I am honored to be here today to recognize Skechers and Highland Fairview for their efforts to make Skechers’ North American Distribution Center environmentally friendly and sustainable, and to offer my congratulations to:

• SKECHERS Chairman, Robert Greenberg
• SKECHERS President, Michael Greenberg
• SKECHERS COO, David Weinberg
• HIGHLAND FAIRVIEW’S CEO, Iddo Benzeevi for attaining LEED Gold certification!

In meeting LEED Gold certification standards, this building has been held to the highest green building and performance measures. Their environmentally conscious design and construction has ensured that the buildings used more recycled materials and diverted waste from landfills during construction, and they will consume less energy, conserve more water, and enhance indoor environmental quality for years to come.

When Skechers made the decision to build its North American Distribution Center in Moreno Valley, they did so with the marked commitment to make a meaningful difference in our community.

Certainly, a large part of that commitment was to help put Moreno Valley on the map in terms of attracting and hosting high technology logistic companies.

Receiving this certification as the Largest LEED Gold Certified Building in the United States also provides Moreno Valley an excellent model to showcase its vision to establish our city as a major HUB in global logistics.

As such, a major part of Skechers’ commitment to make a difference in Moreno Valley was to partner with Highland Fairview to build an environmentally responsible Logistics Center which naturally attracts other forward thinking companies and business investors which in turn will create thousands of new jobs for our community.

When Skechers embarked upon building this beautiful building, it specifically built into its plans the goal to achieve the LEED certification. This LEED Gold certification recognizes their efforts to create a healthy, productive, and state-of-the-art workplace, one that is less costly to operate and maintain, and has a reduced environmental footprint.

I would like to give a special “thank-you” to our elected local, state and federal leadership for their belief in what “could be” and their courage and conviction in the face of unfounded skepticism. It is unusual in today’s political environment for such political courage.

Specifically I would like to personally thank:

• Former Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger,
• Governor Jerry Brown,
• Former Congresswoman Bono,
• Congressman Cook,
• Congressman Takano,
• Assemblyman Medina,
• Assemblyman Nestande,
• Supervisor Marion Ashley,
• Councilman Marcelo Co,
• Councilman Richard Stewart,
• Councilman Victoria Baca, and
• Councilman Jessie Molina.

We are indeed fortunate to call home a community that is so supportive. Our success is yours to share, and we greatly appreciate each of you being here today to celebrate this important milestone in Moreno Valley’s history.

I would also like to commend Highland Fairview for this great achievement and say how much I look forward to working with you to build on this success and to bring more economic and job opportunities to our city.

Finally, I would like to say three things to Skechers:
First, Congratulations for this achievement
Second, thank-you for investing in Moreno Valley’s future And finally,
please be assured that this City is extremely proud to be known as the “Home of Skechers North American Distribution Center”- the Nation’s largest LEED Gold certified building.

May God bless Skechers, Highland Fairview, and the great City of Moreno Valley.