Dec. ‘04/Jan. ‘05Vol.12 No.1L O N G B E A C H

Redevelolpment: An Executive Summary Women Leaders Strengthen LB Business Sloan Awards to Recognize Flexibility

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California Chamber of Commerce “ADVOCACY PARTNER OF THE YEAR” for 2003 & 2004

“Verizon is proud to sponsor the 2005 State of the City, and we want to congratulate Mayor O’Neill,the ‘2004 Municipal Leader of the Year,’ on her 11th

unprecedented state ofthis great city,” saidTim McCallion, president,Pacific Region, Verizon.“The business com-munity has a lot to bethankful for with a

mayor like Beverly who is attuned to the business community and fosters a flourishing business climate for Long Beach.”

Founded in 1918, the company that helped formVerizon has been serving the City of Long Beach since1926. That year the growing company purchased Associated Telephone Company in Long Beach. The

building that housed Associated Telephone is currentlyVerizon’s downtown Central Office. In 1929, AssociatedTelephone served 65,000 customers in California. The company continued to grow, purchasing local companies throughout the state and nation.

The merger of Bell Atlantic and GTE in 2000 createdthis country’s largest local telephone company, thelargest cellular provider, and the third largest long distance company in the country. Verizon is headquar-tered in Manhattan and the Bell Atlantic portion of themerger brought the 13 eastern seaboard states to thenew company that combined to serve 29 states.

Verizon has a rich history of service in Long Beachwith many technology “firsts” applied in Long Beach:including the first fiber optics used in network technologybetween switching offices in the 1970s, and the first Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN), calledCityTel, used to provide a ubiquitous city governmentnetwork in the nation in 1994.

Currently, Verizon has two national headquartersfacilities in Long Beach:

• The Operator ServicesMegacenter—LiveSource—provides 411 service nation-wide—both cellular and wireline. The megacenter hasmore than 600 employees.• The Maintenance ControlCenter (MCC) at the LongBeach Airport handles callsregarding high-end technologynetwork services such as DSL.The MCC has more than 250management employees.

Verizon also has a largecustomer operations centerin Long Beach with nearly100 employees workingthroughout Long Beach, and a directories group of 100employees at 200 Ocean Blvd. that is also home toLiveSource.

One of the cornerstones of advanced networks isfiber optics. Verizon is a leader using fiber in its networkand will continue to grow its network with this glass-and-light technology that moves data faster than anynetwork. Verizon has placed fiber rings in downtownLong Beach; at Cal State University, Long Beach; theLong Beach Airport; and a fiber optic ring serves Boeing.

Verizon has two “SmartParks” in Long Beach. TheKilroy Center and the newly established Cal State LongBeach Technology Park are digital high-speed examplesof a city working in partnership with its communicationsprovider to ensure an advanced infrastructure thatenhances economic development efforts.

With the largest local telephone company in the country and one that is committed to the mostaggressive fiber outlay in the country, Long Beach iswell positioned technologically to thrive during the nextevolutionary development of broadband services. LongBeach is a key city in Verizon’s nationwide network—it’sthe largest city Verizon serves west of the MississippiRiver. From the very beginning, the importance of LongBeach to the future of California and beyond has beenobvious to the company. Long Beach is on the moveand making a difference in the regional and world

economy. Verizon, with nearly2,000 employees in LongBeach, is part of that future.

Verizon also takes pridein its partnership with manyorganizations in Long Beachthat serve the community.Verizon is an exemplary corporate citizen. Corporatecitizenship comes in the form of financial and human support for the community.Verizon has done both, andcontinues to do both.

LiveSource 411 operatorshave donated time, booksand clothing to the Mary

McCleod Bethune Transitional Center for Homeless Students; Verizon network specialists also wired the schoolwith the latest in networking technology and a grantpurchased computers and a server for the classroom.

Cities thrive in partnership: Verizon is Long Beach’spartner. The Conference of Mayors in 2003 recognizedthis partnership with its 2003 Public/Private PartnershipAward of Excellence given to Mayor O’Neill and TimMcCallion. “Along with its technological leadership isVerizon’s commitment to the city of Long Beach and itsfuture,” McCallion said. “This commitment comes in theform of its employees that live, work and play in LongBeach; its network; its belief in the City’s vision; and thehonor of serving the people of Long Beach. “

“Along with its technological leadership is Verizon’s commitment to the city of

Long Beach and its future.“ —Tim McCallion

iinnssiiddee ▪▪ ▪▪ ▪▪

Long Beach Convention Center BallroomDelivered by

The Honorable Mayor Beverly O’NeillSeats are $45 per person, sponsor tables are available.

Contact Jackie Kuhl at (562) 436-2810 or jkuhl@lbchamber.com. This event is always a sell out — make your reservation early!

