Riverbed, currently at 199 Fremont Street, will expand by 65,430 square feet into five floors at 680 Folsom Street with a 10-year lease term. This expansion will allow for Riverbed’s continued successes as they grow their offices here in San Francisco. Currently with 503 employees in San Francisco, representing almost a third of their worldwide workforce, Riverbed continues to see growth. The Office of Economic and Workforce Development (OEWD) estimates that this expansion will allow for Riverbed’s local workforce to grow to 1,157 employees, more than doubling their local presence.

“Riverbed’s long term commitment to keep their worldwide headquarters in San Francisco through 2024 demonstrates once again that we are the location of choice for high tech companies,” said Mayor Lee. “With dynamic leaders like Riverbed’s Jerry Kennelly, we are making San Francisco the ‘Innovation Capitol of the World.’ I want to congratulate Riverbed, TMG and JLL on the completion of this successful real estate transaction that will create jobs and drive innovation in our City.”

“Riverbed is proud to have had its headquarters in San Francisco for the past 10 years. We’re making this investment to support our long-term growth and cement our commitment to the City of San Francisco,” said Riverbed Co-Founder and CEO Jerry Kennelly. “Like many prosperous technology companies headquartered in San Francisco, we think the City is the right location to attract the best talent and provide a thriving environment for our current employees. It is about time San Francisco becomes the capital of Silicon Valley and we want to be a part of that.”

“Riverbed is the ideal tenant not only for this space, but to complement the increasing tech growth in San Francisco’s SoMa area,” said TMG Partners Chairman and CEO Michael Covarrubias, the developer for 680 Folsom Street. “It’s very exciting to be a part of this renewed vitality here in the City and we believe it not only indicates the strengthening of our local economy, but indicative of the positive trending in both the residential and commercial space within this area of the City.”

Riverbed was represented in the transaction by the real estate firm Jones Lang LaSalle. “The Riverbed real estate team was excellent throughout this entire process and took a very strategic approach to their future real estate requirements. By being proactive, they executed a headquarters strategy and netted a superb block of quality space which will be the finest development in San Francisco in the last decade,” said Jones Lang LaSalle’s HQ practice leader and International Director David Churton.

With construction now underway at 680 Folsom Street, the building will be fully renovated in time for Riverbed’s occupation. The new headquarters will feature a clear glass wall skin replacing the current concrete façade, a new public plaza and is pursuing LEED Gold certification.

He delivered the call to action during a speech at the Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce 2012 Inaugural Dinner in Los Angeles.

“The numbers just don’t add up,” said Governor Brown of the public pension system. “Benefits, contributions and the age of retirement don’t reflect today’s realities, putting taxpayers on the hook for huge costs in the future. The cracks are showing and this dam will burst unless the legislature gets serious and takes urgent and decisive action.”

Governor Brown’s pension reform plan, introduced in October 2011, will apply to all California state, local, school and other public employers, new public employees and current employees as legally permissible. The plan’s 12 points are:

1. Equal sharing of pension costs between all employees and employers
2. Establish a “hybrid” risk-sharing pension plan
3. Increase retirement ages
4. Require three-year final compensation to stop pension spiking
5. Calculate benefits based on regular, recurring pay
6. Limit post-retirement employment
7. End felons’ pension benefits
8. Prohibit retroactive pension increases
9. Prohibit pension holidays
10. Prohibit purchases of service credit
11. Increase pension board independence and expertise
12. Reduce retiree health care costs

For full details of Governor Brown’s pension reform plan, click here (PDF): gov.ca.gov/docs/Twelve_Point_Pension_Reform_10.27.11.pdf .

Creating 56 new jobs in the Central Market area last year, both companies have now been issued conditional letters of eligibility, which allows them to continue to create new jobs, generate revenue for the City and transform Central Market.

“With the success of Pearl’s and Zendesk in Central Market and with the opening of Twitter this summer, I continue to be encouraged by the successes we are seeing. While we have more work to do, we can still celebrate milestones like this and the many small businesses and arts groups arriving in the area, generating new foot traffic and increasing positive activity in the area,” said Mayor Lee. “This is a historic opportunity to leverage the energy and momentum that is creating an eclectic cultural arts, small business, entertainment and innovation economy hub.”

The Central Market/Tenderloin Payroll Expense Tax Exclusion was created to help to stabilize and revitalize an area that has been burdened by decades of high vacancy rates and disinvestment. The policy was designed to attract businesses to Central Market and the Tenderloin in order to create jobs and stimulate small business development. By providing tax relief for new jobs the Tax Exclusion encourages San Francisco companies, particularly those that are fast-growing, to move to Central Market as their employee base expands.

