|
Annual Achievements 2009Chamber Membership
The mission of the Homer Chamber of Commerce is to promote cooperative economic development that preserves the essence of the community and improves the quality of life. 2009 Gold Members
Business DevelopmentEconomic Development CommitteeIn late 2009, the City of Homer approved $22,500 for the Chamber to utilize for advertising and Economic Development. The Chamber's Economic Development Committee's (EDC) areas of focus include education, the arts, Sustainable Homer's efforts, tourism, and marine trades. The continued funding and support of the city are important to everyone's efforts in this area. Legislative CommitteeThis committee hosted luncheon forums focused on legislative issues such as the Town Center Project, Clean Water Initiative and City, Borough and State candidate forums. They successfully advocated for legislative priorities: ATIA Tourism funding, increased Education funding, and Drug Prevention, Education and Treatment by advocating for a controlled substance prescription database. Marine Trades CommitteeThe committee partnered with the Pratt Museum on their expansion project to include a Community Boathouse and advocated for the City of Homer's Deep Water Dock. The committee is now regularly meeting and working to ensure that the various marine trades are a strong part of Homer's larger economy. MembershipContinues to remain strong and the Homer Chamber of Commerce is the fourth largest Chamber in the State of Alaska, just slightly under Soldotna Chamber of Commerce. Alaska State Chamber Conference in Homer in 2009Homer was chosen as the site of the Alaska State Chamber Conference September 21-23, 2009. The conference was a huge success and showed off Homer to great advantage. This will lead to other opportunities where local businesses of all types will be able to shine. The Homer2009.org EffortLast year's Homer2009.org website effort generated nearly 2,000 electronic inquiries regarding Homer businesses and activities. Considering that the effort was run late in the year, it should be considered a huge success. This effort will be active again in 2010, beginning earlier in the year and running until May. Other successful campaigns such as that in ALASKA Magazine will continue this year. Inquiries?Over the past year the Chamber received over
5,700 inquiries from various sources. While this is
a decrease from previous years, the economic climate
world-wide had much to do with this decrease. From
within the United States, the states with the
highest number of inquiries were:
While in general there was a decrease in the number of inquiries, there were two states that showed increases. These states were Hawaii, jumping to 43 from 25 in 2008, and Mississippi with 27 in 2009, up from 18 in 2008. Internationally, Canada and Germany continued to be the two largest sources of inquiries. Increases in international traffic came from France, Ireland and Austria. Small Business Development CenterThe Kenai Peninsula Small Business Development Center (SBDC) continued one-on-one counseling for local businesses through a partnership with the Chamber. SBDC provides resources and information for start-up businesses, conducts seminars, distributes business relocation packets, offers marketing opportunities and assists small businesses in the development of a start-up business plan - all to promote cooperative economic development in Homer. Top Legislative Priorities for 2010(as agreed upon by the Legislative Committee on November 10, 2009 and approved by the Chamber Board of Directors on November 19, 2009) Support the City of Homer's Capital
Improvement Projects List:
|
| Alternative Water Source | Fishing Lagoon Improvements | |
|
Sewer
Treatment Plant Bio-Solids Treatment Improvements |
Karen
Hornaday Park Improvements Phase 1 |
|
| Port & Harbor Building | East Boat Harbor | |
| Harbor Floats/Ramp 3 Replacement | Fish Dock Restroom | |
| Fire Engine 4 Refurbishment | Intersection Improvements | |
| Kevin Bell Ice Arena Floor | Firefighting Aerial Truck | |
| Town Center Infrastructure | Skyline Fire Station | |
| Deep Water Dock Expansion, Phase 1 |
Support HB167 & SB138 and continued work by ATIA to develop a permanent legislation to support state funding allocated specifically for tourism marketing.
Background: The Travel Industry in Alaska
generates over $120 million in state taxes and fees
annually, along with over $100 million in local
sales and bed taxes, while creating 40,000 full time
equivalent jobs. State funding for tourism marketing
decreased from $23 million in the 1980's to under $5
million in 2006 and the
non-cruise sector has suffered accordingly. The
State took the first step in correcting this problem
with the passage of HB147 which returns $9 million
from the vehicle rental tax to the industry for
marketing. The second step to returning to an
adequate marketing budget is the passage of HB167
which uses additional travel industry generated
taxes to fund the State's marketing program.
The bill reads: "An Act relating to a corporation income tax credit for contributions by a person owning or operating a commercial passenger vessel to a qualified trade association that was awarded a contract by the Department of Commerce, Community and Economic Development, and used for planning and executing a destination tourism marketing campaign."
Support funding for program, student success and facilities upgrades at University of Alaska - Anchorage's Kachemak Bay Campus of Kenai Peninsula College.
Sustainable energy is vital for the economic stability of our region.
Increased education and prevention efforts and effective treatment programs are vital in addressing this growing problem in the community.
Jenny Martin, Membership Coordinator, continues to reach out to members by visiting them during the week. This effort is meant to make the Chamber more visible and responsive to the needs of its members. Whether you are a tourist based or local economy based business, please try to meet with Jenny as she comes by and provide her with your thoughts so that the Chamber can serve you better.
Hokey Hey, the nation-wide motorcycle ride from Florida to Alaska will be using Homer as its terminus. The organizers expect more than 1,500 motorcyclists and their support groups and families to be in Homer between June 20 and July 8. Many of these riders are veterans and are professionals in their non-cycling life.
Please take a moment to stop by the Visitor Information Center (VIC). The staff has painted, rearranged, and improved the functionality and appearance of the VIC.