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On May 11^th from 7 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. at CSU San Marcos SDNEDC will host the 9^th annual North County Economic Summit with the generous help of our presenting sponsor, Wells Fargo.  For nine years SDNEDC has been convening over 400 leaders from throughout North County to hear insights about how national and international economic trends will impact North County.

This could be one of the most consequential summits in SDNEDC’s history. Inflation has become a much more central factor in the economy and interest rates hikes could put an end to nearly two decades worth of accommodative fiscal policy. Housing prices in North County have risen to unprecedented levels. The great “reset” has dramatically disrupted labor force dynamics with technical talent being in extremely short supply and wages increasing as companies compete for skilled workers. How these and other trends will play out in 2022 and 2023 could have a dramatic impact on both private and public sector entities in North County.

This year’s keynote speaker is Mark Vitner, Managing Director & Senior Economist from Wells Fargo, who will provide a national and state forecast.  New this year will a subsequent set of rapid “TED”-like talks about three aspects of North County’s economy significantly changed by COVID19. Bob Rauch, CEO of RAR Hospitality and a hotel owner in North County, will kick things off with his views of how North County multi-billion dollar tourism industry will fare in 2022.  Next will be Mark Stuart, CEO of the San Diego Foundation, discussing how the non-profit sector is fairing in a post-COVID world.  Finally, Josh Williams, SDNEDC’s senior advisor and President of BW Research, will discuss how the world of work and labor force dynamics look in a post-pandemic world.

As in past years, we also will be distributing the hard copy version of the North County Indicators Report.  This year we have changed the publication to make it more reference friendly, providing attendees with a resource to quickly find key data points about North County.
We are at more than 80% capacity. If you would like to attend one of the biggest networking events in North County, please register here. We also have three more tables (of 10) available and if interested in one of those please call Ally Harano at 760-510-5919 ASAP. 

Nordson to Award Scholarships

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SDNEDC-Investor Nordson Corporation is strongly committed to helping grow the STEM workforce. 

Nordson BUILDS is the company's scholarship program, providing assistance to post-secondary students pursuing STEM or manufacturing careers.

The deadline to apply for 2022-2023 is May 15th.  For more information follow the link below and pass onto any students you think might be interested.  You can also watch a short YouTube here.
 

SDG&E Completes Work on Microgrid

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SDG&E has been making significant investments to harden power infrastructure in rural North County to reduce both the threat of wildfire, as well as, to increase grid reliability. This article highlights a project recently completed in Ramona as well as other microgrid SDG&E has built. 

San Diego County Fire Chief, Tony Mecham, is quoted expressing his gratitude for this project as we near fire season. To learn more about this project, check out the link below. 
 

The Long-awaited Amazon Fresh is Ready to Open

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Amazon Fresh grocery store in Poway is nearly open. This 44,686 square foot store will be the company's first retail grocery in the county. This grocery store has some perks that will help consumers get their groceries in a timely manner. 

This week SDNEDC is hosting a "lunch and learn" to hear more about the company's plans and how the pandemic has further changed how American's shop. To learn more about the Poway store click here. To register for Wednesday's program click here or check out the full write up in the events section of this newsletter. 

San Diego County Continues with Multiple Operators for Fair Carnival 

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Good news! The Midway at the 2022 San Diego County Fair is back on! This is a critical driver for North County Tourism and SDNEDC is excited to learn that the parties to the dispute have found a way to keep the show going. 

To learn more about the agreement, click the "learn more" button below. 

San Marcos Students Host Local Farmers Market

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Recently, the students at San Marcos High School put together a farmers and craft market to help local and global causes. The students and teacher, Tara Razi, announced that their proceeds would be donated to the global clean profit organization. The idea was born when the class was asked how they are able to make a positive impact on some global and local crisis. 

To learn more about these future North County entrepreneurs and the program they supported with the net proceeds, check out the button below.

