December 20 – On December 13, the Long Beach Redevelopment Agency (RDA) and Long Beach City College (LBCC) celebrated the opening of the LBCC Downtown Small Business Development Center at 309 Pine Ave. As an extension of the development center headquartered at the college, the facility provides existing and prospective small business owners with free training, business advising, access to capital and advice from entrepreneurs and industry experts. In addition to these services, the center also hosts the Long Beach International Trade Office and the 10,000 Small Business Goldman Sachs Program and is used by the city to promote its economic development programs to small businesses. “The new downtown center will be an incredible opportunity for small business owners to connect with the great resources at [LBCC] and our own city economic development programs and tax incentives,” Mayor Bob Foster said in a statement. “It’s a great move and I applaud the LBCC for opening this center.” For more information, visit www.longbeachsbdc.org or call 562/938-5008. Pictured, from left, are: Eloy Ortiz Oakley, LBCC superintendent-president; Mayor Foster; Doug Otto, LBCC Board of Trustees president; and John Thomas, chair of the RDA. (Photograph by the Business Journal’s Thomas McConville)