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09 Staff Report - Economic Vitality Program Update~awN of MEETING DATE: 11-21-05 ITEM NO. hrs. < COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT SOS sat°5 DATE: NOVEMBER 21, 2005 TO: MAYOR AND TOWN COUNCIL FROM: DEBRA J. FIGONE, TOWN MANAGER SUBJECT: ECONOMIC VITALITY PROGRAM UPDATE RECOMMENDATION: Discuss and accept Economic Vitality Program Update. BACKGROUND: In July, 2002, the Town Council approved the Town of Los Gatos Economic Vitality Program. The program is intended to serve as one of the many tools to implement the Town of Los Gatos General Plan and to enhance the fiscal stability of the Town. The program has a town-wide focus which encompasses all segments of the Town's commercial mix and business districts including the office and R&D area, downtown, Los Gatos Boulevard, and the four outlining neighborhood centers. In December 2004, Danielle Surdin was hired as the Town's new Economic Vitality Manager. Over the year staff efforts have focused on relationship building in the business community, creating Town-wide marketing programs, and actively working on business attraction, retention, and promotion. While no decision about the Town's Economic Vitality Program is needed at this time, staff seeks Council input on current and future business attraction, retention, and promotional efforts and on the Town's Economic Vitality Program in general. DISCUSSION: This challenging fiscal time highlights the importance of the Town's Economic Vitality Program. Retaining and expanding existing businesses, and assisting others to locate in Los Gatos help to strengthen and diversify the Town's economic base. In particular, a strong business sector helps contribute to the Town's revenue base which funds services to the community. The Town's economically-sensitive revenues, such as sales tax, Hotel/motel tax, interest income, and others, reflect the strength of the local economy as well as national economic trends. In addition to contributing to the Town's fiscal health, I al businesses also provide employment opportunities and PREPARED BY: NIELLE SURD ECONOMIC VITALITY MANAGER CADocuments and SettingsdsurdinMy DocumentslCouncil Reports - PresentationsEconomic Vitality Update - NOVFuial.wpd Reviewed by: 5 Assistant Town Manager Q~ Town Attorney Clerk Administrator Finance Community Development Revised: 11/16/05 4:40 pm Reformatted: 5/30/02 PAGE 2 MAYOR AND TOWN COUNCIL SUBJECT: ECONOMIC VITALITY PROGRAM ANNUAL UPDATE November 21, 2005 serve as. a local source for goods and services in the community. Over the past year, staff undertook many activities to enhance economic vitality town-wide. Attached is the Economic Vitality Program Update, highlighting current activities in the areas of business attraction, retention, and promotion, as well as future projects. This document also includes: a current vacancy snapshot of the Town's commercial climate; summary of the Town's holiday marketing program; and a copy of the Town's new annual business newsletter. CONCLUSION: Economic Vitality remains a priority for the organization. In these fiscally challenging times, it is increasingly important to help local businesses succeed within the boundaries of Town policies and programs, and the role of local government. The Economic Vitality Program update provides Council with of information on staff's activities focused on achieving that goal. ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT: Is not a project defined under CEQA, and no further action is required. FISCAL IMPACT: No budget adjustments are proposed. As indicated in this report, the purpose of the Economic Vitality Program is. to enhance the fiscal health of the Town. Attachment: 2005-2006 Economic Vitality Program Update ECONOMIC VITALITY UPDATE ECONOMIC INDICATORS 2005-2006 ECONOMIC VITALITY PROGRAM PREPARED BY: DANIELLE SURDIN ECONOMIC VITALITY MANAGER ECONOMIC VITALITY PROGRAM UPDATES UPCOMING PROJECTS ATTACHMENTA VACANCY SNAPSHOT NOVEMBER 2005 ATTACHMENT B HOMETOWN FOR THE HOLIDAYS MARKETING PROGRAM ATTACHMENT C BUSINESS NEWSLETTER ECONOMIC TRENDS Over the past year, staff has been working collaboratively to track key economic indicators including economically sensitive revenue and market trends affecting the Town's commercial districts and industry clusters. By monitoring these indicators, an economic snapshot is created which demonstrates current business growth, expansion of the local economy and job creation, and an indication of vacancy rates that signal unused capacity. Town staff continues to open communication channels with local business owners, property owners, property management companies, and commercial real estate brokers. Through these relationships, the Town is able to identify current needs and gaps in tenant mixes, implement effective business retention marketing programs, and build community awareness of