In the News

Biotech’s future far from a sure thing
East Valley Tribune, AZ - Dec 19, 2004
... In fact, many of the breakthroughs in biotech are more expensive than the earlier treatments, said Portland, Ore.-based economist Joseph Cortright. ...

Group For Young Professionals Emerges As Instant Success
Tampa Tribune, FL - Dec. 16, 2004
... The study was conducted by Coletta and economist Joe Cortright, vice president of Impresa Inc., a Portland-based consulting firm that specializes in economic ..

Lottery's slot option freshens rate debate
Portland Oregonian, Dec. 8, 2004
Joe Cortright, a Portland economist who regularly contracts with government and business groups, estimated that an average rate of 17.8 percent would give ...

Governor, senators call for better schools, technology
Corvallis Gazette Times, OR - Dec 7, 2004
... costs. He also wants a rainy day fund to protect the state from economic downturns. Joe Cortright, an economist with Impresa Inc. who ...

Study: Phila. must do more to retain young adults
The Daily Pennsylvanian, December 8, 2004

Attracting young workers is key in 'creative economy,' study says

A bid to lure & retain 'Young & Restless'
Philadelphia Daily News, Dec. 8, 2004
They are called the young and the restless - college-educated 25- to 34-year-olds - and experts say keeping them employed and living in your city is the key to future economic prosperity. They have the most current education, work the longest hours to build careers and are inexpensive workers. But they are mobile, ready to split the city any time. And during the 1990s, the Philadelphia region lost 195,000 of these young workers, according to a new study co-authored by Carol Coletta, the . . .

Editorial | Start spreading the news: Innovation Philadelphia
Philadelphia Inquirer, Dec. 6, 2004
Economist Joseph Cortright of Impresa Inc., who collaborated on the Young and the Restless study, said that keeping even a few more of those students - keeping them from heading out to New York, Washington, Boston, Austin or the West Coast - could make a huge difference.

Economist: Need to Invent Next Oregon Economy
Oregon Public Broadcasting, Dec. 7, 2004
Economist Joe Cortright told the group that state's recession has accelerated changes in Oregon's economy.
"I think what we realize that we won't recover the same jobs that we lost. We don't have the option of going backwards. We only have the option of going forwards. And the challenge then is to invent the next Oregon economy."

Wireless advantages explained
Commercial Appeal (Memphis), TN - Nov 9, 2004
... Newcomers will relate first impressions and Portland, Ore.-based economist Joe Cortright will talk about cultivating difference and attracting talent via ...

National rankings show fair progress
Bangor Daily News, ME - Nov 7, 2004
... moved to increase its investment in the whole area of biotechnology in the ... But a Brookings Institution study concluded earlier this year that while the area ...

Armageddon for the GOP
Seattle Weekly, WA - Oct 26, 2004
... Economist Joe Cortright, author of a study of biotech for the Brookings Institution, says, "Biotechnology is not a transformative force in the economy ...

State biotech sector no miracle drug for creation of jobs
Seattle Times, WA - Oct 15, 2004
... Biotechnology can create exceptional medicines and stockholder wealth. ... Seattle, San Francisco and Boston, a 2002 report by the Brookings Institution found 3.5 ...

San Jose Mercury News, October 12, 2004
But some economists warn that drug manufacturing is still a tiny industry dominated by a few big companies and highly concentrated in a few regions of the country. Drug companies like to ``cluster'' around universities and each other so they can easily swap -- and steal -- technology and scientists, making it difficult for regions to launch a biotechnology industry from scratch, said Joseph Cortright, a Portland, Ore., economist who co-wrote a report on the subject.

Biotech Biorhythms
Tech Central Station - Jul 7, 2004
... to ever experience the joy of growing biotech clusters? Not necessarily, but politicians should be realistic in their planning. The Brookings Institution said ...

OHSU sees drop in award rankings
Oregonian, OR - Jul 4, 2004
... ranking? Not likely, said Portland economist Joe Cortright. "There's an enormous amount of stability in the rankings," Cortright said. ...

Cities extend invitation to younger folks
Seattle Times, WA - June 29, 2004

COVER STORY: Bio-piracy and law of jungle
New Straits Times, Malaysia - Jun 26, 2004
... On making money out of biotech, an Associated Press report on Bio 2004 quoted economist Joseph Cortright as saying that luring biotech in the hope of saving a ...

