Jul 9, 5-7 pm, B J Travel Center, 39102 State St., Fremont, (510) 796-8300
more | map

Jul 23, 5-7 pm, East West Bank, 6036 Stevenson Blvd, Fremont, (510) 979-0065
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Jul 7 , 11:30am, Dickey's Barbeque Pit, 43321 Boscell Rd., Fremont, (510) 687-1805
more | map Please note date change!!

Jul 12, noon, Sat, Baby Hugs, 39065 Fremont Hub, Fremont, (510) 656-5986
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If you would like to schedule a ribbon cutting, call KK Kaneshiro at 510-795-2244, ext. 103

Fremont Chamber’s Annual Food Drive: June 23 – July 25, all donated non-perishable food stays in our community to help all families who are dependent on school breakfasts and lunches and who do not have access to those programs during summer vacation. Please help us fight hunger and donate!

Jul 4, Chamber offices are closed for the 4th of July

Jul 25, Fremont Day at the A’s: 7:05 pm, A’s vs. Texas Rangers. $5 of every ticket sold goes to the Fremont Education Foundation and other local charities. Download the flyer

25th Annual Festival of the Arts: August 2-3, 10 am–6 pm, Paseo Padre Pkwy. @ Walnut Ave. What started in 1983 at the Hub has grown into the largest free street festival on the West Coast; jam-packed with nearly 700 quality artisans, two stages, 3 musical stages, Kid City and Gourmet Marketplace. Fun is guaranteed for every family member! www.fremontfestival.net

Free Small Business Workshops
Co-sponsored by the City of Fremont, the East Bay Small Business Development Center, and the Fremont Chamber of Commerce. All classes are held at the City Council Chambers, 3300 Capitol Ave., Bldg. A, Fremont, CA. There is no cost to attend these workshops. Advance registration is required. To pre-register go to www.eastbaysbdc.org or call (510) 208-0410.
Sep 17, 9-noon, Expansion & Growth Capital
Oct 9, 9-noon, International Business
Nov 5, 9-noon, Business Planning
Dec 4, 9-noon, eCommerce & On-Line Marketing

The East Bay Small Business Development Classes & Workshops
The East Bay Small Business Development Center (SBDC), offers classes, consulting services and business planning resources for entrepreneurs and small business owners. The East Bay SBDC is focused on developing and implementing programs and services that support small business growth and sustainable economic development. All classes are held at SBDC Training Center, 1000 Broadway, Suite 109, Oakland, CA 94607 unless otherwise indicated. Visit http://www.eastbaysbdc.org/ calendar/index.html to register.

Jul 22, 2-5pm, Successful Advertising & Marketing Plans
Jul 29, 2-5pm, Starting a Business
Jul 31, 2-5pm, Successful Business Plans
Aug 5, 2-5pm, Accessing Capital for Small Businesses & Start Up Companies
Aug 17, 2-5pm, Legal & Business Issues

777 B. St., Hayward, CA 94541
Jul 24, 9-noon, eCommerce & Web Marketing

12501 Alcosta Blvd., San Ramon, CA 94583
Jul 15, 9-noon, Starting a Business

2090 Kittredge St., Berkeley, CA 94703
Jul 17, 2-5pm, Retailing 101

Free Government Contracting Course and Seminars  In these free training seminars you will learn techniques to tap into the profitable federal, state, and local government markets. The instructors have extensive experience in government contracting and are familiar with the latest contracting laws and regulations. Register online at www.TheFTC.org or call (866) 382-7822 toll free.

84 W. Santa Clara St., Ste. 100, San Jose, CA 95113
Jul 15, 1-4pm, Federal Contract Negotiation
Sep 9, 1-4pm, Government Subcontracting

951 Turner Ct., Hayward, CA 94545
Aug 14, 9-noon, e-Commerce for Government Contracting

1666 N. Main St., Walnut Creek, CA 94596
Jul 8, 3-5pm, 2008 Congresswoman Tauscher’s Small Business Government Contracting Seminars

1000 Broadway, Ste. 109, Oakland, CA 94612
Aug 5, 1-4pm, Getting Started with Government Contracting

455 Market St., 6th Floor, San Francisco, CA 94105
Aug 26, 9-noon, Doing Business with General Services Administration

2425 Bisso Ln, Ste. 200, Concord, CA 94527
Sep 4, 9-noon, Federal Contract Administration

Food For Thought

Could strawberry ice cream disappear from our lives? What about vanilla Swiss almond? The folks at Haagen-Dazs and others, are extremely worried about the shocking decline of honeybees and other pollinators of strawberry plants, almond trees and the rest of the roughly 90 percent of terrestrial plant life that needs pollination. Officials of the Oakland company told Congress that more than 40% of its product's flavors, derived from fruits and nuts, depend on honeybees. Without bees, fruits and nuts cannot exist. Read about what you can do to help. (6/27/2008)

LOCAL
Grab your flag: July Fourth events slated all around Bay Area Don’t miss Fremont’s July 4th parade, 10am, Centerville district, but there are lots of events scheduled for the rest of the day around the Bay also.

