Every candidate in this race lists supporting local businesses as a priority. It is a relief to me to know that all the candidates understand the importance of our business community to Albany’s quality of life.
Through my association with the Albany Chamber of Commerce* I have been working to support our local businesses for more than six years. In a race where all the candidates have similar sounding positions on many issues, this is a place where I have distinct experience that none of the other candidates can match.
There hasn’t been a small business owner on the Council since Jewel Okawachi retired four years ago, and that has been apparent in Council decisions. With challenges facing our business community, Albany has not had even a half-time staff person dedicated to Economic Development. Additionally, the Council and their appointees have decided against or delayed issues that local businesses have been clamoring for, such as improved cell phone coverage, and the remodel of the Solano Avenue Safeway.
There is much that the City could be doing to help our business community if it were more of a priority. Dedicating resources for more staff hours spent on economic development might, for instance, allow us to identify and recruit types of businesses to fill our vacant store fronts — rather than leaving it up to the landlords who often must rent their space to businesses such as nail salons or massage therapists in order to support their properties. The beauty of this is that dedicating more dollars to economic development has the potential to pay for itself.
Meanwhile, while we must be tough negotiators, we must also be fair negotiators when working with developers wishing to do business in the city. At this point, the City Council and their appointees on the Planning and Zoning Commission have made it so difficult for developments to gain approval that Albany threatens to get the reputation of being difficult to work with. What happens then is just what appears to be happening with Whole Foods — rather than place their development inside Albany, they will simply move their plans to El Cerrito or Berkeley. That way, they attract business from our residents, but don’t contribute to our city revenues. I believe “trust but verify” is the appropriate attitude toward our development partners, while too often lately, the city’s attitude seems to have been “distrust and accuse.”
It is true that many of the business owners in Albany are not Albany residents — but those businesses are none the less an important part of our community. They contribute to our quality of life; they contribute to the city’s revenue; they contribute to a lively and active city. Our local businesses need someone on the City Council who understands the issues they are facing and has experience helping support them.
*Just because I note this at every opportunity, I want to point out that there is no relationship between the Albany Chamber of Commerce and the US or National Chamber of Commerce. We are not chartered by or members of any larger organization at the regional, state, or national level. We are simply an organization made up of and supporting our local business community.
