Solano Index recognized for excellence

May 24, 2009

Just as the county embarks on a study of the local energy industry, the second spinoff report from the 2008 Index of Economic and Community Progress, the County received an award on the original ground-breaking report.

The California Association for Local Economic Development presented the County an Award of Excellence in Economic Development Programs for the Solano Index, 14 diverse indicator areas that measure the strength of the local economy and the health of the community.

“This tool brings together all aspects of the community to focus on attracting and retaining quality jobs,” said Supervisor Michael Reagan.  “Receiving this award from the people who do economic development for a living affirms that we are on the right track for improving the economy in Solano County.”

According to the index, the county experienced unprecedented economic opportunities between August 2000 and August 2008, outpacing the state and the Bay Area in many areas, including growth in per capita income and several industry clusters, such as life sciences and specialized manufacturing.  In addition, Solano County’s economic diversity expanded and created a better balance of jobs. The index also revealed that the county needs to do more to connect its youth to the opportunities in the work force.

The idea for the index came from a series of Economic Summits in 2007 that built a shared economic framework for the seven cities and the County.  A key component of the framework was a need for comprehensive data that could help decision-makers understand and proactively manage trends affecting the local economy and community.

“The index helps us tell the story of how we are doing as a community,” said Michael Ammann, president of the Solano Economic Development Corporation. “It also gives us the empirical data to take advantage of opportunities that will expand the prosperity of the people who live and work in Solano County.”

The Solano County Index project is managed by the Solano EDC and was prepared by Doug Henton of Collaborative Economics, the originator of the Silicon Valley Index.

Since the Index was presented in November 2008, several workshops have been held that engaged a diverse group of community members to address community challenges that were identified as having impact on the future growth of the economy, including reducing the high school dropout rate and juvenile crime.

In addition, the first of five in-depth analyses of industry clusters was released.  This report focused on the life science cluster in Solano County, which has experienced a six-fold increase in local jobs since 2000. The report praised the local schools, especially the Solano Community College, for building the training programs that are providing the industry with qualified people to employ.

A report on the energy industry cluster will be released in the fall of 2009.

The Solano Index and the Life Science Cluster Study can be viewed at www.solanocounty.com/economicindex.

CALED is a statewide professional economic development organization dedicated to advancing its members’ ability to achieve excellence in delivering economic development services to their communities and business clients. CALED’s membership consists of public and private organizations and individuals involved in economic development: the business of creating and retaining jobs.

The Solano Economic Development Corporation is a collaboration of private and public investors that provides leadership for economic development marketing of Solano County and its seven growing cities: Benicia, Dixon, Fairfield, Rio Vista, Suisun City, Vacaville and Vallejo.

Posted: May 24, 2009