I-680 repairs in Fremont to be funded Another $143 million in state infrastructure bond money was allocated by Gov. Schwarzenegger Thursday, with $23.4 million set aside for repairing a section of Interstate 680 in Fremont. (6/26/2008)

East Bay office market advances , despite setbacks The East Bay's office market during the first three months of 2008 followed a pattern of two steps forward and 1.9 steps back. For every big office deal that landed in the East Bay in the first quarter of the year, the implosion in housing caused another residential real estate, mortgage or banking firm to vacate their offices. High technology companies bolstered growth in the Fremont-Newark-Union City area, where buildings are less expensive to lease than in some other markets in Silicon Valley, brokers said. (printed 6/22/2008)

STATE
Sick leave bill passes Senate Labor & Industrial Relations Committee AB 2716 passed the Senate & Industrial Relations Committee on June 25, on a vote of 3-2, and was passed back to the Senate Appropriations Committee. Also, a just-released study on AB 2716 predicts the loss of about 370,000 California jobs within five years if this bill become law. If you wish to have your comments on this bill included in letters to legislators, please email nmoore@fremontbusiness.com.

California to stop paying most of its bills The check is not in the mail. No one even guessing when a budget will be in place. Pity the small business that has the state as a customer. It’s not likely to see a check for goods and services for weeks, perhaps months, to come. Ditto for some non-civil service state employees. Most will not get a paycheck after Tuesday July 1st. (6/30/2008)

Unemployment hit 6.8% in May; gas prices a factor The construction industry is still a mess, and high gasoline prices are starting to hurt retailers, restaurants and hotels. Bottom line: California's highest unemployment rate in five years. (6/21/2088)

California home sales up, unsold inventory down The California Association of Realtors reported that home sales increased 18.1% in May compared with May 2007, and the median number of days it took to sell a single-family home was down. However, the report noted that this is partially due to the large number of distressed homes for sale in many parts of the State. (6/25/2008)

California bill eases biotech taxes The state Senate Revenue and Tax Committee unanimously approved a bill that will allow biotech companies to spread deductions for their net operating losses across 20 years instead of 10 years. It essentially lowers the tax hit these companies incur during the years before they start turning a profit. (6/27/2008)

Fuel costs may raise mass transit fares Escalating fuel prices that have pushed more commuters out of their cars and onto buses, ferries and trains also have put an added financial strain on transit operators and could lead to higher fares. The price of diesel, which fuels such Bay Area transit fleets as Caltrain, AC Transit and the Alameda ferries, has nearly tripled in the past five years. (6/21/2008)

California unveils plan to reduce emissions to 1990 levels by 2020 The California Air Resources Board Thursday released a long-awaited draft plan to lower the state's greenhouse gas emissions that relies on an emissions cap-and-trade program for the bulk of the reductions. (6/26/2008)

NATIONAL
National debt makes U.S. vulnerable, experts say Lender nations could wage 'financial warfare' Tax rates could double. Spending on education, research, health and even Social Security could be squeezed tighter than ever. And foreign governments could use powerful financial leverage, rather than military force, to impose their economic and political agendas on the United States. All because the U.S. national debt -- which is being financed on a daily basis by the governments of China and a host of oil-exporting states, among others -- has made this country far more vulnerable than its elected leaders let on, says David Walker, who recently finished a 10-year stint as U.S. comptroller general and head of the Government Accountability Office.

Q1 semiconductor revenue at $67.3B Worldwide semiconductor revenue totaled $67.3 billion in the first quarter of 2008, rising five percent year over year, according to a report Thursday. (6/27/08)

COMPANIES IN THE NEWS
Low death rate puts Washington Hospital in top 6 East Bay Hospitals
Synnex's Q2 profit, revenue up
Vermillion seeks FDA approval of ovarian tumor triage test
Mattson to cut 5% of work force
Asyst facing another takeover bid
Linens 'n Things plans to close Fremont store, among others
Brooks-Range Releases New Strap for Snow Skiing

Small business owners curtail spending Small business owners are saving and spending less, as consumer goods and fuel costs top records levels, according to the latest Wells Fargo/Gallup Small Business Index survey. More than one-third of the 600 surveyed said their personal financial situation as a whole is getting worse. 75% of respondents had concerns about paying for gas and roughly half said they had concerns about paying for health care and had postponed a major purchase in the past three months. (6/25/2008)

Survey: Consumers' pessimism grows Consumers in the U.S. feel gloomier than they have since 1980, according to a survey released Friday by the University of Michigan and Reuters. (6/27/2008)

Solar energy cost will plummet by 2025, study says A new study makes the case that solar power is emerging as a cost-effective hedge against fossil fuels and is likely to reach parity with retail-electricity rates in most regions of the U.S. in less than a decade.

Fremont Day at the Oakland A's: July 25, A's vs. Texas link to pdf