October 2012 Newsletter

CONNECTIONS OCTOBER 2012 - Vol. 43, Issue 10

IN THIS ISSUE...

ATHENA Luncheon - Founders of Angie’s Kettle Corn

Leadership

Thursday, October 11th from 11:30 AM - 1:00 PM at DoubleTree

P2- Article by Glenn Schwartz P3- Ambassador Updates P3- Ambassador of the Month

Join us for this month’s luncheon as we learn the ins and outs from Dan and Angie Bastian, cofounders and owners of Angie’s Kettle Corn! They began Angie’s Kettle Corn as a side venture when their two children were just 5 and 3 years old.

Public Policy P4- Article by Thomas Donohue

Community Building P5- Eden Prairie Schools Update P6- Tips from Xcel Energy P6- Sponsorship Corner

Networking P7- Article by Pat MulQueeny P7- Upcoming Chamber Events P8- October 2012 Calendar

Hoping to both earn extra income for college funds and demonstrate the importance of hard work, Dan and Angie started selling Angie’s Kettle Corn at outdoor events in 2001. Ten years after their small venture began, the company has grown from the husband and wife pair to more than 150 employees producing 80,000 bags a day! Don’t miss this!

At this month’s luncheon we will be presenting the ATHENA Award! The ATHENA Award is presented to an individual who is recognized for professional excellence, community service and for actively assisting women in their attainment of professional excellence and leadership skills. The ATHENA Award highlights what recipients have accomplished in addition to paving a path for future successes.

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Leadership An Interactive Three Dimensional Vertical Portable Technology Enabled Eden Prairie Visitor Center

By Glenn Schwartz, 2012 Chamber Board Chair Glenn J. Schwartz, Attorney at Law

This may come as a complete shock to many of you, but it is a fact, that some outsiders consider Eden Prairie a difficult city to navigate around.

This past winter, I visited the Palm Springs, CA area for the first time. The area consists of a series of adjacent cities and each city has its own Chamber of Commerce. I drove into the City of Desert Hot Springs first and stopped at their Chamber office, prominently located in the city square, to get visitor information including maps, attractions, and activities. Most other cities had signs along major highways directing travelers to their local Chambers of Commerce.

Our Chamber has a great amount of information for visitors and prospective businesses, but the office is difficult to find.

Sign ordinances of the City of Eden Prairie prohibit the installation of street signs directing visitors to the Chamber.

The purpose of this month’s article is to propose the creation of an interactive mobile visitor center map, with the technological advances that make information readily available to any person with an internet capable portable device.

This ‘mobile visitor center’ would be a six-foot-high and eight-foot-wide 3-D map of Eden Prairie. The map would have a small lights installed to indicate the location of Eden Prairie attractions and places of interest, which would coordinate with a list on the bottom of the map. The Minnesota Landscape Arboretum has a similar map on display in their visitor center.

The proposed ‘mobile visitor center’ would have QR codes printed under each attraction so more detailed information could be obtained (i.e.- a description, a map, hours of operation, etc.) through the internet link. The Chamber of Commerce would also have a light in the map and its own QR code, helping our visitors and prospective new businesses find the Chamber.

Prominently displayed on the ‘mobile visitor center’ map

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would be a new website that specifically lists and describes all Eden Prairie attractions; including those selected by the city, by the county, by the Three Rivers District, and by private organizations. Currently, there is no centralized website for all of this information.

For example, the website could include descriptions of the following: 1.

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Eden Prairie Center Purgatory Creek (including the memorial) The Eden Prairie Art Center Staring Lake Park Bryant Lake Park The LRT Bike Trail The Minnesota Landscape Arboretum The Eden Prairie Community Center Winter Park Flying Cloud Airport

Pat MulQueeny and I recently met with Nancy Litwin, the GM of Eden Prairie Center, about the possibility of location of a ‘mobile visitor center’ map in the mall. If the map was portable, it could be moved to strategic locations within the mall for flexibility and maximum exposure. Eden Prairie Center has agreed to review a proposal to locate the Visitor Center map in the mall.

The map would greatly assist folks who need to know how to find their way around our city (and how to find the Chamber office). It would highlight and promote the many attractions in and around Eden Prairie. It would use modern technology to provide detailed information for each attraction.

Finally, the new website would provide a centralized internet location for our visitors to learn about all of the many attractions that help make our city a great place to live and work.

Glenn Schwartz is the 2012 Board Chair for the Eden Prairie Chamber of Commerce. If you would like to contact Glenn regarding the Eden Prairie Chamber, he can be reached at 952-9433955.

