Dear colleagues, 

Welcome to the first edition of the California Strategic Growth Council’s (SGC) quarterly newsletter, Imperial Impact: Interagency & Partnership Highlights. We’re excited to launch this new initiative to connect you – our partners – and highlight state-supported work making an impact in communities in the greater Imperial Valley, from major investments to events to program milestones.  

Supporting the needs of California’s diverse regions has always been SGC’s priority. And in 2024, we doubled down on our support for the Imperial Valley through the Imperial Valley Civic Ecosystem Initiative, a collaboration between SGC, the Governor’s Office, the California Energy Commission, the Institute for Local Government and the Latino Community Foundation. The initiative aims to build capacity within local governments and community-based organizations to implement the community’s vision for a healthy, resilient and prosperous future. In today's newsletter and the issues that follow, you’ll find updates on our Imperial Valley Civic Ecosystem Initiative along with news from partner agencies on their key efforts in the Imperial Valley.  

We hope that this newsletter helps raise awareness of the state’s commitment to support the Imperial Valley while spotlighting opportunities for collaboration across state and local partners in the public, private and philanthropic sectors. If you have any questions, feedback or suggested content for future issues, we’d love to hear from you at cace@sgc.ca.gov. 

In partnership, 

Erin Curtis 

Executive Director, SGC 

The Imperial Valley Civic Ecosystem Initiative is a collaborative effort to promote participation and engagement and build the capacity of local partners to achieve their vision of a thriving Imperial Valley. Through this public-private partnership, the Institute for Local Government (ILG) and the Latino Community Foundation (LCF) aim to build the capacity of the local public and nonprofit sectors through two interconnected programs: BOOST Imperial Valley and Activate Imperial. 

Activate Imperial is a capacity-building program led by LCF that provides tools, resources, and support to increase the collective and individual capacity of community-based organizations (CBOs) across Imperial Valley to ensure community priorities are represented and prioritized. Through collaboration, technical assistance, and strategic support, LCF is helping nonprofits located in Imperial Valley navigate challenges, scale their impact, and become sustainable forces for good.  



In 2019, the Institute for Local Government (ILG) partnered with the California Strategic Growth Council (SGC) on the “BOOST Program,” which has become a statewide catalyst for change: empowering under-resourced cities and regions to access critical climate and equity funding, organize more effective systems, and build long-term institutional strength. BOOST Imperial Valley is the most regionally focused round of the program — supporting Imperial County and its seven cities: Brawley, Calexico, Calipatria, El Centro, Holtville, Imperial, and Westmorland. These cities require additional capacity-building support to pursue funding to meet growing infrastructure, climate, and community engagement demands.

The program is currently hiring for an Imperial Valley-focused Director position and will be funding a future position at Imperial Valley Equity and Justice (IVEJ). Review the job posting on the LCF website. 

Additionally, this program has recently achieved the following milestones: 



• Providing core operating grants for local community-based organizations. 
• Funded Asociación de Emprendedores to expand its programming for entrepreneurs and small business development into Imperial – launching in September. 
• Funded Accessity to deepen its footprint in Imperial and increase its provision of access to capital to entrepreneurs and small businesses in the region. 

The Latino Community Foundation is also starting a community-driven visioning process called Creating Community-Driven Governance. This effort will include an Activate Imperial Steering Committee that represents an innovative approach to regional development—one where grassroots leaders, local officials, and private interested parties share decision-making power as equals and achieve shared governance that ensures authentic community priorities drive every major decision. Activities planned include community visioning sessions and a transparent evaluation and engagement framework. 

Institute for Local Government (ILG) Helps Imperial Valley Access Over $2 Million

In less than one year in the Imperial Valley, ILG’s BOOST Program has: 

• Provided 1,300+ hours of technical support. 
• Applied for $27 million in funding and secured $3 million in funding so far. 
• Trained over 50 local leaders in community engagement and governance best practices. 