the Town's Economic Vitality efforts. ECONOMIC INDICATORS: ECONOMICALLY SENSITIVE REVENUE UPDATE The Town relies on a number of revenue sources that are dependent upon the health of the local economy. Each of these revenues is presented below in order of dollar impact to the Town: Sales Tax. (FY 2004/05 Actuals $7,900,000) Sales Tax collections representing approximately 30% of Town General Fund operating revenues for FY 2004/05 finished approximately $800,000 ahead of the mid-year revised estimates of $7,100,000. The total increase in sales tax collections received from Town businesses from the prior year (FY 2003/04) was approximately $1,000,000 or 14.4%. The increase was largely due to rapid sales growth from one internet commerce retailer located in the Town, and more moderate recoveries in taxable sales in many other business classifications from the sales tax "lows" experienced in the two previous fiscal years. Notable improvements from lows in recent years included businesses in the automobile sales & leasing, general retail, and restaurant classifications. An important item to note is that sales tax collections received by the Town from Downtown businesses including Santa Cruz Avenue, University Avenue, and Main Street through the four quarters ending June 30, 2005 improved by $641,829 or 10.6% from the previous four quarters. Four of six category classifications (general retail, food products, transportation, and miscellaneous) of downtown businesses reported sales tax collections. for the quarter ending June 30,2005 that were the highest quarterly collections in the past nine quarters. The Town tracks sales tax through contractual services with Mortgage Bond Insurance Associates (MBIA) muni-services company. MBIA analyzes sales tax reports from the State Board of Equalization for a variety of Bay Area cities. Ad Valorem Property Tax (FY 2004/05 Actuals $5,302,061) General property tax collections representing approximately 26% of the Town's General Fund revenues reflect positive growth of 1.8% (not including the State's Property Tax "backfill" shifts). The growth in Property Tax, though positive, is less than the 4% growth experienced the prior fiscal year. However, the continuing growth trend does point to the Town's continued desirability as a place to live in the greater Santa Clara Valley. The growth in property taxes is largely attributable to the increase in assessed valuation that occurs upon the turnover of housing stock in the Town. Town of Los Gatos Economic Vitality Update 11.05 ECONOMIC INDICATORS: ECONOMICALLY SENSITIVE REVENUE UPDATE Business License Tax (FY 2004/05 Actuals $1,056,814) Business License tax collections also reported a positive gain of $14,845 or 1.4% from collections received the prior fiscal year, which reflects similar trends in previous years. Gains in business license revenue derive from increases in gross receipts from existing businesses and/or additions to the business base. Transient Occupancy Taxes (FY 2004/05 Actuals $868,908) Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT) revenues (the tax collected is 10% of the daily room rate) improved moderately from the prior year, possibly due to higher occupancy rates and local economic recovery. TOT revenue receipts are a function of the number of rooms in Town, the occupancy rate, and the price of the room for the night. These dollars are important, since they represent money infused into the local Town economy, originating largely from outside the community. TOT collections increased by approximately $42,800 or 5.2% from the prior year, a positive trend compared to previous years in which declines were experienced. The increase occurred despite the loss in total rooms in the Town's portfolio due to the conversion of one local hotel to residential property in December 2004. A small decrease from $900,000 to $870,000 was budgeted for FY 2005/06, reflecting the loss in overall room capacity, offset by the expected continuation of moderate recovery in tourism and business travel. Additional loss of TOT revenue may occur this fiscal year due the closing of a downtown hotel. The property owner will be going through the rezoning process for future office use. Local business activity and tourism are an important component of the Town's economy. The Town partners on collaborative marketing opportunities with local hotels and the Chamber of Commerce to promote destination tourism. Monitoring TOT collections provide some objective data regarding Town trends in this area. ECONOMIC INDICATORS: COMMERCIAL TRENDS Los Gatos commercial districts experience relatively low vacancy rates. Out of the eleven neighborhood centers, eight are fully leased, or have soon-to-be tenants making necessary tenant improvements to their future space. (Attachment A) Office, R&D, Medical Office, R& D, and medical industries are an important component of the Town's dynamic