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Bay Area government and business leaders hope a prepared, unified approach to economic recovery planning can help secure billions in available federal stimulus funds for the region.
“This plan is designed to maximize our region’s share of federal stimulus funding and other state support that will benefit the Bay Area in both the near and long-term,” said Sean Randolph, president and CEO of the Bay Area Council Economic Institute, in a report released Friday.
The Bay Area is seeking its share of more than $31 billion in stimulus funding made available for the state of California; another $20 billion nationwide is also potentially available for state and local projects.
However, there is competition from 12 other regions in California, including Los Angeles, San Diego and the Central Valley.
The Bay Area decided to mount a collaborative effort through the Bay Area Council Economic Institute, a public-private partnership of civic and business groups.
The group culled through several hundred proposals for funding from Bay Area agencies and governments, and today released a report highlighting those that Randolph said had the most short- and long-term economic benefit to the region, that address regional priorities, and that are shovel-ready.
“This project was an incredible opportunity for the Bay Area to draw on the region’s leading expertise and talent to collaboratively put together the strongest plan for state and federal support,” said East Bay Economic Development Alliance director Bruce Kern.
Major areas addressed were transportation, housing, water, science and technology, job training, small business development and green energy projects.
A sampling of proposals includes the Bay Area section of the planned California high-speed rail; recycled water projects in the East Bay; energy efficient street lighting in Oakland and San Jose; a sustainable housing and business development at San Mateo’s Bay Meadows; new electrical infrastructure at the Port of Oakland; and a new stem cell and aging research
facility in Marin County.
“There are some extremely strong projects in there, that are high-benefit, high-impact,” said Randolph.
Randolph said he’d like to see “as much (stimulus money) as possible” come to the Bay Area.
“I would imagine that we would be able to capture about a third” of the $31 billion coming from the state, he said.
To view the full report, visit www.bayareaeconomy.org/recovery.
Bay Area Council Economic Institute
Bay Area Council Economic Institute
This is what we have been reduced to a bunch of transients begging the Federal Gov’t for money. Everyone should be ashamed of themselves. When the Gov’t gives you money they can tell you what you can and cannot do. Nothing but a bunch of drones.
This stimulus money is either printed or taxpayer money from other states who have done the right thing. Pretty soon they will get sick of doing the right thing and seeing their hard earned money pumped down the golden state flush hole?