BIG 4 Cities Host Groundbreaking Summit

 
Commerce, Industry, Santa Fe Springs, and Vernon unite as the "BIG 4" — California's most powerful industrial partnership — offering unmatched incentives, streamlined permitting, and a unified commitment to saying YES to business.
 
Four of California’s most economically vital cities — Commerce, Industry, Santa Fe Springs, and Vernon — launched their inaugural summit, bringing together industry leaders across Southern California to discuss how to directly compete with the business incentives offered by Sun Belt States.
 
"The Big 4 Summit demonstrates the power of regional collaboration in strengthening one of the nation's most critical industrial and logistics corridors,” stated Stephen Cheung, President & CEO, Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation. “By aligning across cities and sectors, this partnership helps drive business growth, create quality jobs, and sustain long-term economic competitiveness for Los Angeles County."
 
The Summit’s keynote speaker was Rob Antrobius, Senior Vice President - Market Officer, Los Angeles, Prologis, who stated, “The inaugural BIG 4 Summit highlighted the strength of regional collaboration across Los Angeles. It was clear that alignment between cities, developers, and businesses is accelerating real opportunities for long-term, thoughtful, and responsible growth.”
 
Brian Saeki, City Administrator, City of Vernon, stated: “The BIG 4 Summit was a groundbreaking discussion bringing together elected officials, CEOs, brokers, retailers, logistics leaders, and manufacturers on building a pathway towards a more business-friendly Southern California.”
 
“Our cities are focused on creating good-paying jobs and securing new investment within the BIG 4. With rising costs for gas, groceries, and rent, these efforts are vital to our residents and our region. We welcome new investments to the BIG 4 and will continue helping our existing businesses thrive,” stated Ernie Hernandez, Commerce City Manager.
 
“The BIG 4 Summit was a great opportunity for our City staff to hear directly from industry leaders on what they need to bring jobs and investment back to Southern California,” stated Joshua Nelson, Industry City Manager.
 
"The Big 4 Summit was an important reminder that Santa Fe Springs, Industry, Commerce, and Vernon are not just individual industrial cities.  They form one of the most powerful economic engines in Southern California,” stated Jack Cline, President, Lee & Associates. “I was honored to participate as a panelist and discuss how collaboration between business, government, and real estate leaders can help protect and grow this vital industrial base.”
 
Together, the BIG 4 are the premier industrial hub in the Western United States, located at the center of North America's most important logistics infrastructure: the Port of Los Angeles, the Port of Long Beach, and LAX.
 
The alliance commands nearly a quarter billion square feet of industrial space — representing 24% of all industrial capacity in Los Angeles County, a combined workforce of over 200,000 people, and more than 5,000 businesses.
 
“Change and innovation start in our cities. The BIG 4 is the case study to show the rest of California that investment and jobs will come back and stay in California if cities lead,” stated René Bobadilla, Santa Fe Springs City Manager.
  
The BIG 4 corridor processes 31% of all U.S. containerized imports through the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, handles 2.7 million tons of cargo through LAX, and moves over 600 million tons of freight annually on regional freeways, cementing its position as the nation's #1 logistics corridor to global markets.
 
During the Summit, Tim Jemal, CEO of the Supply Chain Federation, and Lakshmi Jayaram, Principal, Ramboll, discussed their new joint research, Evaluating Indirect Source Rules: Environmental Progress or Logistics Tax?
 
“The updated analysis makes clear that expanding ISR policies would export higher costs and operational disruption nationwide — without delivering the environmental results policymakers are trying to achieve,” said Tim Jemal, CEO of the Supply Chain Federation.
 
Updated research from Ramboll finds that “Indirect Source Rules” (ISRs) are driving up costs without delivering meaningful emissions reductions.
 
FULL REPORT HERE:
https://supplychainfederation.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/Ramboll-Study-SCAQMD-Warehouse-ISR_20260430.pdf
  
The BIG 4 is an economic development partnership among the cities of Commerce, Industry, Santa Fe Springs, and Vernon, California. The BIG 4 collectively represent nearly a quarter-billion square feet of industrial space, 5,500+ businesses, and a combined workforce of 200,000. Located at the economic epicenter of Southern California, adjacent to the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, LAX, and the nation's largest freeway freight corridor, The BIG 4 is California's most innovative business-ready industrial hub. For more information, visit www.citiesbuilt4business.com.