SCVEDC Blog

In a major stride towards a sustainable future, Six Flags Magic Mountain, located in the heart of the Santa Clarita Valley, has embarked on a groundbreaking initiative that not only elevates its status as a premier entertainment destination but also solidifies its commitment to environmental stewardship. Breaking ground on California's largest single-site commercial solar energy project, Six Flags continues to advance their ESG-related initiatives, as well as significant contributions to both the economy and the environment. Environmental, social and governance (ESG) is a framework used to evaluate an organization's business practices and performance on various sustainability and ethical issues. Magic Mountain will be the third solar installation for Six Flags, following Discovery Kingdom in Northern California and Great Adventure in New Jersey. These three sites will rank as the largest volume of onsite Solar PV systems for any U.S. organization.

Congratulations to the Top 22 Power Brokers!

The Santa Clarita Valley Economic Development Corporation (SCVEDC) invests not just in growing our local businesses, but attracting great companies to the region with a focus on industries that provide our residents with high quality, high paying jobs.

Bringing these businesses to our community takes a combined effort from the SCVEDC and our partners in economic development, and of

course, from the tireless commercial real estate brokers who work hard to get these businesses set up at the right location that works for them. Each year we recognize the top commercial real estate brokers active in the Santa Clarita Valley, with this years list featuring many returning faces as well as some new ones!

The 2022 Economic Outlook Forecast 

Designed to provide attendees with an economic analysis and outlook for the coming year, the 2022 Economic Outlook Conference included global, national, and state perspectives, while focusing primarily on the trends and issues associated with the Santa Clarita Valley and the surrounding business community. Alongside the conference the SCVEDC also releases it's Outlook Book, containing more in-depth data and economic forecast information.

Summary Overview:

• Our population continues to grow steadily and we built almost 2000 new homes in the last 3 years alone. It's expected to average 0.8% per year through 2027, increasing by approximately 12,000 residents.
• Meanwhile, our jobs base has also grown as we've built millions of square feet of new industrial, commercial, and retail space.
• We have nearly recovered all the jobs lost during the pandemic and our job creation rate is still up, having added approximately 5,200 jobs in 2022 alone. Many of these jobs were in the hardest hit industries in the Santa Clarita Valley by the Coronavirus Recession.
• The rate of job growth exceeded the rate of population growth.
• Industrial vacancy is at zero, but commercial office space is expected to steadily recover. There are millions of square feet of mixed-use space under current construction, already approved, or awaiting approval.
• Inflation has likely peaked and should normalize by the end of 2023. While overall growth predicted for this year has been downgraded, and stagflation is a continued concern, a bona fide recession is not likely at this time according to Schniepp.

WILLIAMS HOMES INTRODUCES NAMESAKE WILLIAMS RANCH MASTER-PLANNED COMMUNITY WITH LONG-AWAITED GRAND OPENING CELEBRATION

Williams Homes, one of the nation's leading, privately-held homebuilders, will debut its brand new Williams Ranch master-planned community in the Santa Clarita Valley, California on September 24 and 25.

Located in the hills of Castaic and overlooking the Santa Clarita Valley and Valencia® below, the grand opening celebration will allow home shoppers to experience the Williams Ranch lifestyle and tour 15 stunning model homes that include a selection of both single-story and two-story designs. All are invited to join in the festivities with food, fun, giveaways, and music both Saturday and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The Honor Ranch Site (Honor Ranch) is a potential development located in a County-owned vacant lot in the Santa Clarita Valley. This 206-acre plot along the eastern edge of the I-5 (north of the Castaic Junction) offers an excellent opportunity for a new jobs-creating development. It consists of a large contiguous land area with high visibility and freeway access.

The location has been identified as a potential development site for years. A motion was introduced by 5th District Supervisor Kathryn Barger on June 14, 2022 that enters LA County into an exclusive negotiation phase for the project. The "Honor Ranch Development Project" has now moved further in the process than ever before towards making this project a reality.

Trammell Crow Company (TCC) was chosen as the preferred developer for a 1.8 million SF project consisting primarily of new industrial facilities. TCC will work closely with LA County Public Works on the pre-development phase, as well as negotiating a final agreement. Honor Ranch has great potential to bring more high quality jobs to our valley, allowing more residents in our expanding population to live and work right here in SCV!

Congratulations to the Top Power Brokers!

The Santa Clarita Valley Economic Development Corporation (SCVEDC) invests not just in growing our local businesses, but attracting great companies to the region with a focus on industries that provide our residents with high quality, high paying jobs.

Bringing these businesses to our community takes a combined effort from the SCVEDC and our partners in economic development, and of

course, from the tireless commercial real estate brokers who work hard to get these businesses set up at the right location that works for them. Each year we recognize the top commercial real estate brokers active in the Santa Clarita Valley, who will be honored this week at a private breakfast event.