2005 State of the City Luncheon Spotlights VerizonCommunications giant is proud to pay tribute to the City of Long Beach and Mayor O’Neill

Verizon’s Tim McCallion and Mayor O’Neill acceptAward of Excellence at Conference of Mayors.

Business

The goal of this Chamberis to bring to our members a

“Greater Return on Your Chamber Investment.”We have a reputation for providing a vast array ofprograms and services to our members; however,the menu is so comprehensive and new incentivesappear so often that many people aren’t aware ofwhat is available to them. Let me give you someexamples of how you can benefit more from yourmember investment.

The Chamber signed an agreement with Discover Card that covers new member andrenewal dues when members accept DiscoverCard from their customers. So far, 30 new businesses have joined The Chamber takingadvantage of the Discover Card program.

This year The Chamber initiated the BetterBusiness in 90 Minutes Seminar Series to focus onissues that impact business. Last July 35 peoplelearned about “Identification Theft” and inSeptember 55 people attended “Computer Net-work Security.” December’s topic will be on“Improving Business Productivity” and January’sseminar will be on “2005 Employer Laws—WhatEvery Member Business Should Know.”

The Chamber has built a relationship with theLA Small Business Administration regional office toprovide our members information on valuable SBA services to small business. Through this collaboration, a Chamber member will be selected to participate, cost free, in the SBA’s 7(j)entrepreneurial program in Los Angeles—a threeday training workshop sponsored by AlabamaA&M Research Institute.

And don’t forget opportunities through theChamber Councils and Committees. The Chamber’sDiversity Committee will host a joint outreachevent in December with the Regional HispanicChamber of Commerce. The Tech Point Committeeheld its first awards program in November andgave $20,000 in scholarships to local studentsstudying technology. Women’s Council and theInternational Business Association continue tooffer business related information and supportinternational trade businesses in the region.

As chair, I am proud of the many member volunteers that work so diligently with the excel-lent Chamber staff to make sure that members get their money’s worth. I’ve given you just a few examples of how you can benefit from theChamber. Get involved; make your investment payoff for you!

LONG BEACH BUSINESS2

Chairman’s Message Lou Anne BynumLong Beach City College

2004-2005 Chairman’s CircleDiamond

City National Bank ■ DeVry University ■ Hilton Long Beach ■ Long Beach Memorial Medical CenterPort of Long Beach ■ Press-Telegram ■ Verizon

PlatinumBoeing Realty / Douglas Park ■ Long Beach City College ■ The Boeing Company

GoldCommunity Hospital of Long Beach ■ Farmers & Merchants Bank ■ Keesal, Young & Logan

Marriott/Renaissance Properties ■ Nextel ■ St. Mary Medical Center ■ Seaside Printing Company, Inc.Toyota Affiliated Companies ■ Universal Care

SilverBP Products North America, Inc. ■ California State University, Long Beach ■ Catalina Express

DENSO Sales California, Inc. ■ Epson America, Inc. ■ Hilton Long Beach ■ LBWTC Real Estate PartnersLong Beach Airport ■ Long Beach Business Journal ■ Long Beach Ice Dogs

The Queen Mary ■ WestLand Construction Inc. ■ Windes & McClaughry Accountancy Corp.

BronzeAEG Home Depot Center ■ Aon Group ■ Aquarium of the Pacific ■ Bryson Financial Group

DDR/City Place ■ Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage ■ Color Broadband ■ Comerica BankThe Davis Group ■ DIRECTV–California Broadcast Center ■ EarthTech ■ Ernst & Young LLP ■ Ford West

Genesis Real Estate Group ■ Guzman & Gray, CPAs ■ Holthouse Carlin & Van Trigt, LLP ■ Hyatt Regency Long BeachLaserFiche Document Imaging ■ Long Beach Convention & Entertainment Center ■ Long Beach Towne Center

Moffatt & Nichol Engineers ■ Paragon Steel ■ Parkers’ Lighthouse ■ Sea Launch ■ Southern California EdisonSpirit Cruises ■ Tax Technology Research ■ Thums Long Beach Company ■ Via Media Graphic DesignWater Replenishment District of Southern California ■ Watson Land Company ■ The Westin Long Beach

The “Chairman’s Circle” is a special group of members that have committed to support the LBACC through sponsorships at various financial levels and at special events. If your company would like to become a member

of the Chairman’s Circle, please contact Randy Gordon, President/CEO, at (562) 432-7830 for details.

Redevelopment has captured headlineslately in Long Beach and is paramount for ourCity’s prosperity. What’s it all about?

What is Redevelopment? Long Beachfirst adopted its Redevelopment Agency inthe 1960s and has adopted 7 redevelopmentproject areas. The Agency can use tax dollarsfor area improvements. Such areas must beurbanized and characterized by prevalent and substantialphysical and economic blight. Long Beach, like manylarge cities, has historically appointed citizens to serveon the Redevelopment Board, working with local ProjectArea Committees (with citizens from the project area—"PACs") and other community groups to create rede-velopment policy, to be approved by the City Council.

