OPINION: Our Businesses Depend on San Diego Building More Housing
The following letter was sent Tuesday by the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce and 100 member businesses to mayors across San Diego County. The San Diego Chronicle decided to republish the letter.
Dear mayors across San Diego County,
We, the undersigned employers representing hundreds of thousands of jobs throughout the San Diego region, write to request your support of additional housing being built here. Housing that is affordable for our employees is a shared top priority, as we recognize that the housing deficit that has resulted in our current housing crisis is dangerous to our ability to retain and attract talent.
The importance of more homes being built cannot be understated. As employees are lured away from the high cost of San Diego, or are pushed into commutes that challenge our environmental goals and impair employees’ quality of life, our region becomes less competitive and we lose the vibrant, productive individuals and families that have much to contribute to our local communities. As employers who are committed to this region, we ask you to urgently and proactively prioritize home-building in your community to ensure that local businesses can retain their valued employees, and so we may continue to invest in the workforce pipelines of the future.
We are confident that our region will build its way out of the housing crisis, and that our workforce will be housed without draining commutes, challenging financial choices or lack of housing options. We are committed to working with you and supporting additional homes being brought to market with the urgency that our current situation demands.
The business community stands ready to help solve our housing crisis and appreciates your leadership.
Sincerely,
Jerry Sanders
San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce
Nancy Batterman
Employment & Community Options
Marilyn Hannes
SeaWorld San Diego
Chris Van Gorder
Scripps Health
Matthew Boomhower
Southern Cross Property Consultants
Neil Mohr
Republic Services
Salar Baktash
Let’s Insure
Sam Attisha
Cox Communications
Dan Feldman
Sunroad Enterprises
Lisa Kay
Alta Environmental
Bill Earley
West Health
Gabriel Perez Krieb
Chosen Foods
Dina Soliman
DeVry
Alessandra Lezama
AbacusNext
Joe Terzi
San Diego Tourism Authority
Tom Wornham
CalPrivate Bank
Keith B. Jones
Ace Parking
Donna Jones
Law Office of Donna Jones
Rita Brandin
Newland Communities
Ernesto Arredondo
Seacoast Commerce Bank
Neil Hyytinen
Hecht Solberg Robinson Goldberg & Bagley
Steve South
EDCO
Shane Beard
FastSigns
Cam Shultz
Fully Promoted
Borre Winckel
San Diego Building Industry Association
Mitch Mitchell
San Diego Gas & Electric Company
Diana Casey
Strauss Limited Partnership
Zach Stevens
Sygnal Systems
Alan Pentico
San Diego County Apartment Association
Patrick Shipley
Lytx Inc.
Ignacio De la Torre
AT&T
Phil Blair
Manpower
Jose Cruz
Barrio Logan College Institute
Jonathan Choi
Dart
Dimitrios Alexiou
Hospital Association of San Diego & Imperial Counties
Michael W. Murphy
Sharp HealthCare
Gilman Bishop
Bishop & Company
Kevin Mooney
General Dynamics NASSCO
Kathleen Strauss
3944 Third Ave. LLC
Adrian LeCesne
Law Office of Adrian LeCesne
Tom Tamar
City Wide Protection Services Inc.
Rikki Schroeder
RMA Consultants
Henry N. Tuttle
Health Center Partners of Southern California
Chris Yanov
Reality Changers
Steve Ruffner
KB Home
Chizuko Sugawara
San Diego Journey Tours Inc.
Joe Panetta
BIOCOM
Rhett McMurry
BOTE San Diego
Todd Lane
California Coast Credit Union
Debbie Carreno
360° Painting San Diego
Brian Strauss
Danube Properties Inc.
Don Clauson
Strat Property Management Inc.
Betsy Brennan
Downtown San Diego Partnership
Carlos Arzola
b+c Office Interiors
Carter Davis
Hope Credit
Chris Hammer
Energie Fuel Group LLLP
Randy Bogle
San Diego Military Advisory Council
Danny Fitzgerald
ENDEAVOR
Jane Finley
Kaiser Permanente
Michael Murphy
American Medical Response
Adam Jones
Retail Habitats
James Lawson
Presidio Public Affairs
Ed Plant
San Diego Refrigerated Services
Paul Hegyi
San Diego County Medical Society
David Leingang
McCain Inc.
Chris Duggan
California Restaurant Association
Connie Kirk
Imperial Beach Clinic
Daniel J. Ryan
Alexandria Real Estate
Scott Suckow
American Liver Foundation, Pacific Coast Division
Dr. Bob Brower
Point Loma Nazarene University
Kusaynyonon Mackenzie
Sophia + Sam LLC
Dr. Rakesh Patel
Neighborhood Health Care
Collin Smith
Cravory Cookies
Uchey Dijeh
California Hepatitis C Task Force
James Cliame
Net Result
Graeme McKenzie
DTOX Republic
Tiffany David
Total People Management
Lidia Martinez
Southwest Airlines
Craig Gavson
Hyginix LLC
Randy Strauss
SK4 LLC
Ari Isaak
Evari GIS Consulting Inc.
Scott M. McMillin
McMillin LLC
Sharla Mandere
Radiant Sunrise Wellness
Jacqueline Reynoso
National City Chamber of Commerce
Damon Goldstein
Truly Fine Wine/VentureSomm
Patty Maysent
UC San Diego Health
Chancellor Pradeep Khosla
UC San Diego
John Seymour
National Core
Elvin Lai
San Diego Hotel-Motel Association
Carrie Hessler-Radelet
Project Concern International
Dr. David Andrews
National University
Michael Johnson
Carrier Johnson
David Cherashore
Evans Hotels
Jim Schmid
Chelsea Investment Corporation
Teresa Stivers
Walden Family Services
William Short
Labcoat Group
Colin Parent
Circulate San Diego
Mike Asaro
Delawie
Mary Bixby
San Diego Charter School
Vilavanh Sanginthirath
Innovations City LLC
Dan L. Grabko
Jobtip Inc.
Dennis O’Connor
Thorn St. Brewing
