What’s good for business is good for Santa Clarita. This long-held City philosophy has helped Santa Clarita businesses prosper and thrive.  Business owners in Santa Clarita benefit from a highly educated local workforce, and a strong, pro-business climate with support from the Chamber of Commerce, Economic Development Corporation, the Valley Industry Association, County of Los Angeles, Small Business Development Center, College of the Canyons,  the WorkSource Center and the City of Santa Clarita.

In the City of Santa Clarita, small businesses are a priority.  To help small businesses be successful, there are certain things that the City does, and there are also things the City does not do.  Some things the City does not do that helps local businesses include: not assessing business license fees, utility user’s tax, gross receipts tax, a payroll tax, as well as not having any paid parking garages or paid street parking.  The City doeshave a one-stop Permit Center, a 10 percent local preference for purchasing goods, and programs such as the Enterprise Zone (through the end of 2014), the State of California New Employee Hiring Credit program, the Use Tax Rebate program and the Recycling Market Development Zone program.

Local employers love the Santa Clarita WorkSource Center– a partnership among the State of California, College of the Canyons and the City that connects job seekers and employers.  Hundreds of local companies have used this free service, which provides businesses with qualified candidates, customized training resources, and other assistance related to hiring and training.

These are just some of the reasons our City was named “One of the Top 20 Retail Markets in California,” (California Retail Survey, 2012), “The Most Business Friendly City in Los Angeles County” (LAEDC 2008), and one of the Top 20 Cities for Job Seekers in California (NerdWallet.com, 2014).  Santa Clarita was also named the “Best City for Industrial Development” by the Los Angeles Business Journal.

Santa Clarita recognizes that the majority of businesses are considered small businesses, and that our small businesses contribute mightily to our economic vitality. In addition to opportunities to conduct business with the City, (check out our 10 percent local business preference program), Santa Clarita and its partners offer a variety of resources, including training programs, career fairs, seminars, networking groups, and the soon to be launched small business incubator program. For more details on these programs, please visit: SmallBusinessSantaClarita.com.

As always, I enjoy hearing from you! Please feel free to email me directly at: lweste@santa-clarita.com.

Laurene Weste is mayor of the city of Santa Clarita.