commercial base. Many of these industries provide local jobs and opportunities for business-to-business sales tax generation, add to the daytime consumer base through employees that patronize local shops and restaurants, and offer Town exposure for future business attraction efforts. Currently the Town experiences strong industry clusters in the fields of entertainment, software development, wireless technology, alternative energy, fiber optics, nanotech and medical research. The Los Gatos Office and R&D parks have Office, R&D, Medical (continued) shown a moderate rebound with several new businesses filling up past vacancies in the University office parks, and the small office parks surrounding the downtown central business district. Downtown Downtown Los Gatos currently has five vacancies, four of which are above 2000 SFT. Staff defines vacant properties as active real estate sites that are open to accepting lease offers. Businesses closed for tenant improvements are not consider vacant until the property becomes listed or is marketed by the property owner. Given that lease rates for these properties are more than $4.50 a square foot in some cases, the monthly lease costs Town of Los Gatos Economic Vitality Update 11.05 2 ECONOMIC INDICATORS: COMMERCIAL TRENDS Downtown (continued) total from $12,000-$17,000. It is staff's understanding through feedback from commercial brokers, property owners, as well as direct feedback from prospective tenants that increasing lease rates have made the recruitment of sole entrepreneurs more difficult. Vacancies in the smaller spaces in the downtown continue to turn around quickly. Currently there is one application coming through the community development process to obtain a permit to lease one of the largest vacant spaces in the central business district. Retail Mix The tenant mix in the downtown central business district highlights opportunities to further diversify the existing retail mix. Current merchandising mix is as followed: Women's Apparel;: 26 (3 Unisex) Men's Apparel: 5 (3 Unisex) Kids 12-under: 5 Athletic (Unisex): 6 Home Furnishing/Decor: 16 Footwear: 4 Jewels & Accessories: 8 Culinary: 4 General Retail: 14* Antiques: 6 Books/Stationary: 3 Cosmetics: 3 Galleries: 6 Crafts: 5 Eyewear: 3 Pets: 4 *General Retail includes miscellaneous retail not easily categorized i.e., camera stores, vitamins, electronics, etc. General Trends Another interesting trend to note, many local businesses that are relocating or expanding choose to relocate to an existing center with the Town of Los Gatos. Though some businesses are lost to outlining communities, the majority of businesses that have recently moved for expansion or relocation reasons have chosen to stay in Los Gatos. ECONOMIC VITALITY PROGRAM UPDATES BUSINESS ATTRACTION Economic vitality attraction efforts have focused on monitoring business sector trends, key industry growth or declines, and Town-wide vacancies. One of the roles of the Economic Vitality Manager is to build relationships with amenable commercial brokers. Through these valued relationships we can help identify gaps in existing tenant mixes . while serving as the link between local goverrnnent and the private sector to help facilitate recruitments for vacant commercial properties. It is important to note, that the Town does not have a direct role in the tenant recruitment process to ensure no sense of entitlement is conveyed to incoming applicants coming through the Town development process. Town staff continues to highlight needs and gaps to local commercial brokers who serve as the front end liaisons of the recruitment process. Other key objectives include tradeshow participation for future recruitment efforts in retail, R&D, medical, and office developments. The following are business attraction efforts undertaken by staff over the past year: Tradeshow Participation - BayBio 2005 Gene Acres Conference Partnering with the Silicon Valley Economic Development Alliance, the Town of Los Gatos along with Palo Alto, Menlo Park, Mountain View, Santa Clara, and Sunnyvale showcased their individual cities to interested biotech firms looking to expand or relocate to the Bay Area. Town of Los Gatos Economic Vitality Update 11.05 ECONOMIC VITALITY PROGRAM UPDATES BUSINESS ATTRACTION (CONTINUED) ■ Development of a Recruitment Packet Created a recruitment packet which highlights the Town's demographics, available commercial space, corporate client list, relevant community development information, and downtown guides for prospective businesses requesting information on the Town of Los Gatos. Los Gatos Business Webpage As part of the Town's web redesign a business section has been created to highlight Town demographics, steps to starting a business, required development and license applications, business resources, and contact information. Also under development is an available properties feature