Welcome back to the Sunstone Way.
Here at Sunstone headquarters, we’re in the middle of Lunar New Year celebrations. Last Saturday we participated in the inaugural Lunar New Year Parade & Festival at the Great Park – Sunstone Management and American Lending Center were privileged to be the events Cultural Sponsors, thanks to our founder, John Shen.
Now we’re hosting a few of our own festivities at the Sunstone Presentation Stage, and the mood is indeed celebratory. While the Year of the Fire Horse technically doesn’t start until Feb. 17 according to the Chinese calendar, we’re already galloping into the new year with lots of initiatives.
Sunstone Cities
Sunstone Cities is a service group in the family of companies under Sunstone Investment Group Inc. This LLC was formed in mid-2024, and spent most of 2025 (the Year of the Snake) growing into, then going beyond its original skin.
These days, Sunstone Cities is a full-service municipal consulting firm. The primary focus is help in economic development, but the group now has the capacity to help with communications, strategic planning, infrastructure financing and more.
The roster of client cities and organizations is growing quickly, and some projects – the Lakewood Economic Development Strategic Plan, for example – are complete or nearly so. Kudos to the Sunstone Cities team of Jayro Sandoval, Ryan Phong, Giselle Melendez Cruz and our new fellows, Hannah Cruz and Jade Le.
Irvine Advances
The leadership of our hometown, Irvine, also is galloping into the future. On Jan. 13, the Irvine City Council approved an Economic Development Division Blueprint that lays the groundwork for a new Irvine Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship.
As you know, that type of initiative is central to the Sunstone philosophy, where our core values are Investment, Entrepreneurship and Community. Remember, we were one of the founding partners of the Long Beach Accelerator.
The push for an Irvine Innovation Center began in 2022 – our founder John Shen was one of the original members of the Irvine Innovation Council when it was formed. This latest iteration partners with the Greater Irvine Chamber, who also happens to be one of our good friends.
Taking Shape
The city’s plans for the Irvine Center of Innovation and Entrepreneurship provides some great goals. In its release about the plan, the center is pictured as “Irvine’s front door to the innovation economy.” Here are the goals:
– Connect entrepreneurs, investors, and ecosystem partners;
– Accelerate early-stage venture development;
– Reduce barriers to innovation-driven entrepreneurship; and
– Expand access to capital, education, and technical resources.
That’s a pretty good list.
Parallels
When you connect entrepreneurs, investors, and ecosystem partners, you create community – Sunstone’s goal for the last decade. Accelerating early-stage venture development is a primary goal for the Sunstone Community Fund. Reducing barriers to innovation and entrepreneurship is what our work with founders at the Sunstone Venture & Innovation Center is aiming to do.
Finally, expanding access to capital, education, and technical resources is a primary goal of several of our parts – the Community Fund, the Venture & Innovation Center and Sunstone Cities in particular.
Working Together
I have been thrilled with our working relationship with the Irvine city staff and its elected leaders, and that relationship stretches back to before my arrival here through John Shen. We are ready, willing and able to further strengthen that partnership and do all we can to promote this exciting new initiative from the city.
It comes naturally – because it’s the Sunstone Way!
Remember, always be a Sunstone.
John Keisler
CEO & Managing Partner
Sunstone
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Sunstone Investment Group, headquartered in Southern California, is the holding company for the Sunstone family of entities, including: Sunstone Investment Management Services, responsible for administrative services; Sunstone Advisors, an SEC-registered investment adviser, which oversees Sunstone Venture Partners LLC, a private capital fund manager; Sunstone Cities, a government economic development consulting firm; and Sunstone Community Fund, a charitable organization that supports entrepreneurship. Sunstone is dedicated to enriching lives through investment, entrepreneurship, and community. Email us at contact@sunstoneinvestment.com.
©Sunstone, 2026