Midsize cities working to hook young professionals
Houston Chronicle, TX - Jun 26, 2004
... areas in the United States had more 25-to-34 year olds in 2000 than they did in 1990, according to an analysis by economist Joseph Cortright, who studies ...

Attracting the 'young and restless'
Hillsboro Argus, OR - Jun 24, 2004
... Joe Cortright of Impresa Consulting and Carol Coletta of Coletta & Co. ... Cortright and Coletta compared the Portland region with five other metro areas. ...

Portland's wealth can be measured in youth movement
Oregonian, OR - Jun 23, 2004
A new study by Portland economist Joe Cortright and Memphis , Tenn. , urban consultant Carol Coletta documents and examines the continuing migration of young ...

What future Houston could be like in 2025
Houston Chronicle, TX - Jun 19, 2004
... The Brookings Institution had already confirmed Houston as one of most upwardly mobile urban ... it to continue to grow into one of the great biotech centers of ...

Mike Ivey: Competition strong for building biotech
The Capital Times, Madison, WI - Jun 15, 2004
... This notion that you lure biotech to your community to save its economy is laughable," said Joseph Cortright, a Portland, Ore., economist who co-wrote a ...

Not all that's outsourced gone abroad
Oregonian, OR - Jun 15, 2004
... contract out the rest. "It's a structural change in the economy," said Joe Cortright, a Portland economist. "It's this ongoing process ...

Biotech's future in Florida no sure thing
Fort Lauderdale Sun Sentinel, FL - Jun 13, 2004
... is laughable," said Joseph Cortright, an economist from Portland , Ore. , who co-wrote a 2002 Brookings Institution report on the state of the biotech industry. ...

EDITORIAL: Unlocking biotech potential
New Straits Times, Malaysia - Jun 12, 2004
... We should also draw from the lessons of the 2002 Brookings Institution study which indicated that the two key elements for biotech growth are strong research ...

Study explores 'young, restless'
Sarasota Herald-Tribune, FL - May 21, 2004

Can deal put city in biotech major leagues?
Houston Chronicle, TX - May 11, 2004
... The odds are stacked against Houston and most other cities trying to develop major biotech centers, said Joseph Cortright, a Portland, Ore., economist who co ...

BIOTECH MECCA
South Florida Sun-Sentinel, FL - May 11, 2004
... The chances of creating more centers are slim, said Joseph Cortright, an economist in Portland, Ore., who co-wrote a 2002 Brookings Institution report on the ...

San Francisco Federal Reserve Bank, Economic Review, "Performance of Urban Information Technology Centers:The Boom, the Bust, and the Future" by Mary Daly and Robert G. Valetta, (Spring 2004)

Biotech Magnet: Loudoun County Hopes Medical Research Campus Will Trigger a Boom
Washington Post, March 7, 2004

Steve Novick: Evidence overwhelming on lottery commissions
Oregonian, OR - Feb 15, 2004
... In 1994, economist Joe Cortright studied this issue for the Legislature. Based on careful, on-site analysis of the retailers' finances ...

Biotech business has potential in rural Minnesota
USA Today - Feb 15, 2004
... Experts say attracting biotech businesses isn't easy. A Brookings Institute study last year concluded most efforts will fail, even in large cities. ...

Is biotech getting spread too thin?
Palm Beach Post, FL - Feb 14, 2004
... a community to have," says Joseph Cortright, an economist in Portland, Ore., and co-author of a 2002 Brookings Institution report on the state of the biotech ...

Chase for biotech billions pits city against many rivals
Portland Tribune, OR - Feb 10, 2004
... Nearly every metro area has similar hopes and dreams," said Portland economist Joe Cortright, the co-author of a 2002 study of the US biotech industry. ...

Diverse groups seek common ground on growth
Oregonian, OR - Feb 1, 2004
... Unlike general industries such as restaurants and retail shops, high-tech businesses tend to congregate, economist Joe Cortright told the group. ...

Study finds life science specialties
Indianapolis Star, IN - Jan 28, 2004
... Joe Cortright, an economist at Portland, Ore.-based Impresa Consulting, said few of the life science initiatives budding across the country will prosper. ...

Biotech panel considers recruiting aid
Minneapolis Star Tribune, MN - Jan 25, 2004
... an economist with Impresa Inc., of Portland, Ore., and the author of the much-quoted 2002 Brookings Institution study on economic development and biotech. ...

Opinions vary on 316's future
Atlanta Journal Constitution, GA - Jan 25, 2004
... Joe Cortright, an economist with Impresa Consulting in Portland, Ore., said high tech employment nationwide has dropped up to 20 percent over the past two years ...

