Since the May 17, 2023, meeting of the Northern Waterfront Ad Hoc Committee, various elements of the initiative had proceeded to help advance projects under the Northern Waterfront umbrella. Recent and proposed economic development activity to implement the Northern Waterfront strategic Action Plan includes:
- The application that economic development staff from the County submitted for the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) Priority Production Areas (PPAs) Pilot Grant Program for $750,000 in accordance with the direction from the Board of Supervisors in February 2023 for multiple PPAs in Northern Waterfront, namely the PPAs within unincorporated Contra Costa County--Pacheco Manufacturing Zone and Bay Point Industrial Center--and those in the Cities of Concord, Pittsburg, Antioch, and Oakley, was approved for funding on June 28, 2023 for the amount of $500,000. Economic development staff from the County will work with the four cities that supported the County's proposal to submit an amended Scope of Work, Project Schedule, and Budget to the funded amount that MTC will use to conduct a procurement for the project. A representative from the County will be on the selection panel, the consultant contract will be with MTC and MTC will make payments directly to the consultant upon approval of deliverables identified in the scope of work. It is anticipated that work for this grant award for technical assistance for the planning and infrastructure in the PPAs of the Northern Waterfront will kick off in Fall-Winter 2023 (See Attachment: MTC Project Award Recommendations).
- Economic development staff from the County participated in the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) General Assembly on June 16, 2023, to highlight in the poster session the Northern Waterfront Economic Development Initiative and the work to bring unmanned aerial vehicle (drone) testing to Bryon Airport and to develop jobs along the Northern Waterfront.
- Economic development staff from the County participated in the Contra Costa Community Economic Resilience Fund (CERF) Table meeting on July 14, 2023, to support the launch of the Contra Costa Sub-Regional Table for outreach to communities that have historically not had input into equitable economic development.
- Economic development staff from the County joined the Cities of Antioch, and Brentwood and other cities around the state in becoming members of the TeamCalifornia, the non-profit membership-based organization that markets California communities and site location assistance for California. Saff participated in the annual members' meeting on July 13, 2023, and onboarding on July 19, 2023. Staff will review the TeamCalifornia calendar of selected trade shows and industry sponsored events based on their fit to identify the best opportunities to promote Contra Costa County to site selection specialists.
- To support business retention and expansion (BRE) efforts, economic development staff from the County assisted over 30 businesses in accessing services for: business development assistance including purchasing/contracting opportunities with the County, business development assistance including referrals to Cities, access to resources for starting a business in industries such as consulting and construction, applying for federal funding including the CHIPS & Science Act, business ombuds services, specialized assistance for business owners such as veterans, minorities, and women, and support in referrals to partners including city, Small Business Development Center, and community-based partners. Staff will continue to support the retention and expansion of existing small and medium-sized businesses in the unincorporated areas by providing business assistance and amplifying economic development highlights.
- Economic development staff from the County participated in the East Bay EDA's Meet the Innovators on June 20. 2023, which included a presentation by Contra Costa Transportation Agency (CCTA). Staff participated in East Bay Economic Development Alliance (East Bay EDA)'s Resilient East Bay Industrial Lands Working Group meeting on June 28, 2023, to receive the Industrial Lands Snapshot & Profiles and participate in the development of regional industrial Lands toolkit funding by U.S. Economic Development Administration (See Attachment: East Bay Industrial Lands Snapshot and Profiles).
- Economic development staff from the County convened a meeting of the countywide economic development staff on May 24, 2023, along with the staff from the cities of the Northern Waterfront and the Workforce Development Board, to coordinate and collaborate. In Conjunction with Small Business Month, County staff coordinated presentations from Renaissance Entrepreneurship Center, State of California Employment Training Panel, and Contra Costa's Recycling Marketing Development Zone. Staff will convene quarterly meetings in August/September, and November 2023. For the November meeting, staff are coordinating a Contra Costa Countywide Economic Development Forum, which will include updates from state, regional, and local economic development organizations. Staff have identified a date of Wednesday, November 15, 2023, from 9:00 am - noon (Location TBD).
- Economic development staff from the County maintain the economic development webpage with up-to-date information on economic development services; opportunities to do business with the County; funding opportunities for businesses; major projects; resources; and contact information. For the Northern Waterfront Economic Development Initiative, the website is consistently having more activity than this time last year. From Jan 1, 2023 to Jul 9, 2023, there were 774 pages views and 630 visits. For all of 2022, there were 1,132 page views and 915 visits. Staff will update and expand the web presence for the Northern Waterfront Economic Development Initiative, including with new economic data, current trends in target industries, and demographic and labor force data as required by businesses and site selectors (See Attachment: Jul 10 2023 Northern Waterfront Economic Development Initiative Website Analytics).
- In accordance with the policy adopted by the Board of Supervisors on February 22, 2022, economic development staff from the County continue to implement the County's policy on participating in Enhanced Infrastructure Financing Districts (EIFDs).
- In accordance with the Northern Waterfront Economic Development Initiative Strategic Plan, economic development staff from the County will continue to investigate the feasibility of launching a non-profit advanced manufacturing, biomedical/biotech, or cleantech incubator/accelerator to encourage the development of sustainable industries along the Northern Waterfront.
- A Green Empowerment Zone that includes the Northern Waterfront area of the County of Contra Costa was approved by the Legislature on September 28, 2021. The Board of Directors of the Green Empowerment Zone is in the process of being established. Supervisor Gioia has been appointed as the representative for Contra Costa County. The Legislature also approved a $5,000.000 appropriation for onetime start-up funding. Economic development staff and staff from the Department of Conservation & Development have participated in discussions about how to staff the Green Empowerment Zone and will continue to participate with staff from Assemblymember Grayson's office and the Governor's Office of Business & Economic Development, to ensure that these efforts are coordinated.
- The Northern Waterfront Initiative activities are funded by a General Fund allocation of $500,000 dating from 2017-2018. There is a current balance of $300,000 for the Northern Waterfront Initiative that has been rolled over from previous years and will cover costs of the proposed activities.
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