Taft council hears retail-recruitment plan and regional outlook as SB 237 opens permit opportunities
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Summary
Consultants told the Taft City Council that retail recruitment work will begin this spring and a county economic developer said new permit thresholds from SB 237 could boost local drilling activity; consultants advised ready sites and housing to retain jobs.
City of Taft council members heard two study-session presentations on Feb. 17 about retail recruitment and regional economic trends tied to recent state permitting changes.
Barry Foster, principal with HDL Econ Solutions, outlined a two-task program the firm will deliver for Taft: a market-insight and leakage/void analysis focused on downtown and the Albertsons-anchored shopping center (Task 1, $20,000 fixed fee) and ongoing retail-recruitment outreach (Task 2) billed hourly up to a not-to-exceed total of $45,000 for both tasks. Foster said the work will produce a list of “probably 15 to 20 or maybe 25 potential retailers, restaurants, businesses that would be good fits” and marketing packets for recruiters. He told the council he expects initial outreach at industry conferences in March and May and said the firm would report back to the city in late summer or early fall.
Richard Chapman of the Kern Economic Development Corporation described regional economic indicators and the potential local impact of Senate Bill 237, which changes permitting thresholds for certain oil- and gas-related activity. Chapman said Taft’s 30-minute trade area contains roughly 100,000 people, that Kern County retains a large share of the state’s oil production, and that a modest uptick in local drilling would likely translate into indirect job and retail demand only if oil prices and investment rise substantially. Chapman recommended that Taft maintain “plug-and-play” industrial sites and workforce supports to capture larger manufacturing or energy-sector investments.
On specifics, the council heard a countywide permit tally that a staff speaker described as 344 permit actions (about 126 new drills), and speakers repeatedly cautioned that that figure was at least two weeks old and includes re-drills and abandonments. Several council members emphasized housing and workforce readiness as prerequisites for converting permit activity into sustained local employment and retail growth.
Mayor North framed the discussion around local opportunity, saying Taft is “open for business” and urging the city to present ready sites and a receptive local process. Foster and Chapman both said they would supply further analysis: Foster on local market analytics and retailer targets, Chapman on regional tracking and industrial recruitment metrics. The council did not take formal action on the presentations; both firms were invited to return with more detailed materials in coming months.
