http://www.marchforinnovation.com/ New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg's Partnership for a New American Economy is launching a "virtual march on Washington"for immigration reform in partnership with Silicon Valley companies and venture capitalists. Lauren Hepler[1] Economic Development Reporter- Silicon Valley Business Journal Email[2] | Twitter[3] | LinkedIn[4] | Google+[5] In a new bi-coastal push for federal immigration reform geared toward highly skilled foreign workers, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg[6] is uniting with Silicon Valley business leaders for an upcoming "virtual march on Washington." This April, a coalition of business leaders coordinated by Bloomberg's foundation, Partnership for a New American Economy, will launch an online education offensive encouraging people to contact legislators about the need for reform. Social media will be key to the push, with Facebook and Twitter helping to facilitate the event, said John Feinblatt[7], Bloomberg's chief policy adviser and head of the Partnership for a New American Economy. Silicon Valley venture capitalist Mike Maples[8] and angel investor Ron Conway[9] have already signed on, as have Silicon Valley Bank[10] and the Silicon Valley Leadership Group[11], which lobbies on immigration reform. The Valley also successfully mobilized online activists during the fight over controversial online anti-piracy bills in 2012. “Tech leaders ought to be using technology to try to influence the debate," Feinblatt said. He said the group is announcing the project now with the goal of generating more supporters before the main event in April. Venture capitalist Somesh Dash[12], a principal with Institutional Venture Partners[13], is a member of the Partnership for a New American Economy and helping organize the virtual march on Washington. "My intro to (the Partnership) was through a classmate at Stanford," Dash told me, Stanford alum Amit Aharoni[14]. Aharoni, a native of Israel who launched a startup after graduation, was denied a U.S. visa to stay and…

Feb 19, 2013, 10:17pm MST ...

Matthew Kish [1] Business Journal staff writer- Portland Business Journal Homes sales climbed nearly 10 percent in Portland in January to 1,344, according to new data from the Regional Multiple Listing Service, another sign that Oregon's economy continues a steady improvement. January home sales haven't been that high since climbing to 1,594 in January 2007, the year the housing bubble popped. The average sale price climbed 15.5 percent in the last year to $287,700. The median price climbed 19.5 percent to $248,000. The inventory of homes for sale remains low, which is good news for sellers. There are enough homes on the market to meet current demand for 4.7 months, up from 3.6 months in December[2]. Six months is considered a healthy inventory. The average home sold in January was on the market 114 days, a 16 percent drop from January 2012. Pending sales climbed less than 5 percent to 1,906. New listings dropped nearly 7 percent to 2,438. Matthew Kish covers banking, finance and higher education. References^ Matthew Kish (feeds.bizjournals.com)^ up from 3.6 months in December (www.bizjournals.com)...