that will showcase Los Gatos commercial properties with images, commercial broker contact information, and general zoning information. ■ LG Commercial Snapshot Update Data collection and tracking of commercial trends occur on an ongoing basis to keep up-to-date on current lease rates, vacancies, and market movement. ■ Business Assistance Provide guidance in coordination with the community development department on the economic vitality impacts of incoming businesses. Additionally, provide prospective businesses interested in coming into Town with demographics, marketing materials, and personalized customer service for navigating through the development process. ■ Relationship building/Targeted Outreach To keep up-to-date on current real estate market activities and tenant lead generation, staff maintains ongoing communication with the commercial real estate community, individual property owners, and property management companies. BUSINESS PROMOTION Business promotion takes a multi-faceted approach working in collaboration with the Chamber of Commerce and the local business community to promote Los Gatos as an exceptional shopping, dining and travel destination. The Town allocates approximately $25,000 annually to support town-wide marketing efforts and collaborative marketing efforts with the Chamber of Commerce. In addition to these marketing dollars, staff also provides additional technical expertise by participating in the Chamber's destination marketing committee. To this end, the following represent a variety of marketing programs that have or will be implemented: Town-wide marketing programs Summer in Los Gatos: May - September 2005 Target Market: Local and regional focus Program: Coordinated co-op advertising opportunities & Town event calendar in Mercury News, San Jose Magazine, Los Gatos Daily, Los Gatos Weekly/Saratoga News, and Discover Silicon Valley. Ad campaign was very successful. Many participating merchants continued to co-op advertise after the program ended due to the significant amount of customers gained. Town of Los Gatos Economic Vitality Update 11.05 4 BUSINESS PROMOTION Town-wide marketing programs (CONTINUED) Summer in Los Gatos: May - September 2005 To complement the summer co-op advertising program, the Town launched its first "shop local" campaign called the "Hometown Advantage" program. Over 13,000 directories and resident rewards cards were mailed to all Los Gatos residents. Follow-up surveys indicate participating businesses were satisfied with the program and would participate again. This program was also recognized as an Economic Vitality best practice at the Annual Municipal Management Association of Northern California Conference in October 2005. Hometown for the Holidays: November - December 2005 (Attachment B) Target Market: Local and regional focus Program: Highlights all commercial districts, local special events, and provides additional promotion for local businesses that extend their weekday holiday hours until 8 p.m. or later to accommodate holiday shoppers. The Economic Vitality Manager, Sergeant Layne Davis and Executive Director Ronee Nassi from the Chamber of Commerce have made door-to-door presentations to encourage participation in the Holiday marketing program. General destination marketing ads will also be run in the San Jose Mercury News, while more detailed ads providing additional promotion for businesses with extended hours will occur in the Los Gatos Weekly Times/Saratoga News, Los Gatos Daily, and Wave Magazine. The "Hometown for the Holidays" advertising campaign will also include Comcast commercials running on Bravo, Food TV, A&E, and Lifetime television from 11/21-12/19. These commercials will provide a visual reinforcement that Los Gatos is a great holiday shopping destination. Holiday posters will also be distributed to participating merchants upon request. Valet parking will also be available beginning November 25th December 24th. Hours of operation are from 9:00 a.m. to 9 p.m., Tuesday - Saturday. Valet for Sunday and Monday will begin the week of December 18th. . ■ Chamber of Commerce Hospitality Committee Serving as a liaison from the Town, the Economic Vitality Manager attends a monthly roundtable with stakeholders from the hotel industry and restaurant industry to identify and plan joint destination marketing efforts. Los Gatos Visitors Webpage As part of the Town's web redesign, a visitor's page is under construction to highlight local dining options, hotel accommodations, wineries, shopping, and recreational choices. Also under development is a downtown shopping map which highlights local downtown businesses, available parking lots, and community events. BUSINESS RETENTION The Town's business retention and outreach program is designed to preserve and enhance the Town's business environment. The Town recognizes the importance of a strong and varied business community. To