Economic Development

Overview

Economic Development

Article Local Works By Jackie Krentzman

Pico Rivera wants to turn its biggest environmental challenge into its biggest economic opportunity

In 2018, Pico Rivera received bad news. The Whittier Narrows Dam, which runs right through the city, was on the brink of failure. But instead of seeing a setback, Pico Rivera saw an opportunity to reinvent itself.

Article California Cities Helen Putnam Award for Excellence By Jennifer Ortega and Justin Ezell

Colorful murals infuse new energy into downtown Concord

In Concord, peregrine falcons flock to the sky, Aztec jaguars bare their teeth, and abstract flowers sparkle in the sun. Contemporary and bold, these murals put the city on the map for art in Contra Costa, a region with the lowest art budget of all the Bay Area counties. 

Article Legal Notes By Mrunal Shah

Which public finance strategies are right for your city’s economic development goals?

Boosting infrastructure and public services is a part of making cities more attractive to businesses. Each area comes with its own unique set of financing options.

Article California Cities Helen Putnam Award for Excellence By Justine Jimenez

West Sacramento hits a home run for employers and high schoolers

When it comes to improving career readiness, West Sacramento is knocking it out of the park. A paid internship program has placed over 200 high school students in local internships that equip students with industry-specific and transferable skills.

Article Executive Director's Message By League of California Cities Executive Director and CEO Carolyn Coleman

Our unity and ground-up advocacy make Cal Cities uniquely powerful

“The power of our grassroots activities through the regional divisions statewide not only makes Cal Cities unique among advocacy organizations,” writes Cal Cities CEO Carolyn Coleman. “It is integral to our effectiveness on behalf of cities.”

Article California Cities Helen Putnam Award for Excellence By Phil Pitchford

The Riverside Art Museum makes history with ‘The Cheech’

When the city of Riverside was looking for a way to reuse its historic library building, it turned to an unlikely ally: the comedian Cheech Marin. The tired structure was reborn in 2022 as “The Cheech,” a national cultural center for Chicano art.

Article Features By Jackie Krentzman

Gaining purchase: How three cities overcame the pandemic-fueled retail blues

Retail in California has struggled in recent years, especially businesses with smaller footprints. For some cities, this is just another potentially disastrous change they’ve turned into an opportunity. Here are some of the steps three cities have taken to support and grow their retail sector.

Article Local Works By Brian Lee-Mounger Hendershot

Small business support keeps Dublin’s economy humming

If you’re looking for the best ways to support local businesses, travel east of San Francisco to Dublin — one of the fastest-growing cities in the U.S. for several years. But for many leaders, the best is yet to come. 

Article Executive Director's Message By League of California Cities Executive Director and CEO Carolyn Coleman

Federal clawbacks will further shift the burden to local governments

If our experience in California is any guide, the federal government may be losing sight of one of the key lessons learned from the pandemic as it responds to the latest national economic challenges: People, and the communities that nurture people, must come first.

Article Local Works By Karina Gonzalez

Santa Monica puts people first to spur a post-pandemic comeback

Like many cities across the country, Santa Monica was devastated by the COVID-19 pandemic. The city faced a projected revenue shortfall of about $225 million due to hotel and business closures. In response, the city invested more than $5 million in 25 city programs to accelerate local recovery.

Article Features By Jessica Sankus

Everything (well, almost) you need to know about sales tax but were afraid to ask

Have you ever wondered what happens with the sales tax you pay at a retail counter or online? What can cities do with that money? Here are 10 things you should know — but may have been afraid to ask — about California’s sales and use tax.

Article California Cities Helen Putnam Award for Excellence By Scott Wolfe, ICMA-CM

Buellton boosts its burgeoning arts and culture scene

Buellton residents have long pushed for more arts and culture opportunities to increase their quality of life. Many have come to view the arts as a way to incentivize economic development. Like many aspects of government, this is easier said than done, especially with just 20 full-time city employees.

Article Local Works By Donovan Lazaro

How Fremont became a national hotspot for battery development and manufacturing

Over 16.5% of new electric generation capacity is anticipated to come from batteries this year. While the sudden surge of battery adoption may seem like it arrived overnight, it comes after years of painstaking efforts by clean energy startups, many of them in Fremont.

Article Local Works By Matthew Tate

Four steps to beef up your rural retail development strategy

Retail development is a critical part of creating communities where people can grow and prosper. However, rural markets are often overlooked during initial retail expansion plans. The rural communities of Blythe, Clearlake, and Fortuna have each invested in proactive retail attraction strategies that raise their profile, creating tangible, positive results in the process.

Article Local Works By Karina Gonzalez

Building housing and trust: Santa Ana turns neglected neighborhood center into a vibrant community hub

Located in the heart of Santa Ana’s La Artesia Pilar neighborhood is La Placita Cinco — an innovative and community-oriented urban hub. The city and developers worked closely with the community to transform the once-neglected neighborhood center, while keeping residents’ priorities top of mind.

Article Executive Director's Message By League of California Cities Executive Director and CEO Carolyn Coleman

Outside the box approaches to economic development are fueling local economies and revitalizing communities

There’s no denying that global events, many spurred by the pandemic, have had a significant impact on California cities over the past couple of years. As city leaders focus on retooling their local economies for today’s new market realities, the need for robust, effective economic development tools is readily apparent.

Article Legal Notes By Rick Jarvis

Your city’s development fee account could be vulnerable to multimillion-dollar refund claims

New development projects increase demand on existing public infrastructure. To fund improvements, cities often impose development impact fees, which are governed by the Mitigation Fee Act. Recently, courts have interpreted this law in a more rigid manner, suggesting that any fees held unspent for more than five years must be refunded.

Article California Cities Helen Putnam Award for Excellence By Jennifer Schoeneck

Escondido’s K-rail murals save businesses, boost community spirits, and lead to permanent outdoor dining

In the early months of the pandemic, Escondido’s bustling, historic downtown turned into a ghost town overnight. The city responded with a creative, collaborative, community-driven program that stimulated the local economy and celebrated the beauty and resilience of Escondido.

Article Features By Caroline Beteta

Cities, regions, tourism agencies collaborate to accelerate the state’s uneven tourism recovery

Tourism is spurring the recovery of lost jobs and revenue in many cities, particularly rural ones. However, those gains have not been felt equally, especially in large, urban communities. It is crucial that cities and other tourism stakeholders, regardless of their recovery level, have plans in place to help them navigate future uncertainties.

Article Local Works By Karina Gonzalez

From rice mills to infill, West Sacramento transforms city’s waterfront into a model of mixed-use

A project decades in the making, West Sacramento has turned what was once a nearly century-old industrial district into a growing and thriving mixed-use community where people can live, work, and play. To make the city’s vision a reality, it helped create a new financing tool.