Bend-Redmond metro falls from top spot to No. 13 ‘Best-Performing Small City’
Was in Milken Institute's small-cities top spot for 4 years; job growth falters
BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- Over the last 20-plus years, no city, large or small, was named ‘Best-Performing City’ by the Milken Institute for two straight years -- except for the Bend-Redmond metro area, which actually was No. 1 for four years in a row.
That is, until this year, when it's dropped from the top spot all the way down to No. 13 in the just-released report.
Housing affordability is one of the key metrics, and Bend-Redmond ranked just 169th in that category on the 2021 report (using 2019 data).
That’s a bottom-tier number, but is actually an improvement from when it was considered the ‘Best Performing Small City.’ Over those four years, Bend-Redmond ranked 179th on the list (using data from 2014-2018).
"Jaws are going to fall out of their mouths when they hear that,” said Damon Runberg, a regional economist with the Oregon Employment Department, said Tuesday.
So, then: What's the reason for the decline?
The Milken Institute report shows the biggest changes came in the employment sector.
The report's Bend ranking of short-term job growth fell from 16th last year to 145th this year. High-tech GDP growth dropped even more significantly, from 10th to 158th.
Runberg told NewsChannel 21 Tuesday the rate of job growth was already slowing dramatically in the area, even before the pandemic, and this current recession sure doesn't help.
"Recreation, leisure, hospitality -- these sorts of industries that we have a high concentration of here locally were the ones that sort of felt the brunt from the early job losses from the shut down,” Runberg said.
Runberg added that the devastated tourism industry was largely responsible for job losses.
However, he does not expect the Bend-Redmond metro area to continue struggling in a post-COVID world.
"Our attractiveness for both businesses and for job seekers who are wanting a high-quality of life community to live in is still going to remain really high,” Runberg said.
