City to Take Survey of Business Climate

How can relations be improved between City Hall and the business community? What can be done to attract new businesses? How can the city better prepare schoolchildren who will become the work force of the future?

The City Council hopes to get answers to these questions through a business survey to be conducted by the San Fernando Chamber of Commerce beginning in September.

“The intent of this survey is to identify the needs of businesses and how the city can meet those needs,” said Paul Hefner, the chamber’s board chairman.

Surveys will be mailed to about 1,000 business owners asking them about their plans for expansion, what skills they are looking for in potential workers and, if they plan to leave the area, what can be done to retain them, Hefner said.

“We hope to get [factual] information,” Hefner said, “which is much better than conjecture or anecdotal information.”

The survey is expected to be completed by November, Hefner said, with a final report to be presented to the City Council and the business community thereafter.

At its regular meeting Aug. 4, the City Council allocated $23,000 to cover start-up costs for the survey, Hefner said. The money is from a $1-million federal economic development grant awarded to the city after the 1994 Northridge earthquake.

The survey is part of the city’s overall thrust to keep existing businesses, while at the same time luring new customers to the city. By making City Hall more business-friendly, city officials hope to generate new jobs and merchant profits.