HELPING BUSINESS BOOM
Most cities have a chamber of commerce,
but the East Bay also has the Council of Industries
Rules and regulations for operating a
business are constantly changing. City
ordinances, senate and assembly bills,
By Matt Larson
even residents and city council members can vote on
changes that could have a positive or negative impact
on any business, directly or indirectly, and on top of
running the business in the first place—it’s a lot to
keep up with.
To help maintain a thriving, expanding business
economy here in the East Bay we’ve got the West
Contra Costa County Council of Industries (COI)
to provide some extra support. While our economy
continues to develop, COI is asking themselves: How
can we help businesses stay in West County and
grow? And how can we work with the city to make
sure that happens?
“I meet with our mayors, city council members
and supervisors to see what’s coming up—are there
any concerns or issues that cities have, or the county
54 MARKETPLACECONTRACOSTA.COM DECEMBER 2018
has, in regard to business? Are there any grants or
incentives out there to improve businesses so then I
can get the word out? Anything we can do to help,”
said Executive Director Katrinka Ruk. In addition
to your local government agency or chamber of
commerce, COI looks at the whole picture to provide
additional support on a personal level.
“There are ordinances that apply to your business
in the city, or the county, that you may or may not
be aware of, and that’s one thing that I keep track
of,” Ruk said. “I monitor the City Council’s agendas
when they come out and relay that information to our
businesses; I keep track of zoning changes to make
sure businesses know if they’re able to expand in their
areas or not; I work with the planning department just
because—a lot of things can happen!”
The Council of Industries functions as a duesoriented
business trade organization. They’ve been
around for 50 years, if not decades longer, and it was