By Mary Faith Bell, Tillamook County Commissioner
Recently a constituent asked me on Facebook to provide examples of things I have done in my current term to stimulate the economy and support local businesses. I appreciated the question, and I thought the broader community might be interested in my reply.
This year there was a significant threat to the Oregon crabbing industry when a coalition of environmental groups petitioned Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission to drastically change the rules for crabbing. The proposed new rules would have made it practically impossible for local small boat fishermen and women to continue crabbing. I met with a local commercial crabber, learned about the situation, and submitted strong testimony opposing the proposed new rules. I solicited testimony from other leaders and elected officials in addition to my own. I was proud to stand up for our local fishing fleet, which has a tremendous positive impact on the local economy.
A local industry expert told me recently that my testimony was considered among the two most influential. The commission ruled in favor of the Oregon crabbing industry by denying the petition. You can read my testimony to the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission on a Feb. 17, 2026, post on my Tillamook County Commissioner Facebook page, and on the Tillamook County Pioneer Facebook page; the Pioneer shared my post on Feb. 17. My testimony is also on my website at maryfaithbell.com.
I serve as the board chair of the Economic Development Council (EDC) of Tillamook County. Currently the EDC director and I are working on an application for an Opportunity Zone in south Tillamook County. This is an exciting possibility. If approved, it would result in a 10-year Opportunity Zone designation of a wide swath of south county from Pacific City to east of Beaver. That designation comes with low interest funding opportunities from private investors for businesses and housing developers. The intention of the Opportunity Zone, which is a federal program, is to boost the local economy, create jobs and housing.
When I received the information about applying for the new Opportunity Zone and saw the map of the proposed area I immediately thought of Kevin and Katie Shluka, local developers who bought the Beaver School. Their vision is for the Beaver School, which has been vacant for about 15 years, to be remodeled into housing and a community center/hub for the community. The classrooms will become apartments with high ceilings, big windows, private yards; the gym, which is in pristine condition, will remain a gym for the community; the library will have space for a Beaver branch, and there will be a commercial kitchen. Behind the school there will be community gardens and a playground. It is a fantastic opportunity for south county.
I asked Kevin and Katie if Opportunity Zone funding would help their Beaver School project, and they said yes. Likewise, I asked Mary Jones and Jeff Schons of the Pelican and Nestucca Ridge family of businesses if they were interested in Opportunity Zone funding for developing new business and/or workforce housing in south county, and they said yes. Their projects will contribute to housing and jobs and stimulate the local economy. The Opportunity Zone application process is competitive, but because we are working with privately owned local businesses whose projects will contribute to housing and jobs and stimulate the local economy, we have a strong application.
The EDC also recently expanded the Enterprise Zone to benefit local business; the zone boundary change supports the expansion of Jacobsen Salt, a growing and thriving local business.
I recently received an invitation to meet with a delegation of senior representatives from Korean Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) companies that want to establish operations in the United States. The meeting will take place this summer at Aerostar in Tillamook and feature the Tillamook Test Range and its UAS capabilities. Aerostar is a dynamic local business that could be the anchor for a hub of high tech UAS businesses in Tillamook. This is an exciting economic development possibility, and something I am engaged in pursuing.
April 23, 2026, I was a judge in a Level Up Pitch Contest (think Shark Tank, without private investors) for local entrepreneurs. Level Up is an EDC program that encourages local entrepreneurs to work with the Small Business Development Center (SBDC) to develop a business plan, budget, and marketing to launch a small business or plan for growth. The Level Up Pitch Contest gives local businesses the opportunity to pitch their businesses and their vision for cash prizes.
The first-place winner this year is Izzi’s Big Mouth Guide Service. The owners have designed their new boat to accommodate individuals in wheelchairs; it was exciting to hear their enthusiasm for providing fishing experiences for individuals with disabilities.
Fornax Pizza was the second-place winner; they currently serve wood fired pizza in the food court under the Big G in Garibaldi. Fornax plans to expand to a hybrid food truck/brick and mortar location on Hwy 101 in Nehalem where patrons can order pizza from the food truck and enjoy it in an adjacent indoor seating location with drinks.
Bold and Bloom/L Gann Designs, LLC was the third-place winner. Lindsey Gann makes beautiful floral jewelry which you can currently buy online via Etsy and at a few local merchants; they plan to expand their wholesale market.
Congratulations to the winners and to the other worthy contestants who gave great presentations.
This was the third year of the Level Up Pitch Contest. It has been thrilling to watch those small businesses grow and expand in Tillamook County in the past couple of years. A few standout examples include Brittney Bakes in Garibaldi, with a growing reputation for delicious baked goods; Country Squire Kitchen food truck next to de Garde Brewing in Tillamook where you can get delicious food to go or eat inside at de Garde and enjoy a craft beverage; Green Coast Market in Rockaway Beach, a business that promotes other local businesses, where you can find high quality locally grow/made/baked items…think indoor farmers market/grocery; and Sweet Begonias, a plant shop in Second Street Plaza in Tillamook featuring beautiful, healthy and unusual plants. Open Wednesday through Saturday, a visit to Sweet Begonias is a treat for plant lovers and a great place to buy a gift certificate. Sweet Begonias hosts a fun, family friendly plant bingo event every second Tuesday at 6 p.m. in Pacific Restaurant. Enjoy food and beverages from Pacific, play bingo, and go home with plants! Check them all these businesses out.
It takes courage to start and to expand a small business, and our community benefits on multiple levels from the investments and the heart and soul of local entrepreneurs.
I make it a point to shop locally and to promote local businesses. For example, I bought a gorgeous hanging basket from JAndy Acres Nursery and gave it away in a drawing at the Home and Garden Show in Tillamook last weekend. Hundreds of people admired that basket. I told people where I got it, shared pictures of it on Facebook crediting JAndy Acres Nursery in hopes that they will see some business as a result.
Speaking of doing business locally, every campaign dollar I have spent (other than the Secretary of State, website domains, etc.) in this election has been with local businesses. I probably could have purchased signs for less online, but a political campaign is an extraordinary opportunity to reinvest money that local supporters have donated into local businesses. I want the money people have generously given to help re-elect me to stay in our community.