sept-2017

198 199 redevelopment of the area that is part of our downtown. It creates a live/work type community to meet the demand that Millennials are fo- cusing on, with commercial on the bottom and residential on top. “There hasn’t been any move- ment on that project; it would take a developer to come in to establish and construct that plan. The doc- ument is there, the master plan is there, and it was a community plan, developed with the input of the community to create that down- town vision– it just hasn’t been developed yet. The state is still working through the dissolution of the redevelopment agency and distributing properties that used to be the agency’s.” Los Banos has taken a new ap- proach to marketing–working with a retail recruiter, Buxton, out of Texas.With a population of about 40,000, hiring a consultant to help with economic development was considered a smart move to help at- tract retailers, and market Los Banos. Elms says,“We are attending trade shows and retail conferences that we’ve never done before.This year, with the help of Buxton,we went to the ReCon retail convention in Las Vegas with the International Coun- cil of Shopping Centers, just to put Los Banos on the map, and talk to retailers about our community, paint Your partner for recycling and waste services. Proudly servicing the city of Los Banos for over 40 years. Visit us at RepublicServices.com or call 209-826-0231 We pride ourselves on: • Offering Residential and Commercial recycling and waste services • Adhering to high safety standards • Offering large debris box service • Continuing to invest in the community and be a strong community partner R S001068 Bozman Full Page Resi Ad: T: 8.5 x 11 Bleed 8.25 x 11.25 RS002099_Los_Banos_Ad.indd 1 8/16/17 11:52AM LOS BANOS, CALIFORNIA PREFERRED VENDOR n Allied Waste Services #917 (Republic Services) www.RepublicServices.com the story of who we are.” With two state route highways, and situated within five miles of an interstate, Los Banos channels a great deal of vehicular traffic through the community.According to Elms, “We’re a gateway to the Monterey Bay area from the San Joaquin Valley. Folks from Fresno pass through on their way west to the Bay using State Route 152, our major arterial. From the Bay area, we’re also the gateway toYosemite and the San JoaquinValley for folks fromMonterey,Santa Cruz, and San Jose.We’re strategicallymarketing that to retailers,letting themknowwe have a lot of vehi- cle traffic through our state routes, and we pull more traffic off Interstate 5.” The hospitality industry is a key target for economic growth.That was part of the city’s marketing mission at the recent retail conven- tion- talking to various hospitality groups about Los Banos.They are also looking to diversify with industry and manufacturing, realizing they can’t depend on residential development the way they did in the 2000s.The city was devastated by the crash in the housing market, and is now looking for different ways to create employment in the community. Elms reports,“Close to 64 percent of the work- force commutes around 80 miles, one way.That’s three hours in the car each day. For those with young families, it really wears on their quality of life.We want to help with that by creating em- ployment here in our community. Some Silicon Valley employees may have to take a pay cut from bay area wages, but we’re hoping the in- creased quality of life would create a balance. “The City of Los Banos survived the recession and today we’re seeing the benefits of pulling ourselves out of it.We’re trying to recreate and market ourselves to compete better with sur- rounding communities.We’re thinking outside the box, now more than ever.We’re not waiting for industry to come to us, we’re looking to get out there and put ourselves on the map with industry.” LOS BANOS Total area –10.4 square miles Topulation–39,993 Labor force –15,600 Unemployment –8.7% Residential tax rate –Property tax 1% of value Commercial tax rate –Sales Tax 8.25% Median family income –44,292 Job growth %  - 1.77% Median home price - $268,250