Zendesk, a San Francisco-based technology company that provides cloud-based help desk software, announced they had signed a lease in the Central Market in June of 2011 and that they would be doubling their footprint in September of 2011, shortly after they moved in. Since that time, Zendesk has added 40 jobs and plans to add another 96 jobs in 2012, totaling 200 staff.

“Our move to 6th and Market streets in August has been a meaningful one, and we are honored to be one of what will hopefully be many companies to bring positive change and innovation to this neighborhood,” said Zendesk CEO Mikkel Svane. “We’re excited about being the first tech company to draft and now implement a Community Benefits Agreement, which will help us build and foster long-lasting and meaningful relationships with the residents, businesses, community leaders, and other neighborhood stakeholders in Central Market and the Tenderloin.”

As part of qualifying for the Central Market / Tenderloin Payroll Expense Tax Exclusion, Zendesk entered into a Community Benefits Agreement with the City earlier this week. The company has committed to implementing a number of programs that will benefit the neighborhood and its residents, including support for community gardens, job training programs, access to technology, and a commitment to engage local restaurants and business for event catering and other services.

In November 2011 Pearl’s Deluxe Burgers opened their fourth location in Central Market. The award-winning restaurant was able to locate in Central Market with help from the San Francisco Redevelopment Agency, a loan from the City’s Central Market Cultural District Loan Fund and the Payroll Expense Tax Exclusion. They have created 16 new jobs as a result of their new location.

“It is an exciting and historic time to do business in Central Market,” said Pearl’s Deluxe Burgers Owner Sylvia Yi. “Sixth Street is fast becoming a comfort food corridor, and we are lucky to be a part of it. Innovative incentives like the payroll expense tax exemption will continue to entice other businesses to our area and keep the entrepreneurial momentum going in burgeoning Central Market. Kudos to Mayor Lee and his office for their commitment to revitalize this neighborhood. It is happening with great speed and much success thus far!”

The attraction and expansion of large employers and small businesses to Central Market is a cornerstone of the Mayor’s recently-launched Central Market Economic Strategy, the result of a 10-month public process that has resulted in a comprehensive roadmap to stabilize, revitalize and transform Central Market. Enhanced safety services are one of the primary components of the Economic Strategy, which includes the City’s Central Market Community Safety Ambassadors Program. To read the Central Market Economic Strategy, go to: www.centralmarketpartnership.org.

“Making capital available to San Francisco’s small businesses is the key to supporting economic growth in our neighborhoods and creating new jobs,” said Mayor Lee. “There is nothing worse than seeing vacant store fronts on our vibrant neighborhood commercial corridors. I will continue to identify additional capital to leverage the success of the revolving loan fund to support existing small businesses and help entrepreneurs looking to open up shop.”

Mayor Lee will introduce the $1 million supplemental budget appropriation at the Board of Supervisors today with co-sponsorship by Board President David Chiu and Supervisors Mark Farrell, Christina Olague and Scott Wiener.

The Mayor’s $1 million budget supplemental leverages Wells Fargo’s contribution of $430,000 to the RLF combined with an additional $247,000 from small business loan repayments and the SOMA Stabilization Fund. Wells Fargo funding will be specifically targeted to businesses in low- and moderate-income commercial districts in the Southeast Sector of the City.

“Wells Fargo is glad to work with San Francisco Mayor Edwin M. Lee to provide capital to small businesses in San Francisco’s southeast sector,” said Wells Fargo’s Executive Vice President and President of San Francisco Bay Region Michael Billeci. “As the number one lender to small businesses in the San Francisco Bay Area, we know the critical role they play in job creation, economic development and helping neighborhoods thrive.”

Mayor Lee made the announcement at Brenda’s French Soul Food at 652 Polk Street. Brenda’s is a recipient of a Working Solutions small business loan and has also benefited from the City’s SF Shines Facade Improvement Program which provides small grants to businesses in a number of low- and moderate-income neighborhood commercial districts. With funding from Opportunity Fund and Wells Fargo, Brenda’s opened on Polk Street in August 2007. Her business was an instant success, often bursting at the seams with people waiting for a table. With financial assistance from the Revolving Loan Fund, Brenda’s expanded to the vacant Laundromat next door, doubling the space and capacity of the business in 2011.

