The Chamber of Medford / Jackson County

Business is booming in the Rogue Valley. Medford’s location midway between Portland and San Francisco has made it the commercial, medical, and retail hub of southern Oregon. The changing timber industry has led to the diversification of the valley’s industry, which is now a mix of tourism, agriculture, senior living, light manufacturing, and timber. Through it all, The Chamber of Medford/Jackson County has been there to support changes in markets, communication technology, public values, regulations, and adjacent urban growth.

Organized in 1895 as the Medford Board of Trade, The Chamber is a group of more than 1,500 businessmen and women dedicated to promoting the region’s standards of livability and its civic, commercial, and industrial progress. As a voice for business, The Chamber defends the interests of southern Oregon businesses through legislative advocacy. And in facilitating the exchange of information, The Chamber offers members productive networking opportunities.

Chamber support centers on maintaining an environment of success for current business owners while making the area attractive to new business. When a major employer experienced a fire, The Chamber joined a team of agencies and local elected officials to streamline the permit process and care for displaced employees, convincing the company to rebuild its facility. After many years of promoting the annexation of the Rogue Community College district (RCC), RCC opened its Riverside Center in downtown Medford in 1997 and will soon break ground on a new joint campus with Southern Oregon University in downtown. The Chamber has also supported the expansion of a juvenile detention center in Medford, the county’s library system, and the Mount Ashland ski area. The Medford Visitors and Convention Bu- reau (VCB) is a particularly exciting Chamber success story. In 1975, The Chamber helped pass the authorization of a transient occupancy tax, which partially funds the Bureau. The VCB protects southern Oregon tourism interests by organizing collective marketing power and promoting events and attractions such as the Medford Jazz Jubilee, the Art in Bloom festival, the Craterian Ginger Rogers Theater in downtown Medford, nearby Crater Lake, the Tony Award-winning Oregon Shakespeare Festival in Ashland and the Britt Festival in Jacksonville.

The Chamber of Medford/Jackson County will continue to address the issues affecting its growing community by focusing on infrastructure development, workforce training, information exchange and regional coalitions— measures that will positively impact the viability of the region’s business structure while maintaining its quality of life.

For more information

101 East 8 th Street
Medford, Oregon 97501
Phone: (541) 779-4847
Fax: (541) 776-4808
Hours: Monday-Friday, 9:00am-5:00pm
www.medfordchamber.com
business@medfordchamber.com