Santa Ana Council OKs Trade Center

Santa Ana officials are moving to create a regional trade center that would make it easier for area businesses, especially small to mid-size firms, to engage in international trade.

The City Council late Monday voted to establish the Orange County International Trade Center to serve as a clearinghouse for local businesses in need of import-export information.

The proposed center is well-timed.

Exports have helped fuel Orange County’s explosive economic growth, surging 47% over the last four years. They now account for $8.5 billion of the county’s more than $100-billion economy, according to Cynthia Nelson, Santa Ana executive director of the Community Development Agency.

She estimates that 39% of the county’s businesses export abroad. As sluggish Asian economies slowly awakening from their slumber, exports should continue to grow in importance.

The council also earmarked $100,000 to hire a consultant to help coax federal, state and local agencies to open offices at the proposed project, which is expected to open within a year at a site yet to be determined.

The city hopes agencies ranging from the U.S. Department of Commerce to area chambers of commerce will agree to set up shop in the proposed center, Santa Ana Mayor Miguel A. Pulido Jr. said.

In addition to contacting the agencies, the consultant is expected to help organize international trade seminars for area businesspeople.

Several local organizations and cities have thrown their support behind Santa Ana. In light of the absence of comprehensive international trade services for local businesses, the center will be a welcome addition to the area, said Stan Oftelie, president of the Orange County Business Council. “It’s a progressive idea,” he said.

Irvine Mayor Christina L. Shea, an avid supporter of trade with Mexico, said the center would “create more trade and more profits for our communities.”

Although Santa Ana arguably stands to gain the most from the International Trade Center, it hopes others will pitch in. “We’re looking for partners from the other cities in Orange County, the state and the private sector to commit to the cause,” said Nelson of the Community Development Agency. “We don’t plan to do this all alone.”

Santa Ana accounts for more than 20% of the businesses in the county.