“It was always my dream to open a restaurant in a gritty neighborhood, where everyone would be welcome,” said Brenda’s French Soul Food Owner and Executive Chef Brenda Buenviaje. “The Lower Polk District turned out to be the perfect location in which I could recreate and serve the food of my childhood.”

The City’s Revolving Loan Fund, managed by the Office of Economic and Workforce Development and administered by TMC Working Solution, was launched in July of 2009 with the intention of creating jobs and increasing access to capital. To date, OEWD and TMC have successfully administered the entire $670,000 loan fund, and have supported 27 San Francisco small businesses and have generated 73 jobs.

“We are delighted about these new funds available from the City of San Francisco to help entrepreneurs start and grow local businesses,” said Working Solutions Executive Director Emily Gasner. “And we are eager to hear from small businesses interested in applying.”

While RLF funds will be available to small businesses Citywide, it is also an instrumental tool in the City’s neighborhood economic development strategy, helping catalyze economic activity in targeted commercial corridors. Lower Polk is one of 11 neighborhoods included in the City’s Neighborhood Marketplace Initiative (NMI) neighborhood economic development program. NMI, a partnership between the Office of Economic and Workforce Development, the Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC), and community stakeholders, has laid the groundwork for Mayor’s Invest in Neighborhoods strategy, which is part of his 17-point Roadmap to Good Jobs and Opportunity plan.

“Small businesses are the backbone of our local economy,” said Mayor Villaraigosa at the East Los Angeles BusinessSource Center. “We are reopening the BusinessSource Centers to give entrepreneurs the tools they need to create jobs and grow their businesses.”

The LA BusinessSource program is part of the Mayor’s Office of Small Business’ effort to expand support for key job creators in LA. The city is home to 325,000 small businesses making LA the largest small business community in the country.

The six new centers replace the LA Business Assistance Program which served the city for 11 years. In 2010, the Mayor’s Office of Small Business and the Community Development Department realized that the LA Business Assistance Program was in need of improvement. The two offices worked together to find a new system that includes performance metrics to more efficiently track the success of the program as a whole.

“The Los Angeles BusinessSource Center provides the kind of real-world expertise, training and support that businesses need in these challenging economic times,” said Councilmember José Huizar. “Along with the nearly $2 billion in public investment that Boyle Heights has seen in recent years, the new LABSC office, operated by Barrio Planners, is a much-needed asset that will truly benefit this community.”

For the first time, the revamped LA BusinessSource centers will offer the same synchronized and streamlined services by full-time staff throughout the city. They will focus on reducing bureaucratic red tape so businesses can create jobs faster. Project managers will help businesses navigate City services including permitting and contracting processes.

Annette Lopez, who runs the Porter Junction Café, was able to open after taking training courses at the East LA BusinessSource. The Center helped her get financing, assisted with application and requirements of LA County Environmental Health Department, helped with an application to the City for the painting of a curb designating temporary parking zone, and helped develop marketing strategies.

“We’ve been a staple in the community for decades,” said Sandra Berg of Pacific Resource Recovery. “The LA BusinessSource Center enabled us to keep our business going by helping us get a successful and speedy application for a state permit.”

Open since 1929, Pacific Resource Recovery needed a renewal for their hazardous waste permit, a permit necessary for them to continue recycling. The business was provided assistance to receive their permit renewal by organizing presentations with key stakeholders and community organizations and testifying before state officials about the value and safety of the facility. The center also worked closely with the company’s director of human resources to recruit employees.

With the City’s new Local Preference Ordinance, passed in 2011, LA’s small companies now have an even greater opportunity to expand their business and create jobs by working with the City of LA. The center staff will help businesses leverage the local preference ordinance.

The Office of Small Business is an integral part of the Mayor’s five point plan to create jobs in LA by reducing red tape. The five points are: (1) reforming its business tax; (2) reducing red tape; (3) partnering for economic growth; (4) modernizing LAX and improving the Port of Los Angeles; and (5) building a 21st century transportation network.

