WILLOW CREEK CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

BOARD OF DIRECTOR’S MEETING MINUTES

March 30, 2011

Member’s Present: Gil & Mediha Saliba, Tom O’Gorman, Molly O’Gorman, Tangie Markle, Ed Dugan, Trina Cardoza, Mike Backman, Greg Painter, Joan Briggs

Minutes:

The meeting was called to order by Tangie Markle at 8:40am, at the Information Booth. We didn’t have the minutes, will approve at April meeting.

Finance Report:

Full quarterly Finance report presented . Currently our income is $2000 ahead of last year at this time. Income is up & expenses are down. WCCSD loan is paid off so we won’t have that expense this year. Utilities are high at $447; Mike will investigate, Molly will get the bills to Mike for his review.

Old Business:

1. Website Update: Traffic is down over the last quarter, but is normal for this time of year.
2. Fundraisers:

A: T-Shirts/Promo Items: Ace Hardware has t-shirts & hoodies available for sale. You can also purchase them from Humboldt Land Company office. We have t-shirts for adults & kids, as well as hoodies for adults.

Promotions: Discussed having Willow Creek Weather report on the radio as PSA’s. Molly to contact Patrick Cleary to find out what we need to do.

Banner: It was discussed to have a banner made for the Chamber to hang during events; also discussed having Chamber business cards & postcards made. Gil moved we allow $150 for this type of promotional item & Trina seconded. Motion carried.

B: Bocce Ball Tournament:  Gil will check with Dave Winnette to make sure we can have the tournament at the vineyard the last Saturday of June. We may have to combine with the Winnette’s Wine Club Tournament; Gil will check & report back at next meeting.

C: Taste of Willow Creek: We will be sponsoring the event & providing the insurance coverage. This year TofWC is scheduled for Sept. 24^th , 11-4. We’ll have 5 or 6 venues; with the Golf Course a possibility for quilters. The biggest problem has been lining up artists. Mediha will continue to work on it.

• Dinner- discussed having at the farm. Mediha will talk to Incahoots to see if they would like to cook for us.
• Auction – The board would like to have the auction again this year; Tangie does not want to organize & asked for volunteers. Discussed hiring an Event Coordinator.

D: Beer Fest: Joan reported that she has put the event on the CSD agenda to about having the Beer Fest on the 2^nd weekend of October at Kimtu and will report back to us at the next meeting. She has about a dozen beer makers interested in coming. Joan still needs to contact the breweries. We should hire a tent. Joan will move forward with planning. She’s thinking we could charge $20 for a glass; & we should have a local beer making contest, provide snacks, have food booths come (non-profit), & music.

1. Chamber Mixers:
2. April – Humboldt Land Company
3. July – Willow Creek Golf & Country Club
4. October – Farmer Browns
   1. Newsletter: Will go out at the end ofApril, beginning of May; we need articles for the newsletter. It was decided that we will send to Kay for proofreading before going to print.
   2. Tree Day: Tom thinks it’s a great idea to organize a day to do maintenance on the downtown trees. It was scheduled for the 1^st weekend in November. We have an employee from Davy Tree that is willing to help.
   3. Information Booth revamp: Trina will work on getting maps & information sheets laminated. It was decided we need to have a cleanup day at the end of each season & the beginning of each season. The hours will be the same as last year; Mark will talk to Nita to make sure she is on board to work the season. Discussed that we should have a cleanup day at the end of April. Molly made a motion that we allow a $250 budget for repairs & cleanup on the booth, Gil seconded, motion carried. Molly will contact Mark about talking to Nita & the cleanup day.
   4. Easter Egg Hunt: Coast Central CU is sponsoring an Easter Egg Hunt Saturday, April 23^rd at the Golf Course; if anyone would like to donate decorated eggs, they can deliver to Coast Central on Friday before.
   5. Fire Safe Donation: It was decided that if we donate to them, every organization will ask for donations; so we’ll publicly support them with articles on the website and in the museum.
   6. Advertising (Trinity Recreation Guide/Humboldt Visitor Bureau/Film Bureau): The topic was tabled for now; and decided that we should link our website to other organizations instead.
   7. Bigfoot Days: Trina asked if we would like to have a float in the Bigfoot Parade; Board not interested, however it was discussed that we sponsor the grand marshal car. Rhododendron Parade has asked Trina to have a Bigfoot & possibly float in their parade to advertise Bigfoot Days; Tangie agreed to take this on.
   8. Tree Day : We discussed having an actual tree day to prune & clean up around the downtown trees. We’ll discuss further at next meeting.
   9. Artwalk: We will have the Artwalk in conjunction with the Wildflower Show, Saturday, May 7, 1-4. Mediha will contact the venues & the artists.
   10. Membership Dinner: It was scheduled for May 12 at 6pm, at VFW. Tangie to ask Laura if she would be willing to organize. (Laura agreed after meeting & is moving forward with the Dinner).

New Business:

1. Event Coordinator: It was discussed that we should hire an Event Coordinator to organize the Taste of Willow Creek Auction and possibly use that person for other events.       Greg will ask Greta if she is interested & report back at next meeting.
2. Waste Water System: Tom brought up the subject of a Waste Water System in Willow Creek to help promote business; we should investigate as an issue. Tom will submit a survey for the next newsletter to allow for public comment on the issue.

Meeting adjourned at 10:30 am.