Ventura City Hall and facilities now open

City Hall and facilities are now open for in-person services!

Here’s what to expect: 

• City facilities are open during normal business hours. Hours of operation vary by location. 
• When visiting City facilities, masks and physical distancing are encouraged.
• Public meetings are anticipated to resume on March 21. Please review public meeting agendas for ways to participate.

Join the Westpark Skatepark community meetings

The City will host two virtual community meetings on March 17, from 6-8 pm and March 19, from 1-3pm, regarding the nearly $2 million grant award to expand the skatepark at the Westpark Community Center. These meetings will focus on gathering feedback from attendees to understand what qualities are most important to the community in the selection of a skatepark designer and building contractor.

General Plan Visioning

Statement and Survey

The City of Ventura is in the process of updating its General Plan, a long-term vision and policy document that guides growth and development for the next 25 to 30 years.

A key component of the General Plan is its Vision, which has three parts:

• A forward-looking Vision Statement
• Core Values that define the City’s culture and priorities
• A set of strategies to help implement the General Plan

Survey Deadline: March 21, 2022

Project Development Map

Interested in learning more about various projects happening in Ventura? Visit the City's website for a live project map, featuring:

• New Applications
• Under Review 
• Set for Hearing 
• Recently Acted On
• Entitled 
• Under Construction 

Join The Green Business Community!

Do you want to save money while being more environmentally friendly? The California Green Business Network can help your business thrive through their Green Business Certification.

With Earth Month coming up and this year's theme "Invest in Our Planet," take the pledge to complete the challenge and make your business more earth-friendly for years to come!

NOTE: For a limited time only, businesses that participate will get 15 hours of free environmental consulting from the CGBN team and a $500 cash incentive or rebate. Don't wait! These $500 incentives are limited to just 100 challengers!

ETP - Workforce Training Program

Workforce training concentrates on continuous business improvement, enhanced operational efficiencies, and increased lean operations to make businesses more productive and competitive. 

Within the program, companies can access employee training to re-train and increase the skills of existing workers and provide on-the-job training for new workers through free consulting services and provide access to no-cost or subsidized training fees.

For more information about ETP, or to speak to the Program Coordinator, contact Alondra Gaytán at:

alondra@edcollaborative.com 

California Competes Tax Credit & Grant Program

The California Competes Tax Credit (CCTC) and Grant Program (CCGP) are available to businesses that want to locate in California or stay and grow in California. Businesses of any industry, size, or location compete for over $180 million available in tax credits by applying in one of the three application periods each year. Applicants will be analyzed based on twelve different factors of evaluation, including number of full-time jobs being created, amount of investment, and strategic importance to the state or region.

Application Period Timeline: For the remainder of the fiscal year 2021-2022, GO-Biz will accept applications for the California Competes Tax Credit from March 7-28, 2022.

Please refer to the Notice California Competes Tax Credit Fiscal Year 2021-22 for more information. For additional guidance with the CCTC or the CCGP, click here.

Wednesdays @ 3:00 p.m. | REGISTER

Orange County Inland Empire SBDC Network: COVID-19 Information For Small Businesses

The SBDC is providing Wednesday webinars for the Small Business Community on information as it relates to funding information during the COVID-19 pandemic. Topics include the Economic Injury Disaster Loan, Payroll Protection Program, Disaster Bridge Loan, 7a Forgiveness Program, and other funding opportunities for your business. Information is changing and updating daily and the SBDC wants to make sure Small Business owners are being provided the most up-to-date, factual information as to what is available for funding.

Thursdays, 10:30-11:30 a.m. | REGISTER

Work Elevation Academy

HUB 101 - WorkElevation Academy is a free program for open-minded, growth-oriented entrepreneurs and intrapreneurs who are looking to build and strengthen essential skills, learn new tools and resources, gain new perspectives, and connect with like-minded individuals.

