hall on the Central Eastside is known to many simply as “the Live Nation venue,” a name that seems to irk the development team of Beam Construction & Management and Colas Development Group, despite the lack of a preferable alternative. The venue’s proposed location, a .8-acre lot in the so-called Workshop Blocks, has been vacant and used for parking since 2017, when the Oregon Department of Transportation sold it to the city’s economic development agency, Prosper Portland. Beam originally conceived a project much broader in scope: a mixed-use development with a venue as well as coworking and light industrial space. But the pandemic caused demand for industrial office space to crater, and the developers sought new partners for the project. Project leaders, including Colas head Andrew Colas and Beam president Jonathan Malsin, prefer to focus on the future venue’s benefits, like large set-asides for women and minority contractors, hundreds of thousands of expected concertgoers and the millions they bring in multiplier-effect dollars. “Our project will create jobs, foster a positive economic impact and energize the neighborhood,” the two wrote in a statement to Oregon Business. “We are grateful to all who voiced their support, as well as those who expressed concerns. We genuinely care about our city and will use this valuable feedback to build an exceptional community asset that brings Portlanders together.” In a statement to Oregon Business, Mary Clare Bourjaily, Live Nation’s market president for Oregon, writes that the company is proud to bring economic development to Portland alongside partners Beam and Colas. “As members of Portland’s vibrant music ecosystem, we look forward to continuing to engage with the community to share more about how this project will benefit the local fans and artists,” she writes. To be sure, Live Nation had been in Portland for years through its event promotion and artist representation services. But Live Nation also operates venues in every major market in the U.S. Opponents say Live Nation squeezes out local competition when all three components of its business model work in concert. And as a massive corporation, it can undercut local prices and absorb losses until competition drops out. Other tactics include purchasing major venues and closing them down, buying buildings and leasing to independent venues at rates higher than valuation, and denying artists under their representation the opportunity to perform at independent venues. This “playbook” is described in detail in the federal lawsuit against Live Nation/ Ticketmaster. “I’m blown away that the legal departments of both Prosper Portland and the city went along with this nonsense,” says concert promoter David Leiken, a mainstay in live music in the Pacific Northwest for five decades. “What if the government breaks up Live Nation? Then who are we doing business with?” Leiken recently provided written testimony “Our project will create jobs, foster a positive economic impact and energize the neighborhood.” ANDREW COLAS, LEFT, AND JONATHAN MALSIN, RIGHT, IN A STATEMENT TO OREGON BUSINESS Portland City Council meeting in September during which people testified about Live Nation's proposed new venue 28
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