Chairman's Message
This is a unique time to come into leadership as this Chamber’s Chair of the Board. Over the past year, we have rallied together as a business community, listened to your priorities and concerns, and supported each other when in need. This again shows Riverside’s true character of working together. The world has definitely changed but communities like Riverside are starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel as students are returning safely to school and customers are visiting their favorite businesses. The challenges that lay ahead are an opportunity for your Chamber to continue as the catalyst for business growth, a convener of leaders and influencers to get things done, and a champion for our local community. We must keep advocating that Riverside is a major hub of a regional economy and we need the means to foster its growth. We must have the jobs, housing, infrastructure, healthcare, and more importantly, the funding from Sacramento and Washington, DC to achieve our potential. Like many communities, Riverside is forging its own path of recovery and economic growth. The opening of the California Air Resources Board Southern California Headquarters this year will be an incredible realization of several years of work. It is also a launch pad for more as we pivot from this new facility through a “Green Team” partnership of the Chamber, the County, the City, and UCR to attract the businesses and investors that see Riverside as a hub for technology and innovation as we house the air quality research center of the world. In Riverside, we have the workforce with new graduates and skilled employees from our community college and universities. New objectives such as the UCR OASIS project will work to bring sustainability, advanced technology, and social inclusion within a common space for students and the community. We already have the centers of innovation here such as March Air Reserve Base and the Naval Surface Warfare Center, Corona Division where the latest technologies are developed, tested, and put in the field. We will continue to safeguard their impact in the region due to their significant economic impact. We have a very long list of goals and objectives, and I am deeply honored and humbled to serve as Chair of the Board for this Chamber. Our past Chair of the Board, Gary Montgomery, did a great job this year and I look forward to continuing his momentum of success. Clearly, there is a lot of work ahead of us. If we pull our resources together and maintain our relationships, then Riverside will continue to accomplish great things for our region.
Tom Nightingale
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