Has Redevelopment been Successful? Major successes under the Redevelopment Board includemany downtown office buildings, Pine Avenue, CityPlace and the Convention Center; rehabilitation of businesses and homes near Poly High; police substations;East Village Arts Park; Los Altos Market Center; and,Atlantic Avenue stores in North Long Beach.

What is the Merger Issue? Project areas receive"tax increment" as their major source of funding. Someareas have a large amount of tax increment, others not so much. The larger tax increment comes fromcompleted projects which generate larger revenues. It is argued that the areas without the increment have a larger need. A change in state law has allowed a

merger of the areas, which would allow taxincrement from one area to be spent inanother area.

What’s the Downside to Merger? PACsoppose merger because they want to keepthe tax increment in their local areas. Someargue that merger would needlessly politicizethe issue, causing divisions between commu-

nities vying for redevelopment money. Why should the Council take over redevelopment?

Some argue that the Council should have greater controlover redevelopment because they are more account-able to citizens than the unelected RDA Board. Removalof the RDA Board would streamline the process. Somealso argue that the council know their districts betterand can better allocate scarce redevelopment dollars.

Why shouldn’t the Council take over redevelopment?The concerns include that (1.) the budget gap shouldnot be filled with redevelopment money, (2) removal ofthe RDA Board would needlessly politicize the battle forredevelopment money, (3.) a part time Council does nothave the time necessary to act as the RDA Board, and,(4.) the RDA Board acts as an independent check on theuse of redevelopment dollars for pork barrel type politics.

Redevelopment will be an important issue for ourCity for years to come. Appropriately used, redevelop-ment will raise the City’s prosperity. Wrongly applied,redevelopment threatens to engulf the City in regionaland political divisions for years to come.

“The Chamber signed an agreement withDiscover Card that covers new memberand renewal dues when members accept

Discover Card from their customers.”

Redevelopment: An Executive SummaryBy Matt Kinley, The Chamber’s Vice Chair for Public Policy and Chair of the Government Affairs Committee

Matt Kinley

Creating a Stronger Economy

LONG BEACH BUSINESS3

What do Beverly O’Neill, Lou Anne Bynum andLori Lofstrom have in common? They are womenwhose names are synonymous with building business in Long Beach. From their involvement in the smallbusiness force to building international trade, they allwork toward strengthening Long Beach business.

These women leaders are the Mayor of Long Beach,Beverly O’Neill; the Chairman of the Board of Directorsof the Long Beach Chamber, Lou Anne Bynum; and the President of the Chamber’s Women’s Council, Lori Lofstrom.

When Mayor O’Neill took the helm of the city shehelped refurbish old navy land into an expanded port,into Cal State Long Beach’s Technology Park and alsobrought in a new high school, a federal job core centerand transitional housing for homeless veterans to the Westside; a brilliant mix of fostering small and international businesses in Long Beach.

Always promoting Long Beach business, the Mayorwelcomes new businesses twice a year at a city hostedbreakfast, and, since 90% of these are small businesses,she has used these events to help promote availablecity services for small business owners.

"Long Beach has never been a community of largebusinesses. Our business community comprises small businesses,” says Mayor O’Neill. “They are the heartbeat of our economy and they are the ones thatgive our neighborhoods texture and vigor, and we needto do as much as we can to support all their efforts."

Lou Anne Bynum, through her work as the AssistantSuperintendent and Vice President of Economic andResource Development at Long Beach Community

Women Leaders Work to Strengthen Long Beach Business

One World Trade Center, Suite 206Long Beach, California 90831-0206PH (562) 436-1251 n FAX 436-7099 w w w . l b c h a m b e r . c o mw w w . l o n g b e a c h a d v o c a c y . b i z

Mission StatementThe Chamber is the platform for business toprovide leadership, education and advocacy so thatthe Long Beach area thrives in the 21st century.

Vision StatementThe Chamber will be the acknowledged leader increating community consensus to support local,regional, and international business.

Graphic Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Via MediaPrinting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Seaside PrintingAssembly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Goodwill Industries

Members wishing to submit articles, press releases, or membernews items for upcoming issues of Long Beach Business, please fax to (562) 436-7099, attn: Jackie Kuhl, or e-mailjkuhl@lbchamber.com.

Circulation: Long Beach Business is mailed directly to more than2400 Long Beach Area Chamber of Commerce members, electedofficials and community leaders.

