Central Coast

COUNTIES | MONTEREY SAN BENITO SANTA BARBARA SANTA CRUZ SAN LUIS OBISPO VENTURA

Region Overview

Situated between the bustling urban centers of the Bay Area and Los Angeles, the Central Coast of California spans six counties – San Benito, Santa Cruz, Monterey, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, and Ventura. With stunning coastline views and a picturesque natural landscape, the Central Coast embodies all the best aspects of the Golden State. Against the backdrop of rolling vineyards and sandy beaches are some renowned tourist destinations, including the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk, Cannery Row, Monterey Bay Aquarium, Pinnacles National Park, Big Sur, Hearst Castle, Morro Rock, Oceano Sand Dunes, Old Mission Santa Barbara, Stearns Wharf, and Ventura Pier & Promenade.

Central Coast is the birthplace of . . .

Innovation

Monterey Bay Drone, Automation & Robotics Technology (DART)

Strada Verde Innovation Park

Paso Robles Air and Spaceport

Innovation

Monterey Bay Drone, Automation & Robotics Technology (DART)

The Monterey Bay DART initiative is a regional economic development strategy that focuses on expanding high growth technological sectors, with the goal of stimulating new venture creation and increasing job growth. DART brings together industry, academia, and government to realize the potential of these industry clusters. The DART initiative recently received a $1.5M R&D grant from the James Irvine Foundation to support ongoing work advancing new training pathways to highroad jobs in the Monterey Bay region.

Strada Verde Innovation Park

The Strada Verde Innovation Park is a proposed project to create a state-of-the-art automotive research and testing complex in Northwestern San Benito County. The campus will be comprised of future automative research & education facilities, driver experience & retail centers, and vehicle testing facilities to advance the future of mobility. The project is estimated to create 5,000 permanent direct jobs, which will provide long-term careers for local residents at all skill levels.

Paso Robles Air and Spaceport

The Paso Robles Air and Spaceport initiative is a proposal to establish a horizontal launch spaceport at the city’s municipal airport. The city is in the process of seeking a “spaceport” designation from the FAA and the concept is gaining support from community stakeholders and technology companies. Apart from acquiring a license to launch horizontal spacecraft, the concept also proposes to build a tech corridor around the spaceport which will attract various space technology companies.

Inspiration

FATHOMWERX

Central Coast Climate Justice Network (CCJN)

South Salinas Valley Broadband Authority

Inspiration

FATHOMWERX

FATHOMWERX is a public-private research facility for technological innovation that brings together civilian companies, academia, defense and other partners to work on the most challenging problems in the port and maritime domains. Located at Port Hueneme in Ventura Co., the lab allows for testing, prototyping, demonstrations, events, and exercises. In April 2022, FATHOMWERX was designated as an Inclusive Innovation Hub (iHub┬▓) by the California Office of the Small Business Advocate.

Central Coast Climate Justice Network (CCJN)

CCCJN is a collaboration of various organizations and community leaders who are committed to a climate movement that advances social, economic, racial, and environmental justice for Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties. By forming a regional partnership between social justice, anti-racism and environmental movements, their mission is to expand the region’s collective power to advance restorative actions and systems change. Their work centers on communities who bear the greatest burden of climate change impacts.

South Salinas Valley Broadband Authority

In May 2022, a signing ceremony between Monterey County and the municipalities of King City, Greenfield, Soledad, and Gonzales formalized the creation of the South Salinas Valley Broadband Authority. This Joint Powers Authority commits funds and capacity to develop a Community Broadband Network, which will provide affordable and reliable high-speed internet to the southern region of Monterey County, to combat the digital divide.

The Central Coast is home to innovative companies, educational institutions and other assets shaping the future of space, air mobility, clean energy and beyond. By connecting dots, removing barriers and building accessible career pathways, we can drive not just economic growth, but transformational opportunity for our region’s more than 2 million residents.

Uplift Central Coast Coalition

Region By Numbers

Explore these numbers and additional key Central Coast demographic, economic, and business data on the Community & Place-Based Data Tool. Uncover other data tools, regional plans, and resources on the Data & Knowledge Library Page.

KNOWLEDGE & DATA LIBRARY

COMMUNITY & PLACE-BASED DATA TOOL

Population

2,347,650

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Total Households

777,748

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Total Establishments

95,357

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Educational Attainment

Associate Degree	9%
Bachelor’s Degree	21%
Graduate Degree	13%

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Labor Force

1,151,978

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Regional Contacts

Explore other federal, state, and regional contacts on our community connection page.

COMMUNITY CONNECTION

CPBS Regional Economic Recovery Coordinator, GO-Biz

Alicia Albornoz

About CPBS

HRTC Contacts

The Community Economic Resilience Fund (CERF) will support an inclusive High Road Training Collaborative (HRTC) in this region, in charge of creating economic development recovery and transition strategies. To be a part of this region’s processes to advance economic prosperity and equity, contact the HRTC conveners.

Uplift Central Coast Coalition

HRTC Convener Website

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