Event and Marketing Coordinator
(Part Time with possible future expansion to full time)

Job Description:
We're looking for an extremely organized and creative individual to join the SDNEDC team as a Marketing and Events Coordinator. This role will be the lead marketing professional for the Council. An ideal applicant will leverage a broad understanding of marketing to promote both San Diego’s North County and the SDNEDC through a variety of both online and off-line marketing channels. This is currently a hands-on role, requiring individuals to be a strategic and creative thinker, as well as a day-to-day implementer. This role has high visibility in the community, providing an exceptional leadership opportunity for a marketing professional looking to make his or her mark on North County.
Currently the role is 24 hours a week, to be split as mutually agreed upon. There is some possibility in the future that the role will expand to full time but no earlier than July 2022.

To check out the full description, check out the link below!
 

Lunch and Learn Series: 
April 27, 2022
11:00 AM - 1:00 PM
Location: The Green Dragon Tavern

Several economists have suggested that the COVID19 Pandemic accelerated American’s adoption of e-commerce and delivery services multiple decades and has permanently shifted in profound ways how we obtain goods and services. These trends have significantly increased the demand for “last mile” solutions and the requirements of numerous e-commerce and delivery services which have impacted a host of issues: from real estate to transportation to where we work.

Join us to learn more about these trends and how the leading global e-commerce company, Amazon, is thinking about the future, what it means for economic development in North County and what it takes to deliver goods in a convenient fashion after you click the checkout button on a website. Speaker: Stephen Maduli-Williams, Manager Economic Development Policy, Amazon Stephen Maduli-Williams is Manager for Economic Development Policy at Amazon. In that role he plays a key role in assisting the company with its expansion efforts and real estate needs. Prior to joining Amazon Mr. Williams was the Community Development Division Manager for the City of San Diego where he oversaw the city’s Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program as well as oversaw the City of San Diego's Successor Agency.

Opportunities for Corporate Involvement: SDNEDC and Partners Launch Student Opportunities for Career Awareness and Learning

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One of the biggest challenges holding back North County’s economy is the difficulty many companies face finding and recruiting talent. With unemployment in the region standing at 4.6% and with even more pronounced shortages in fields that require technical proficiencies, it is among the most important issues that SDNEDC will be addressing in 2022.

Part of that effort will center around SOCAL (Student Opportunities for Career Awareness and Learning), a collaborative project between Tri-City Medical Center, SDNEDC, and three North County Chambers (Vista, Oceanside, Carlsbad). The goal of SOCAL is to raise awareness among young adults about different careers they might not know about and provide some of the resources and educational pathways that can help them pursue the opportunities. 

The first phase is a searchable website with short video interviews from a variety of workers. We encourage you to take some time and explore the site and watch some of the videos.

Should your company be interested in participating as we build out the library, please contact Erik at ebruvold@sdnedc.org. We have attractive sponsorship packages that will produce three videos of different team members and then elevate the visibility of various job postings and opportunities at your firm. The goal of SOCAL is to have 100 different North County workers highlighted by the end of the year.

Water District to Sponsor Scholarship Contest
Application Deadline Friday April 29, 2022

Vallecitos Water District invites local high school seniors and students at both Palomar College and California State University San Marcos to compete for scholarships from the District. Up to six scholarships may be awarded in amounts up to $1,000 per scholarship. The purpose of the scholarship program is to encourage students to learn more about water related issues impacting their community.

Students who compete for a scholarship must complete an essay and provide a personal statement related to their background and/or goals. Selection criteria also include community involvement or volunteer service, a financial needs worksheet, and letters of recommendation from faculty or an associate.

Students may download an application package here, or contact Chris Robbins at (760) 752-7120 or crobbins@vwd.org to have the materials sent to them. Applications must be received via e-mail or at the District office by 5:00 PM on Friday, April 29, 2022. Eligible students must live or go to school within the Vallecitos Water District’s service area.