scottsdalechamber.com
MEMBER COMMUNIQUÉ September 2013 - December 2013
What “Strength in Numbers” Means to Our Members The business community was hit hard during the recession, and chambers of commerce — reflective of conditions in the business world — felt the challenge mightily. Every chamber in the country was affected by the economic downturn, and, to the extent that chambers are also bellwethers for improving times, we are all on a comeback! Rick Kidder For many small businesses, chamber membership becomes a substantial investment in marketing and business-building. From their chamber, they expect opportunities to connect, to learn and to grow as delivered through chamber programming and exposure through the chamber’s website. For larger, corporate members, the chamber provides an avenue through which those companies can show their support for small business, gain additional positioning and branding through sponsorships of quality programs, and opportunities to invest their time and talent in the economic development and public policy areas. While every chamber differs slightly, the core concept remains the same. Every business is stronger when it has opportunities to expand its networks and when it belongs to a community of other businesses. Chambers provide resources and information that strengthen a business’s ability to operate and, with active involvement, a large group of peers who help steer sales to each other. It is a simple concept: We are stronger together than we are alone. That strength in numbers concept spills into the public policy and economic development arenas as well. A business acting alone has little chance of making a difference at city hall or at the state capitol. Most small businesses would be largely unaware of goings on that could help or hurt their business environment without the chamber staying on top of key issues locally and at the state legislature. Chambers keep abreast of all issues that affect their local business community or the state, and use their strength
Scottsdale Airpark: From an Airport Sprang an Economic Powerhouse
In the 1980s, much of what is now the second-largest business center in the state — the Scottsdale Airpark — boasted more vacant land than developed land. It had, however, an asset of tremendous value around which business would start to flourish. That asset was Scottsdale Airport. Built as a World War II training field, Scottsdale Airport had become a city amenity, and it was rapidly developing into a popular corporate gateway to a city already well-known as a tourism destination. As corporate and private aircraft became more popular, so too did the land around that airport. Tourism brought new individuals to our city, and quality of life and the convenience of Scottsdale Airport made those individuals look at Scottsdale in new ways. Success was infectious. More and more businesses moved their regional or corporate headquarters to the relatively inexpensive land that surrounded the airport. Businesspeople could, suddenly, live and work where they did their business. The master-planned communities of North Scottsdale were soon born, joining the nation’s first master-planned community, McCormick Ranch, as beautifully designed places for corporate types to live. By the 1990s, the Scottsdale Airpark was growing quickly. Many more companies and amenities came, most unconnected with the airport itself but all sensing the presence of a special environment where business energy was thriving and beautiful homes were but a stone throw’s away. There were challenges to be sure, but there was also an intrinsic energy and excitement about a new Scottsdale that was both a business center and a magnificent place to live. Companies realized that in Scottsdale’s name alone there was magic, and the city offered an unparalleled lifestyle that stemmed from its resort traditions. No other city could offer this unique combination of quality of business and quality of life. Among the challenges, and in many ways first among them, was transportation. Thanks to the success of the Airpark, Scottsdale for the first time was importing more workers daily than exporting them. Seemingly overnight, the suburban community of Scottsdale became a net importer of work force and a powerful business center of its own. With
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