“Connections” (USPS 729770) is published 12 times per calendar year by the Eden Prairie Chamber of Commerce, 11455 Viking Dr. #270, Eden Prairie, MN 55344 Periodicals postage paid at Hopkins, MN - POSTMASTER: Send address changes to “Connections,” 11455 Viking Dr. #270, Eden Prairie, MN 55344

Leadership Ambassador of the Month- August: Sarah Rosenow, Buca di Beppo!!!

Sarah has been a dedicated chamber member here in Eden Prairie, and most recently serving as an Ambassador. This has strongly influenced her passion not only in her current role as Sales Manager at our local Buca di Beppo, but also her involvement in the Eden Prairie community.

Her commitment to personal growth is evident in her pursuit of education, currently finishing her Master of Arts in Higher Education at the University of Minnesota. The future looks very bright as the success at Buca di Beppo continues to reflect her love of relationships while booking parties in Buca’s private dining spaces, utilizing her broad network in the many celebrations that come our way in life. This journey has only yet just begun.

Ambassador Updates from the Month of September!

T

he Eden Prairie Chamber Ambassadors serve as goodwill representatives in our business community. They learn about member businesses and encourage membership retention through mentorships, personal phone calls and much more. Below are some of the places that our very busy Ambassadors visited during September of 2012!

Youngquest Fitness Jason Young, Owner 6545 Flying Cloud Drive Eden Prairie, MN 55344 952-944-9200 www.youngquestfitness.com

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s Youngquest Fitne

Brunswick Zone- Eden Prairie Tracy Schwalbe, Event Manager 12200 Singletree Lane Eden Prairie, MN 55344 952-941-0445 www.bowlbrunswick.com

Brunswick Zone Vault Fitness Angie Thompson, Owner 12990 Valley View Road Eden Prairie, MN 55344 952-452-1555

Guide Source Rick Gallagher, V.P. 11660 Theatre Dr. N. #280 Champlin, MN 55316 888-349-4910 www.wisdomforhire.com

11455 Viking Dr. #270, Eden Prairie, MN 55344 • Ph: 952-944-2830 • Fax: 952-944-0229 • www.epchamber.org

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Public Policy They Did Build That

By Thomas J. Donohue, President and CEO U.S. Chamber of Commerce

There’s a critical debate occurring in America that transcends the daily punch and counterpunch on issues such as taxes, regulations, and energy policy. It’s more broadly about the role of government in our lives and whether the values of hard work, personal responsibility, and economic freedom still matter. What will stand at the center of American life—the productive, free-spirited individual standing on his or her own, or an all-knowing, all-deciding, powerful and paternalistic government?

The framers of the Constitution were very wary of the potential for government to undermine them by assuming an outsize role in society. And so, they intentionally drafted a Bill of Rights and a Constitution that grants unenumerated rights to the people while carefully restricting what government can and cannot do.

Today, however, some of our political leaders want to reverse this balance of power by elevating government’s prominence and promoting collectivism while diminishing individual initiative and achievement. The president’s “you didn’t build that” comment when speaking about successful small business owners was a revealing moment in this debate. It’s worth noting that while proponents of big government are quick to take credit for the successes of entrepreneurs, they never take responsibility for business failures, which happen more often than not.

Certainly, government plays a role in the success of small businesses and free enterprise, but most of the time it does so by exercising restraint—low taxes, fewer regulations, and spending targeted at economic growth and job creation, including research and development, education, and infrastructure. The suggestion that government is the main driver of the success of our nation’s businesses ignores our proud history. And, it’s offensive to the millions of entrepreneurs who have risked their life savings and spilled their blood, sweat, and tears into building a successful enterprise.

While we need the “wise and frugal government” our founders envisioned, in this country it’s the people who do the greatest things, not the government.

BusinessConnection

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Your connection to business answers.

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We know times aren’t easy for Minnesota businesses these days. You need a resource that provides direct and immediate help for all of your important business questions. BusinessConnection is your free, go-to service in Minnesota for any and all business questions. Its purpose is to help Minnesota businesses grow by breaking down barriers, opening doors and answering questions – so you can get back to business.

Connect anytime: www.mnbizconnect.com Call toll-free: 1-888-MINN-BIZ / 1-888-646-6249 Personal assistance is available 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Mon.-Fri. BusinessConnection is a service of Grow Minnesota! and sponsored by the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce, its local chamber partners and the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development.

Connect online: www.mnbizconnect.com

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Join us for this year’s Annual Gala Event- Twilight in Tuscany!

