Re-investing in Gilroy’s long dormant Economic Development Corporation (EDC) would provide a major boost to our local economy and our local businesses.
The EDC was originally created more than 25 years ago, in 1997. As a nonprofit corporation providing business development assistance to current and future business owners in Gilroy, the EDC made a positive contribution to our city’s economic growth and expansion for many years. The EDC was funded through a public/private partnership including the City of Gilroy, the Chamber of Commerce and contributions from private businesses.
To give you some idea of the impressive vision the EDC expressed from its origin, we should review its First Year Plan which included:
- Local 7 Regional Information Assimilation & Orientation
- Downtown Revitalization Plan Development
- Downtown Revitalization Plan Implementation
- Development of Local Business Retention/Expansion Program
- Local Business Retention/Expansion Plan Implementation
- Available Property Inventory Development
- Prospect Marketing Material Development
- Business Attraction Plan Development
- Business Attraction Plan Implementation
- Develop Program Sub-Committees
- Economic Development Program Local Presentations
The EDC’s strategy was forward looking, innovative and positive and the EDC’s successes were many, including our big box retailers like Costco, Walmart and Target. Other successes include the Hampton Inn & Suites, Hilton Garden Inn, Silva Sausage and Monterey Gourmet Foods.
Unfortunately, in recent years, the Economic Development Corporation has been largely sidelined with its current status uncertain. While there are planning discussions ongoing with the private sector, the Chamber and other interested parties and community stakeholders, the future of the EDC is very much up in the air.
I believe that restoring the Economic Development Corporation could be one of the best decisions Gilroy could make to attract new employers to the city, prevent the flight of existing businesses, and incentivize the expansion of our private sector to make it a thriving hub of economic progress and opportunity for all.
To that end, I strongly recommend the creation of a Blue-Ribbon commission to study this issue, pull our stakeholders together in a cohesive and collaborative manner, and begin the process of making the EDC a reality for Gilroy again.
Such an approach will go a long way toward improving Gilroy’s reputation for working with the business community and developers, allow the creation of a viable long-term Economic Blueprint and Downtown Strategic Plan for the city, while creating new and more vibrant revenue streams for the entire city—which will help ensure we have the funds required to pay for public safety and our critical infrastructure needs.
Kelly Ramirez
Gilroy Planning Commissioner