Chamber Staff:Randy Gordon . . . . . . President & CEO . . . . . . . . . (562) 436-6723Judy Donley . . . . . . . . Administrator . . . . . . . . . . . . (562) 437-8823Janet Nguyen. . . . . . . VP Government Affairs . . . . (562) 983-1241Shaun Lumachi . . . . . . Advisor, Government Affairs (562) 843-0947Jackie Kuhl . . . . . . . . . VP Special Events . . . . . . . . (562) 436-2810Judy Nelson . . . . . . . . VP Business Councils . . . . . . (562) 432-8128 Michele Woods . . . . . VP Member Services . . . . . . (562) 590-9234Kelly Stortz . . . . . . . . . Assistant to the President. . . (562) 432-7830Bobbie Spohn . . . . . . Receptionist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ext 100Alice Curran . . . . . . . . Member Services Executive . . . . . . . ext 108Vivian Tondreault . . . . Member Services Executive . . . . . . . ext 111Linda Izzo . . . . . . . . . . Member Relations Executive . . . . . . ext 101

Long Beach Leaders: Lou Anne Bynum (left), Mayor BeverlyO’Neill, and Lori Lofstrom (right).

College District, thrives on linking business and industrywith education and training. Two of her five current coreareas of regional industry focus are small businessdevelopment and international trade.

She wrote the first $180,000 grant that funded thestart of the Center for International Trade Developmentat Long Beach City College that assists small businessesentering global markets, and has served to date morethan 400 businesses ad generated over $2.5 billion inincreased sales for the businesses served. She also start-ed pro-business courses that bring small businessdevelopment workshops to the City's Small BusinessDevelopment Center.

“It’s very fulfilling and satisfying,” says Lou Anne,“to not only know that we have successful input build-ing and strengthening small business, while at the sametime, we can oversee a ‘Virtual Trade Mission” where afood product is mailed in advance to a foreign country,then video conferenced with that international client totest and sell the product.”

The most behind-the-scenes women leader, LoriLofstrom, recently started her second term as Presidentof the Chamber’s Women’s Council, and who hasgrown the membership beyond expectations.

Through her legal representation of small businessfor the past 17 years, and her work with the Women’sCouncil, Lori has also created a small business referralnetwork based on credibility, integrity and quality service. The network includes financial planning, PR,legal issues, printing, CPA, graphic design.

Lori focused on business law when she started hercareer with Keesal, Young and Logan in Long Beach.Now, with her own firm of Holmes & Lofstrom, LLP, afirm she co-founded 3 years ago, she includes businesslaw as well as domestic and international franchise andtrademark law.

These three women leaders are all business savvy,and live and breathe Long Beach business.

“These three women leaders are all businesssavvy, and live and breathe Long Beach

business.“

By Lindsay Shields, Principal, The LJ Group

Serving as the Voice of Business

LONG BEACH BUSINESS4

Long Beach Legislators Near the Bottom of the California Chamber of Commerce’s Best Business VotesLegislators are listed in descending order according to how often they voted in accord with the California Chamber’s position (first number) versus how often their votes were not in accord with the Chamber’s position (second number) in 2004. Total votes may not matchthe vote record because the tally for absent/not voting is not included in this list.

Page Sponsor: Port of Long Beach

STATE SENATE-

80% votes for more jobsAckerman, Dick (R) 17-0Ashburn, Roy (R) 17-0Battin, Jim (R) 17-0Brulte, James (R) 17-0Denham, Jeff (R) 17-0Hollingsworth, Dennis (R) 17-0Johnson, Ross (R) 17-0Margett, Bob (R) 17-0McClintock, Tom (R) 17-0McPherson, Bruce (R) 17-0Morrow, Bill (R) 17-0Oller, Rico (R) 17-0Poochigian, Charles (R) 17-0Aanestad, Samuel (R) 16-1

40-59% votes for more jobsMachado, Mike (D) 10-7Ducheny, Denise Moreno (D) 7-10Florez, Dean (D) 7-10

Less than 40% votes for more jobsBowen, Debra (D) 5-12

Karnette, Betty (D) 5-12Murray, Kevin (D) 5-12Perata, Don (D) 5-12Scott, Jack (D) 4-12Chesbro, Wesley (D) 4-13Torlakson, Tom (D) 4-13Alpert, Dede (D) 3-14Speier, Jackie (D) 3-14*Vincent, Edward (D) 2-7Sher, Byron (D) 2-13Vasconcellos, John (D) 2-14

Alarcón, Richard (D) 2-15Burton, John (D) 2-15Cedillo, Gilbert (D) 2-15Dunn, Joseph (D) 2-15Figueroa, Liz (D) 2-15Kuehl, Sheila James (D) 2-15Ortiz, Deborah (D) 2-15Romero, Gloria (D) 2-15Soto, Nell (D) 2-15Escutia, Martha (D) 1-16

