lifeinaction
DoingBusinessinCarlsbad

 

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Workforce development &
small-business assistance

Carlsbad Commuter app

Carlsbad Life in Action Recruiter
 

2024 Carlsbad Business Survey is Open

The City of Carlsbad has launched its 2024 Carlsbad Business Survey. This survey is a confidential and convenient way for local business owners and leaders to share feedback about Carlsbad as a place to do business. 

You can take the survey here: carlsbadca.gov/BusinessSurvey 
It should only take about 15 minutes to complete. 

About the Survey
  • The survey will be open through January 2024.
  • The survey is intended for business owners, executive management, and senior leaders who have knowledge of the overall operations and direction of the business.
  • Responses will be anonymized and aggregated with other responses. No individual or business information will be shared or published.
  • The survey asks about different aspects of current business operations, such as workforce and hiring needs, access to clients and customers, and permitting and regulatory concerns. It also asks about future growth expectations and feedback on the business climate in Carlsbad.
  • The survey is conducted every two years to ensure the city understands current challenges and trends in the business community.
  • The City of Carlsbad appreciates your time and participation in this survey. Your feedback will help improve services and support for the local business community.
  • For any questions related to the survey, please contact our economic development team at business@carlsbadca.gov.

Thank you for taking the time to ensure the City of Carlsbad is better informed about the state of the business community!

Doing business

The economic development team is here to serve and support the city’s business community. Whether you are a small business or our largest tech employer, the city wants to make sure your business thrives in Carlsbad. The city team is here to help with getting your business license, bidding on projects and contracts or meeting with our development services team about permits and processes. You can learn more about the benefits of starting or expanding a business in Carlsbad at our Doing Business in Carlsbad story map. If you are a business looking for a new space in Carlsbad, please email economic development staff at business@carlsbadca.gov.

Useful resources 

Looking to start your own business? Our questionnaire is designed to link small businesses with local resources, providing information to tackle some of the top challenges prospective small businesses commonly face.

The Guide to Opening an Eating Establishment provides insight on where you can open an eating establishment in our city and how the process works. Useful information for food truck and sidewalk vendors can be found on our website as well. 

New state and local environmental regulations are being phased in over the next couple of years. Find information on these regulations, as well as resources for your staff and customers, on the Reduce, Reuse, Recycle page. 

Talent attraction & retention

One of the City Council’s strategic focus areas is bringing quality jobs to the city in today’s globally competitive economy. Carlsbad's Life In Action initiative is a resource for employers looking to land that perfect candidate. It provides additional tools, such as a hiring toolkit with media assets, brochures and infographics, to make the case for why the job in Carlsbad is the right one. 

The Carlsbad Job-Readiness Room is a free program that helps residents build job skills and bolster their chances of landing a new job in Carlsbad. The platform is powered by Bendable, a learning marketplace that allows people to discover new knowledge and skills through online courses, in-person events and other learning resources.

Economic Snapshots

Carlsbad Economic Snapshot FY 2022-2023 Q3

Economic Development Strategic Plan

Carlsbad Economic Development Strategic Plan

Biennial Business Report

The biennial business report provides an understanding of specific attributes of Carlsbad’s business climate, including workforce and hiring needs, access to clients and customers, and permitting and regulatory concerns, among other issues for Carlsbad’s business community.

2022 Carlsbad Business Report

Connect with us

Carlsbad has a range of options for businesses to establish, grow and thrive. If you are ready to learn more about doing business along the creative coast or have general questions about doing business in our city, contact the Innovation & Economic Development Department at business@carlsbadca.gov. 

News headlines

No hotel tax increase

Post Date:10/26/2023

The City Council decided Tuesday not to move forward with putting a measure on the ballot for a potential increase in the tax visitors pay when they stay at local hotels and short-term vacation rentals. In April, the City Council requested information about a potential ballot measure to increase the transient occupancy tax in Carlsbad, one of several new revenue sources that have been discussed over the past 18 months. The City Council also asked staff to seek input from local hotel owners and others in the tourism industry.

Since June 2021, when city staff first warned of a potential structural budget deficit in the future, the City Council has requested that staff study potential new sources of revenue and called for city staff to look for more efficient ways of doing business.

At Tuesday’s meeting, staff shared information about how Carlsbad’s hotel tax rate compares to other visitor destinations. At 10%, Carlsbad is tied for the lowest among comparison cities like Newport Beach and Santa Barbara and is comparable to most other cities in San Diego County. Staff also shared feedback from the hotel and tourism industry, which is still feeling the effects of the COVID pandemic and other recent economic conditions. Losing business, especially related to corporate and group travel, to cities with lower taxes was a significant concern reported by industry representatives. A hotel tax increase would generate an estimated $3 million to $3.5 million for every percent the tax goes up.

Also on Tuesday, city staff reviewed steps already taken to reduce ongoing spending and operate more efficiently. Over the past two years, city departments have made dozens of cuts, resulting in ongoing savings of nearly $5 million a year. The city’s current budget includes an increase over last year's maintenance and operations budgets of less than 1%, at a time when inflation was over 6%. By reducing spending, coupled with stronger-than-anticipated revenues, the city now estimates the projected future deficit three years later than previously anticipated. This gives the city more time to consider options.

A structural deficit means the costs to run the city are expected to increase at a faster rate than revenues expected to come in. It does not mean the city currently has a deficit. The financial forecast is a tool that provides early warning signs so adjustments can be made. The anticipated structural deficit is for the city’s general fund, which pays for day-to-day city services.

There are several reasons costs are increasing at a faster rate than spending, including the city’s age, which means more infrastructure needs to be replaced, and decreasing developer fees to help pay for new infrastructure. Based on community priorities, the city has also added over a dozen new programs and services over the past five years, mostly related to public safety, which require ongoing spending to sustain them. New parks and other community amenities have also come online, and those too require ongoing funding to maintain.

Read the city budget
Read the staff report

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