As long as you work for government. The top three downtown employers are the state of Oregon, the city of Portland and the federal government.
According to the Portland Tribune public administration gained 1,144 jobs since 2008, at the expense of jobs in the private sector. The arts, entertainment and recreation sector lost the most jobs (down 1,242), followed by retail trade (minus 508), and professional, scientific and technical services (minus 345). While information, health care, social assistance, and food service and accommodations showed some gains, public employment was the big winner downtown. So unless you are a nurse, a web designer, an MSW, a waiter or hotel maid, don’t expect to find many private sector jobs in the Portland downtown core.
It is interesting that many of the private jobs that were gained, may be directly linked to the surge in public jobs through contracts and services to support the needs of the bureaucracies based downtown.
And who has left downtown? Regence (Blue Cross/Blue Shield). Standard. SAK’s. Look for Meier and Frank (Macy’s) to vacate soon as well. The three top employers are all government, at this point. While the state capitol is ostensibly located in Salem, more state workers are being located downtown – perhaps to give the illusion that their programs are sustainable.