CITY OF VALLEJO: UPDATE
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT STRATEGIC PLAN
Robert Eyler, Ph.D.
President, Economic Forensics and Analytics
PO Box 750641
Petaluma, CA 94975-0641
[email protected]
1 Topics
•Review of Dates and Deliverables: Plan to Pilot Projects to Progress
•Gain council insights
•Communications Plan: gathering Vallejo’s voice of business •Why is this part of the project?
•Foundation Building for longer-term plan and engagement •What have we learned so far?
•Closing thoughts/questions
2 Communications Plan
3 Audience Objective Format Outreach
Elected officials Identify E.D. priorities Interviews in person or phone
Calls, emails
City department staff Identify major projects Interviews in person or phone
Calls, emails
Workforce Development
and Education
What skills are in demand
and are they being met?
Interviews in person
or phone
Calls, emails
CBOs (chambers, visitor
bureau, business groups)
Business climate pros and
cons. Agreement to help
distribute & promote
survey.
Interviews in person
or phone
Calls, emails, group
sessions
Business Business climate pros and
cons; what gaps exist for
supply chains
Interviews in person
or phone and e-
survey
Calls, emails, group
sessions
Residents Gather input on specific
projects and
communications media
e-survey
Print survey
Focus Groups
Public hearings
Community meetings
Media,
Website polls
(Bang the Table, e.g.)
Regional Developers,
Site Selector
Business climate pros and
cons. Personal experiences.
Interviews in person
or phone
Calls, emails, group
sessions
For City Council:
Gain insight on needs for
the specific communities
you represent to ensure
the entire City is
represented as best as
possible in this outreach
effort
The Process and Plan
4 What this process does:
• Builds stories
• Creates messaging for multiple
audiences
• Clarifies what media have the
best reach
• Becomes a communications
plan for years to come:
foundation
Foundation Building
•Communications plan and outcomes during planning process becomes ongoing plan
•The ongoing plan uses what we learned to help shape components:
• Audience engagement
• Media mix to optimize outreach
• Messaging and content
•Three easy wins
• Regular messaging and cycle of stories about doing business • Visiting current businesses: retention actions
• Preparing to “target” industries: what does Vallejo tell the outside world? 5 Foundation Building (cont.)
•Thinking like a site selector: initial news search
•Stories out there
•Uncontrollable/controllable issues: active political
groups on social media create narratives
•Building foundation and strategy
•Vallejo has some unique challenges, but all
municipalities have challenges
•Goal: build communications that become powerful
ways to create stories and messaging about doing
business in Vallejo
6 Employment of Vallejo’s Residents
Changes Since 2011 (Annual Data)
7 Sources: California EDD and Bureau of Labor Statistics
1.8%
5.7%
9.0%
0.0%
1.0%
2.0%
3.0%
4.0%
5.0%
6.0%
7.0%
8.0%
9.0%
10.0%
Vallejo Solano County CA
2011-21 Employment Change (%)
COVID-19 shadow remains: Why Slower Growth
in Vallejo?
• Retired workers
• Self-employed (thus not counted otherwise)
• Lack of economic opportunities
• Vallejo’s labor force (those working or
available for work) down close to 4% from
Dec 2019
Vallejo Employers and Jobs: The Mix as of 2021
% of Employment at Jobs in Vallejo
8 Sources: California EDD and Bureau of Labor Statistics and EMSI/Burning Glass Health Care and
Social Assistance
26.0%
Public
Administration
17.5%
Retail Trade
13.5%
Hotels and
Restaurants
6.9%
Construction
5.6%
Other Services
5.5%
Professional
Services
4.5%
Transportation
and
Warehousing
4.4%
Manufacturing
3.1%
All Others
13.0%
Three takeaways:
• Diverse mix of employers
• Heavy on health care/non-
profits, retail, and government
(includes education)
• Employer mix provides for a
diversity of worker skills and
opportunities
Vallejo: Median Household Income and Housing
2020 and 2022
9 Vallejo Since 2011
Solano
County Since 2011 CA Since 2011
Category 2020 % Change 2020 % Change 2020 % Change
Median Household Income ($) $ 73,869 18.5% $ 84,638 21.1% $ 78,672 27.6% As of July 2022 2022 % Change 2022 % Change 2022 % Change Median Home Price (Current $) $ 582,330 222.7% $ 614,440 184.7% $ 788,680 155.7% Sources: Census Bureau (American Community Survey), 2011 and 2020, 5-Year Survey, ZillowTM Research Housing affordability and mix a partner in economic development Demographics: Vallejo and Comparisons
2011 to 2020
10 Vallejo Since 2011
Solano
County CA
Category 2020 % Pt. Change 2020 2020
% Population Hispanic 27.5% +4.2 26.8% 39.1%
% Population BIPOC 76.8% +1.9 62.8% 63.5%
% of Pop Bachelor's Degree or Higher 26.7% +2.2 27.1% 34.7% % of Population 65 and older 15.7% +3.4 15.7% 14.3%
Poverty Rate (% of Population) 11.7% -3.3 9.1% 12.6%
Overall:
• Incomes and educational attainment rising in Vallejo to pre-pandemic period (late 2019) • Poverty rate also reduced since end of Great Recession (2011) • More data coming by December 2022
Sources: Census Bureau (American Community Survey), 2011 and 2020 What has been learned so far? Interviews
•Mare Island
• Activity is occurring: communication opportunity
• Also think regional partners and “mainland” Vallejo
• Clean up not complete, so uncertainty and costs
remain
•Industry Mix and Economic Places in Vallejo
beyond Mare Island
• Waterfront an opportunity
• Downtown a good mix of local businesses, could
use more vibrancy and focus
• Solano 360: need to integrate gains from
developments across the city’s economy
11 Messaging: Challenges and Strengths
More learning from initial interviews
Messaging challenges
• Public Safety and Crime
• Educational System
• Communications from City of Vallejo about current and planned activities
12 Vallejo’s regional strengths
• Weather
• Location
• History
• Nothing stated about doing business in Vallejo
Opportunities: What our Initial Interviews Tell So Far
•Regional partnerships (Napa, e.g.)
•Connecting businesses across city
•Waterfront development
•Lower costs and faster permitting
processes, perhaps through technology
•Visual progress could go a long way
•More integrated and consistent
messaging
13 Public and Neighborhood Meetings
• January 2023 to April 2023
• Broader outreach throughout City
• Mix of public meetings and polling
• Locations TBD
• Two-way discussion
• What we learned and what data tells us
• What residents see and want us to
know
14 Next Steps
•Continue interviews and group meetings with business
community
•Begin planning for community meetings after December 2022 •Data gathering and analyses: what Vallejo has and what it can support
•Return in Spring 2023 with goals and pilot projects to support them
•Building foundations for community outreach after June 2023 15 EFA Contact
• EFA: [email protected]
• EFA website (construction complete): www.econforensics.com 16 Plan Website at City of Vallejo
• Michael Nimon:
[email protected]
• City Economic Development Website:
www.myvallejo.com/2022edplan
17 www.myvallejo.com/2022edplan