This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Health & Fitness

Tale of Two Cities

Looking at two city sponsored workshops

“It was the best of times. It was the worst of times….” So began Dicken’s “Tale of two Cities” and last week Lake Forest had its own Tale of Two Cities, taking the form of a tale of two meetings. On Wednesday the City’s Public Works Department held a “Traffic Forum”, and on Friday the Planning Department’s Economic Development section held a workshop on “Business success”

The Traffic Forum had little advertisement and drew less than a handful of participants. Economic Development’s meeting was heavily publicized and filled the house. In fact it’s the first time I’ve seen the entire parking lot in front of City Hall without a single vacant spot. The way to the Traffic Forum was completely unmarked, so that I found myself wandering around the Foothill Library and finally being directed to where the forum was held. OTOH, signs directing you to the Business Success meeting could be found all over the place, even as far away as Bake Pkwy.

Participants at the Traffic Forum were given a few left over cookies to substitute for the dinner they had to miss, since their meeting started at 6 pm and went through 7:40 pm. People at the Business Success meeting were given a scrumptious breakfast even though it didn’t start until 8:30 am, and those who stayed until noon (which was just about everyone since the speakers were so engaging), got an even more delicious lunch.

Find out what's happening in Lake Forestwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Everyone I spoke with at the Business Success forum was pleased they participated. It was interesting and informative, and people believed they personally benefited. Those brave souls who endured the Traffic Forum came away as discouraged as they were when they entered, although I think it was vital that they gave the City their feedback about how poorly traffic is being managed.

This was the 8th annual meeting of the Business Success workshop and it was obvious that the organizers had done their homework and profited from feedback about previous meetings. The first part of the program focused on getting money for your business and the second half was on “using social media”. Speakers talked about their use of LinkedIn, Google+, Facebook, and Instagram, and each speaker logged in and demonstrated how to use these programs in real time. After lunch, Steve Smith (Growth Source Coaching) and Mike Brenhaug (eVirtual Roundtables) led a valuable discussion about time management.

Find out what's happening in Lake Forestwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

It was really great that almost everyone I spoke with either lived in Lake Forest or worked in our City. If you recall, the fall workshop on “Doing Business with the City” had more than 80% of the participants from outside the City, so the focus on City residents and businesses was very welcome.

Kudos to the Chamber of Commerce, especially to Lisa Tooley who coordinated the entire event, to Assistant City Manager Dave Belmer and the Economic Development team, especially Jessica Gonzales who heads up that division.  And thanks to the food sponsors including Avila’s El Ranchito and Cuca’s Mexican Food

If you missed this year’s Business Success workshop be sure to sign up for next year. This one is too good to miss. If you missed the two Traffic Forums, this Wednesday the 21st at 7 pm at the clubhouse will be your last chance.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?