Selling of biotech initiative to have new focus
Miami Herald, FL - Jan 25, 2004
... Focus is the key to a successful plan, says Joe Cortright, a consultant based in Portland, Ore., who did a study of the biotech industry for the Brookings ...

Eastbank freeway: Same old fights
Oregonian, OR - Jan 24, 2004
... the district might just be sprouting the kind of "creative economy" of youthful, educated entrepreneurs that economists like Richard Florida and Joe Cortright ...

PDC chief takes the offense
Portland Tribune, OR - Jan 23, 2004
... out-of-state companies has ground to a halt, largely because of the sour state of the economy, not "our (lack of) prowess as recruiters," said Joe Cortright, ...

Highly Concentrated Growth
Los Angeles Times, CA - Jan 23, 2004
... young scientist in San Diego or Boston, why would you want to leave?" said Cortright,
who wrote a 2002 study on the nation's biotech industry for the Brookings ...... Biotech isn't like Krispy Kreme," whose growth depends on expansion into new territories here consumers hunger for doughnuts, said economist Joseph Cortright. ...

2003

Biotechnology: Rolling the Dice
Florida Trend, FL - Dec 31, 2003
... All of California has fewer than 450 biotech firms. Several sources, including Ernst & Young, the Institute for Biotechnology Information and the Brookings ...

Economic recovery expected to take hold
Oregonian, OR - Dec 31, 2003
... All in all, said Joe Cortright, an economist with Impresa, a Portland consulting firm, 2004 holds at least as much, if not more, promise for the area than 2003 ...

Why Boston covets its role as biotech hub
Christian Science Monitor - Dec 24, 2003
... Plus, biotech factories pollute less and require less energy than other industries. ... as one of their top two targets for industrial development, a Brookings ...

Baltimore Makes a Bold Bid To Transform Neighborhood
Washington Post, December 1, 2003; Page A1, By Michael Barbaro
"This is a mania," said Joseph Cortright, an economist who has written extensively on the development of biotech centers. "Ten years ago, everyone wanted to be the next Silicon Valley. Three years ago, they wanted to be the center of e-commerce. Now that both of those have fizzled, everyone in the economic development fraternity thinks they need to be in biotechnology."

Scripps will bring many so-so salaries
Orlando Sentinel, FL - Nov 26, 2003
... the La Jolla research institute, but the biotech cluster that sprung up around it in California is far more difficult to replicate here, said Joseph Cortright ...

Biotech Land Rush, by George Howland Jr.
Seattle Weekly, WA - Nov 20, 2003
The region's leaders have caught biotech fever, and economist Joseph Cortright says that can be an unhealthy obsession. "Biotech ...

Life in US Biotech?
The Scientist, - Nov 20, 2003
Still, the industry employs relatively few technical workers overall. The Commerce Department estimates that a total of 34,000 scientists work for biotech companies, and the vast majority of these jobs are located in just six states. Even for cities with a high concentration of biotech, such as Boston and San Francisco, the largest companies still rank as only minor employers in the region, a Brookings Institution report found last year.

Selling points
Oregonian, OR - Nov 9, 2003
Joe Cortright's commentary on why "Things Look Different Here" isn't such a bad slogan for Oregon.

Westside forum on the economy gives equal time to quality of life
Oregonian, OR - Nov 8, 2003
... Her comments dovetailed with economist Joseph Cortright's presentation of the final phase of his westside economic study. "A critical ...

Economists eye long-term growth for Washington Co.
Katu.com, OR - Nov 7, 2003
... If we stand still, if we don't innovate, if we don't create new companies, then clearly we could be too dependent," said economist Joe Cortright. ...

The Man Who Would Be Kings
Village Voice, NY - Nov 4, 2003
... It may be a zero-sum game, where money spent at the ballpark is not spent somewhere else," says Joe Cortright, a former economist for the Oregon state ...

States flock to biotech like gamblers to lottery tickets
USA Today - Nov 3, 2003
... relocate. Going after biotech jobs is akin to "spending your life's savings on lottery tickets," says economist Joe Cortright. He ...

The Nine States of Oregon
Oregonian, OR - Nov 1, 2003
... In the new economy, said Portland economist Joe Cortright, the urban area is an important gateway for the rest of the state -- what he only half-jokingly calls ...

Leaning left, Portlandia looks to right itself
Oregonian, OR - Nov 1, 2003
... Joe Cortright, a Portland economist working on a study of this age group, said the relative scarcity of people in this age range makes them a valuable commodity ...

