Canal Winchester Chamber of Commerce seeks financial aid from city
The Canal Winchester Area Chamber of Commerce hopes the city can help boost its growth by funding a full-time employee to focus on strategic planning and increasing membership.
The proposal presented to City Council on Aug. 15 asks for a three-year commitment from the city for $64,160 with increases to $68,580 in the third year to pay for salary, benefits, training and travel.
“We have some great ideas, but what we need is bandwidth and engagement with the businesses to make that happen, so that is the plan,” said Denise Mathias, the chair of the chamber’s board of directors. “The goal is for the position to be self-funded over the next three years.”
For the past three years, the chamber had a part-time employee who was paid $18,000 and helped grow membership by 8%, according to the proposal.
The chamber’s membership is roughly 180 businesses, which is much lower than nearby chambers in Pickerington (400 members) and Lancaster (500 members).
“Many of our members don’t have a storefront in the city but would like to do business in Canal Winchester,” Mathias said.
She added that many small businesses in Canal Winchester “aren’t aware of the benefits we offer … and haven’t seen the value. We need a full-time employee who can focus on that value and develop a marketing plan.”
While Mathias was unable to attend the meeting, chamber secretary Kristin Ankrom answered questions from council members about other cities providing financial support to their local chambers.
“I know some do get support from their cities, but it’s usually membership and fundraisers that keep chambers a float,” Ankrom said. “What we’ve realized over the last five years is that we are undercharging for membership, undercharging for events. … Those are things we don’t want to change right away. We don’t want to increase those costs with small-business owners.”
Councilman Patrick Shea asked Ankrom if she thought “this is a good use of tax dollars.”
Ankrom, who is a work-based learning coordinator with Canal Winchester Local Schools, said she “couldn’t do her job without the chamber” and “wouldn’t have the contacts that I have without the chamber.”
While some council members expressed concerns about other groups seeking financial support from the city if the chamber’s request is approved, council President Chuck Milliken said bed-tax funds could be an option.
Canal Winchester awards bed-tax grants to nonprofit and private organizations on an annual basis. The eligible projects must “enhance Canal Winchester for its residents and visitors,” according to city guidelines.
Council has agreed to discuss the chamber’s funding proposal at the Aug. 29 committee of the whole meeting.
“Word of mouth travels fast,” Councilwoman Laurie Amick said. “If you have someone in the Canal Winchester area doing business … we don’t ever want them to say, ‘Oh, you don’t want to do business here in Canal Winchester.’ You need to have a well-funded, goal-oriented chamber to prevent that from happening.”
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This article originally appeared on ThisWeek: Canal Winchester Chamber of Commerce seeks financial aid from city
