By Kris Michell

Strengthening our creative and tech community
One of the summer’s highlights for the Downtown San Diego Partnership was connecting with many of our area’s most interesting young businesses on Aug. 19 for the fourth annual “Startup Day Across America.”

We were honored when Congressman Scott Peters joined us to celebrate the evolving success of Downtown’s growing startup ecosystem. He was one of more than three-dozen members of Congress that day that highlighted the role startup business plays in innovation and job creation across the country.

We discussed ways to raise awareness for these intriguing companies, both locally and nationally, as well as what it will take at the federal level to nurture and grow our hungry tech community.

The town hall discussion was held at Classy — one of Downtown’s most successful and constantly expanding technology companies — and offered attendees from the tech community the opportunity to engage with Rep. Peters about their experiences solving real-life challenges facings San Diego startups.

“Supporting our new and small businesses so they can grow and create jobs is a top priority,” Peters said. “The best way for me to know how to help them is to hear from them directly.”

More startup companies, particularly tech companies, are moving to Downtown in search of an environment that helps drive innovation, part of a national trend of startups seeking urban centers that provide both the energy and synergy to fuel emerging technologies.

There are currently more than 70 tech startups in Downtown San Diego. According to the UT San Diego, more than 30 companies from a variety of industries have relocated to Downtown within the past 18 months.

In addition to our host Classy, companies that were part of the town hall included: TakeLessons, SweetLabs, EvoNexus, Zeeto Media, Underground Elephant, Brandisty, Playground, Co-Merge, Fifty & Fifty, 6 Degrees Business Networking, 7CTO’s, Seed San Diego and TapHunter.

All participants agreed that one of the most impressive things about the startup scene is the level of talent available.

“San Diego has a fantastic talent pool for building and growing startups, from universities like UC San Diego to tech companies like Qualcomm,” said Chester Ng, cofounder of SweetLabs. “While the pool is inarguably smaller than Silicon Valley, startups do have an advantage here, as recruiting is not as hyper competitive and employees aren’t ‘startup-hopping’ month-to-month.”

Other subjects, priorities and feedback discussed were:

•  Establishing a prominent online forum where tech successes, big and small, can be showcased and shared within and outside of San Diego.
•  Creating a mechanism to connect potential investors and startup entrepreneurs in San Diego for the purposes of encouraging them to direct investment dollars locally.
•  Crafting a direct line between local universities and Downtown startups to attract, retain and train the talent needed to foster innovation and meet the needs of these growing startups.

Additionally, the Downtown San Diego Partnership got a shout-out for its support of the startup community.

“We feel very fortunate to be a part of our emerging startup community here in downtown San Diego,” said Brian Jones of Zeeto Media. “The Partnership and our local elected officials want to see us succeed — they understand that startups are the future of our city.”

Feedback from the town hall was taken to the Downtown Partnership’s Tech Startup Committee and will be part of a comprehensive recruitment and retention strategy focused on bringing businesses and talent to the urban core. The Partnership created its 40-member Tech Startup Committee in 2013 to support and grow Downtown’s tech community, a key area of focus in its 20-year vision plan called “Imagine Downtown.”

With the support of forward-thinking politicians like Rep. Peters and the “can do” spirit of our inspiring startup community, all we imagine can become real … in fact, it’s becoming real even now.

Fun by the Forkful in Downtown

Looking for an affordable way to enjoy a night out in our Downtown? Join hundreds of San Diegans from around the region for the 23rd annual “Taste of Downtown” happening on Thursday, Sept. 10.

The Taste of Downtown showcases the culinary prowess of more than 40 of Downtown’s best urban eateries within the historic Gaslamp Quarter, Headquarters, Financial District, East Village and Horton Plaza. Tickets can be purchased in advance for just $30, or $35 the day of the event.

For more information, questions or to purchase tickets, please visit downtownsandiego.org.

—Kris Michell is the president and CEO of the Downtown San Diego Partnership, the organization that oversees the Clean & Safe program and also works toward creating a world-class Downtown. For questions or comments, email [email protected].