“It’s all connected,” said Mountain View Mayor Emily Ann Ramos, gesturing to the 150 guests Friday at the Hyatt Centric on San Antonio Road in Mountain View.
Representatives of the city’s business sectors – artificial intelligence, hospitality and tourism, health and healthcare, autonomous vehicles, restaurants, finance and many more – had gathered there for the Mountain View Chamber of Commerce “Morning with the Mayor,” an annual networking event bringing together the city’s commercial and institutional sectors.
“These businesses are shaping their programs to help our economic ecosystem really thrive,” Ramos said.
At the energetic breakfast, local business leaders conversed and collaborated with politicians and economic operatives to discuss the opportunities facing regional commerce. The shared conclusion was that when each of the pillars of a successful community worked together, every member of the community could share in the fruits of that success.
“It all happens here. This is what makes Mountain View so special,” said Peter Katz, president and CEO of the Mountain View Chamber of Commerce, at the presentation dais.
“I think it’s a success when you see so many movers and shakers speaking with each other on ways we can make our city even better,” he added later, when the event ended.
The face-to-face aspect left an impression on the attendees. Guests commented that having everyone all together in the same room made collaboration more possible and shared success inevitable.
“It’s all the networking that happens here. With all of the digital venues, this is just seeing people in person,” said panelist Cristian Ocampo, an assistant vice president with U.S. Bank.
Ocampo joined Dana Barfield, a Hyatt hotels regional manager, and MJ Jain, sales director at Villa Toscana, a memory and senior care center, as featured panelists. The presenters fielded questions from Ramos and Katz, and gave overviews of the challenges facing their markets.
“One of the best parts of our community is being with residents, it’s the highlight of the day,” Jain said. “I wish there were more local employees we could hire.”
Joining the business leaders and officials were representatives of El Camino Health – Cheryl Reinking, chief nursing officer, made opening remarks – representatives of city, state and national elected officials, and even leaders from the area school districts.
“Talking to each other, that’s what builds our community,” said Vice Mayor Chris Clark after the meeting. “The economy is kind of coming back. Things are finally trending up in the right direction.”
Others shared in his optimism, though there was still work to be done, Barfield said during his on-stage comments.
“It’s our opportunity to be ambassadors, to be spokesmen for the city,” he said. “We make this city accessible, we make it feel seen.”
One opportunity for that was the upcoming World Cup 2026, with a handful of games being held at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara this summer, Ramos said. The council was considering watch parties to go along with the games, she said.
Ramos added that the council had recently passed a grant program for small business renovations and small business zoning updates to make the area “more regionally competitive.”
“It’s really important that we have to stay flexible in this crazy environment we are all in,” she said.
The most impressive thing about the event, she added, was highlighting the different aspects of the community intersecting with people that live in the city.
“I want so many people to move to Mountain View,” she said. “If they don’t live in Mountain View they should be in Mountain View.”
