I don't remember when the "Made In Oregon" sign in downtown Portland advertised White Satin Sugar (here's an image of it that the University of Oregon found), but it was then a plain outline of the state with a White Satin logo in the center. The building beneath later became the property of Hirsch-Weis Co., an old-line manufacturer of work clothing and ship sails that started a line of skiwear in 1930, which it called "White Stag," the translation of the company's name. Under the leadership of Harold S. Hirsch (1907-1990), a jovial Oregonian who brought back the idea from his years on the Dartmouth ski team in the 1920s, the White Stag line of skiwear grew to be the largest part of the company. The company changed its name to White Stag in 1956. When it bought the building, it added a white stag to the sign (it's still there today) and changed the text to read "White Stag," in the font that it used to label its clothing. Here are photos of the White Stag sign and the sign as it is now.
After White Stag was sold to a conglomerate, the building became the property of the Naito family, owners of the Made in Oregon retail stores, who changed the sign text to "Made In Oregon" and the footer from "Sportswear" to "Old Town." The University of Oregon now owns the building. It very reasonably doesn't want to pay to advertise the Naitos' stores, and wants to put its own text on the sign. The hitch is that the sign is a designated landmark, and can't be changed without the City's approval. The City won't approve. The University also doesn't want to pay the cost of lighting the sign unless the sign advertises the university, so it's gone dark.
Ramsay Signs, the company that owns the sign itself, proposes to solve the conundrum by taking the sign down. That would be a shame. That, combined with the City's reputation for being anti-business (something that part of the city council would like to change), led me to the Laquedem Made In Oregon Landmark Sign and Lottery Plan.
I recall reading that the sign costs about $20,000/year to maintain. I don't know what it costs to light it up, so I'll guess that it's another $20,000. That's $40,000/year. Let's imagine that ten civic-minded businesses with significant operations in Portland would each pay $5,000 toward the cost to maintain and light the sign, and commit to do that for ten years -- or just pay $50,000 each up front. That covers the cost to maintain and light the sign for ten years.
Each year, a lottery selects one of the businesses to be on the sign for the year. At the end of 10 years, each business has had one year of being the icon in front of downtown Portland, inexpensive publicity for the $50,000 it would cost. A plaque near the building would honor all ten donors. The surplus covers the cost to rework the sign each year with the name of the lucky winner. The City's part is to approve all ten designs at once through design review, so that the civic-minded businesses don't have to slog through Portland's land use process every year simply to update the sign.
Not every business would be able to buy a Laquedem Light-It-Up Lottery ticket. To qualify, a business must have its headquarters within the City of Portland, be a for-profit enterprise (this prevents Duck boosters from buying all ten tickets), and employ at least X people within the city limits (perhaps 50). If the tickets could be sold for more than $5000/year, some of the surplus would go to the University of Oregon for tolerating the sign on its rooftop. If the tickets sell for less, the City would kick in the deficit and proudly point to its subsidy as evidence that it's open for business.
One variation on this would be for the City to pay the cost of the sign, and offer it free of charge for one year to any business that moves its head office to Portland with at least 100 workers, or opens a factory or office in Portland with at least 100 workers, as a sort of thank you for coming to Portland. In years without new businesses, the City could draw lots and give the year's worth of advertising to an existing business that's been here for X years or more. That's promoting business, in grand style.
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