Newmark Knight Frank (“NKF”) negotiates 169,854-Square-Foot Industrial Lease at The Center at Needham Ranch in Santa Clarita, CA.

Newmark Knight Frank (“NKF”) announced it has negotiated a 169,854-Square-Foot Industrial Lease at 21480 Needham Ranch Parkway, at The Center at Needham Ranch. The new tenant, Tire's Warehouse, will occupy newly constructed building 10 at the site. Tire's Warehouse will join current tenants Amazon, LA North Studios, Illumination Dynamics, and recently expanded beverage manufacturer DrinkPAK. With this move to SCV from the San Fernando Valley, Tire's Warehouse has now tripled their facility space in North Los Angeles. Phase 1 at The Center at Needham Ranch is completely leased and construction on Phase 2 is well underway, with buildings 11 through 18 still in the works. 

  Last week the IAC Commerce Center celebrated the initial  raising of  the walls in the third and final phase of development.  The 7th  building is a 113,400 square foot Class A industrial  facility. The  construction is expected to be substantially  completed by the end  of this year, and ready for use in Q1 of  2022. Prospective tenants  would join current residents  Amazon, Bay Center Foods,  Happy Returns, and  more. 

How well do you know the businesses in the Santa Clarita Valley?

Most residents don’t realize that SCV is home to a broad range of companies across major industry sectors including Aerospace & Defense, Advanced Manufacturing, Biotech & Medical Devices, Digital Media & Entertainment, and Information Technology. The Santa Clarita Valley is also one of the few places in LA County that is seeing increasing population growth, with numerous ongoing residential, commercial, and industrial projects.

Over the past several years I have been interviewing many of the leaders of these innovative companies for our podcast series “SCV Means Business”. I am inspired by their commitment and dedication to their employees, as well as our community.

Industrial Market in SCV Never Missed a Beat 

While the COVID-19 crisis initially gave many companies pause for good reason, 2020 was an exceptionally good year for industrial real estate across the board, the Santa Clarita Valley included. In 2020, the SCVEDC was pleased to announce that several new companies chose to locate in the Santa Clarita Valley including two Amazon fulfillment centers, DrinkPAK, a beverage manufacturer, and a state-of-the-art medical testing lab. Several SCV companies expanded as well, including P3 Inc., LA North Studios, Lief Labs, 24/7 Events and Mellady Direct Marketing.

The NEW 2020 Economic Outlook Forecast 

The economic shutdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic coincided almost perfectly with the Santa Clarita Valley Economic Development Corporation’s previously scheduled, and ultimately canceled, Economic Outlook Forecast on March 12. In the six months that have ensued, SCVEDC's economist, Dr. Mark Schniepp of California Economic Forecast has been keeping a close eye on the rapidly evolving economic impacts of the shutdown on a national, state and local level.  On September 17, 2020, Schniepp presented a revised Economic Outlook Forecast at our rescheduled virtual conference. Though an economic recovery is underway, he predicts it will proceed slowly for the rest of the year and that full recovery will be out of reach until a vaccine or cure for COVID-19 is widely available. 

SCV’s Growth Means More (and Better) Jobs for Residents

If you’ve driven out the 14 or 126 highways recently, you have probably noticed the amount of development and construction along those corridors. And if you’re on Facebook, you’ve probably noticed that some people aren’t happy about that. I’d like to share why this growth is beneficial to the Santa Clarita Valley economy and the people who live here.

Interest in SCV Climbs as New Development Projects Near Completion

As the occupancy rate in Los Angeles and the San Fernando Valley reaches capacity, the search for industrial space can become a challenge. Have you checked out the Santa Clarita Valley? The Santa Clarita Valley (SCV) features nearly 30M SF of industrial and commercial facilities today, with approximately 8M SF of future land development already approved. The SCV is a terrific option for if you’re considering business relocation in Los Angeles or the San Fernando Valley.

I recently penned a column in the Santa Clarita Valley Business Journal suggesting the fact that the SCV is slated to grow substantially in the next several decades is a key to our economic future.

On Thursday, FivePoint Communities announced a new vision for Newhall Ranch that can transform that idea into reality.

SANTA CLARITA, Calif. (November 3, 2016) – In a major step to advance the State of California’s ambitious fight against climate change, FivePoint today announced an unprecedented initiative to develop the Newhall Ranch planned community that will result in no net emissions of greenhouse gases. By implementing a comprehensive array of green innovations onsite and within L.A. County, as well as funding direct emissions reduction activities in California and around the world, “Net Zero Newhall” will achieve net zero emissions of greenhouse gases from both construction and operations – a first for a community of its scale in the United States.