STATE ASSEMBLY-

80% votes for more jobsAghazarian, Greg (R) 15-0Bates, Patricia (R) 15-0Benoit, John (R) 15-0Bogh, Russ (R) 15-0Campbell, John (R) 15-0Cogdill, David (R) 15-0Cox, Dave (R) 15-0Daucher, Lynn (R) 15-0Dutton, Robert (R) 15-0Garcia, Bonnie (R) 15-0Haynes, Ray (R) 15-0Houston, Guy (R) 15-0Keene, Richard (R) 15-0La Malfa, Doug (R) 15-0La Suer, Jay (R) 15-0Leslie, Tim (R) 15-0Maze, Bill (R) 15-0McCarthy, Kevin (R) 15-0Mountjoy, Dennis (R) 15-0Nakanishi, Alan (R) 15-0Pacheco, Robert (R) 15-0Plescia, George (R) 15-0Runner, Sharon (R) 15-0Samuelian, Steve (R) 15-0Spitzer, Todd (R) 15-0

Strickland, Tony (R) 15-0Wyland, Mark (R) 15-0Harman, Tom (R) 14-1Horton, Shirley (R) 14-1Richman, Keith (R) 14-1Maddox, Ken (R) 13-2Maldonado, Abel (R) 12-3

60-79% votes for more jobsMatthews, Barbara (D) 9-5

40-59% votes for more jobsCanciamilla, Joe (D) 8-7Parra, Nicole (D) 8-7Nation, Joe (D) 7-8Correa, Lou (D) 6-9Wolk, Lois (D) 6-9Yee, Leland (D) 6-9

Less than 40% votes for more jobs*Koretz, Paul (D) 5-2Calderon, Ron (D) 5-9Dutra, John (D) 5-10Horton, Jerome (D) 5-10Nakano, George (D) 5-10Vargas, Juan (D) 5-10Cohn, Rebecca (D) 4-11Liu, Carol (D) 4-11Salinas, Simon (D) 4-11Simitian, Joe (D) 4-11

Oropeza, Jenny (D) 3-11Bermudez, Rudy (D) 3-12Chavez, Ed (D) 3-12Corbett, Ellen (D) 3-12Diaz, Manny (D) 3-12

Frommer, Dario (D) 3-12Kehoe, Christine (D) 3-12Levine, Lloyd (D) 3-12Pavley, Fran (D) 3-12Reyes, Sarah (D) 3-12Berg, Patty (D) 2-13Chan, Wilma (D) 2-13Chu, Judy (D) 2-13Dymally, Mervyn (D) 2-13Firebaugh, Marco (D) 2-13Laird, John (D) 2-13Leno, Mark (D) 2-13Lieber, Sally (D) 2-13Longville, John (D) 2-13

Lowenthal, Alan (D) 2-13Montañez, Cindy (D) 2-13Mullin, Gene (D) 2-13Negrete McLeod, Gloria (D) 2-13Nuñez, Fabian (D) 2-13Ridley-Thomas, Mark (D) 2-13Steinberg, Darrell (D) 2-13Wesson, Herb (D) 2-13Wiggins, Patricia (D) 2-13Goldberg, Jackie (D) 1-14Jackson, Hannah-Beth (D) 1-14Hancock, Loni (D) 0-14

*Absent due to family illness on anumber of votes.

The Daily Grill Restaurant & Bar is now open inDowntown Long Beach. Located in the World TradeCenter and adjacent to the Hilton Hotel, Daily Grill isthe 17th Daily Grill to open. Modeled after the greatbig city grills of the 1930s, Daily Grill features generousportions, professional service and home-style recipesmade from scratch every day. The menu includes clas-sics such as Midwestern Aged Steaks and Chops, FreshSeafood, Meat Loaf with Mashed Potatoes, Chicken PotPie and traditional Cobb and Caesar Salads, along withother timeless favorites. The first Daily Grill opened inBrentwood, an upscale neighborhood of Los Angeles,in 1988. To date, there are six Daily Grills located in LA,two in Orange County, one in Palm Desert, four in theWashington D.C. area, and one each in San Francisco,Houston, and Portland, OR. Daily Grill Long Beach isopen seven days a week for lunch and dinner, and complimentary parking is available when dining at therestaurant. (562) 753-2170.

■

It’s not sooften that a caris given awayfor a hole-in-one on the golfcourse. Howev-er, Ford Westrecently gavethe keys awayto a brand new,shiny, red Mus-tang at a local

golf charity event held at the Navy Destroyer GolfCourse in Cypress. The winner of the hole-in-one prize,Dave Cardona, is shown in the picture above receivingthe keys from owner and general manager SteveWood of Ford West in Bellflower. Mr. Cardona madethe hole-in-one during an annual fundraising golf tournament sponsored by Precious Life Shelter of LosAlamitos. Listen up golfers: Mr. Cardona used a #6 ironfor hole 13, 170 yards away, taking one bounce on thegreen, then hitting the hole marker, going into the air,coming straight down into the hole!

