City honored for its business development for third straight
year.

The City of Santa Clarita
has been named one of the top five most business-friendly cities in Los
Angeles by the Los Angeles Economic Development
Corporation (LAEDC) for 2008.

Additionally, the City is a finalist for the prestigious
EDDY Award, which will be presented to the top city at a gala awards ceremony
and dinner at the Beverly Hilton Hotel on November 17, 2008. The EDDY Award was introduced in 1996
by the LAEDC to celebrate organizations that demonstrate contributions to
positive economic development in the region. 
Beginning in 2006, the EDDY’s began recognizing cities and Santa Clarita
has been one of the top five finalists each and every year since the award was
created. 

As a business friendly City, Santa Clarita does not assess a
business license fee nor does it assess a utility user tax, allowing businesses
to save up to five percent or more on their electric, telephone, water, and gas
bills.  In addition, businesses located
within the Santa Clarita Enterprise Zone enjoy state income tax savings that
can reduce or virtually eliminate their state income tax altogether. 

Santa Clarita aims to offer local businesses a highly
educated workforce, available land for development, site selection assistance,
and expedited plan reviews and permit processing.  Additionally, the Newhall area of Santa
Clarita has been designated as a Redevelopment Project Area providing
opportunities for innovative financing and improvements. 

The City of Santa Clarita has had a number of economic
development successes this year including being honored by the California
Association for Local Economic Development (CALED) with the Grand Prize for the
Best Economic Development Program in California for the City’s Tourism program;
being named by the Los Angeles Business Journal as the Best
City for Industrial Development in
LA County; and being recognized the California Retail Survey as one of the top
25 retail markets in California
ranking higher than Santa Monica, Pasadena,
and Beverly Hills.

[view:node_ad=5]The City of Santa Clarita Film
and Tourism programs represent an industry that has experienced tremendous
growth over the past few years and one that finds great success in the City of Santa
Clarita.  In
Fiscal Year 2007/2008, the City of Santa Clarita
issued 335 permits for location filming that resulted in an estimated economic
impact to local businesses of $18.9 million. 
This increase in filming is particularly noteworthy considering the
writers strike that began in 2007 negatively affecting film production industry
wide for several months.  In addition to
the success of the film and tourism industry in Santa Clarita, the City has
become a thriving center for industry clusters such as aerospace manufacturing,
bio-medical, and technology.

“We are very honored to be named as one of Los
Angeles’ top five most business friendly cities for a
third straight year.  We work diligently
to make sure our City’s practices help City-based businesses thrive, while
providing our residents with a choice to work locally,” commented Mayor Bob
Kellar.

Information about the many economic development programs
offered by the City can be found on the City’s main website at santa-clarita.com,
or by visiting any one of several direct websites targeted to specific
industries including:  www.locatesantaclarita.com ; www.shopcityofsantaclarita.com
; www.scenterprisezone.com ; www.filmsantaclarita.com and www.visitsantaclarita.com.