Yahoo.com to open service facility here

Yahoo Inc. has ended a two-year search by announcing it will locate a customer service center in Hillsboro.

The center will open in July, with 70 new jobs and 35 people moving here from California, said Heidi Burgett, a Yahoo spokeswoman.

Burgett called the future center a "customer care center of excellence," with service agents for billing, customer advocated, technical support, and service management, as well as other human resources and training positions.

The center will take up 38,000 square feet in the Westpark II building at 5240 NE Elam Young Parkway, next to the Hawthorn Farm MAX station.

Burgett said Yahoo, based in Sunnyvale, CA, looked at 74 communities over two years for this center.  Quality of life, sense of community, cost of living and short flight time to Sunnyvale were some of the reasons the company chose Hillsboro, she said.

The company picked this particular site, she said, because of the MAX line, nearby daycare and affordable housing. 

Yahoo will enlist Portland Community College's help in filling the new positions.  The company will host a job fair Wednesday, May 18 at PCC's Capital Center at Northwest 185th Avenue and Walker Road. 

Larry Pederson, economic development director for the city of Hillsboro, said the city is pleased with the announcement.  "I think it's very positive...it's a great compliment, I think, for the state, the region, and the city," he said.

Pederson said he understood Hillsboro was one of two finalists, with the other being Albany, New York. 

"Albany put far more financial incentives on the table to make it happen, but they chose Hillsboro because the location was a prime factor," he said.

"I know New York is generally very aggressive in corporate incentives, so this clearly is a big win for us," he continued.

Deanna Palm, president of the Greater Hillsboro Area Chamber of Commerce, agreed.  "We seem to be heading in a real positive direction," she said. "It's always positive when companies located here and bring jobs. It makes opportunities available for local workers and it bolsters other businesses to the area."

Yahoo, one of the most popular destinations on the World Wide Web, offers Internet users an array of services, from free email and news to Internet search capabilities and travel deals.  The company has employment sites in 20 countries worldwide.

Article by Ian Rollins, The Argus, May 3, 2005.