Santa Clarita is the most business-friendly city in L.A. County. At least according to a recent poll by the Los Angeles County Business Federation, which asked about infrastructure and job prospects among other questions.

“I am thrilled to see Santa Clarita’s long time commitment to being business friendly recognized by the county’s business leaders,” said Holly Schroeder, president and CEO of the Santa Clarita Valley Economic Development Corporation.

Nearly half of the respondents felt their local city was business friendly, up from 40 percent in 2016. Only 24 percent of respondents believed Los Angeles County is business friendly, and just 14 percent believed California state government is business friendly, echoing the sentiment from previous two years, according to the poll.

The City of Los Angeles, the largest city in the county, was ranked as the worst city in which to do business.

“Santa Clarita is a city that makes investment in economic development and views its business community as a true partner, and the results are clear that has an impact,” Schroeder said.

The poll also surveyed employment outlook among business leaders, which is mostly unchanged from the last two years.

About 41 percent of respondents say they are either slightly or much more likely to be hiring, the same percentage as 2016 and 2017, according to the poll.

Similarly, layoff anticipation is unchanged from 2017, with just 10 percent of employers expecting some or significant layoffs, according to the poll.

“The housing crisis affects all sectors and all people in Los Angeles County,” said Greg McWilliams, chief policy officer of FivePoint, the company developing the Newhall Ranch community in the western area of Santa Clarita. “What’s important to note is that taxes and fees halt development, resulting in less housing, business stagnation, higher rents, and higher rates of poverty. Everything is connected here and the business community is actively engaging in solutions that will grow our housing stock and resolving the crisis for L.A. residents.”

The emergence of housing as a major concern is also striking in this year’s poll – it moved from the 10th highest concern in 2017 to third in 2018, and was cited as the number one issue contributing to high poverty rates in L.A. County.

More than half of respondents (51.6%) identified housing as among the reasons business and jobs were leaving L.A. County or California.

For more information on the Los Angeles County Business Federation, visit their website here.

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