BOOST is helping the Valley access critical funding, organize more effective systems, and build long-term institutional strength by: 

• Submitting grant applications for Brawley, totaling almost $2.4 million, to upgrade Meserve Park and improve water and sewer infrastructure for affordable housing and commercial projects. 
• Securing a $50,000 grant for Calipatria to conduct a climate vulnerability assessment that will serve as a basis for the city’s first-ever Climate Action Plan. 
• Supported the County of Imperial, the City of Calipatria, and IV Equity and Justice in obtaining scholarships to attend the Gould Center for Conflict Resolution Strengthening Engagement Training at Stanford. 
• Kickstarting a planning effort for the City of Imperial to develop an Environmental Justice Element that will guide future growth, with a focus on equity and public engagement. 
• Securing a $250,000 Caltrans Sustainable Communities Grant to finance the 120-acre Heart of El Centro Revitalization and Connection Project. 
• Assisting Holtville with modernizing its accounting system for easier and more accurate financial management. 
• Securing one of only 15 (and the only one in California) United States Department of Agriculture Community Facilities Disaster Grants for Westmorland to remodel city, police, and fire facilities following the 2023 Tropical Storm Hilary. 
• Exploring grant funding for Calexico to support improvements to Heber Park, streamlining its permitting process, and planning Council training/workshops. 
• Hosting trainings on governance fundamentals for elected officials and effective community engagement for agency staff. 

Learn more about the Institute for Local Government and the BOOST program on their website! 

CARB has an active air quality research contract in the Imperial Valley with San Diego State University-Imperial Valley campus in partnership with the Imperial Valley-based environmental justice organization Comite Civico del Valle. The project aims to develop a community-centric strategic research plan that reflects community concerns and priorities. The plan will guide future health and air quality research to increase health equity in the Imperial Valley region. The project will conclude in early 2026, and a report will be available. 

CalCAP Supports Millions of Dollars in Loans to Imperial County

The CalCAP, administered by the California Pollution Control Financing Authority, a financing authority within the State Treasurer’s Office, provides risk management tools to participating financial institutions to increase their willingness to loan to small businesses. In the first six months of 2025, CalCAP supported 49 loans totaling $9.5 million to small businesses in Riverside and Imperial counties.  

Nine CalCAP-participating financial institutions underwrote and funded the loans; six of which were to women-owned businesses, 28 to minority-owned, and one to veteran-owned. Loan amounts ranged from $5,000 to $2.8 million. 

Business types included a painting and wall covering contractor; a brewery; retailers of beauty supplies, clothing, furniture, lighting products, and tires; a supermarket; a wireless telecom provider; a computing infrastructure provider; a fast food restaurant; a real estate broker; a tree service; a barber shop; and businesses providing bulk mail transport, long haul trucking, and general trucking services. 



(Note: CalCAP reports on completed quarters only. Data for summer 2025 won’t be available until after Oct. 1, 2025.) 

CEC Explores Transportation Planning for Lithium Valley

On June 13, the CEC held its fourth workshop in the Lithium Valley Vision Informational Proceeding, focusing on the region’s transportation infrastructure needs. Hosted in partnership with Caltrans and the California State Transportation Agency, the event brought together transportation planners, local government representatives, community organizations, and private sector developers. 

Participants discussed strategies to support safe, efficient, and sustainable transportation for Lithium Valley’s anticipated growth. Input from this workshop will help shape the CEC’s forthcoming Lithium Valley Strategic Assessment, which will include policy recommendations to guide development that delivers benefits to local communities. 

Learn more at Lithium Valley Vision | California Energy Commission and watch the workshop recording. 

Water is Now Filling a Major Aquatic Restoration Project at the Salton Sea

The State’s Salton Sea Management Program (SSMP), comprising the CNRA, Department of Water Resources, and California Department of Fish and Wildlife, is implementing restoration projects at the Salton Sea to address potential impacts of the receding shoreline. 

In May, the SSMP team achieved a major milestone at its largest project, called the Species Conservation Habitat (SCH) project, located at the south end of the Salton Sea. Water was released into newly constructed ponds as part of ongoing efforts to restore habitat, protect air quality, and support wildlife. The water is currently filling about 2,000 acres, which is about three square miles. The filled ponds are a portion of a larger network of ponds within the SCH footprint, which will span over 9,000 acres once completed – enough space to fit roughly 7,500 football fields. This milestone is yet another chapter of the larger SSMP 10-Year Plan, which is accelerating restoration projects at the Salton Sea. 

The SSMP team anticipates hosting community meetings in the region before the end of the year. Sign up for the monthly eNewsletter to learn more about projects and future engagement opportunities. 

California Racial Equity Commission Returns to the Valley 

On Aug. 22, California Racial Equity Commission staff joined Commissioner Simboa Wright and Comite Civico Del Valle for a Summer Roadshow visit in the Imperial Valley. The visit built on a series of March 2025 activities in the region, including a Commission meeting, a Framework Development Committee meeting, and a community Meet-n-Greet. Together, these touchpoints reflect a continued effort to show how community input is shaping the draft framework while also creating space for new feedback. 

