Human Capital Leadership Council (HCLC)
In 2023, Uplift San Bernardino Electric Vehicle (EV) student interns attended more than 20 events sharing with the community the different electric vehicle incentive programs such as Replace Your Ride and Communities in Charge. Through their efforts, student interns have interacted with more than 10,000 people in our community.
To gather the voices of our community regarding EVs and infrastructure, the interns collected feedback through an EV survey. Within three months, nearly 200 survey responses had been submitted.
From March 1, through October 16, 2023 the number of applications for EV incentives reached 256; the number of electric cars purchased was 68. From 2018 to March 2023, the number of individuals who applied for the Replace Your Ride program for the City of San Bernardino was 111. The number of vehicles purchased was 25.
In 2024, Uplift San Bernardino and partners aim to host a Ride and Drive Event as well as assisting in the installation of more EV charging stations to improve our city’s infrastructure.
S mall Business Resource Group (SBRG)
Throughout 2023, the Small Business Resource Group partners developed a targeted marketing plan to deploy and understand the needs of small businesses in key commercial corridors that include a survey instrument.
Loma Linda University (LLU) developed a comprehensive assessment survey instrument to capture a holistic understanding of the challenges, aspirations, and requirements of small businesses in San Bernardino. To ensure the robustness of the survey tool, it was disseminated to the SBGR, and their insights and comments were incorporated into the draft version currently in the pilot testing phase. The insights gained from this pilot phase will inform necessary adjustments before the survey is officially launched to the broader small business community.
The SBRG is also collaborating with Cal State San Bernardino and San Bernardino Valley College to hire business and public administration students to conduct outreach and deploy the survey in key commercial corridors by February 2024. The team is looking to effectively deploy the resources available to entrepreneurs in all stages of growth including the Entrepreneurial Resource Center – San Bernardino, a co-working hub developed by the City of San Bernardino and the Cal State San Bernardino’s Inland Empire Center for Entrepreneurship that opened in November 2023.
Housing Pipeline Impact Team
In 2023 work with the Housing Pipeline Impact Team focused on supporting new city staff in developing a citywide housing strategy from transitional phase to homeownership. This work included conducting an inventory of all housing programs and identifying housing projects underway in each category. Simultaneously, the team focused on developing a job description to hire a full-time Housing Associate. In the Summer of 2023 Housing Associate Ruben Mendoza was hired to support the Housing Pipeline Impact Team, and with LLU to identify policies to address displacement and advance housing options for residents.
An exhaustive policy inventory has been meticulously compiled, capturing existing strategies, tools, and policies to address housing-related challenges. This comprehensive catalog encompasses a spectrum of initiatives, including but not limited to Affordable Housing Programs, Tenant Protections, Homeownership Assistance, Homeless Services and Prevention, Fair Housing Measures, Housing Quality Standards, Community Development Initiatives, Public-Private Partnerships, Financial Tools, Rental Assistance Programs, and Emergency Response Plans.
The Housing Pipeline Impact Team will utilize the research conducted by LLU students to educate residents, local leaders, stakeholders on the policy recommendations that are identified as part of the housing toolkit. The community partners will then identify one or more policies to advance and present to elected officials. Uplift San Bernardino was also successful in securing funds ($300,000) from Kaiser Permanente to support the predevelopment phase of housing projects. Five applications were received and are currently under review for funding.