Simi Valley reports new restaurants, rising sales tax and heavy filming; industrial vacancy cited as challenge
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Summary
City staff told the council that several restaurants and service businesses have opened or are proposed, sales tax rose 6.4% in Q3 year‑over‑year, filmmaking generated an estimated $5.25 million locally in 2025, and industrial vacancy remains elevated at 10.2%, prompting targeted outreach to brokers and retailers.
Simi Valley economic development staff on Thursday presented a quarterly update to the City Council highlighting new business activity, local economic indicators and steps the city is taking to attract tenants.
Assistant to the city manager Angel Sierra and Assistant City Manager Luis Garabay said new openings include Urbane Cafe and a second Chipotle location, Kids Dental Pals and Orthodontics, a behavioral health provider and Mathnasium; targeted projects in the pipeline include Simi Valley Brewing Company, Porcelino’s, Raising Cane’s and a Pickle and Play indoor facility. Staff said O’Bryant Electric is relocating to the city and is expected to bring roughly 35–50 jobs.
Staff reported that Simi Valley’s sales tax receipts for April through June rose 6.4% from the same quarter a year earlier, driven largely by general consumer goods. Local unemployment improved to about 4.6% in September, outperforming regional averages, the presentation said.
Officials flagged a longer‑term challenge on the industrial side: an industrial vacancy rate of about 10.2%, higher than Ventura County (4.7%) and Los Angeles County (5.6%). Garabay told the council the elevated vacancy reflects recently delivered industrial space that has outpaced absorption, tenant turnover and departures of some manufacturers. To address the issue, staff said the city is increasing outreach to industrial brokers, planning broker roundtables and updating marketing materials for the ICSC commercial real estate conference.
The presentation also highlighted film activity: nearly 300 filming days in 2025 and an estimated local economic impact exceeding $5.25 million through spending on hotels, food, fuel and rentals. Staff said a major production in the Wood Ranch area brought about two weeks of prep and filming and more than 450 cast and crew members to the city.
Council members asked for specifics on industrial recruitment. Garabay described ongoing one‑on‑one conversations with firms and brokers and said city staff will host broader broker roundtables to present permitting steps and responsibilities of city units involved in approvals.
The presentation concluded with staff saying materials and outreach will be refreshed ahead of the ICSC conference to attract retail and industrial prospects, including targeted messaging about available space at the Simi Valley Town Center.
