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November 2019
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
President
Andrew Thomas
Westwood Village Improvement Association

President-Elect
Steve Snider
Downtown Oakland and Lake Merritt-Uptown District Associations
 
Vice President
Liz Studebaker
City of San Diego
 
Treasurer
Austin Metoyer
Downtown Long Beach Alliance
 
At-Large Directors
Emilie Cameron 
Downtown Sacramento Partnership

John Caner
Downtown Berkeley

Karin Flood
Union Square Business Improvement District

Kathy Hemmenway
Walnut Creek Downtown

Suzanne Holley
Downtown Center Business Improvement District (LA)

Rena Leddy
LA Fashion District
 
Steve Mulheim
Old Pasadena Management District

Chloe Verrey
San Jose Downtown Association
 
Immediate Past President
Steven Welliver
Downtown Santa Monica, Inc.
CDA MEMBERS
Arlington Business Partnership
Arts District Los Angeles BID
Bixby Knolls Business Improvement Association
BLVD Association
Carmichael Improvement District, Inc.
City of Beverly Hills
City of Monterey Park
City of Ontario
City of San Diego - Economic Development Dept.
City of San Jose - Office of Econ Dev
Civitas
County of Santa Cruz - Office of Economic Development
Downtown Association of Santa Cruz
Downtown Berkeley Association
Downtown Business Association-Bakersfield
Downtown Center BID
Downtown Long Beach Alliance
Downtown Modesto Partnership
Downtown Oakland Association/ Lake Merritt Uptown District Association
Downtown Pomona Owners Association
Downtown Roseville Partnership
Downtown Sacramento Partnership
Downtown Santa Barbara, Inc.
Downtown Santa Monica, Inc.
Downtown SLO
Downtown Vacaville BID
Downtown Ventura Partners
Downtown Visalians, Inc.
East Hollywood BID
Figueroa Corridor Partnership
Gateway to LA Airport Business District
Gilroy Economic Development
Greater Broadway District
Hollywood Property Owners Alliance
Kono CBD
LA Downtown Industrial District BID
LA Fashion District BID
La Jolla Village Merchants Association
LeerCorp
North Tahoe Business Association
Old Monterey Business Association
Old Pasadena Management District 
ParkSmart, Inc.
Paso Robles Main Street Association
Playhouse District Association
Progressive Urban Management Associates, Inc.
R Street Sacramento Partnership
Riverside Downtown Partnership
San Jose Downtown Association
South Park BID
Sunnyvale Downtown
Telegraph BID
Temescal Telegraph BID
The River District
Times Square Alliance
Tracy City Center Association
Tulare Downtown Association
Union Square BID
Walnut Creek Downtown Business Association
Westwood Village Improvement Association 


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MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT
Andrew Thomas VP
The 2019 California State Legislature’s year has ended, and the California Downtown Association’s advocacy efforts have succeeded in seeing three impactful bills either vetoed or held, while CDA continues to support other bills and endeavors we believe will bring value to our members and communities in the future. 

SB 518 and AB 1184 were vetoed by Governor Newsom. SB 518 would have discouraged California Public Records Request settlements – creating incentives and likely a new cottage industry for individuals seeking to abuse California law intended to ensure transparency. AB 1184 would have required public agencies to retain emails two years, but did nothing to increase transparency, only data storage costs which could be prohibitive to many of our member organizations. AB 516, the bill that would have significantly extended the time vehicles could remain illegally parked in our districts, was held and did not receive a final vote. All three of these bills were stopped in no small part because of the lobbying efforts of CDA and the coalition work we led with other public agencies and stakeholders. 
 
Also this year, CDA supported SB 50, a bill aimed at streamlining housing approvals, SB 23 a bill defining the forcible entry of a vehicle as a crime. Unfortunately, neither bill passed but it is likely these bills will resurface in 2020. CDA also contributed to an International Downtown Association-sponsored Amicus Brief to the Supreme Court to argue in support of public space management in the case Martin v Boise. Potentially cleaning up sidewalk vending legislation remains a focus.

It is the mission of the California Downtown Association to take positions on legislation that impacts public space, housing, economic development, and the operations of business improvement districts, and we are proud of our accomplishments this year and are looking forward to engaging further on behalf of our members.

If you ever have questions regarding legislation in which CDA has taken a position, or if you have a question regarding pending legislation that CDA should review, please do not hesitate to contact me. I am happy to discuss these items with you. On behalf of the Board of Directors, we sincerely appreciate your ongoing support of our programmatic and public policy priorities.  

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving. 


Andrew Thomas, CDA President
Executive Director
Westwood Village Improvement Association
2020 SAVE THE DATE
The 2020 West Coast Urban District Forum is happening March 11-13, 2020 in San Jose. Registration will open next month so stay tuned for more information.

*Important Notice: Previous emails from CDA referenced another date in March 2020. Event dates have been changed to March 11-13, 2020. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause. If you have any questions about the event, please contact Andrew Thomas .
Please consider passing along the WCUDF 2020 sponsorship opportunities to companies that would benefit from working with other downtown organizations.
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Spread the Word
Do you have your ear to the ground when it comes to the latest downtown news in your region? To submit news to be considered for inclusion in the newsletter, please contact Allison Shashok at allison@downtown.org .
CDA District Digest Copyright 2019
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