Mayor Shane Bemis will visit Gresham retailers for his quarterly Neighborhood Walk today.

The walk will begin at 1:30 p.m. with a group discussion at Café Delirium, a local independent coffee shop in Gresham’s historic downtown. He will meet with members of Gresham’s Try Local First campaign to discuss the importance of making local purchasing decisions to help the local economy.

At approximately 2:15 p.m., Bemis and representatives from Try Local First will visit five local merchants to discuss how their businesses are doing and to talk about how the City might be of assistance to them.

In these difficult market conditions, Bemis hopes to draw attention to the importance of thinking locally when making purchasing decisions, and continue his efforts to promote business friendly policies at City Hall.

Mayor Bemis holds Neighborhood Walks quarterly, and uses them as opportunities to connect and learn about issues going on in Gresham. City Councilor Carol Nielsen-Hood, who is also the Executive Director of the Gresham Chamber of Commerce, will join Bemis for the visits.

Walk Itinerary (times are approximate):

1:30 p.m.
Café Delirium
308 N Main, Gresham, OR 97030
Meet with representatives from Gresham Try Local First Campaign and business owner Cody Clark.

2:15 p.m.
Cynthia’s Floral
312 N Main, Gresham, OR 97030
Meet with store owner, Cynthia Loaffler.

3:00 p.m.
Elegantly Funky
101 N Main, Gresham, OR 97030
Meet with store owner, Kerry Parmenter.

3:45 p.m.
Dick’s Sporting Goods (Gresham Town Fair)
700 NW Eastman Parkway, Gresham, OR 97030
Meet with General Manager Rich Rhames.

4:30 p.m.
Borders (http://www.greshamstation.com)
687 NW 12Street, Gresham, OR 97030
Meet with General Manager Julie Nelson.