Business investment thrives in communities that function effectively and are stable both politically and administratively. It used to be a given that cities were financially solvent. Not only were they solvent, they had the best credit ratings and were synonymous with long-term stability. This has all changed as unfunded liabilities have ballooned, and economic development […]
Recently, Fremont’s Mayor Bill Harrison took a look back at the very public demise of solar giant Solyndra, and shared the city’s lessons from that experience. You can view the original article here from PandoDaily, a startup tech website in Silicon Valley. The Mayor begins by examining how Fremont responded to the Solyndra bankruptcy, while […]
“Re-shoring,” “on shoring,” “right shoring” – call it what you want. If you think you’re hearing more about local manufacturing, it’s not your imagination. It is a real phenomenon that more and more companies are keeping their production operations in the United States, or even moving them back from abroad. And Silicon Valley is ground […]
Recipe for city place-making: Start with a diverse and innovative population. Add proximity to transit. In a separate bowl, create policies that encourage pedestrian-oriented and mixed-use development styles and buildings. Stir and bake for a vibrant gathering place. These traditional ingredients for “making” a city have been embraced by city planners, urban designers and policy […]
When SizeUp.com released a startup survey last year showing Fremont having the most U.S. startups per capita, the head-scratching was palpable. Among the head-scratchers were SizeUp and the City itself. Aren’t cities like San Francisco and Austin supposed to be leading the charge in this area? Isn’t Fremont the place for major R&D operations […]
Economic Development is a team sport. While many sports analogies could apply, basketball provides ample fodder. Note: Suspension of disbelief is required since none of us actually plays basketball! However, as the photo shows, you can often find us enjoying the outdoors. Fremont Economic Development Team Hiking Mission Peak (from left to right): Kline, Marshall, […]
As we emerge from the Great Recession, think tanks and researchers are busy studying data and patterns, which will hopefully provide valuable insight into what is driving our recovery nationally, and how we sustain it. Fremont finds itself included in one of these analyses from urban development researcher, Joel Kotkin. His recent article, “America’s Fastest […]
On Wednesday, June 26th, the Fremont City Council, Transit and Utility Agencies, and local media toured three projects that comprise an $8B investment in transit and water systems that will enhance the economic vitality of the greater Bay Area. 1. Mission/Warren Area Improvement (between I-880 and Warm Springs Blvd. Along the 10-mile BART extension connecting […]
As any proper economic development team would, we have spent significant time the last few years marketing Fremont’s strong “clean technology” cluster … until recently. That is, we started getting corrected by experts in this industry for generalizing what is actually a vast array of technologies into the single term, “clean tech.” Apparently, the term […]
