AWS US-West-2 Umatilla Campus

Hermiston and the broader Umatilla County area along the Columbia River are the heart of Amazon Web Services' Oregon presence — the us-west-2 region's largest cluster of campuses sits in Boardman, Hermiston, and Umatilla, drawn by Columbia hydropower and Oregon's tax structure favorable to data center investment. The broader economy is agriculture (potatoes, onions, dairy), the Port of Morrow's industrial park, and the data center industry that has reshaped the region.

BLS does not publish MSA-level wage data for the area, but central-Oregon trades wages benefit from Oregon's prevailing wage rules and the construction shortage from sustained AWS expansion. Electrician work is union-influenced with IBEW Local 280 active in the region; HVAC and facility ops work has steady demand.

For a trades worker, the Hermiston-Boardman corridor is one of the strongest hyperscaler micro-markets in the country. Best fit for IBEW electricians, HVAC technicians, and facility operations staff willing to relocate to small Eastern Oregon towns. Total compensation is competitive with Portland at a fraction of the cost of living.