Valley Economic Development Center Expands to Pasadena

The Valley Economic Development Center is extending its reach to the San Gabriel Valley following its recent acquisition of Pasadena Development Corporation. The Pasadena organization is now being operated as a VEDC service center, the Van Nuys-based organization said. The acquisition is the result of a $5 million grant from JPMorgan Chase in January, which enabled the organizations to merge their balance sheets. It became effective on May 31. The merger is part of the Van Nuys-based group’s efforts to expand statewide, said VEDC President Roberto Barragan. Through the same grant, the VEDC recently opened a Bay Area office, and has deals to collaborate with more than two dozen California organizations to help the group originate small business loans, he said. The organization’s expansion will not detract from VEDC’s operations in the San Fernando Valley, Barragan said. “We’re not going anywhere,” Barragan said. “The San Fernando Valley is our home.” The VEDC has its headquarters in Sherman Oaks, multiple operations in Pacoima and plans to reopen an office in Canoga Park in a couple of months, he said. The group also has an office in downtown Los Angeles. Area business professionals say the VEDC’s expansion efforts could help the organization to better serve Valley companies. Nancy Hoffman Vanyek, CEO of the Greater San Fernando Valley Chamber of Commerce, said the growth gives the group more leverage in attracting capital. “If they have a proven track record, it’s going to be much easier for them to get other grants and administer other programs that benefit San Fernando Valley businesses,” she said. Victor Viereck, president of the Universal City North Hollywood Chamber of Commerce, said partnering with groups in other regions could even open doors to new sources of corporate funding. Brian Skipper, owner of Sway-A-Way Inc. in Chatsworth, said there is still room for improvement at the group’s home base. “They’re a little slow to respond,” said Skipper, whose auto suspension components manufacturing company received a $350,000 loan from the VEDC in August. “Otherwise, they’re great.” As a result of the acquisition, the Pasadena service center will increase its small business lending capacity from about $100,000 a year to about $1 million a year, Barragan said. The acquisition allows the organization to better connect with banks in Pasadena that could be doing more business lending through their San Fernando Valley branches, he said. Keith Rogers, the Pasadena Development Corporation’s most recent executive director, is running the new office and will be added to the VEDC’s payroll starting in July, Barragan said. Before the acquisition, the Pasadena group had downsized to only one staff member, he said. The VEDC started in 1976 as Vitalize Van Nuys, a subgroup of what is now the Greater San Fernando Valley Chamber of Commerce. It broke off into its own organization in the 1990s.