CALIFORNIA BUSINESS MINUTE
Goleta to Silicon Valley
07-16-10
Hi, I am Tim Johnson and welcome to the California Business Minute.
A group of businesses and local organizations in Goleta, California, north of Santa Barbara
are looking to mobilize the community in their effort to spur new, direct flight support
to San Jose, after a loss of the service in February.
The effort supported by the Goleta Chamber of Commerce, the Santa Barbara Airport and
local technology firm Citrix Online, said they're trying to reach out to address the
issue in a forum later this month. The group said that many local organizations are
concerned that the loss will hurt their business and prospects for long-term growth,
and that they're hoping to find a way to attract interest in a replacement for direct
Santa Barbara (SBA) to San Jose (SJC) flights.
In February, SkyWest Airlines told officials at the Santa Barbara Airport that they
would be discontinuing direct flights to San Jose in June, due to lack of demand.
SkyWest had been providing service after United pulled out of the market several years
ago.
Laura McCormick, vice president of Citrix Online said "The direct route to Silicon
Valley is important to the Santa Barbara region's competitiveness," noting that the
issue is "especially important" for the technology sector, which relies on dealings
in the Valley for connections to headquarters, manufacturing, investment and talent.
McCormick said in an interview with socalTECH that the groups hope that by rallying
the business community, they might be able to provide a business case to the airport
to get some level of direct service reinstated in Santa Barbara. Currently, businesses
in the Santa Barbara area either have to fly to San Francisco--non-ideal for firms
who still have to travel by car to the San Jose area--or are routed through San Francisco
or LAX for connections to SJC.
The meeting is scheduled for July 21st, at noon to 1:30 pm at th eoffices of Citrix Online
6500 Hollister Ave, in Goleta. Call 805-967-2500 for further details.
I am Tim Johnson and this has been the California Business Minute.
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