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FOR
THE RECORD As the public debate accelerates over the November ballot
issue on special reorganization for the Los Angeles portion of the San
Fernando Valley, it is important that the position of the Economic
Alliance be clarified on this issue. The geographic San Fernando Valley region is defined by
natural topography, and the partners and investors of the Economic
Alliance have generally accepted its description.
It is an area comprising the entire cities of Burbank, Calabasas,
Glendale, Hidden Hills, San Fernando and a portion of the City of Los
Angeles generally located to the north of Mulholland Drive. It also includes some unincorporated portions of Los Angeles
and Ventura Counties. Much of the media coverage of this cityhood issue refers to
the “San Fernando Valley breaking away from the City of Los Angeles”.
The question of separate cityhood only relates to the Los Angeles
portion of the Valley, not the cities of Burbank, Calabasas, Glendale,
Hidden Hills and San Fernando. They would remain the independent Valley municipalities they
are today. The Economic Alliance of the San Fernando Valley is a
regional economic development and marketing collaborative made up of
community leaders, businesses, government, and educational institutions.
Our organization’s mission is to grow and strengthen the entire
San Fernando Valley by providing research and information on the region,
attracting and retaining businesses and high quality jobs, improving
public education and workforce preparedness, and developing a regional
identity for the Valley. The
result of these efforts has been the ever-improving sense of community,
quality of life and prosperity we now enjoy throughout the five-city
Valley region. As an organization, the Economic Alliance is a public benefit
foundation, and as such, provides objective information to inform the
public debate on issues affecting our mission.
The Alliance has not taken a position on the special reorganization
(secession) issue and is only concerned with seeing that useful
information is developed to assist the community in making responsible
decisions for its collective future.
We will continue to focus on our mission, on good governance and on
our collaborative vision for the San Fernando Valley regardless of the
form its official government takes. A Board of Directors of 135 of the Valley’s leading
corporate and civic leaders governs the Economic Alliance.
Many of these individuals are passionately involved in one side or
the other of the special reorganization issue.
The Alliance encourages the civic involvement of all these
community leaders, however such involvement as individuals does not
represent any official position of the Economic Alliance. The 1.8 million residents of the San Fernando Valley (5% of
California's population) comprise an enormous regional powerhouse, with
over 70,000 businesses and more than 850,000 jobs.
With its vibrant, dynamic and diverse communities – the Economic
Alliance is pledged to keep the San Fernando Valley a world-class economic
region.
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