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regon's worst-kept secret lately has to be what Internet search engine Google is building in The Dalles on the Columbia River. Though no one at the company or in the city will confirm or deny anything, it is generally understood that Google is building a data center for its supercomputers as part of its global network of computer operations known as the Googleplex. Yahoo and Microsoft are building major data centers in nearby Washington State; all three will benefit from the Pacific Northwest's low-cost energy supply and network communications infrastructure.
   The secretive nature of the facility stems from the competitive nature of the Internet applications game, particularly in Google's league. Early 2006 saw some in the computer press speculating about whether Google was in the market to purchase "dark fiber," which is fiber optic cable that is laid but is not in use – and there happens to be plenty of it along the Columbia River. If so, it could mean Google is planning a move into the telecom business, or it's simply acquiring bandwidth capacity today to meet tomorrow's demand.
   In any case, some along the Oregon-Washington border are convinced The Dalles location for the data center has just as much to do with Google's young founders' fondness for windsurfing, which is a well-known recreational activity along the Columbia River Gorge. That speculation could not be confirmed at press time.    What can be confirmed is Oregon's emergence from a nagging recession. Since 2005, the state has been adding jobs following three consecutive years of job losses. General fund revenues also are on the rise as is the revenue forecast.
   "The growth in personal income, 5.8 percent in 2005, reflects the fact that more people are working than at any time in Oregon's history," noted Gov. Ted Kulongoski in March 2006. "Jobs have become more plentiful in our state, and people are making more money. Oregon is back."
   What's helping bring back economic growth to the state is its sense of what belongs in Oregon and what probably does not. Heavy industry, for example, might bring lots of jobs, but why focus on attracting tire plants when a cleaner facility, such as Intel's semiconductor operations, can employ more at a higher average wage and take less of a toll on the state's natural resources?
   The April 2006, US$105-million sale of LSI Logic Corp.'s semiconductor manufacturing facility in Gresham to Semiconductor Components Industries, the main operating subsidiary of ON Semiconductor Corp., was a win-win for the companies involved and for Oregon, which keeps its hold on some of the U.S. semiconductor manufacturing industry.
   "A key driver to putting the sale together was the buyer's ability to acquire a 500,000-square-foot [46.450-sq.-m.] operational facility on 83 acres [37 hectares], including advanced geometry tools and a contract to sell wafers to LSI," says Stephen Rothrock, senior vice president at Colliers International's Advanced Technology Real Estate Group (ATREG), in Seattle. "There are multiple semiconductor facilities on the market, but the superior fab and experienced LSI work force along with the supply contract were distinctive characteristics of this offering."
   ATREG also worked on the sale of Sumitomo Mitsubishi Silicon Group's twin wafer manufacturing facilities in Salem to Cascadia Development in July.
   On a smaller scale, MathStar, a semiconductor company that designs, manufactures and markets logic platform chips, is relocating from Minneapolis to Hillsboro, where it will join about 1,700 high-tech companies employing more than 66,000 in the Portland metro area. MathStar's products are used in high-definition video, imaging, machine vision, military and aerospace, testing and measurement and wireless base stations.
   IMEX, a Japanese manufacturer of refilled toner and ink cartridges, is investing $5 million to upgrade and expand its Salem plant. It has operated in the capital city since 2002. Approximately 100 Japanese companies have operations in Oregon, employing more than 10,000 people.
   On the logistics and distribution front, home-improvement chain Lowe's is constructing a 1.4-million-sq.-ft. (130,000-sq.-m.) regional distribution center in Lebanon, Ore., that will open in 2007. And several infrastructure projects are on tap to benefit directly from the state's ConnectOregon program. This program earmarks funds for improving connections between the highway system and other modes of transportation to improve the flow of commerce. Recent recipients of ConnectOregon funding include the Port of Portland, which is purchasing a post-Panamax crane for the next generation of container ships, and a host of local projects around the state.