Barriers Deter Local Agencies in Supporting Development Activities

With over 27 years of experience in community economic development, Ricardo Noguera, the business development executive of Avenu, has maintained a strong commitment to revitalizing communities across the United States. Ricardo Noguera believes that economic activities are the core of a community, so local agencies should do everything they can to overcome the barriers that deter them from supporting local economic development work.

Mr. Noguera’s extensive work in community economic development has made him familiar these barriers, three of the most common of which are below.

1. Cities have been deemed as monopolies. This mindset tends to make local agencies believe that they should take care of services like park access or the water supply. But economic development requires partnerships with local companies. When a partnership is encouraged, economic development occurs more quickly.

2. Local officials change depending on election results. This makes the local agencies volatile at the level of elected officials. A 20-year plan for economic development may take longer to implement as council members and other officials change.

3. Social media platforms have been used to spread misinformation. Local agencies should count on local stakeholders to make revitalization possible through proactive communication strategies.

Union Landing Center - A Thriving East Bay Retail Location

Ricardo Noguera is a respected business development professional who serves as a client services manager with AVENU in Westlake Village, California, where he pursues coordinated real estate solutions. In the late 1990s, while serving as an economic development coordinator in Union City, California, Ricardo Noguera informed the planning and approval process associated with the retail center Union Landing.

A major retail development that boosted the economic profile of what was a small, blue-collar East Bay residential enclave, Union Landing was planned on 80 acres adjacent to Interstate 880. Once home to a commercial flower farm and a drive-in theater, the site already had a Walmart in the northeast corner of the property.

The ambitious development required negotiating with seven landowners and arranging for tenants such as Sleep Train and Office Max. Envisioned with a 25-screen multiplex (the largest multiplex in Northern California up to that time), the complex was designed around a unified architectural theme.

As Mr. Noguera described it, Union Landing was planned as both a fun family-friendly destination and a substantial revenue source for the city moving into the future. Today, the site continues to thrive as a high-profile retail complex that offers 272,000 square feet of diverse shopping, entertainment, and dining options.