Business Focus

Gilroy Chamber Business Focus June 2023

Gilroy Chamber Business Focus June 2023

June 5, 2023

The Value of Local Partnerships and Promoting Local Events

Visit Gilroy values our partnerships with local organizations and businesses and understands the benefits these bring to our community and our visitors. Visit Gilroy is proud to support some local organizations by helping to promote their events, such as the Downtown Gilroy Wine & Art Walk, the Halloween Beer Crawl, the Holiday Parade, the 3rd Friday Art Walk, and the Chamber’s Garlic City Car Show. These events bring hundreds to thousands of visitors to Gilroy, and those people visit our restaurants, retail shops, and other entertainment venues, benefiting the local businesses and economy.

Visit Gilroy promotes these events through a variety of ways, including our website event calendar, our social media platforms, online ads, blogs, and more. Visit Gilroy’s Tourism & Community Engagement Coordinator Madeline Martin also participates on their planning committees and assists at the events.

Downtown Gilroy Wine & Art Walk

Visit Gilroy recently partnered with the Downtown Business Association in promoting and working at the Downtown Gilroy Wine & Art Walk on May 20, 2023. The event sold 450 wine-tasting tickets and had well over 500 attendees. Many visitors came for the fine art and artisan vendors and the family-friendly activity area, while also enjoying the live music, culture, a dance performance, and small bites offered by local restaurants.

This event introduced attendees to our downtown businesses as they entered for the wine tastings—also introducing them to our fantastic local wineries. Some lingered afterwards to purchase food and drinks at local establishments. A number of visitors to Gilroy were surprised at all the new places that had opened recently and all that we had to offer.

Garlic City Car Show

The Chamber’s Garlic City Car Show draws thousands of out-of-town visitors, from car entrants to car enthusiasts. This fun event is also strategically hosted downtown, where people not only can peruse cars, but they can also explore downtown businesses and restaurants. Visit Gilroy recognizes that these community events also foster the identity of our city, which in return attracts visitors and instills local pride. Visit Gilroy is a proud supporter of our partner organizations that host these events that bring locals and visitors to our city and benefit our entire community economically.

Sidewalk Vending Community Workshop
 
In response to recent state laws and community input, the City of Gilroy is developing a Sidewalk Vending Permit Program and is holding a community workshop to receive feedback and answer questions about a potential permitting process, concerns about sidewalk vending, and possible issues regarding safety, accessibility and the shared use of public property.
 
What: Sidewalk Vending Community Workshop
When: June 8, 2023, at 6 PM
Where: Gilroy Senior Center, 7371 Hanna Street
Spanish language interpretation services will be provided.
Join us and provide your feedback on sidewalk vending in Gilroy.
 
For more information or for questions regarding this meeting, please contact Jon Biggs at Jon.Biggs@CityofGilroy.org or call 408-846-0440.
A Modern Online Permit System is Coming to the City of Gilroy!
The long-awaited day is almost here. In just a few short weeks, our new Gilroy Online “GO Permit” system with a community self-service portal will be available.
 
The new portal will provide the community with the following features:
Apply for building, planning, engineering encroachment, and fire permits online.
Track the progress of your application and plan review, and schedule and track inspections online.
 
The new Gilroy Online “GO Permit” system with the community self-service portal is anticipated to be available for public use on June 19, 2023.
 
Please note: in preparation for the launch of this new modern permit system, the Community Development Counter, Public Works Engineering Counter, and ALL PERMITTING SERVICES WILL BE CLOSED from June 12 through June 16, 2023. System and data conversion will take place during the one-week period.
 
If you have any questions regarding this upcoming closure or your current permit application status, please contact our Community Development Team at 408-846-0451.
What's New with Business?

Class Act Music Academy

It’s time to register for camp! Come join us at our 3rd annual music and arts summer camp, Downbeat!  All incoming 2nd graders through incoming 10th graders are welcome to experiencing music, art, drama, dance, and more! As always, all lunch and snacks are included. Come join a few of CAMA’s favorite teachers for the week – Ms. Dani, Mr. Michael, and Coach Dany!  Click below to register, or email contact@cspaa.org with any questions. We’ll see you soon!

The Gilroy Garlic Festival Brings Back Nashville Songwriters Sponsored by KRTY.com Concert on July 13 at Clos LaChance Winery in San Martin. The concert will be held on Thursday, July 13, doors open at 6 p.m., at the winery, 1 Hummingbird Lane, in San Martin (clos.com). Tickets are $75 per person and will go on sale June 1, at https://gilroygarlicfestivalassociation.com. The $75 ticket includes wine glass, glass of wine and garlic swag. Proceeds from the concert will benefit the Gilroy Garlic Festival Association.

The concert features award-winning Nashville songwriters Eric Paslay, Tyler Reeve, Chase McGill, and Chris LeCorte. All seating will be first-come first-served. Seating is limited so guests are encouraged to bring their own lawn chairs or blanket. The event is age 21 and over only. No outside alcohol allowed, including previously purchased Clos LaChance wines. Food will be available for purchase at the event, but outside food/picnic is also allowed, including sealed water bottles.

Sponsorships are available at the $500 level, which includes 4 tickets, 4 glasses, 4 glasses of wine, garlic swag, meet and greet, and social media recognition.

Since 1979, the Gilroy Garlic Festival Association has distributed more than $12 million to local charitable organizations through its annual, family-friendly celebration of the famous bulb. Local non-profits participating in the festival have raised millions more. The Gilroy Garlic Festival Association aims to be a chain that links together residents, businesses, nonprofits, faith groups, schools, and other local institutions in a collaborative and supportive expression of “community.”

Small Business Grant Program

PayPal and the San Jose Earthquakes share a deep-rooted commitment to helping small business owners achieve their dreams. As a cornerstone of our long-term partnership, the Support Our City program was designed to highlight local businesses based within our Bay Area communities. Whether these are restaurants, barber shops, or clothing stores, they are instrumental in defining the place we collectively call home.

For the 2023 season, PayPal will be awarding a $5,000 grant to three businesses in the region. The PayPal / Venmo Support Our City Grant was developed to champion opportunity for business owners and help them rethink their own possibilities. Learn more and Apply!!

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"Joining the Gilroy Chamber of Commerce is one of the best business decisions I have made."

Anita Bedoya, Owner, Lapels Dry Cleaning

"While facing some delays opening our taphouse the Gilroy Chamber of Commerce intervened. Their creative approach to problem solving saved the day. The Chamber’s connections made a difference for us."

Ryan and Larissa Dickerson, Owners of Bitter Taphouse

"The Chamber has done a great job keeping me informed."

James Gargiulo, Spectrum Small Business Advisor

"We have been able to rely on the Chamber whenever we needed to be connected to people, resources and information."

Jaime Rosso, CEO, Rosso’s Furniture

"We have been actively involved in the Chamber for 20 years. We continue to stay involved because of the critical information they provide."

Bruce & Audrey Haller, Cafe 152 Bread Co.

"As a Gilroy Chamber of Commerce member, I’ve met more people, been able to give back to the community and be involved in decisions that affect our local economy."

Maria Cid, Farmers Insurance