this end, the Town places high value in maintaining an ongoing supportive dialogue with the business community, recognizing the role local businesses have in making Los Gatos a unique and desirable community, and providing education and awareness about available resources to help their businesses prosper. The following are business retention efforts undertaken by staff over the past year: Town of Los Gatos Economic Vitality Update 11.05 BUSINESS RETENTION. ■ Business Newsletter As a means to open additional communication lines with the business community, staff has developed an annual business newsletter. The goals of the newsletter are to express an appreciation for the important role local businesses have in our community's vitality, highlight upcoming Town and Chamber marketing programs, and educate business owners on a variety of Community Development "How to's" or frequently asked questions. The business newsletter will be mailed each year prior to the annual license renewal mailing. (Attachment C) Chamber Newsletter The Chamber and Town are partnering to provide a new Los Gatos commercial center feature in the bimonthly chamber newsletter. Article highlights include overviews of the centers' tenant mix and history. ■ Town Council Business/Community Recognition Program Coordinate business recognition program wherein businesses receive recognition at a Town Council meeting. Relationship building with local business community Meet, and provide assistance to local business owners on an ongoing basis. Work with property management companies, chamber of commerce, and individual property owners to educate local businesses on Town Economic Vitality programs and marketing opportunities through neighborhood center presentations and direct outreach. ■ Silicon Valley Workforce Investment Program/SCORE In August, Council approved MOU with the Silicon Workforce Investment Network to provide additional workforce development opportunities to Town businesses. These programs are promoted on the Town's web site, business newsletter and through direct one-on-one contact. UPCOMING PROJECTS Outreach to Los Gatos automobile industry cluster Inform local auto dealers of the Town's new commercial design guidelines, and how these guidelines can be used during future showroom remodels. Build on previous relationship efforts to encourage future participation in coordinated marketing opportunities. Currently, auto dealers make up 30% of the Town's total sales tax base. ■ Ongoing development of Los Gatos Business & Visitor Webpage ■ Retail industry tradeshow participation ■ Establish guidelines for Town news racks ■ Develop plan for directional kiosks & downtown shopping guide Town of Los Gatos Economic Vitality Update 11.05 ATTACHMENT A VACANCY SNAPSHOT NOVEMBER 2005 Town of Los Gatos Economic Vitality Update 11.05 4mJ . 0 0 U C7 0 0 a z CO N Y U 11! o -0-0 8-0 -0-0 0-0- 00 U Q o LU a 0 ooo N 0 a00 LO Z- O Z O O o LG ~ 1O N W u. cd LL 0 O z m a w O ~ w ~ V ° C. o° a W 6 0 o o ~ o ~ m c W =C', LLI z ~ g o ~ o u Zm N Z O LL LL o co ~ E U y w z a U Q U Z o ~ LLI - - Z o 9 7d U z 'L Z N U U p L O Z z x z m C W Z O U > LL O v o d > U U d U > w c9 o ° L. o ® _ ® o mm I U W c O B$1 U (n LU 3: Z i U LU C LU a {V O O U O O O O O O 10 q N C C W ° ° -d(.) ° ° G? ° m N m~ .01) .U ~ _ o 0o C o o 0 0~ a~ O O O O O O O N O O 0) V O c0 a a. 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T tap G cn p O ~ ~ O ' ~ i ~ NO 'a a~ O Ln O 70 r O ' f ro O O a ra t rB i A p Q i a cn cn rB O E ro N d. - - O i. bA uy _ W J ra CU Q .2 vi . r oo `n C) CL ra O C> O -a IW _ W O a N LI) cc~ C - _ C O Q C v-. .m tU O C O cif ' •i c p . i O - -i!5 1!5 O a, cu ro jo O LL OA tap V O LL E E V .C I- > ra cn x O CU i- F- O O w j F!~ ATTACIEVIENT C BUSINESS NEWSLETTER Town of Los Gatos Economic Vitality Update s- 11.05 4~ JL 40 j1h eg B-tt IL Los Gatos Business Newsletter Fall 2005 MESSAGE FROM THE ?T LM 1►JLdNAGER. On behalf of the Town Council and staff, I would like to express the Town's appreciation for the many contributions our local businesses make to our community's vitality. As a local business owner, you provide quality goods and services to meet the needs of our residents, act as our ambassadors to Town visitors, and donate your time and talents for the betterment of many civic organizations. The business community also generates tax revenues which fund Town services including parks, street maintenance, library services and more. The Town recognizes these valuable contributions to the community, and has made a "business friendly" Town government a priority in Los Gatos. To support our local business community, the Town has created an Economic Vitality Program to help retain our local business base through shop local and destination travel promotions, targeted business attraction to diversity the Town's business mix, and relocation and expansion assistance. This year, the Town