In terms of the economy and job growth, the Hacienda community and larger Tri-Valley region had much to celebrate as 2018 ended and a new year began. In late December State of California labor officials reported that the Bay Area had added 13,500 jobs during November 2018.

The November statistics were the result of the best one-month employment performance for the nine-county region in more than two years, according to California's Employment Development Department (EDD). The Bay Area's employment growth accounted for fully 44% of all jobs added in the state during November.

Moreover, from September through November California posted the lowest level jobless rate ever, 4.1%, for three consecutive months.

The East Bay region was an important part of the state hiring boom. The East Bay added nearly 4,000 new jobs in November, according to the EDD. An estimated 1,900 of those jobs were in the the hotel, restaurant, arts, and entertainment industries. The transportation and warehousing industries added about 700 new jobs to the East Bay, while retailers added about 1,400, according to Beacon Economics, one of California's leading independent economic research and consulting firms.

"The economy in the Bay Area looks really solid," Mark Vitner, managing director and senior economist with San Francisco-based Wells Fargo Bank, told the San Jose Mercury News. "We are seeing strong job growth in the Bay Area, and the gains are very broad-based."

The Tri-Valley is Thriving

By the end of November, the Bay Area had posted job gains for 19 consecutive months, according to an analysis by the San Jose Mercury News. The business climate looks bright for the Bay Area overall, and it also looks bright for the Tri-Valley, according to local business leaders.

"With growing investments, the concentration of research and development, and the supportive entrepreneurial environment, as well as the need for more reasonable rents and ample business operational space, we foresee increased opportunities for businesses in the Tri-Valley area," says Darien Louie, Executive Director of East Bay Economic Development Alliance (East Bay EDA).

East Bay EDA's mission is to be the regional voice and networking resource for strengthening the economy, building the workforce, and enhancing the quality of life in the East Bay. As part of that mission, the organization produces an annual East Bay Economic Outlook report, which is prepared by Beacon Economics. The report for 2018-2019 suggests that the East Bay, the greater Bay Area, and the State of California will continue to thrive for some time to come.

"The East Bay's labor market continues to post steady gains and is poised for further growth in 2018 and 2019," notes the report. "As 2018 progressed it became evident that the California economy would continue to prosper despite the challenge of a tight labor market and concerns about the state's housing situation.

Thanks to large employment increases in logistics, goods producing, and technical industries, the East Bay's unemployment rate is the lowest it has been in decades, according to Beacon, which predicts that "the current expansion of the region's economy is far from over." In addition, "the local commercial real estate market stands out as it remains on a strong growth path and rents are increasing."

Business Climate Strong at Hacienda

"Pleasanton's prospects for 2019 are all positive," says Pamela Ott, Director of Economic Development for the City of Pleasanton. "The city continues to serve as an important commercial center within the Bay Area as the community nurtures a strong local economy."

Pleasanton's particularly robust industry clusters in information technology, computer engineering, biomedical, and professional and technical services are strong contributors to the city's economy, notes Ott. "As a premier business location, overall employment numbers remain steady, as industry-leading companies like Veeva, Ellie Mae, ServiceMax, and Workday expand market share while earning industry accolades."

Bay Area Council Economic Institute, a leading think tank focused on the economic and policy issues facing the Bay Area, released a Bay Area Economic Profile in July 2018 called Continuing Growth and Unparalleled Innovation. The report notes recent developments in industries well represented by companies in Pleasanton and at Hacienda.

"This explosion of activity has been supported by growing venture capital investment in a range of key sectors: AI, Big Data, FinTech, Life Sciences, Mobile, and SAAS (Software as a Service)," according to the report. "The levels of venture investment in the Bay Area in these sectors exceed by a large margin the levels of venture investment in the same sectors in other peer regions."

Between 2014 and 2017, for example, Pleasanton-based companies received more than $300 million in venture funding, according to TechCrunch. That amount during that period puts Pleasanton, which has about 80,000 people, ahead of Miami, which has a population of 440,000, and roughly equal to Philadelphia, which has a population of 1.5 million over the same period. In short, the City of Pleasanton and the companies at Hacienda tend to have an outsized impact on the economy.

Business activity has been strong for companies at Hacienda, and many of them are making news. In October, for example, NeoTract, which is currently undergoing a large expansion in Hacienda, received the Phoenix 2018 Emerging Growth Company Award at the 25th Annual Phoenix Medical Device and Diagnostic Conference. The Emerging Growth Company award is presented to an organization that has undergone a strategically significant merger, a highly successful IPO, dramatic growth in sales, or the creation of a major new product or service. NeoTract, which is dedicated to developing innovative medical devices in the field of urology, was acquired by Teleflex Incorporated in 2017 in a transaction valued at up to $1.1 billion.

Another Hacienda company, Bio-Rad Laboratories, bought a two-building complex in Hacienda last November as part of the company's plans to expand. Bio-Rad is among the top five life science companies in the world.

NeoTract and Bio-Rad are just two of the many companies that call Hacienda home, thanks to Hacienda's many business amenities, easy transportation options, and ideal location at the heart of the Bay Area in a city known for its quality of life.

While no one can know for certain what 2019 has in store for the Hacienda and Tri-Valley business communities, the signs are promising."California's economic performance was remarkably steady in 2018, fueled by expansion in the state's industries, increases in incomes and wages, and in response to federal tax cuts enacted early in the year," according to Beacon Economics. The firm expects a continuation of these trends in 2019 and potentially into 2020 for both the state as a whole as well as the East Bay.

For more information about East Bay Economic Development Alliance, please visit eastbayeda.org.

For more information about the City of Pleasanton, please visit www.cityofpleasantonca.gov.

For more information about Bay Area Council Economic Institute, please visit www.bayareaeconomy.org.

For more information about Hacienda's business amenities, please visit www.hacienda.org/amenities-business/business.