Good Examples from the State of Jefferson

A legacy of economic expansion in the west has been the boom-bust cycle. Whether beaver, agriculture or gold, communities and jobs have come and gone based upon market shifts and resource availability. More recently, timber has been added to that list. Fewer big trees, corporate consolidation, technological innovation, market forces and environmental regulation have all conspired to bring about the decline of the lumber and wood products industry, signaling the end of timber's big boom.

In forests of the region, this has produced a scattering of towns and mill sites now abandoned, struggling or remade. Towns closest to major transportation routes have shown the greatest ability to remake themselves. Many of these have been able to tap new economic growth associated with an expanding retirement population, the service sector or tourism booms of the new century.

In other areas the social and economic decline associated with the passing era is more apparent and long lasting. These tend to be in more remote locations, lacking the amenities commonly associated with the new booms. In these out of the way places, people and businesses have been as likely to move on as be remade. Hayfork, in Trinity County, is one such town.

When Jim Jungwirth first moved to Hayfork in 1956 at the age of ten, there were seven mills. Six were locally owned. Jim's father was a small scale logger who ran crews across the county. At that time, a sense of place included the awareness that a good portion of the neighbors were involved in harvesting and processing timber. Jim eventually left Hayfork for military service and college, but his blue-collar background traveled with him, as has his father's sage advice: "You should never be ashamed to work with your back."

When Jim returned to town in the early 90's, his father had died and the world his father had lived in was quickly passing. Corporate consolidation was a primary factor in the loss of the local ownership of mills. Of the town's seven mills in 1956, only the Sierra Pacific mill remained. In 1990, a federal injunction on public timber sales due to habitat considerations for the northern spotted owl effectively removed the primary source of Trinity County timber from its land base. In 1995 Sierra Pacific, facing the reduction in federal supply and choosing to focus attention elsewhere, closed the mill. The closure affected over 150 families and within a few years over 40% of the payroll in Hayfork had disappeared. By the end of the decade, more than 80% of Hayfork children relied on its free and reduced lunch program.

Jim and his wife Lynn didn't return to Hayfork to get involved in the politics of land management. But they wanted to strengthen the struggling community, and hoped to inspire a renewed connection between the local economy and an ethic of land stewardship. Thus they were instrumental in establishing the Watershed Research and Training Center which has worked since 1993 to "promote healthy communities and sustainable forests through research, education, training, and economic development."

Though an original board member of the Watershed Center, Jim moved away from the non-profit sector and set about to address the challenge in a new way. With the eye of an entrepreneur, he believed he could create jobs by making products that are beneficial to forest health. Jim founded Jefferson State Forest Products in 1996.

The vision for JSFP has been to utilize responsibly harvested material in quality designed products that allow workers to make a decent living in their rural community. His partner Greg Wilson has provided design craftsmanship, and the Watershed Center and related networks have helped access markets and define responsible forestry.

Defining responsible in relation to forestry is often a challenge. At Jefferson State, it means recognizing the importance of biological diversity and promoting an ethic of land stewardship. Consistent with this approach, material from public lands is the by-product of restoration activity aimed at thinning forests for health and fire hazard reduction. Jefferson State also prioritizes the purchase of material from smaller independent mills that produce lower volumes of lumber from responsibly harvested private lands.

Jim decided to focus on manufacturing because that's where the most jobs are. Primary processing, which turns logs into boards, employs on average five-and-a-half people per year per million board feet of material. "In secondary manufacturing, making moulding or trim for instance, the number is 18, in tertiary manufacturing, like furniture, the number is 80." Last year JSFP ran at the equivalent of 125 jobs per million board feet of material.

Creating a successful wood product manufacturing business in the vacuum of a failed industry has proven a major challenge. When the last mill left town the potential for future economic development in Hayfork was undermined. The corporation took profits, payroll and infrastructure with it, reflecting a disinvestment in the town that spilled over into other closed businesses, and bank reluctance to support the economically challenged community. Workers moved away and many that remained did not possess the diversity of skills needed to take on new opportunities. But perhaps most importantly, community spirit was broken and optimism threatened.

"There was a lack of willingness to share the risks inherent in creating a new business, to make the investments in training, machinery, and capitalization necessary to try something new in wood products."

Jim did find some risk-takers. Jerry Fulton, manager of the county fairgrounds agreed to rent space to JSFP - provided everything was moved out during the county fair to make room for displays, livestock and fairgoers. But it quickly became apparent that a dedicated space for manufacturing was needed. Support came from public and private entities. A community development block grant passed from the state to the county resulted in the construction of a "business incubator" able to house JSFP and other wood product manufacturers. The Ford Foundation provided funds for the Watershed Center to purchase high-end equipment for lease to JSFP and other businesses housed in the incubator.

The fiscal support allows for lower overhead and equipment costs, and frees time and money to pursue other components of a successful business. In Jim's case, marketing has been the focus of much of his energy. "Markets are absolutely critical to our success. The key to rural manufacturing is an urban-rural partnership. We can't succeed selling to ourselves."

JSFP is a business partner of the Healthy Forests, Healthy Communities Partnership. This collaboration of rural businesses and non-profits, including the Watershed Center, strives to link rural producers to urban markets. Through this partnership, Jim not only accesses distant markets, but also shares entrepreneurial lessons with like-minded rural manufacturers across the northwest.

A visit to the JSFP website shows what's on tap. Cider presses, cremation urns, flooring, retail fixtures, furniture and kitchen accessories are standard offerings. Hardwoods like madrone, black walnut, tanoak and Oregon white oak tend to be utilized in higher end, specialty products, while suppressed Douglas-fir and ponderosa pine are utilized in the higher volume, commodity markets of flooring and paneling. To date, the biggest buyer for JSFP product has been Whole Foods Market. JSFP has provided fixtures for produce and deli sections across the country; six of the top ten grossing produce departments in Whole Foods Markets use JSFP fixtures.

Today, Jefferson State Forest Products is making its final move out of the fairgrounds into the new business incubator and Jim has his sight set on a new challenge. New businesses are needed to fill the incubator, new entrepreneurs ready to help remake the wood product industry and reinvigorate Hayfork's local economy.

"What we are really in need of are new risk-takers. Know any?"