In This Issue --San Francisco News & Rankings --SFO Dear Investors, Colleagues and Friends: Thanks to a strong economic recovery, growth in target sectors, and support and collaboration with a number of partners (including the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce), the SFCED continues to receive multiple requests for information, relocation assistance, and confidential help from companies interested in locating or expanding in the San Francisco Bay Area. More than 40 percent of our inquiries originate from the website (www.sfced.org). In order to continue to build on this success, a major upgrade of the site, with enhanced content and search capabilities, is underway. Year-to-date (through October 31), 155 companies have requested assistance, and 90 have opted for direct proposals for relocation or expansion options. Professional services, Biotechnology, IT, and Clean Green Technology companies continue to be the most active, with an almost equal split between foreign and domestic concerns. On the biotechnology front, The SFCED extends congratulations to Sirna Therapeutics, one of the SFCED’s first “client companies,” for their acquisition by industry leader Merck. This is an important milestone for Sirna, which relocated to Mission Bay from Colorado in 2005, and an affirmation of San Francisco’s continued preeminence and positioning as a leader in life sciences, particularly among emerging companies who are in their Phase II funding cycles. In other news related to a strong economy and bold, signature projects, the TransBay Terminal project has launched a major international design competition for its new residential tower, and the redevelopment of Treasure Island is moving ahead through the concept and approvals process. California and the Bay Area’s leadership and sustainable building and energy practices continues to be affirmed both at the ballot box and by global leaders and public policy “think tanks.” Your SFCED is placing its resources behind these growth sectors to take maximum advantage of the areas with the greatest potential for growth, both in the short and long-term. We welcome your input, suggestions, and market intelligence, and thank you for an excellent 2006. Our Annual Meeting for SFCED Investors will take place in January 2007, and more details will follow shortly. In the meantime, we extend our thanks for your ongoing support, and wish you a happy holiday season, and a prosperous new year. Sincerely, Dennis J. Conaghan Economic Survey - As San Francisco continues to develop and implement its economic strategy, your perspective and comments are important. Please take 15 minutes to complete the Survey of Business Barriers, an opportunity to offer feedback to the city on business challenges and opportunities. Please Click here to complete this confidential survey. On the Road - Dennis Conaghan and SF Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Steve Falk participated in the Business Civic Leadership Center’s (BCLC) annual conference. The conference attracted business and strategic thought leaders to help assess corporate civic involvement in urban planning, public-private partnerships and communication affecting community development. The SFCED also reached out to more than 60 companies at the recent Solar Power Conference and Expo in San Jose. The SFCED is working with several companies identified through the conference which have a serious interest in a San Francisco location. SFCED Hosts Delegates from Wuhan, China - As part of our focus on international trade and development, the SFCED recently hosted a day-long summit with representatives from Wuhan, China (please see map below). Wuhan officials met with potential partners for the development of Wuhan’s Central Business District, a major mixed-use project slated for build-out over the next decade. SFCED investors Gensler, Degenkolb Engineers and Huntsman Architects were among the firms presenting their credentials and experience with large-scale design and engineering projects.  Source: Google Maps SFCED Collaborates with the Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation - The SFCED will join forces with Tekes, the Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation, to host a delegation looking at centralizing health database information. The Agency is designing a program to centralize the Finnish health database system and to connect this new program to existing and future IT systems. With recommendations from the SFCED and Tekes, the delegates will meet with local IT leaders and health care organizations to discuss possible options and collaborative partnerships. Please contact Olivia Jenq, Senior Director of Development and Global Partnerships, for more information (ojenq@sfced.org). Unemployment - San Francisco’s unemployment rate continues to fall below the average for California. While the City’s unemployment numbers decreased in recent months to 4.5%, California’s percentage rose to 4.9 percent.
Employment by Sector - The most recent data indicates professional and business services lead all sectors, with a 19% share, followed closely by trade, transportation, and utilities at 17%, and government and leisure/hospitality each at 13 percent. Consumer Price Index - Consumer price indices (CPI) for San Francisco and the West region have steadily increased over the last six years. San Francisco’s CPI remains higher than the West Region’s average with the highest margin from 2001 – 2004. Currently, the trend lines appear to be converging, with the differential gap diminishing.
 Source: DataQuick Information Systems Building Permits - The latest number of building permits have slightly increased from the 2nd quarter. Although not reaching the levels made in the 1st part of 2006, the current numbers are still overall higher compared to 2005. Commercial Real Estate Rents - The commercial rental market remains stable, average class A rates city wide are in the $38 range with some central business prime locations exceeding $50 per square foot. The City has experienced 13 quarters of positive absorption. Citywide vacancy rates continue to decline to the current 11.6% with slight increases in rental rates and declines in vacancy.
SAN FRANCISCO NEWS & RANKINGS Condé Nast Traveler Magazine Annual Poll Names San Francisco #1 …again, and again, and again! Once again, San Francisco is voted the #1 U.S. City by the Condé Nast Traveler Magazine’s 19th Annual Readers’ Choice Awards. San Francisco has been #1 for 18 of the last 19 annual polls, beating #2 Santa Fe and #3 New York. The results are from the Readers’ Choice Survey, the largest independent poll of consumer preferences. San Francisco Continues to Dominate as the Biotech Hub San Francisco and the rest of California remain biotechnology’s preferred place of business. According to the California Healthcare Institute, biotechnology accounted for $62 billion in revenue, and nearly half of the $5.9 billion in venture capital invested in the industry nationwide flowed to California companies. With 260,000 employees statewide, biotech is a bigger employer than the aerospace, movie, and computer industries. SF Lures Gaming Industry’s Largest Confab San Francisco will be the 2007 destination of the annual Game Developers Conference (GDC), one of the video game industry’s largest conventions. Looking ahead to 2007, GDC has doubled the space it occupied in 2005, when it drew 12,000 international attendees. Based on the success of last year’s event, the San Francisco Convention & Visitors Bureau expects GDC’s economic impact to the city to total more than $13.6 million. SFO United Airlines announced recommencing non-stop flight service to Taipei, Taiwan beginning April, 2007. The planned additional flights to Korea, Hong Kong and now Taiwan will establish United as the world’s largest transpacific passenger carrier. For additional information or comments, please contact us at www.sfced.org or (415) 352-8853. |