Highlighting the Membership

LONG BEACH BUSINESS5

A new book, “LongBeach Architecture: TheUnexpected Metropolis”written by architecturecritics Cara Mullio andJennifer M. Volland,puts the city’s buildingenvironment in the spotlight. This gallery ofphotographs is prefaced

by a 50-page illustrated essay on the historic develop-ment of Long Beach featuring some 100 buildings—some demolished and some still standing. Many Chambermembers including Community Hospital, Farmers andMerchants Bank, Long Beach Museum of Art, Long BeachAirport, CSULB, The Breakers, Port of Long Beach, VALong Beach Healthcare System, the Pike at RainbowHarbor, the Aquarium of the Pacific, and others areeach featured on a two-page spread. “Long BeachArchitecture: The Unexpected Metropolis” is availableat 2000 + Bookstore, select Borders Books and Barnes& Noble locations, the Aquarium of the Pacific, theLong Beach Museum of Art, and through the HistoricalSociety of Long Beach.

■

The Long Beach Board of HarborCommissioners has appointedtrade and transportation veteranTom Teofilo to the position ofManaging Director of MaritimeServices at the Port of LongBeach. Teofilo, a Southern Californiaresident with 35 years of industryexperience, will take over the jobin early December, replacing Don

Wylie who left the port in July to accept a position inthe stevedoring business. Teofilo is no stranger to theport or to the transportation industry. He recentlyresigned from his position as Southern California vicepresident of the Pacific Merchant Shipping Association(PMSA). Prior to his service at the PMSA, Teofilo was president and CEO of the World Trade CenterAssociation of Los Angeles-Long Beach. Teofilo’sacceptance of the position at the Port of Long Beachallows him to return to an organization that he left in1986 in order to move into the private sector.

You’ve made a commitment to your health.

So have we.

For more information, contact your broker or Universal Care at 800-380-2522.

Thank You to:V20—The Venue

for Hosting The Chamber’s November Board of Directors Meeting

The Port of Long Beach hasalso created a new position: Direc-tor of Community Relations andGovernment Affairs. To fill thepost, the Long Beach Board ofHarbor Commissioners votedunanimously to approve ExecutiveDirector Richard Steinke’s recom-mendation to hire Carl Kemp, former Manager of Public/Govern-

ment Affairs for the City of Long Beach. The focus ofthe new position will be developing better linksbetween the Harbor Department and the community,through attendance and participation at key communitymeetings, and keeping the Council and communitypartners involved and informed about Harbor affairs.Additionally Kemp will manage county, state and federaladvocacy efforts, including developing, tracking andproviding position recommendations on key legislationto the Executive Director and Board.

Tom Teofilo

Carl Kemp

Our Members are Saying... “Thanks to The Chamber, we’ve had many

customers come in due to our membership!”–Jason Weekerly, Kelly Paper Store

“The Discover Card representative first introducedme to the Long Beach Area Chamber of Commercewhen offering to pay for my membership. The Chamberhas helped me get my small business off to a healthystart! This partnership has made a big difference for me.Thanks to you both!“

–Linda McCracken, McCracken Visions

“We get a lot of great referrals from The Chamber’sWeb site, www.lbchamber.com.“

–Kim Harris, Dockside Boat & Bed

LONG BEACH BUSINESS6

Applications for thefirst annual Sloan Awardsfor Business Excellence inWorkplace Flexibility arebeing accepted online atwww.whenworkworks.org from December 1, 2004through January 31, 2005. Long Beach businesses areinvited to apply for the national award that will honorsmall, medium, large and very large organizations in thepublic and private sector that successfully use workplaceflexibility to meet both business and employee goals.

Long Beach is one of eight Founding Circle cities selected for the When Work Works WorkplaceFlexibility Tour that was organized locally through theLong Beach Area Chamber of Commerce. Award winners in Long Beach, as well as recipients in Brooklyn,Chicago, Dallas, Detroit, Durham, Providence and SaltLake City will be recognized next spring in a nationalpress release and at local events in each city.

“We want to share the successes of how businessesof all types are making work ‘work’ in our changedeconomy,” said Ellen Galinsky, president of the Familiesand Work Institute. “This is the beginning of a defining

Focusing on Small Business

Sloan Awards to Recognize Excellence in Workplace Flexibility National award will honor “win-win” flexibility practices of businesses in Long Beach and seven other U.S. cities

national dialogue about new ways to work, that work forboth employers and employees.” What is flexibility?

The Families and Work Institute describes flexibilityas a way to define how and when work gets done andhow careers are organized. It is a critical ingredient inoverall workplace effectiveness. Organizations use it asa tool (formally or informally) for improving recruitmentand retention, for managing workload, and for respond-ing to employee diversity. Research shows that flexibili-ty can also improve employee engagement and job sat-isfaction and reduce stress.Workplace flexibility can include but not be limited to:• Having traditional flextime (setting daily hours within

a range periodically);• Having daily flextime; • Taking time off during the work day to address

family matters; • Taking time off to care for a sick child;• Being able to work some regular hours at home; • Being able to adjust break time;• Having a work shift that is desirable; • Having control over one’s work schedule;

• Being able to work part-time (if currently full-time) or full-time (if currently part-time) in one’s current position;

• Being able to work a compressed work week; and • Being able to work part-year in current position.

