The East Bay continues to be one of the nation’s leading manufacturing regions. Resilient East Bay seeks to enhance connectivity and advance partnerships between business, education, government, and others to ensure that our manufacturing ecosystem receives ongoing investment and support.

While Torani is one of the Bay Area’s most well-known food and beverage manufacturers, it is unlikely that many people know that the company will be celebrating its centennial in 2025. Torani was established in 1925 by immigrants from Lucca, Italy who hand-crafted syrups from their hometown recipes in San Francisco’s North Beach neighborhood. Over the years, the company grew its product offering and has been credited with putting the Italian soda on the U.S. map in the 1920s and creating the first flavored latte in the 1980s. On July 31, East Bay EDA members and partners were fortunate to be offered an exclusive tour of Torani’s new state-of-the-art “flavor factory,” led by their CEO, Melanie Dulbecco.

More than thirty East Bay EDA members and partners of the organization’s Land Use & Infrastructure Committee and Resilient East Bay initiative took an exclusive guided bus tour of the Port of Richmond on Friday, May 17th. Members had the chance to learn about the Port’s maritime history, its critical operations, and future plans directly from Port Director, Charles Gerard, who joined the City of Richmond in 2023 with 35 years of maritime industry experience supervising marine terminal operating systems for more than 400 terminals worldwide. The Port of Richmond is Northern California’s most diversified cargo handler. With its roots in petroleum and liquid bulk cargos, the Port has expanded…

2024 provided multiple opportunities to partner with agencies and organizations leading efforts to highlight the East Bay economy, strengthen collaboration amongst municipalities and CDFIs, connect our private and public partners, and foster new growth in historic neighborhoods and communities. 

On September 19, East Bay EDA partnered with the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco and Working Solutions, a Northern California-based Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI), to host Unlocking Capital, an event focused on supporting small businesses through strengthening collaboration between CDFIs and municipalities. CDFIs often serve as conduits of flexible capital to communities and individuals not well-served by traditional financial systems. The role of small business-focused CDFIs became increasingly visible during the COVID-19 pandemic and they continue to play a key role in supporting local economic…

Last year, we were a proud partner with Prescott West Oakland in launching the Prescott Night Market. Prescott Night Market is a gathering place that comes alive once a month on Thursday nights from April to October between 4 pm and 8 pm, aligning with the home games of the Oakland Ballers. It unites residents, food makers, artisans, entrepreneurs, and local businesses in celebration of our rich and diverse community. The 2024 market was made possible by a partnership with Bandaloop Studios, Activate Oakland, and Almanac Brewery. With much success in 2024, Prescott West Oakland will be bringing the Night Market in 2025.

Launched in partnership with San Francisco Business Times, the East Bay Business News section and East Bay Hot Spots continued to highlight stories from our region’s diverse economy.  

Recognizing the critical importance of the Port of Oakland to the Northern California economy and our nation’s commercial sector, we support opportunities to develop and expand foreign direct investment and other business opportunities among companies that seek to build or expand their import and export markets.