More than half of employed Gilroyans commute to jobs in Silicon Valley everyday, according to data from the US Census Bureau.
About 9,743 of 17,860 employed Gilroy residents drive more than 10 miles in the northwest direction to their workplaces – the majority driving between 25 and 50 miles. Only 20 percent of Gilroy residents work within the city limits, Census data reveals.
More than half of employed Gilroyans commute to jobs in Silicon Valley everyday, according to data from the US Census Bureau.
About 9,743 of 17,860 employed Gilroy residents drive more than 10 miles in the northwest direction to their workplaces – the majority driving between 25 and 50 miles. Only 20 percent of Gilroy residents work within the city limits, Census data reveals.
“From my perspective, this is an opportunity for economic development,” said Tammy Brownlow, president of the nonprofit Economic Development Corporation that works alongside the City to bring commerce into the Garlic Capital. “If we can figure out who these workers are, and what industries they work in, we can use it to attract new business here.”
Brownlow said it has been difficult for Gilroy to attract high-tech companies, but if she can prove that thousands of residents are commuting to Silicon Valley for high-tech jobs, employers might see Gilroy as an attractive labor pool to draw from and open up shop.
“I don’t perceive that we’re going to attract a Google or Apple campus, but there are a lot of smaller companies that are in the second stage of growth, with maybe 50 employees, ready to go into next stage of growth and they are looking for their own space. If we can demonstrate that we have employees with the skill levels they need, there is an opportunity for us there,” she said.
But that type of analysis can be expensive and hard to do. Brownlow can drum up a certain amount from Census data, but to hone in on who these 9,743 Silicon Valley commuters are, the EDC will have to do some surveying themselves.
Attracting new companies to Gilroy is an essential part of the EDC’s goal for economic vitality.
It’s about rounding out Gilroy’s employment opportunities, Brownlow said. Right now, Gilroy is a magnet for employment in the retail sector. About than 11,600 workers who live outside Gilroy commute into the city for jobs, many of them at the Gilroy Premium Outlets.
Mayor Don Gage said that companies look at schools, recreation programs, vibrancy of a city’s downtown and the general health and skill level of residents when they look into opening a company headquarters or satellite.
“Our economy has to get a little better before these corporations will want to move in. It might not happen in my term, but we’re setting the groundwork to accomplish that, so that soon more jobs will be available,” Gage said.
