Change, it seems, is not always easy. Nor is it without controversy. The University’s Portland campus has opened its doors in its newest location, the historic White Stag building, but proposed changes to the building have Oregonians talking.
The White Stag building, at 70 NW Couch St., was built in 1907 as the manufacturing and warehouse space of the Willamette Tent and Awning Company. The building has since changed hands multiple times, but is most known for its rooftop sign erected by the White Satin Sugar Company in 1940. The infamous sign has since endured two notable changes. In 1957 the sign was reworked to read “White Stag,” the name of the sportswear store that occupied the building. In 1997, the sign changed once again to read “Made in Oregon,” for the retail chain that bought the building.
And now, the newest White Stag tenant, the University, is supporting another change to the historic sign. The proposal would change the words “Made in Oregon” to read “University of Oregon.” The outline of the state, the image of the leaping white stag and the words “Old Town” would remain the same.
Jan Oliver, special assistant to the University’s vice president of advancement, said it was understood when the University signed its 18-year lease with White Stag Block, LLC in May 2006 that it would be permitted to rework the sign. Ramsay Signs, Inc. has owned the rooftop sign for more than 60 years, and has re-worked it with each change. The company submitted the proposal pre-application in late November. If the changes are approved, Ramsay Signs, Inc. will take down the sign for re-fabricating. “The process would take about three months,” estimated Joe Gibson, vice-president of operations at Ramsay Signs, Inc.

Oliver is the University point-person on the sign change. Oliver recalled the process of changing the sign in 1997. “The public was very upset about the change,” she said. “It was a big deal.”
It took 18 months to change “White Stag” to “Made in Oregon” in 1997, and Ramsay Signs, Inc. adopted a policy as to how the sign could change in the future. In short, the policy reads that nothing on the historic sign can change except the wording. The font style, the lighting, the outline of the state and the leaping white stag must all be preserved.
“The proposal that is moving forward is sticking to the requirements,” Oliver said. “I call it coloring inside the lines.”
Andrea Herman, a University senior, expressed anger at the proposed changes. Growing up in the Portland area, Herman recalls seeing the sign while crossing over the Burnside Bridge on the way home from daily gymnastic practices.
“I would be really mad,” she said. “Actually mad. That sign has been there forever – it’s the coolest thing ever.”
“That’s a Portland thing,” she said of the sign. “Not a University of Oregon thing.”
But Gibson doesn’t see a problem. “That sign has almost always advertised the tenants of that building. The University of Oregon is the tenant and they have the right to change it,” he said. “This will be the fourth time it has been changed.”
Oliver echoed similar sentiments. “We are clearly in support of the sign change,” she said. “This is something we very much want to do.”
Portland residents are speaking up about the issue, posting comments on blogs, articles and photographs of the historic sign.
Critics to the proposed changes say “Made in Oregon” evokes much more than a chintzy retail name; the sign has become the very essence of pride for many Oregonians.
On a neighborhood-based blogging site for Portland’s Old Town/China Town district, one Oregonian wrote, “I love the ‘Made in Oregon’ sign. It’s a welcoming message for all visitors who pass by here and a welcoming sign for all Portlanders who frequent downtown. It’s become a monument of our city that we love so much.”
Gibson, however, said the sign would remain the iconic neon landmark over the Burnside Bridge that it always has. “Anybody that drove over that bridge daily would not even notice the difference within a few months.”
Many residents are expressing outcry at the potential loss of a beloved Portland tradition. For four decades, Ramsay Signs, Inc. has placed a small red light at the end of the stag’s nose come Dec. 1. In what has become a longstanding mark of the holiday season’s start, a charity group lights the stag’s nose each year. Past lighters have included the Boy and Girl Scouts of America.
“It’s a tradition that the city embraces each year,” Gibson said. “This year we had the kids from Junior Achievement turn it on.”
Herman, too, remembers looking forward to the holiday tradition. “We would always be really excited to see the red ball on the deer’s nose,” she said.
And if the proposed changes go through, Gibson explained that the holiday tradition would remain the same. “We just want to make sure it stays the icon that it is,” he said.
“We understand the public’s attachment to the sign and we respect that,” Oliver said. “To that end, we are supporting a proposal that will not change the historic aspects of the sign.”
Much of the outcry is coming from Portland State University, Oregon State University and University of Portland alumni, who are upset about the idea of advertising the University of Oregon in Portland.
In a Nov. 21 Portland Business Journal article, Portland City Commissioner Randy Leonard criticized the University’s proposal. “He thinks it’s bad form for the University of Oregon to take an iconic Portland landmark and acquire its use for their exclusive property,” said Ty Kovach, chief of staff to the commissioner.
“If it was in Eugene, it would be fine,” echoed Herman, “because Eugene is known for the University of Oregon. But Portland is known for so many other things not related to the U of O.”
The changes are still in the beginning stages. Ramsay Signs, Inc. will attend a pre-application meeting Dec. 9 at 10:30 a.m. at the Bureau of Development Services, where it will receive feedback on the proposal. Sometime within the next few months, Ramsay Signs, Inc. is expected to submit a formal application to the City of Portland Planning Commission, which will begin the official process.
The University, though excited about the prospect of joining the ranks of historical landmarks, expects the process to include an appeal.
“It’s a public process,” Oliver said. “When you get into something this controversial, somebody is going to raise their hand.”
Many Oregonians will be holding their breath in anticipation over the next few months to see whether the historic sign will continue to thrive as is, or if new life will be breathed into the landmark.
“It is no different than any other primary occupant in the past,” Oliver said. “We believe that the sign should reflect our presence.”
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