All six LA BusinessSource Centers offer new services and cohesive goals, including:

• Specific job creation and job retention outcome goals
• Ability to assist businesses in navigating City services such as:permits; regulations; certifications (MBE/WBS/SBE/LBE); utilities
• Federal, State and Local procurement assistance
• Deliver a uniform level of service to all small businesses
• Monitoring and evaluation system
• Capacity to provide access to capital
• Contractual linkage with LA WorkSource system for Human Resources assistance and training needs
• Menu of specific and consistent business services such as:entrepreneurial training and workshops; city procurement information;
marketing; financial management
• One-on-one business consulting by professional consultants
• Marketing of federal, state and local business incentives
• Business Assistance Virtual Network (BAVN) registration and benefits

The centers are operated by different organizations but all serve under the umbrella of the Community Development Department and the Mayor’s Office of Small Business. The six locations and their operators are:

• North Valley Business Source Center run by the (VEDC) Valley Economic Development Center
• South Valley run by Initiating Change in Our Neighborhoods (ICON)
• Central / West BusinessSource Center run by (PACE) Pacific Asian Consortium in Employment.
• South Los Angeles BusinessSource Center run by (VSEDC) Vermont Slauson Economic Development Corporation
• Harbor BusinessSource Center run by Managed Career Solutions, Inc (MCS)
• East Los Angeles run by Barrio Planners Incorporated.

“Technology and new economy companies and the people behind them are the engines of innovation and job creation and, as cities, we must support policies that foster their growth and ensure our residents are educated and prepared for the 21st century economy,” said Mayor Lee. “Cities must be laboratories for innovation across the nation to create new jobs, improve government transparency and efficiency and build new public-private partnerships.”

Mayor Lee will lead the USCM Technology and Innovation Task Force and discuss issues and policy areas including:
· Tax Reform – Finding ways to reform the tax structure to ensure it is equitable across all business sectors, including tech;
· CEO Engagement – Working with CEO’s of companies large and small to ensure that the business environment in cities continues to attract entrepreneurs while allowing companies to grow and succeed;
· A New Economy Apprenticeship Program – Create a new workforce strategy that trains local residents for the new, high tech economy, whether entry-level or mid-career;
· Access to Public Data – Make government information and public data more accessible to allow private companies to develop innovative applications and services for public benefit.
· Maintaining a Tech Friendly Ecosystem – Work to ensure cities provide the competitive advantage when seeking talent by enhancing quality of life, such as parks and open space, and public transportation that attract and inspire creative minds and talent.

A Task Force is created by the President of the USCM to address individual issues requiring the immediate attention of a select group of mayors. Task Force recommendations are submitted to the organization as a whole and generally serve as the basis for USCM policy positions.

By State law, all redevelopment agencies in California will be eliminated by February 1, 2012.

“San Francisco will not let the elimination of redevelopment agencies impede our progress in moving the City forward. We will keep creating jobs, boosting economic development and building critical infrastructure in our City. Our continued progress on developing affordable housing, revitalizing blighted neighborhoods and generating the resources for urban infill development must continue,” said Mayor Lee. “We will make good on our promises from Hunters Point to Mission Bay to Central Market to the many communities who have worked hard for so many years on these projects, and we will show an unwavering commitment to our investors as we deliver on these projects.”

Mayor Lee highlighted in his Inauguration Address on Sunday the importance of redevelopment as a tool for innovation and the challenges San Francisco faces in the elimination of the redevelopment agency. In recent years, the City has leveraged the powers of redevelopment to build more than 11,000 units of affordable housing, create a growing biotech hub, a new UCSF Hospital and a new salesforce.com campus at Mission Bay. Using the tools of redevelopment, the City has built world class convention facilities and museums around Yerba Buena Garden, and is on the verge of 10,000 new housing units and hundreds of acres of new parks and commercial space at the renewed Hunters Point Shipyard.

The City must transfer assets, obligations and functions into a successor agency of the San Francisco Redevelopment Agency. The resolution introduced by the Mayor and Supervisor Cohen ensures that major projects and affordable housing can move forward.

The resolution will ensure that the obligations tied to the Mission Bay, Hunters Point Shipyard, and parts of Transbay will be transferred to the City. The Mayor’s Office will explore the creation of a successor entity to implement and carry through the functions necessary to meet these obligations. The City will move forward the existing affordable housing goals and commitments by transferring functions to the Mayor’s Office of Housing, working with the state on legislative responses, and working locally to develop new tools to finance affordable housing. And, the City will continue workforce and local hire programs that directly benefit low-income and at-risk populations by seeking alternative sources of funding including the General Fund. The City will adopt and continue neighborhood revitalization efforts including small business support, corridor façade improvement and public realm improvements.

State law requires the creation of a new Oversight Board to oversee fiscal management of former Agency assets other than affordable housing assets. The Oversight Board will approve certain changes to obligations and new agreements and implement enforceable agreements, including review and approval for issuing bonds. The resolution designates that the Oversight Board to exercise authority in land use, development and design approvals under the enforceable obligations for Mission Bay, Hunters Point Shipyard and parts of Transbay.