If some or all of these aspects of workplace flexibilityare part of your business practices—or if you have others not listed here—go to www.whenworkworks.orgto complete the brief online nomination form for theSloan Awards for Business Excellence in WorkplaceFlexibility. You can also access more information onworkplace flexibility and what other businesses aredoing on the web site.

When Work Works is a nationwide initiative to high-light the importance of workplace effectiveness andflexibility as a strategy to enhance business’ competitiveadvantage in the global economy and yield positivebusiness results. When Work Works is a project of theFamilies and Work Institute (FWI) in partnership withThe Center for Workforce Preparation, an affiliate of theU.S. Chamber of Commerce, and The Center forEmerging Futures.

Great Small Business Opportunityat January Expo

In our ever-changing world of hustling to meet deadlines, trying to do morewith less, and the evolution of modern technology, statistics reveal that personalcontact is still the most preferred manner of conducting business. The dayswhen deals were made on a handshake are still relevant in the minds of today’scustomers. Customer service is still an important aspect of business.

The Chamber’s Quarterly Business Expos provide an excellent opportunityfor business owners to showcase their products/and or services in a venue thatallows for direct personal contact. Small business owners benefit from exposureat a fraction of the cost of traditional advertising and marketing.

Exhibitor space is still available for the January 26th Expo which will takeplace at The Grand, 4101 E. Willow St in Long Beach from 4:30 p.m. to 7:30p.m. To reserve your space, contact Michele Woods at (562) 590-9234 ormwoods@lbchamber.com. This event is FREE to attend and all are welcome!

Discover a New Way to Pay Your Dues

FREE MEMBERSHIP FOR ONE YEAR! This slogan took on a whole new meaning when Discover Card partnered with the Long Beach Area Chamber of Commerce to provide Chamber members the option of havingtheir membership dues paid by Discover. By merely being willing to registerand accept Discover Card as a form of payment for goods/and or services, a business owner can qualify to have their Chamber dues paid up to $500 by Discover Card. The program entitles potential new members to have their initial membership investment paid and renewing members to have theirrenewal dues paid. The process is easy, approval generally takes less than 24 hours, and there are no set-up fees, monthly fees, or statement fees.

Sound too good to be true? Well, it isn’t! This new Chamber program hasproven to be a great membership benefit. Don’t delay—get your dues paidtoday. Contact Michele Woods (562) 590-9234 or mwoods@lbchamber.com.

Free Incoming Calls and a BlackberryPDA / Phone with Direct Connect.

Life is better with Nextel.For More Information Call:

Sherah LuskNextel Communications

562-624-5125NEXTEL How business gets done.SM

The one source for occupational health services with two Long Beach locations.

Memorial Occupational Medical Services Memorial Maritime Clinic450 E. Spring, Ste. 8 150 S. Pico Ave.(562) 933-0085 (562) 432-2821

Buffum Medical Pavillion Port of Long BeachLong Beach Memorial Medical Center

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LONG BEACH BUSINESS7

Volunteer Opportunities

International Business AssociationBy James Conner—Lockwood Greene EngineersPresident, International Business Association

Under the leadership of Priscilla Lopez from the Cen-ter for International Trade Development at LBCC andan IBA Board Member, the IBA completed its secondMock Interviews Program. Targeting local college anduniversity students, the interviews were held in Novem-ber at the California Broadcast Center–DIRECTV. TheCBC-DIRECTV was kind enough to video tape eachinterview, as well as, pro-vide the students with thevideo taped interview totake home with themwhere they could critiquethemselves in order toprepare for when their “real” interview comes for a jobin their chosen career.

I would like to thank Jeff Longbottom and CBC-DIRECTV team for being so generous hosting thebreakfast, their location, staff and equipment! Thankyou to our executives Leticia Arias, US Department of

By Pat HolleyAssociate Director of Career Services

DeVry University

From Dream to Reality

If you ever get the chance to watch channel 5 in themornings you will see a segment named “Kurt theCyberguy.” Kurt Knutsson shared his talent and humorat the First Annual Tech Point Technology CommitteeScholarship Awards Luncheon held at the Courtyard by the Marriott last month. The event included wordsof wisdom from Long Beach Area Chamber President &

Commerce, Stephen Kwitoski, City National Bank; JillMorgan, Port of Long Beach, Jaime Serrano, WorldTrade Sales, and David Zanatta, JCA Resources. I foundthis to be such a worthwhile event and will look forwardto the experience again next year.

Earlier this month, we organized a Joint HolidayLuncheon with the Airport Area Business Council and

Tech Point Committeeheld at The Grand. Wehad live entertainment,great raffle prizes, a silentauction and Santa onhand for photos that were

taken by the talented Kim Mays from Photo Sphere Dig-ital Photography. Thanks to all who attended—it was amemorable event.