LSI's tax incentives in the spotlight
Oregonian, OR - Oct 30, 2003
... It remains to be seen whether there's any bounce at the bottom of this down cycle," said Joe Cortright, a Portland-area economist with Impresa Consulting. ...

To avoid 'brain drain,' can bay area learn to be hip?
St. Petersburg Times, FL - October 27, 2003
... Regional economist Joe Cortright of the Impresa consulting company in Portland, Ore., will steer the study. "Historically, this ...

Can Florida become a high-tech state?
Sarasota Herald-Tribune, FL - Oct 26, 2003
... I am skeptical," said Joe Cortright, a Portland, Ore.-based consultant who did a study of American "biotechnology centers" last year for the Brookings ...

Scripps envisions its dream home
South Florida Sun-Sentinel, FL - Oct 26, 2003
... Joseph Cortright, author of a 2002 study for the Brookings Institution on biotech clusters, said Scripps' prowess as an economic magnet is overrated. ...

Marketplace Morning Report, October 22, 2003 (RealAudio Feed)
From San Diego: Eric Niiler explains why Florida is trying to lure Scripps' biotech research work out of San Diego. (Public Radio)

Hardwoods law at core of debate
Coos Bay World, OR - Oct 22, 2003
... But Joe Cortright, an economist and consultant representing the petitioners, disputed Taylor's view and said the new entrants into the alder business were ...

Retailers set sail for southwest suburbs
Oregonian, OR - Oct 22, 2003
... Companies such as West Marine -- specialized concerns with regional drawing power -- face equally specialized decisions in whether to expand, said Joe Cortright ...

State Hopes To Cash In On Biotech
The Ledger, Florida - Oct 20, 2003
... Joseph Cortright, author of a 2002 Brookings Institution study on the nation's biotech clusters, said the industry is concentrated in nine metropolitan areas ...

$510-million catalyst
St. Petersburg Times, FL - Oct 19, 2003
... Joseph Cortright, author of a 2002 Brookings Institution study on the nation's biotech clusters, said the industry is concentrated in nine metropolitan areas ...

Biotech plans: Boon or fantasy?
... shot at best,'' said Joseph Cortright, an economist ... biotechnology industry study for the Brookings Institution ... for the most part, these [biotech] companies are ...

ST. PAUL: City takes next steps on biotech
St. Paul Pioneer Press, MN - Oct 16, 2003
... A Brookings Institution study last year also listed Minnesota as an also-ran in what is likely to be a highly competitive industry ...

Mid-sized cities get hip to attract young professionals
USA Today - Oct 10, 2003
... elsewhere. "Bill Gates is pushing 50," says Joe Cortright, head of Impresa Inc., an economic consulting firm in Portland, Ore. "The ...

Oregon firms smorgasbord loses entree
Oregonian, OR - Oct 10, 2003
... Joe Cortright, an economist with Portland-based Impresa, attributed some of the industry strength to Oregonians' willingness to try new foods. ...

High-tech plan pays off for Tualatin
Oregonian, OR - Oct 1, 2003
... Novellus is certainly a nice tenant to have here," said Joe Cortright, an economist and vice president for Impresa, a Portland-based consulting firm. ...

Oregon Business, "Footwear and Apparel: A Cluster of Giants" (October)

Economic vital signs show hints of new life
Oregonian, OR - Sep 13, 2003
... One reason, Portland economist Joe Cortright said, is that businesses are still reaping the benefits of an earlier spree of investment in information ...

Sawmills battle Weyerhaeuser
Oregonian, OR - Sep 10, 2003
... Economist Joe Cortright, who was hired by the small mill owners, said banning Weyerhaeuser from buying state-forest logs would help open the industry ...

No urban/suburban divide
Oregonian, OR - Sep 9, 2003
Economist Joe Cortright's recent "Westside Economic Study" provides overwhelming evidence that livability is and will be a key economic asset. ...

Housing market still booming
Oregonian, OR - Sep 3, 2003
... Diversified economy helps One reason for that is the region's more diversified economy, said Joe Cortright, an economist with Impresa Consulting. ...

Richmond Federal Reserve Bank , Regional Focus, "Seeing the Light," by Charles Gerena, (Summer 2003)

Dallas Federal Reserve Bank (San Antonio Branch), Vista, "Biotech and the San Antonio Economy," by Keith Phillips and Maria Ritka Dzula , (Spring 2003)

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