The Oversight Board will include seven members, four appointed by the Mayor, one appointed by the Superintendent of the San Francisco Unified School District, one appointed by the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges and one appointed by Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART). Today, Mayor Lee nominated San Francisco Planning Director John Rahaim, Mayor’s Office of Housing Director Olson Lee, Controller’s Office of Public Finance Nadia Sesay and IFPTE Local 21, AFL-CIO Executive Director Bob Muscat.

The new 400,000 square foot lease will expand salesforce.com’s downtown San Francisco campus by approximately 50 percent. The expansion is in addition to salesforce.com’s 2010 purchase of 14 acres in Mission Bay for the company’s Mission Bay campus.

“Salesforce.com’s decision to continue their expansion in San Francisco is positive proof that our City and its workforce are perfect for growing technology and innovation companies,” said Mayor Lee. “I look forward to watching salesforce.com’s continued success as we work together to continue to create jobs right here in San Francisco.”

“We’re thrilled to announce a major expansion to our downtown San Francisco campus,” said salesforce.com Chief Operating Officer George Hu. “This expansion is critical to fuel salesforce.com’s ongoing growth and ability to attract the best talent in the industry. We are grateful to Mayor Lee and his team for their support in ensuring that we can continue to thrive in this world-class city.”

Today’s announcement coincides with the release of year end numbers by real estate firm Jones, Lang, LaSalle reporting that 2011 saw 3.3 million square feet of office spaced leased by technology companies in San Francisco. This represents 35 percent of the 9.5 million square feet of office spaced leased in San Francisco in 2011. According to Jones, Lang, LaSalle, the City saw 1.8 million square feet of net absorption in 2011 – the highest positive net since 1988. The City’s 2011 year end office vacancy rate was 14.6 percent, down from 17.1 percent in 2010.

The implementation of Mayor Lee’s Start Here, Grow Here, Stay Here economic strategy and the Mayor’s leadership in partnering with the Board of Supervisors on the Central Market Payroll Tax Exclusion and Stock Option Payroll Tax Reform has made San Francisco a more competitive environment to attract, retain and grow the tech industry.

“San Francisco is home to some of the world’s greatest entrepreneurs, the ones who have ‘disrupted’ numerous industries and made our City a hub for innovation,” said Mayor Lee. “The challenge now is to bring those same disruptive technologies to make government more accountable and engaged, and make San Francisco, the world’s first City 2.0.”

“Rather than passively hoping that innovation trickles into our City’s bureaucracy, we are proactively establishing relationships with the many innovative sectors in order to tap into the best ideas, talent, funding sources and other resources that will improve City government,” said Board of Supervisors President David Chiu.

A San Francisco based nonprofit, Code for America (CfA) helps governments work better with the people and power of the web. Over the past two years, it has worked with dozens of cities and hundreds of developers to build innovative technology for government. This new initiative, the CfA Accelerator, will help make those innovations – and others like them – sustainable, scalable, and profitable.

“Together with the City of San Francisco, this year we will be opening the doors to City Hall to the country’s great entrepreneurs,” said Code for America Founder Jennifer Pahlka. “As we’ve seen from disruptive companies like TurboTax, SeeClickFix, and Socrata, there’s a real opening for new businesses in the civic space; we want to turn those examples from the exception into the norm. We want entrepreneurs everywhere asking, ‘How can I disrupt government?’”

The CfA Accelerator has already received strong support. Google and the Kauffman Foundation have provided the initial funding to launch the program, and angel investor Ron Conway has agreed to advise the program and mentor the startup companies.

The Code for America partnership will include: identifying opportunity areas within City Hall, hosting a Citywide app competition where teams compete on prototyping solutions, and selecting the winning applications which will enter the Accelerator. Also, during the program, the City will help the startups test and refine their products. Code for America will be reaching out to other cities to join San Francisco in this partnership.

The CfA Accelerator will begin with an open call for applications from startups in the Spring, and launch its first acceleration cycle in Fall 2012.

More information on the CfA Accelerator, go to: codeforamerica.org/accelerator .

Mayor Lee also announced the first of its kind appointment in the nation of Jay Nath as the City’s first Chief Innovation Officer in the Mayor’s Office, a role established by Mayor Lee to introduce new ideas and approaches to make City government more transparent, efficient and constituent focused. Jay Nath has been with the City for five years in his previous role as Director of Innovation with the Department of Technology and has led the City’s Open Data efforts and is well regarded in the Gov 2.0 space. The Chief Innovation Officer will continue working closely with the Department of Technology and other City agencies to ensure that technology is a driver of change in City government and support the Mayor’s initiatives to engage the tech industry in boosting job creation and civic participation in San Francisco.

