Marin Economic Forum hopes to boost business

The Marin Economic Forum, organized to attract and retain business in Marin County, is poised to release its preliminary report this month ­– six months ahead of schedule.

"This dashboard report will demonstrate trends that we haven't been able to measure other than anecdotally," said Harry Thomas of Hennessy Advisors, a member of the forum's 30-person board of directors.

Information for the report was gathered by Dr. Robert Eyler, interim CEO, who is also the Marin County Economic Sustainability Coordinator and chair of the Economics Department at Sonoma State University. Interns from SSU and Dominican University in San Rafael gathered statistics, and Eyler crunched the numbers to provide a baseline study of the status of business in Marin County.

Such statistics are vitally important, says Kim Kaselionis, a past President of the Novato Chamber of Commerce and President and CEO of Circle Bank, which donated seed money to the Marin Economic Forum.

"Sonoma County's Economic Development Council puts out a tremendous amount of very useful economic statistics, but Marin County lacks that data," she said. "It's very difficult to make decisions today on what you need to do to change the future, if you don't know where you've been."

Providing the numbers is crucial to enticing businesses to locate in Marin County, Thomas said. While many people may want to live here and locate their businesses here, they have a perception that businesses are less-than-welcome in Marin. And when other counties and states are actively wooing businesses to locate elsewhere, the numbers often make the decision, Eyler pointed out.

"The MEF is meant to be a one-stop shop for information about Marin that business owners need to make decisions about their own growth, about public policy, or how to get through a city's maze of regulations," Eyler said. "Other counties in the Bay Area have had such organizations in place for years." There will also be website, where business people can access that information any time.

According to Thomas, the organization has received $60,000 in donations to build the infrastructure needed to make it a viable, self-supporting organization. A CEO will also be needed to serve as a liaison between local commercial real estate brokers, planning departments, and potential employers.

As a board member of the Marin Economic Forum, the San Anselmo Chamber will advocate for funding to attract and sustain businesses for San Anselmo.  

Gathering fiscal support for the forum in these uncertain days will be no easy task, Eyler said, and the job is unlikely to be made easier simply because there are so many micro-businesses in Marin County.

"Our research indicates 92 percent of all Marin County businesses are composed of small businesses – 100 employees or less," said Eyler, "and 65 percent of Marin businesses are micro-businesses, with 10 or fewer employees."

Such fragmentation in the business world is an obstacle to connecting businesses to each other because "most of these people are under the radar," he said.

The San Anselmo Chamber also is host to an office of the Small Business Development Center. The center provides current and future business owners with no cost, confidential counseling, and low fee services and workshops.

Since its organization last summer, the Marin Economic Forum has identified target industries that already have a foothold in Marin and could be joined by satellite companies that enhance their viability. The organization also adopted a values statement that emphasizes attracting companies that enhance social equity and protect the environment.

Marin loses business to surrounding Bay Area communities, because it lacks a countywide economic sustainability organization to help revitalize and stabilize Marin's economy.

The industries the Marin Economic Forum wants to target:

Agri-Tourism

Food Product Manufacturing
Tourism/Hospitality
Boutique Accommodations

Core Technology
Multimedia/Digital Arts
Engineering & Business Software
Environmental Technology
Biotechnology

Built Environment
Green Building
Commercial Real Estate
Energy Efficiency
Water Efficiency

Health
Residential Care
Alternative Medicine
Alternative Methods
Biomedical Research

Financial Services
Wealth Management
Boutique consulting
Insurance
Banking

Connie Rodgers is the President and CEO of the San Anselmo Chamber of Commerce.