launched a town-wide Shop Los Gatos campaign called the "Hometown Advantage" Program. The goals of this program were to promote town-wide awareness of our all our commercial districts, and to emphasize the link between shopping locally and community vitality. This program was open to all Los Gatos businesses for FREE. Each "Hometown Advantage" directory provided overviews of every commercial center, profile of each participating business, and summer community special event listings, and Town website promotion of all participating businesses. We direct mailed over 13,000 "Hometown Advantage" directories to every household in Los Gatos. HOMETOWN FOR THE HOLIDAYS The holiday season is a time to celebrate with family and friends. It is also one of the busiest shopping seasons of the year! As part of the Town's Economic Vitality Program, the Town of Los Gatos and the Los Gatos Chamber of ` Commerce will be launching the "Hometown for the Holidays" marketing program, designed to encourage Los Gatos residents and Santa Clara County residents to shop and dine Los Gatos during the holiday seasons. The Town's coordinated marketing program will include a town-wide shop and dine Los Gatos promotion. Commercials will be aired on Comcast television and colorful print advertising will appear in Los Gatos Weekly/Saratoga News, Los Gatos Daily, San Jose Mercury News, and Wave Magazine. The Town's advertising message will emphasize the small town service, enchanting shops, and extraordinary restaurants in all our commercial districts. Local business owners are encouraged to extend their holiday weekday evening hours to offer a highly desirable shopping alternative to other venues. Holiday shopping trends demonstrate that people prefer to incorporate holiday shopping through the work week to avoid the overwhelming weekend crowds. As a result, many large shopping centers extend holiday weekday evening hours to accommodate this additional foot traffic. Any local business that extends its weekday evening holiday shopping hours until 8:00 p.m. or later will be listed in the print advertising campaign and web-promotion hosted on the Town's website under the "Hometown for the Holidays" directory. Each participating business will receive a complementary profile on the Town's website along with active web links. If your business is interested in participating in the "Hometown for the Holidays" marketing campaign please contact Economic Vitality Manager, Danielle Surdin at 408.399.5790, or email dsurdin@losgatosca.gov to sign up. Let's give one more compelling reason to Shop Los Gatos this holiday season! In closing, we want to wish you a prosperous holiday season. I encourage you to contact our Economic Vitality Manager IMPOR&TANT Danielle Surdin at 408.399.5790 for any of your business assistance needs! Sincerely, a Day after Thanksgiving-Busiest Stropping Day of the Year! 11125 4 Annual Business License Renewals-Nov-Dec 2005 ® Town Holiday Tree Lighting Ceremony-1212 Debra J. Figone ® Town Holiday Parade-1213 Town Manager . December 2005-Downtown Carriage Rides Small Town Service, Community stewardship, Future Focus www.losgatosca.gov PAINTING BASICS By: Community Development Department When considering paint colors for the exterior of a commercial building, time should be taken to ensure that the colors selected are appropriate to the architectural style of the building and are complementary to the colors of adjacent buildings. The relationship between architectural style and paint color can be confusing. Although the Town does not regulate the repainting of commercial buildings, property owners are encouraged to work with Town staff regarding the selection of colors. In addition, the Town's Historic Preservation Committee provides free color palette assistance to owners of historic buildings to help accentuate the building's historic architectural features, Painted murals can add interest and character to an otherwise plain wall. Murals however can be construed as a business sign. Therefore, it is strongly recommended that a sketch of the mural be reviewed by Town staff to ensure that it meets Town Code requirements. Its also important to note that original stone and masonry surfaces should be maintained and not painted. Once painted, it is often not possible to remove paint from these surfaces. Please refer to the Commercial Design Guidelines for development standards regarding exterior colors at www.losgatosca.gov/downloads/ cdguide.pdf. If you have any questions or wish to go before the Historic Preservation Committee, please contact the Community Development Department at 408.354.6872. SILICON WORKFORCE IMSTUNT NETWORK Silicon Valley Workforce Investment Network is here to help the Los Gatos business community! SVWIN serves as a local business assistance resource group that works in collaboration with federal, state, and local government agencies to provide