Multnomah, Clackamas and Washington counties are developing fast. Metro, the regional government for the three counties, has estimated public agencies in the area have more than 80 major construction projects in the works.
But there are equity gaps. A 2018 study commissioned by Metro and the city of Portland found the pool of construction workers set to carry out this development is largely white and male. One-fifth of the people working nonresidential construction jobs in the region were people of color. Just 4% were women.
Read more from Rebecca Ellis at Oregon Public Broadcasting