Mayor Lee’s 17-Point Roadmap to Good Jobs and Opportunity includes making government more responsive and effective. By making government data – from Muni GPS locations to library hours – available to programmers through the City’s DataSF initiative, innovative new apps and programs were created that City government never dreamed of. Mayor Lee will go further, opening up the City’s small business permitting and licensing systems to the army of programmers and web designers in the City to help make them more efficient and easier to navigate for every business and resident through open source solutions.

“The Clean Truck Program has greened our port for the long haul and ensured Angelenos will breathe cleaner air for generations to come,” Mayor Villaraigosa said. “We have proven that we can increase economic and environmental sustainability at the same time. With $1.5 billion worth of investments in capital improvement projects over the next five years, we plan to keep the Port’s status as the nation’s premier trade gateway.”

Responding to the Mayor’s call for a comprehensive strategy for cutting port-related emissions, the Port of Los Angeles developed the Clean Truck Program – a plan to reduce pollution and offset public health risks from Port trucks. Through the program, the Port of Los Angeles offered incentives to purchase Clean Trucks while enacting a progressive truck ban with associated fees.

“The Port of Los Angeles, along with our industry partners, has made the business of moving cargo cleaner,” said Port Executive Director Geraldine Knatz, Ph.D., “The results speak for themselves, and we couldn’t be more proud of reaching this milestone.”

The Port exceeded the goal of reducing harmful emissions from trucks alone by at least 80 percent and did so ahead of schedule. Emission studies show that since 2005, emissions from trucks alone have been reduced dramatically\, including a 92% reduction in sulfur oxides, an 89% reduction in diesel particulate matter, and a 77% reduction in nitrogen oxides– the primary pollutants associated with smog and asthma.

“The American Lung Association in California congratulates the City of Los Angeles for its continued efforts to reduce lung damaging pollutants in our air,” said Jane Warner, President and CEO of the American Lung Association in California. “Important efforts such as the Clean Trucks Program will, over time, protect millions of lives and save California much more than it ever will cost.”

Overall, the Port has reduced sulfur oxide emissions by 76%, diesel particulate matter by 69%, and nitrogen oxides by 50%. These numbers surpass the original goal to cut 45% of total Port emissions.

“Today we are celebrating a national model that has set the bar for what it takes to create healthy neighborhoods for port area residents while promoting a vital port economy.” said Patricia Castellanos, LAANE Deputy Director and Chair of the Coalition for Clean and Safe Ports. ”Above all we applaud the Villaraigosa administration for their commitment to the program’s long-term sustainability that promises the creation of good jobs and reduction of toxic diesel rig emissions for years to come.”

The plan has allowed the port to grow while ensuring that environmental impacts on our communities are reduced and the environmental benefits are sustained. The Port is continuing its greening efforts by fostering new green technologies, including a pilot program for a commercially feasible zero-emission truck.

“The Clean Truck Program provided a clear roadmap for forward-thinking businesses to compete without dirty trucks,” said David Petitt, Director of the Southern California Air Program for the Natural Resources Defense Council, “Its success represents a major step towards our climate and clean air goals, bringing relief to millions of Californians whose health has been negatively affected by diesel truck pollution.”

The Port of Los Angeles is the leading destination for imports from Asia, the nation’s number one port center based on trade volume and the number one customs district. Upcoming projects will expand capacity and opportunities for exporters to grow their operations with manufacturing space and increased movement of goods.

For example, the Port’s main channel deepening project will allow the world’s largest ships to call at all of the Port’s terminals. The China Shipping terminal is doubling in size to include 142 acres as well as an additional 2,500 feet of wharf space. Additionally, three new roadway and rail infrastructure improvement projects amount to more than $250 million in investments that will make it easier for goods to get to market.

More than 43,000 direct jobs are connected to marine terminal operations at the Port, and it is estimated that every $1 billion in exports creates 5,500 jobs in LA. That is why growing the Port is an integral part of the Mayor’s five point plan to create jobs in LA. The five points are: (1) reforming its business tax; (2) reducing red tape; (3) partnering for economic growth; (4) modernizing LAX and improving the Port of Los Angeles; and (5) building a 21st century transportation network.