comprehensive workforce development programs. Silicon Valley Workforce Investment Network has three 'one-stop' locations to serve the communities in Silicon Valley, located in Campbell, San Jose, and Gilroy. Staff will also meet with local businesses in any of the eight cities in the consortium to provide on site assistance. PROGRAMS AND SERVICES INCLUDE: Human Resource Assistance Employee Retention Coaching Skills Assessments Onsite Employee Training Business Plan Development Leadership Development Marketing Plan Development Labor Laws Referrals Business Management Outplacement ServiceslDownsizing For further information or assistance on the services listed please visit their website at www,svwin.org, or call any of their "one-stop' service locations listed below. San Jose Campbell South County-Gilroy 1775 Story Rd. 2450 S. Bascom 7800 Arroyo Circle 408.928.1300 408.369.3606 405.846.1480 id you know that a majority of Los Gatos neighborhood centers operate at a less than 5% vacancy rate! Business News © Town of Los Gatos 2005 Questions-ox Comments? Call Danielle &adin Economic Vitality Managex 408.399.5790 AWNING SENSE By: Community Development Department Visualize an early morning in downtown Los Gatos during the early 1900's, when shopkeepers would begin their workday by rolling out awnings in front of their business. These awnings not only played an important functional rote, they helped define the visual character of our commercial streetscape. To this day, awnings continue to play an important role in our commercial areas as an attractive architectural building feature. To ensure that the Town maintains its unique character, a careful balance is needed to preserve existing and new architectural features of commercial buildings while supporting the economic vitality that provides resources to the community. Special guidelines and regulations have been developed to maintain the high level of design quality that makes our community so special. If you are contemplating installing a new awning or replacing one you have, the following information may be of assistance to you. Existing Awning/Canvas Change Only • Replacement of Canvas: Contact Julie Linney at Central Fire Protection District 408.378.4010 for information on flame retardant canvas • Changing color of the awning: Contact Planning Division of the Community Development Department at 408.354.6874. • Changing signage - A sign permit is required.` Contact Roy. Alba of the Community Development Department at 408.399.5720. `See Section 29.10. 100 through Section 29.10. 140 of the Town Code regarding signage requirements at www.losgatosca.govlgovemment/19.html New Awnings/Modification of Existing Awning • Please refer to the Commercial Design Guidelines for awning development standards: www.losgatosca.gov/downloads/Cdguide.pdf. - • Architecture and Site approval is required and application must be submitted. If the building is historic, the Historic Preservation Committee will also review the application. Contact the Planning Division of the Community Development Department at 408.354.6874. • Once Architecture and Site approval has been obtained, a building permit is required. Contact the Building Division of the Community Development Department at 408.354.6881 or 408.399.5711. • A sign permit is required for any signage on the awning.* Contact Roy Alba of the Community Development Department at 408.399.5720. *See Section 29.10.100 through Section 29.10.140 of the Town Code regarding signage requirements at www.losgatosca.gov./govemment/19.html Noise Orain ce Vpaate All gardeners and individuals who work within Town limits on outdoor gardening activities are encouraged to be sensitive to patrons of a commercial center and to adjacent neighbors, especially with the use of leaf blowers and other motorized equipment. Nonstationary gardening powered equipment, which includes electric or gasoline leaf blowers, is subject to the Town's Noise Ordinance. If it is necessary to use a leaf blower, please be aware of the following requirements: The use of nonstationary gardening powered equipment shall be operated only during the hours of 8;00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. week days and 9 :00 a.m. - 7:00 p.m. weekends and holidays in residential and noise sensitive zones, as defined below, • The use of powered equipment in commercial, industrial or public space is not time limited unless it is in a noise sensitive zone. • Noise sensitive zone means any place within Town limits where a person would require peace and quiet, including, but not limited to, all residences, hospitals, schools, churches, parks, nursing homes, child care facilities, hotels and motels. If you have any questions about the Town's Noise Ordinance, please refer to Section 16.10.010 through Section 16.30.015 of the Town Code at or contact Roy Alba of the Community Development Department at 408.399.5720.