There is a certain buzz in the air when something special is going to happen. That’s the case in Redmond, as the city is forecasting another good year for local business.

The unemployment rate in Hub City has steadily declined since COVID-impacted highs of 2021, according to the website for the Bureau of Labor and Statistics.

The rate declined to 4.7 in February in 2023 and further declined to 3.4% by August, matching a record low.

An improving business climate and is a trend that Arome, a new addition to downtown Redmond led by branch manager Alex Schultz, took advantage of.

The kitchen goods store opened in a downtown Redmond building that had been vacant for almost ten years.

“There wasn’t anything else like this here,” said Schultz, whose location was named one of the 2022 New Businesses of the Year by the Redmond Chamber. “We just felt like there was a need in town and for the surrounding communities for what we provide.”

Another company with its eyes on the future, and central to Redmond’s past and present, is the one and only Sno-Cap Drive-In, which has been in Redmond for 31 years.

Even in the face of post-COVID staffing issues, the legendary restaurant still endures by slinging breakfast in the morning and their classic milkshakes at night.

“(Redmond customers) like an icon … so we stay busy,” said owner Brandy Morris, who’s been captain of the ship for the past eight years. “People bring their grandkids and tell them ‘This is where I used to go when I was a teenager.’”

Morris anticipates that the restaurant will maintain its longtime location at 1053 NW 6th Street, no matter how Redmond grows in the future. She thinks future growth in the city’s food and drink scene will go toward breweries and fast-casual food.

“Seems like the breweries are the way to go, the food trucks … they seem to stay busy,” she said. “Thats kind of where I see the city going.”

Redmond has the opportunity to live up to its “Hub City” moniker and establish itself as a center of Central Oregon’s business. Two other mainstays of Redmond want to be a part of it.

“There’s lots of great neighbors down here,” said Chris Bierke, vice president of the Computer Shop in Redmond.

Bierke adds that the city’s friendly, smaller-town atmosphere benefits his computer business, as well as the EXP Room. The EXP Room is a gathering place for local trading card and board game enthusiasts.

“There’s not any specific tricks to the trade,” says EXP Room proprietor Daniel Marcus, co-owner of the Computer Shop. “There’s a solid community of solid businesses that help each other here. Just the way downtown looks … is a staple as far as Redmond goes.”

Redmond is also a hub for the region’s agricultural sector.

“You have Redmond that’s still small enough that there’s a lot of people who want to grow their own food,” says Brian Johnson, who owns Cinder Butte Meat Company alongside his wife Misty. “Word of mouth has been awesome too. everybody knows everybody here.”