Chamber proud: Bay St. Louis makes comeback
Hurricane Katrina’s wind and floodwater nearly wiped out all of Bay St. Louis — homes, businesses, municipal buildings and even the four-lane U.S. 90 bridge connecting the city to neighboring Harrison County.
Only 50 or so homes of the approximately 4,500 escaped destruction.
“How badly damaged were we?” Mayor Les Fillingame asked, repeating the question. “As close to being 100 percent as you could be. There were very few homes that didn’t have major damage. Most outside of those 50 were basically destroyed. Some were still standing, but the floodwaters destroyed them.”
The historic city on a bluff overlooking the Bay of St. Louis has a reputation as a colorful arts colony and casual weekend haven for south Louisiana residents. Clarinetist Pete Fountain lost his beachfront home to Katrina and later sold the property to New Orleans-based political consultants and commentators James Carville and Mary Matalin, who built their getaway home on it.
Getting the city back on its feet was a challenge on every front, recalled Fillingame, who was director of recovery before being elected to his first term as mayor in 2009.
“You had a building department that was virtually working on every home in Bay St. Louis, and you had a city administration that was completely involved in rebuilding the public infrastructure,” he said. Read more: Clarion-Ledger
Lansing has been home to many influential entrepreneurs.
R.E. Olds built some of the world’s first cars here and a sprawling production complex that once employed more than 20,000 in the city. Bill Demmer took a small machine shop and transformed it into a military hardware manufacturer that now pumps out tanks and personnel carriers. Bill Hamilton worked as a consultant for years while developing the software that would be the basis for Techsmith,
“Those entrepreneurs really helped develop modern Lansing through the 20th century,” said Bob Trezise, president and chief executive officer of the Lansing Economic Area Partnership.
In more recent decades, technology companies began to sprout up, businesses such as Liquid Web, Neogen and Niowave.
And, as the Great Recession hit, Lansing’s focus on heavy manufacturing was forced to shift in order to compete in the new global market, Trezise said. Read more: Lansing State Journal
Chamber Best Practices: Student - Designed 2015 Gaslight Festival Logo
2015 Gaslight Festival
Sunday, September 13 - Sunday, September 20
Congratulations to Joshua Kerby, a student at Sullivan College of Technology & Design, for designing the 2015 Gaslight Festival logo!
Naperville chamber, Better Business Bureau form strategic alliance
The Naperville Area Chamber of Commerce and the Better Business Bureau serving Chicago and Northern Illinois announced a strategic alliance that they say will provide ongoing support and advocacy of the business community.
The alliance is aimed at creating better growth opportunities for the businesses in each organization, with the goal of driving more traffic to local businesses, chamber President Nicki Anderson and BBB CEO Steve Bernas said in a joint statement.
Together, the agencies will host four events in the 2015-2016 year, as well as promote the value of each other's organization. Read more: Daily Herald
#BestChamber Practices: The Oshkosh Chamber of Commerce Prosperity Project
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Fredericksburg Chamber of Commerce to host transportation summit
The Fredericksburg Regional Chamber of Commerce will be hosting a community meeting on Monday focused on transportation.
Numerous local and statewide officials will speak at the event.
The Regional Transportation Summit will be held at the Fredericksburg Germanna Community College campus at 10000 Germanna Point Drive from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m.
The cost to attend is $20 for the public and $15 for chamber members. Breakfast and coffee will be included.
The summit will include updates on VTrans 2040, which focuses on long-range transportation planning, and from the Commonwealth Transportation Board.
The statewide panelists and speakers will include Charlie Kilpatrick, the commissioner of the Virginia Department of Transportation and a Spotsylvania County resident, and Hap Connors, the area’s representative on the CTB. Read more: Fredericksburg.com
Ann Dahm leaving Michigan City Chamber of Commerce
Ann Dahm will finish her approximately five-year tenure as president of the Michigan City Area Chamber of Commerce later this week when she moves to Port Townshend, Washington, to live by family.
Throughout her career, she has enjoyed a variety of opportunities, especially the opportunity to solve different problems according to the different jobs. At the local chamber, she saw the opportunity to set a standard of excellence, she said.
"It's my view that a chamber of commerce should be a model for a well-run business — so I run it like a business," she said.
She hopes she encouraged all members of the local chamber to continue to set a high standard to which they will strive. Read more: The News-Dispatch
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