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DESCRIPTION <br />RECaIONAL SUMMARY <br />The subject is located in the Salem/Keizer metropolitan area. Salem is the capital city of <br />Oregon, and is strategically located midway between Portland and Eugene on Interstate <br />5 in the heart of the Willamette Valley. Keizer, incorporated in the 1982 general election, is <br />located adjacent to the northem Salem City limits. <br />According to the Portland State University Center for Population Research, the cities of <br />Salem and Keizer have 1999 populations of approximately 128,595 and 30,260, respectively, <br />within their corporate limits. This represents a 1.55~ increase for Salem and a 3.51 ~ increase <br />for Keizer over the previous year. Salem has experienced steady growth over the past nine <br />years, and is currently the state's third most populous city. So far in the 1990s, the Salem- <br />Keizer area has grown at an annual compounded rate of 2.45%. The following table shows <br />the historic growth rates for both Oregon and the Salem MSA components: <br />Oregon is one of the few remaining states in the country without a sales tax. There have <br />been many efforts over the past decade to pass such a tax, but these efforts have been <br />defeated by popular vote. The primary source of revenue for the state comes from properfy <br />taxes and an income tax with a maximum rate of nine percent. <br />The dominant sectors of the Salem-Keizer economy have historically been govemment, <br />food processing and wood products. Being the state's capital and Marion County seat, a <br />large portion of the local population is employed in govemment. Manufacturing has <br />continued to show steady growth away from the traditional lumber and wood products, <br />toward a more diverse group of industries, including manufactured homes, silicon wafers, <br />metal products, and electronic equipment. <br />October 1999 figures showed a 5.1 ~ unemployment rate for the Salem MSA area. Historic <br />annual unemployment rates are summarized in the following table: <br />Salem MSA 4.7 5.7 6.9 6.7 5.4 4.9 5.6 5.4 5.5 5.1 <br />Oregon 5.4 6.0 7.3- 6.6 5.4 4.7 5.4 5.2 5.4 5.5 <br />National 5.5 6.7 7.4 6.4 6.1 5.2 5.0 4.4 4.1 4.1 <br />~.,,~.~e• n.Pr,~r, Fmnl~vment Deoart ment Labor Trends, D ata as o f Octo ber of 1999. <br />~ <br />P992gg PALMER, GROTH 8c PIETKA, INC. <br />Source: PSU, Center for Population Research 199y ({rreuminary tsnmaTes~ <br />