TL;DR (generated · confidence: high)

Oregon should establish a $250 million/biennium dedicated site readiness fund using bonding authority to accelerate delivery of development-ready employment sites. The state must modernize land-use statutes (including Goal 9), establish consistent site evaluation criteria across jurisdictions, ensure industrial land inventory aligned with target industries, increase development-ready land by at least 2%, and prioritize communities with the largest industrial land deficits. Oregon cannot compete for jobs or housing without reliable development-ready land.

Key points (each cites a PDF page):

Establish a significantly larger, dedicated, recurring site readiness fund of $250 million per biennium using bonding authority in expectation of future tax revenues and economic impact (p. 26)
Deploy investments through the Industrial Site Loan Fund and proposed Commerce Authority to accelerate development-ready employment sites aligned with economic development strategy (p. 27)
Modernize statutes and policies governing industrial and business development, including updates to Goal 9 (Economic Development) standards for industrial lands (p. 27)
Establish consistent criteria for evaluating site size, configuration, natural features, transportation access, infrastructure availability, power capacity, and location across jurisdictions (p. 27)
Employment Buildable Lands Inventories should incorporate objective, market-informed criteria and realistic assumptions about development feasibility and timing (p. 27)
Communities with shortage of suitable industrial land should have clearer, more predictable path to adjust urban growth boundaries (p. 27)
Increase aggregate inventory of development-ready industrial land by at least 2% and invest in infrastructure needed to bring sites online (p. 27)
Give priority to communities with largest deficits of suitable industrial land where infrastructure investments can have greatest impact on expanding site readiness (p. 27)
Best practice reference: Pennsylvania's PA SITES is a $400 million state-led investment program providing grants and loans for site planning, infrastructure, and development to create shovel-ready sites (p. 27)

Amounts: $250 million per biennium · $400 million · Programs: HB 4084 · Industrial Site Loan Fund · Commerce Authority · Goal 9 · Employment Buildable Lands Inventories · PA SITES · Parties: Governor and Legislature · Oregon · Pennsylvania

Priority Recommendations

Priority Recommendations Oregon cannot compete for jobs or deliver enough housing without a reliable supply of development-ready land. Building on recent investments and policy direction established through HB 4084, the Governor and Legislature should establish a significantly larger, dedicated, and recurring site readiness fund of $250 million per biennium, using bonding authority in expectation of future tax revenues and economic impact. Deployed through

26 - OREGON PROSPERITY COUNCIL | RECOMMENDATIONS FOR OREGON’S LONG-TERM COMPETITIVENESS AND PROSPERITY | JUNE 2026

4 . S IT E R E A D I N E S S & I N F R A ST R U C T U R E the Industrial Site Loan Fund and the proposed Commerce Authority, investments should accelerate the delivery of development-ready employment sites aligned with the state’s economic development strategy. Employers and their partners could access this capital for site development, remediation, and enabling infrastructure while benefiting from a clearer, fast-track path for priority projects to move through permitting. The state should modernize statutes and policies governing land designated for industrial and business development to better reflect site suitability and readiness, including Goal 9 (Economic Development) standards for industrial lands. Updates should establish consistent criteria for evaluating site size, configuration, natural features, transportation access, infrastructure availability, power capacity, and location, ensuring more uniform interpretation across jurisdictions. Employment Buildable Lands Inventories should incorporate objective, market-informed criteria and realistic assumptions about development feasibility and timing. The state must ensure an adequate supply of development-ready sites aligned with the needs of target industry clusters. When communities demonstrate a shortage of suitable industrial land, they should have a clearer and more predictable path to adjust urban growth boundaries. To support these objectives, the state should increase the aggregate inventory of development-ready industrial land by at least 2% and invest in the infrastructure needed to bring sites online. Priority should be given to communities with the largest deficits of suitable industrial land, where infrastructure investments can have the greatest impact on expanding site readiness and development capacity. BEST PRACTICES Pennsylvania Strategic Investments to Enhance Sites Program (PA SITES) is a $400 million state-led, large- scale investment program for site readiness. It provides grants and loans for site planning, infrastructure, and development to create shovel-ready sites aligned with the state’s target industries.

Parent: Chapter 4: Site Readiness & Infrastructure · PDF: pp. 26-27