San Mateo Seeks Economic Development Manager

New businesses come and go in town, but San Mateo’s Economic Development Program is currently being updated. The City of San Mateo is looking for a manager to fill the now vacant Economic Development Manager role. Patch spoke with the city about the revamped program the future of business in San Mateo.

Patch: Can you describe what the Economic Development program does?

Rebecca Zito, Management Analyst for the City of San Mateo:

Economic Development is all about retaining current business and attracting new business to maintain a healthy economic base for our city.  It also involves working with developers to ensure efficient processing of projects through our development review process while ensuring we get the quality development we desire for our city.

P: What changes are being made to the Economic Development program? What will be the same?

R: The City is currently recruiting for a new Economic Development Manager. This effort is a continuation and builds upon the activities already underway, which include:  furthering the City’s partnership with the Chamber of Commerce’s Economic Development and Growth Enterprise

(EDGE) initiative to attract and retain innovative companies in San Mateo; continuing to host special events and promote the revitalization of the downtown area with the Downtown San Mateo Association (DSMA); and continuing to facilitate the development of significant affordable housing and Transit Oriented Development (TOD) projects, designed to make San Mateo an even more attractive place to live and work.

The City has established a working group that meets monthly and is comprised of City representatives and the executive directors of the DSMA, the EDGE and the Chamber of Commerce.  Marketing initiatives, addressing beautification throughout the downtown and engaging businesses and real estate brokers in a dialogue about the challenges and opportunities businesses face in San Mateo are a few of the current priorities.

Once the Economic Development Manager comes on board there will be a direct point person to lead and manage these initiatives and initiate new programs the business community and the City are interested in pursuing.   This representation has been missing for a couple of years and the City is excited to fill the position.

The business community is looking forward to the opening of Draper University, a post-secondary school focused on entrepreneurship and the Collective Entrepreneurs Club, flex office space focused on incubating start-up businesses. This venture is an initiative of entrepreneur and venture capitalist, Tim Draper and will bring an exciting new element to the downtown.  It’s anticipated that the University and the Collective Club will bring innovative businesses as well as a younger affluent market to San Mateo.  It also has the potential to attract new businesses that will appeal to this audience.

P: What types of storefronts would you like to see in San Mateo and which types of businesses tend to succeed here?

R: We encourage businesses that will complement and enhance the mix of businesses that are currently located in the downtown area.  There are a number of successful businesses located in San Mateo including restaurants, independent, regional and national retailers as well as professional and personal services. Recently an influx of high tech and internet start-up companies located in the downtown commercial area and it’s exciting to see what changes this new mix will bring.

Downtown restaurants consistently experience a great deal of success.  According to a market analysis of Downtown San Mateo conducted in 2012, restaurants do very well in the downtown commercial area and experienced an 8.2 percent increase in sales tax revenue between 2009 and 2010.

The downtown commercial area is the heart of the community and is anchored by the Century 12 Downtown San Mateo movie theater, Draeger’s and a diverse mix of thriving restaurants.  A variety of retailers have made downtown San Mateo their home.  We have a great mix of retailers including: Aaron Brothers, Footwear, Etc, Jos. A. Bank, Steiner’s Jewelry, and Talbots Toys.  Many of these businesses have been in San Mateo for years, and in some cases generations.

The downtown is constantly changing and continues to appeal to new retailers.  Within the past few years retailers such as: Appelblom Jewelry, Atlas Skateboarding, Bay Home and Linens, Dean’s Produce, Max Muscle, Premier Boutique, Scribble Me Happy and Sharona’s Chocolate Shop have all opened in the downtown core. It’s an exciting area that San Mateo residents as well as visitors from throughout the Bay Area enjoy.  

P: It says on the city website, “City officials work closely with the Downtown San Mateo Association, the San Mateo Chamber of Commerce and San Mateo EDGE to understand challenges facing local businesses and implementing programs to support the business community.”  What programs is the city working on to support the business community?  

R: In addition to working on enhancing the downtown, the City works with these organizations on everything from community events and business mixers, retail studies and marketing initiatives as well as parking and beautification efforts. Recent examples include:

First Annual Downtown Clean-Up

On Saturday, April 20, the DSMA is sponsoring the First Annual Downtown Clean-Up event as part of Earth Day that will focus on a variety of projects to spruce up Downtown San Mateo.  The DSMA has identified a number of projects and is recruiting volunteers to complete them.  The City is supporting the event by helping to recruit volunteers, plan the implementation of the projects and provide support during the event.  Some of the projects include graffiti removal, litter pick-up, painting controller boxes and street sweeping.  It will be a big clean-up for the downtown and the City appreciates the DSMA’s efforts to initiate this event.

Analysis of underdeveloped properties along Rail Corridor

The EDGE and the City of San Mateo are initiating a study with the Urban Land Institute (ULI) to conduct a feasibility study of underdeveloped properties along the Rail Corridor, which is located within a half-mile radius of the Hillsdale and Hayward Park Caltrain stations.  The study will be conducted later this year and the outcomes are yet to be determined.  However, it will help to identify potential uses for properties located within this area.

Central Park Music Series

The Central Park Music Series is a beloved community event that takes place each summer.  It is entering its 12th season and will feature another exciting line-up of music from July through September.

Marketing Downtown

We all have an interest in marketing the downtown to the San Mateo community as well as to brokers, real estate agents and developers.  It’s an important area to showcase.  Some of the ways the area is marketed includes: events, shopping promotions and developing consistent marketing messages.  We are currently developing marketing collateral to promote and build awareness about the downtown commercial area as well as some of its niche business clusters.

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