LAGUNA HILLS : Group Touts Business in South County

A delegation of business leaders will head to Sacramento on Wednesday to promote industry in South County.

Details of the trip and a publicity drive designed to attract and retain businesses in South County were disclosed in a news conference Monday by the South Orange County Chamber of Commerce.

Headed by County Supervisor Gaddi H. Vasquez, about 20 local business people will meet with state officials. South County business leaders made a similar trip last year.

“Before we went (to Sacramento last year), people pretty much lumped all of Orange County together,” said Bob Lay, past president of the chamber. “These officials have a great deal to do with issues that affect the business community. They liked hearing from us, and several have been down since last year.”

As part of the campaign, the chamber has produced a 10-minute video extolling the business climate in South County that it will send to about 1,500 companies across the country.

The campaign this year will try to persuade companies throughout California and the Midwest to relocate in South County.

A nationwide, toll-free number has been set up to help with questions about South County demographics, applying for city permits, land-use and site locations.

“We have seen the flight from Southern California reach epidemic proportions,” Lay said. “Our mission is to stop that. . . . I believe in the quality of life that we have to offer in South County.”

The chamber is also pooling information from merchants and city governments in an effort to address immediate problems facing the business community, chamber officials said.