A proposed $15 million acquisition and renovation of the service building and boiler room at The Academy could bring the center to downtown Vancouver, said Witte. Under the current proposal, the two buildings would house a student-run restaurant and brewery/distillery.
“We’ve done the background to establish there is a demand for this [program], and now we’re going to move into the feasibility phase,” Witte said. “We’ll start talking to people in the community in July to find out if there is support for it.”
Nine months ago, people in the industry approached Bob Knight, Clark College president, and told him there is a real shortage of trained people here to work in low and medium-skilled restaurant, brewing and distillery jobs.
“We spent months looking at this and found that there is a chronic shortage of people trained to work in those industries,” Witte said.
They also found that the lack of an employee base is costing the area a lot of money and jobs.
Witte said that nearby Multnomah County in Oregon has 14.3 full-service restaurants for every 10,000 residents. In contrast, Clark County has only 5.7 restaurants per 10,000.
“That means a lot of business is crossing the Columbia River. We estimate between $250 million and $450 million in restaurant business is crossing the bridge every year instead of staying here in Clark County.
“If we had the same restaurant penetration as Multnomah County, it could mean another 8,200 jobs and lower unemployment by 4.3 percent in Clark County,” he added. “Teenage unemployment here is shockingly high and this program could help alleviate that.”
The craft brewing industry is already big in this region and growing nationally and globally. There are 71 breweries in the greater Portland area and 350 in Washington.
“Many of those businesses have to grow to survive, and that means they need exceptional quality control,” Witte explained. “Nobody is training people to fill the lower-level jobs that will be required to accomplish that.”
Witte emphasized that Clark College can’t fund the new program. It will take grants and other public support to get it off the ground. In return, the community could receive not only an economic boost, but a real community focus – “something durable and lasting that would become a destination for tourism” in the downtown area.
Russell Brent, owner of the Mill Creek Pub in Battle Ground, agrees. It was he who approached Knight on the golf course about the need for better food service training.
“Bob Knight asked me what our industry needs and we talked about what could be done,” Brent said. “The industry has changed dramatically and there is a lacking talent pool here. There’s a real need for better training and a better career path in the hospitality industry.
“This new program could provide that, linking with the hospitality program at Washington State University’s Vancouver campus,” he added. “I think the Clark College concept has legs.”
“We have the jewels of Northwest history here in Vancouver and Clark County,” Witte said, pointing out that The Academy was built by the Sisters of Providence in 1871.
“This is an opportunity to drive new employment and create a sense of place for Vancouver,” he added. “But it will require a big lift effort to create the partnerships necessary to make this work. Clark College can’t go it alone.
“By November, we should know if the community supports this.”
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