The gathering was powerful, with both new and returning attendees contributing in English and Spanish. Themes raised included housing and renters’ rights, worker protections, systemic infrastructure challenges, distrust of local government, limited reinvestment of resources, the need for more jobs and living wages, disability access, and expanded opportunities for education and skills training. 

Community members emphasized the value of consistency and accountability, expressing appreciation for the Commission’s return. Familiar faces underscored the trust being built through sustained engagement. This visit highlighted how returning to communities ensures voices from Imperial Valley remain central in shaping statewide equity efforts. 

Visit the Commission's website at https://racialequity.lci.ca.gov/ to learn more. 

HCD, within the Business, Consumer Services and Housing Agency, has invested over $7 million in U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Community Development Block Grant - CARES Act funding to assist Imperial County and its communities prevent, prepare for, and respond to the short- and long-term impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. This investment includes $2.5 million for Imperial County’s Housing Reconstruction Program, which aims to restore safe, permanent housing for five low- to moderate-income households displaced by the 2020 Niland brush fire. Completion is expected in spring 2026. 

HCD awarded $5.8 million in HUD HOME Investment Partnerships Program (HOME) funding in 2023 to the Brawley Senior Apartments project. Brawley Senior Apartments is a new-construction affordable-housing project that will produce 31 HOME-assisted rental units serving seniors with incomes between 30%-60% of area median income. The project is expected to be completed in September 2025. 

In 2005, DTSC was authorized as the Imperial County Certified Unified Program Agency (CUPA). The DTSC Imperial CUPA is responsible for six state programs: hazardous materials, hazardous waste, underground and above ground petroleum storage tanks, fire code, and potential high health risk accident facilities. July 2025 marked 20 impactful years of the CUPA protecting public health and the environment. 

The CUPA has 1,038 regulated facilities in Imperial County that require annual or triennial inspections. Since 2021, the CUPA has partnered with Imperial County Environmental Health Department to implement the program. The CUPA also responds to and investigates complaints; responds to Office of Emergency Services incidents; provides assistance and support to the public, communities, and regulated facilities; and co-chairs the Imperial County Environmental Justice Task Force. CUPA staff collaborate and work with all community members and have bilingual staff to assist the community with education and compliance. 

More information can be found on the DTSC Imperial CUPA website.  

In Fiscal Year 2024–25, GO-Biz successfully leveraged state funds to secure at least $1.5 million in federal funding from the Southwest Border Regional Commission for Imperial County. In addition, the Capital Investment Incentive Program is expected to provide between $51 million and $107 million in property tax abatements over the next 15 years, helping incentivize long-term capital investment in the region.  

In July, the California Jobs First Southern Border Coalition announced $4.9 million awarded to 19 projects throughout its region in the Round 1 Catalyst funding. Ten projects and $2.2 million were awarded in Imperial County supporting exploratory, planning, and last-mile phases of the awarded projects. Projects funded included a micro-entrepreneur planning pilot, empower Lithium Valley workforce initiative, and a tribal energy and climate economic development, innovation and training center.   

GO-Biz also participated in the Data Center Leadership Roundtable held in Imperial County. The roundtable convened industry experts, representatives from San Diego State University, county officials, and other interested parties to discuss opportunities to support data center and cloud computing development; sectors poised to strengthen the regional economy and create high-quality jobs. 

LCI Awards Over $500,000 in the Imperial Valley for Extreme Heat Project 

Comite Civico Del Valle Inc. and Imperial Valley Equity and Justice were awarded a $531,764 planning grant from the Extreme Heat and Community Resilience Program to develop a local heat action plan through collaboration with community organizations, Tribal nations, and governmental entities informed by a Climate Vulnerability Assessment and to implement community-selected demonstration project(s) and build partnerships to implement local heat action plan goals. 

San Diego State University–Imperial Valley has officially opened its new Sciences and Engineering Laboratories in Brawley, funded by $80 million in state support. The 37,000-square-foot STEM hub will advance education and research in fields tied to “Lithium Valley” and clean energy. Featuring modern labs and classrooms, it will host programs in electrical engineering, chemistry, public health, and nursing, preparing local talent to meet regional workforce needs and drive economic growth across Imperial Valley. Read this article to learn more details. 

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