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March 17 REGISTER | March 22 REGISTER

California Competes Webinar Information

GO-BIZ - Prior to each application period, GO-Biz hosts online webinars about the California Competes program. Each webinar consists of a 45-minute presentation, followed by a question and answer session. Each presentation includes the following:

• Overview of the program
• Program goals and evaluation criteria
• Step-by-step instructions through the application process
• All businesses are encouraged to participate in our webinars to receive instructions on how to apply.

Friday's from 9:00 a.m. - 10:00 a.m. | REGISTER

Mar 18, Apr 15, May 20, June 17

WEVWorks - Strong Women, Strong Coffee

Start the new year with free tips on how to use accountability to achieve your goals in 2022. Our guest speaker for this month’s Strong Women, Strong Coffee online meetup is Ali Schiller, founder of Accountability Works. Ali will share her proven system for consistently stretching outside your comfort zone in business and life - a system that ensures you KEEP GOING in the face of adversity and that you don’t procrastinate or get distracted from your goal. Connect, Collaborate, and Learn – grab your favorite morning brew and enjoy this opportunity to share, listen and support one another with reaching your business goals. About our guest speaker: Ali has helped everyone -- from solopreneurs just starting out to CEOs of multimillion-dollar organizations -- stay committed and on track. She has been featured in Daily Worth, Elephant Journal, Huffington Post, and Entrepreneur.

Wednesday, March 23, 10:30 a.m. | REGISTER

County of Ventura - Overview of Working with the County As A Vendor

Do you have a product or service that you’d like to sell to government buyers? The Office of Procurement Services of the County of Ventura will deliver a presentation on how to work with the County as a vendor. Topics to be covered include what a prospective vendor needs to know to do business with the County, information about vendor tools, and some background information on County’s Procurement Services department and contacts.

Thursday, March 24, 10:00 a.m. | REGISTER

SCORE - E-Mail Marketing Essentials For Business (PART 1)

Research says that for every $1 spent on E-Mail marketing there is an average $44 return on investment. To generate such positive outcomes, businesses have to reach the right customers with targeted campaigns. If you feel your E-Mail efforts don't yet pay off, this workshop is for you! This Two-Part series will teach basic and advanced techniques to propel your E-Mail efforts (see below for registration link for Part I).

Viernes, 9:00 a.m. - 10:00 a.m. | Regístrate

Mar 25, Apr 22, May 27, June 24

WEVWorks - Café con Exito

Conecta, Colabora, Aprende con WEV. Únete a nosotras/os una vez al mes (con tu bebida matutina favorita) para conectarte, colaborar y aprender de otras emprendedoras y emprendedores. Al reunirnos una vez al mes de 9:00am a 10:00am acompañadas/os por un/a invitada/o especial, tendremos la oportunidad de compartir, escuchar y apoyarnos mutuamente para alcanzar las metas de tu negocio.

Tuesday, April 5, 5:00 p.m. | REGISTER

SCORE - The Amazon “Effect” – Its Impact on Your Customer’s Expectations

Getting lunch delivered to the office has never been so easy. From a smartphone, you can find a nearby restaurant, scroll through the menu of options, add extra toppings to your sandwiches, pay electronically, including a tip for the driver, and get alerts telling you exactly what time your food will arrive.” It’s an experience experts are calling the “Amazon effect,” in which consumers expect buying convenience, visibility, and accessibility at every step in the process. In this workshop, SCORE will discuss how Amazon (and companies like them) have changed your customer's expectations and some basic steps on how you can adjust your business to meet them. These concepts can be applied to your business no matter if you have products to sell or you deliver services.

Thursday, April 7, 10:00 a.m. | REGISTER

SCORE - E-Mail Marketing Essentials For Business (PART 2)

If you feel your E-Mail efforts don't yet pay off, this workshop is for you! This Two-Part series will teach basic and advanced techniques to propel your E-Mail efforts.

Additional Webinars

Click HERE for additional live and recorded SCORE webinars

Click HERE for additional live and recorded EDC webinars

Click HERE for additional live and recorded WEV webinars

Our Economic Development Team

Meredith Hart

Economic Development Manager

mhart@cityofventura.ca.gov

Cary Glenn

Economic Development Associate

cglenn@cityofventura.ca.gov