For more information about upcoming events, pleasecontact Judy Nelson at jnelson@lbchamber.com.Happy Holidays from the IBA!

“The interviews were held at the CaliforniaBroadcast Center–DIRECTV, who were kind

enough to video tape each interview.”

The Women’s Council is ready to help you celebrateand to support those less fortunate at its annual HolidayLunch on December 16 at the beautiful Reef Restaurant.We will be supporting the Long Beach Women’s Shelterand ask attendees to bring items from our “Wish List”published in the most recent issue of Focus Newsletter.Great friends, live entertainment, and great fun will abound!

I would encourage both WC members and non-members to make a point to attend Chamber functionssuch as this, designed just for you. Meet your business“neighbors” and promote your business and I wouldbet you’ll make some great friends along the way. Startthe new year off with a pledge to yourself that you willdo something that not only promotes your business butthat also gets you out of the office, away from email,faxes, and phones and allows you to make a personalconnection with another busy business owner who hastaken time out to do the same.

We at the Women’s Council wish you and yours thehappiest Holiday Season ever and look forward to see-ing you at one of our upcoming programs to help yougrow your business beyond even your own expectations!

from Long Beach City College, and Adaeze Robertsonfrom DeVry University. Silver sponsors for the eventincluded: Touro University, DeVry University, CarnivalCruise Lines, and Tax Technology Research. Studentsponsors included, Milestone Internet Solutions, WSI,Mary Kay, Long Beach City College District, and Sustainable Education & Environmental Design. Weagain like to thank Kurt Knutsson and his producer BradLuck for sharing their experience and knowledge abouttechnology. A special thank you to all that attended andhave contributed to our scholarship fund throughoutthe year.

Going forward, Tech Point plans on awarding sever-al thousand dollars of scholarship money to Long Beacharea technology students. For more information pleasecontact Pat Holley at pholley@socal.devry.edu or viewour website at www.lbtechpoint.com

(L-R): Kurt Knutsson of KTLA stands with scholarship winner Richard Maxwell from CSULB and Robert Liegofrom Tax Technology Research

CEO Randy Gordon, The Long Beach Chamber Chair-man of the Board Lou Anne Bynum, and the President of the Tech Point Technology Committee Alan Armijo.

The award scholarship recipients included; RichardMaxwell from California State University Long Beach,Anita Tsang from DeVry University, Audrey Williams

Mock Interviews Prepare College Students

By Lori M. LofstromHolmes & Lofstrom, LLPPresident, Women’s Council

Promote Your Business with the WC

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LONG BEACH, CA

One World Trade Center, Suite 206Long Beach, California 90831-0206

Upcoming EventsDecember 2004 • January 2005

See Enclosed Flyers

State of the City LuncheonTUESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2005 • 11:00 AM –1:30 PM

Long Beach Convention Center Grand Ballroom

Jackie Kuhl (562) 436-2810 • jkuhl@lbchamber.com

Better Business in 90 Minutes Seminar (FREE!)

2005 Employer LawsWhat Every Member Business Should Know

THURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2005 • 8:00 AM–9:30 AM

Location TBAMichele Woods (562) 590-9234 • mwoods@lbchamber.com

IBA LuncheonState of the Port Address

FRIDAY, JANUARY 28, 2005 • 11:30 AM–1:30 PMKeynote: Richard Steinke, Executive Director,

Port of Long BeachLong Beach Airport Marriott

Judy Nelson (562) 432-8128 • jnelson@lbchamber.com

Business ExpoWEDNESDAY, JANUARY 26, 2005 • 4:30 PM–7:30 PM

The Grand, 4104 E. Willow StreetMichele Woods (562) 590-9234 • mwoods@lbchamber.com

SAVE THE DATE:

2005 Business Forecast ConferenceTHURSDAY, APRIL 7, 2005 • 7:30 AM–1:30 PM

Keynote: Jack Kyser, Chief Economist,L.A. County Economic Development Corp.

Westin Long BeachJackie Kuhl (562) 436-2810 • jkuhl@lbchamber.com

For more information please contact Cheryl Iwata at (562) 826-5590 or e-mail atcheryl.iwata@med.va.gov.Visit our national website atwww.va.gov/vetind.

Help put veterans back to work! How? By working with VETERANS INDUSTRIES!Veterans Industries can place veterans at your worksite or perform the work at our onsite sheltered workshop.How can working with Veterans Industries benefit you?• Reduces your costs because there is no workers’ compensation, social security, medical insurance, vacation/sick pay

or other “employee” costs.• Performs assembly, packaging, sorting, labeling, and other jobs at our workshop.• Provides you with a pool of pre-screened workers.• Lowers your costs while meeting your production needs.• Brings together qualified veterans and employers for the benefit of both.• Competitive bids without cost or obligation.