sector? How are we using energy to power innovation? And conversely, how are we using innovation to change the power we need?

👏 Thanks to our amazing line up of moderators, you can count on thoughtful, provocative and informative conversations. Johnell Bell of Espousal Strategies, LLC, Melissa Rogers of POWERX, Zach Hyder of Hubbell, and Tom Rinehart of Rinehart Strategies

💥 Tickets are still available! https://bit.ly/26_WEA_PolicyConf 💥

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03/09/2026

📣 SPEAKER ANNOUNCEMENTS CONTINUE 📣

Join moderator Tom Rinehart of Rinehart Strategies along with Nick Triska of Greater Portland Inc, Michael Colgrove of Energy Trust of Oregon and Stefan Bird of BrightNight for an engaging conversation about if and how we are meeting the energy needs of business here in our region.

What are the energy needs of businesses looking to relocate to Oregon? Are we still a cheap and clean energy option? What about businesses that are here: are we meeting the needs? And if so, what are some programs or tools that we have available to us?

As we think about how we stay competitive as a region - and a state - energy planning, strategy and infrastructure have to be a part of that conversation.

🚨 🚨 Early Bird Pricing extended through Tuesday March 10 - https://bit.ly/26_WEA_PolicyConf 🚨 🚨

03/03/2026

On March 19 we will come together to hear from experts to better understand what are our region's energy needs. And we will dive into the question: Are meeting the moment for both reliable and affordable energy while also meeting Oregon's ambitious clean energy goals?

It's not too late to grab your ticket.

⏰Early bird pricing available through Thursday, March 5.

📺Stay tuned as we continue to roll out our speaker line up...

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https://bit.ly/26_WEA_PolicyConf

02/27/2026

📣Westside Economic Alliance is pleased to announce Johnell Bell, CEO and Founder of Espousal Strategies, as our emcee for this year's Policy Conference.

🔥Johnell is a masterful moderator who will help us weave together the extraordinary line up of subject matter experts, storytellers, and innovators.

⏰Early bird pricing available through next Thursday, March 5.

📺Stay tuned as we roll out our speaker line up...



https://bit.ly/26_WEA_PolicyConf

02/25/2026

REGISTRATION IS OPEN, GRAB YOUR TICKET TODAY: 2026 Policy Conference

💡 We can't talk about modest growth without talking about the infrastructure we need to support it.

⚡Here in Oregon, historically, we have had cheap and plentiful power which has helped us grow the industries that currently are the cornerstone of our state's economy.

🚨 But a series of OPB and ProPublica articles recently reported that Oregon has lagged most of the nation in the growth and completion of renewable energy projects because of severe transmission constraints and bureaucratic delays.

🎯 Join us at our March 19 Policy Conference as we dive into these issues.

❓ What does it mean to create a strategy that will provide reliable, safe and affordable energy?

❓ How do some of our regional industrial partners use energy to power innovation and use innovation to build the NextGen power users?

❓ What is the landscape for clean energy and green jobs and how are we competing to land smart energy users?

https://bit.ly/26_WEA_PolicyConf

02/13/2026

WEA works tirelessly to support smart growth that supports a vibrant economy. As we hear reports from regional economists that recent trends indicate we are in a recession, we must vocally support legislative efforts that will lead to job creation and economic opportunities for our region.

🚨 On Monday morning, February 16 the Oregon JOBS Act (SB 1586) will have a first hearing in Salem. We need you to take action today, so legislators hear reasonable voices in support of jobs and modest regional growth. 🚨

🎯 For sample testimony and a link to submit click here: