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Berkeley Forklift Masts - Situated in California on east shore of the San Francisco Bay in northern Alameda County is the municipality of Berkeley. The city is neighbored by the cities of Oakland and Emeryville to the south, Albany and Kensington to the north, and ends at the county line (bordering Contra Costa County) to the east.
One of the oldest campuses for the University of California is located in Berkeley. Likewise situated in the city is the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and the Gradual Theological Union. The city is considered among the most politically liberal within the state of California and was ranked the third most liberal city within the U.S. in a recent study.
Ranging from various manufacturing and commercial to industrial businesses, the economy of Berkeley is quite diverse. During 1999, the city achieved its lowest unemployment rate at 2.3%. Then again, some ethnic groups do not benefit from the 70,000 jobs offered by the businesses: During the year 1990, the unemployment rate for African- American women was 12 percent and the rate for African- American men was more than 18%. The standard overall rate for the city at that time was 5.6%. This group likewise makes less per capita income. During the year 1990, it was 59% of the citywide average, a meager $11,134.
The different businesses, located in West Berkeley, create an approximate taxable sales revenue of $1.2 billion. Berkeley is known as excellent location for independent, small businesses to locate. The city is packed with skilled people with exceptional entrepreneurial concepts which benefit a lot of the local companies which have developed here. Most commercial buildings are of average size, which is most likely because of the 90 percent of all employers in the area that have fewer then twenty employees. Financial stability is also obtained in Berkeley with The University of California and various state-supported research and educational facilities.
The mid- and late- 1990s, a time of economic prosperity, brought difficulties as well as benefits. The economic, cultural, and social diversity of the city has been harshly challenged with the property values/rents continuously increasing. The more artistic and crafty individuals are finding it ever more tough to live with financial pressures increasing. Retail and office spaces are become more common since higher office rents create pressure on businesses to downsize from their high-paying industrial jobs to office spaces that are smaller. Within West Berkeley, where the industrial sector thrives, continuous monitoring is considered necessary to maintain a balance between retail, office and manufacturing applications.
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