Saturday, October 27th Hazeltine National Golf Course

11455 Viking Dr. #270, Eden Prairie, MN 55344 • Ph: 952-944-2830 • Fax: 952-944-0229 • www.epchamber.org

Community Building Eden Prairie Schools ~ October Update

By Eden Prairie Schools

The 2012-2013 school year is off to a fantastic start and great things are happening in Eden Prairie Schools. Here are some of the highlights: •

Sixteen EPHS seniors have been named National Merit Semifinalists based on their scores from PSAT tests taken in their junior year. They represent the top one-half of one percent of all junior students in the country who took the Eric Nelson (center) @ his After Hours event PSAT last year. Here is the complete list of National Merit Semifinalists from EPHS: Charles Bulger, Haley Deibel, David DuFrene, Joshua Fourre, Grace Freeman, Madeline Freeman, Alexander Jirele, Vineesha Kollipara, Raphael Maristela, Timothy Ose, Kobie Spaeth, Kieran Vatland, Tyler Wood, Leanne Zhang, Michele Zhang, and Henry Zurn. Kobie Spaeth is also a National Hispanic Recognition Program Scholar, placing in the top two percent of Hispanic/Latino juniors taking the test last year. EPHS student Roman Gradford was named a National Achievement Semifinalist. His PSAT score put him in the top one percent of all Black junior students taking that test.

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Eden Prairie High School senior Emily Xie and 2012 graduate He Li were named the 2012 State AP Scholars for Minnesota. State Scholars are the female and male students who have scored three or higher on the greatest number of AP exams and who have the highest average grade on all AP exams taken in the state that year. Li was also the state’s male AP Scholar last year. These two are among 322 students from EPHS on the lists of AP Scholars. The lists are broken into categories based on averaged and highest scores on AP tests taken during the 2011-12 school year.

Thirty-two EPHS students are on the National AP Scholar list, which means they scored an average grade of four out of five on all AP exams they took, and had grades of four or higher on eight or more exams. Last May, 873 EPHS students took 1,925 AP exams, continuing a trend that has seen an 18 percent increase in students participating in AP testing over the past three years.

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Under the state’s new accountability system for schools, four Eden Prairie schools were recognized as among the highest performing Title I schools in the state. Forest Hills and Oak Point elementary schools were recognized as “Reward Schools” under the state’s Multiple Measurements Rating (MMR) accountability system. Schools designated as Reward Schools are the highest-performing 15 percent of the Title I schools in the state (approximately 130 schools).

Eden Lake and Prairie View elementary schools were recognized as “Celebration Eligible” schools. This category of schools is the next 10 percent of high-achieving Title I schools after Reward Schools. The schools in Eden Prairie identified as Title I schools for the past school year are Eden Lake, Forest Hills, Oak Point and Prairie View. The district’s other school -- Cedar Ridge, Eagle Heights Spanish Immersion, Central Middle School and Eden Prairie High School – are not Title I schools and were not eligible for the designation.

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Early indications show that student enrollment in the district is above the numbers projected by the district last spring. Enrollment continues to be monitored on a regular basis and the official district enrollment will be taken on October 1. As the district prepared for the 2012-2013 school year, 10 elementary classroom sections were added to elementary schools to accommodate more students and to maintain reasonable class sizes. In addition, the district closed several grade levels at elementary schools to out-of-district students. Students who live within a specific elementary school attendance boundary will continue to be enrolled.

11455 Viking Dr. #270, Eden Prairie, MN 55344 • Ph: 952-944-2830 • Fax: 952-944-0229 • www.epchamber.org

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Community Building SPONSORSHIP CORNER ~ SEPTEMBER ~ Ambassador Lunch Sponsor (All Year)

Tips from Xcel Energy ~ Out With the Old, In With the New: Better Light and Money Back By: Xcel Energy

Lighting is often a company’s first step into the world of energy efficiency. Whether LEDs, CFLs or more efficient high bay lighting, offices, warehouses and even small businesses are realizing that they can see better and save money with updated lighting technology.

7922 Mitchell Road, Eden Prairie 952-374-6464 www.goumbria.com

Those with old T12 fluorescent lighting systems should be aware of U.S. Department of Energy regulations which phase out the manufacturing of all T12 and even some T8 fluorescent lights in 2012.

General Membership Luncheon

1900 Hazeltine Blvd, Chaska 952-556-5400 www.hngc.com

5309 West 70th Street , Edina 952-829-4504 www.xcelenergy.com

Women’s Networking Luncheon

Businesses still using this technology will soon be impacted since T12 bulbs are no longer in production. Any left on the shelves are sure to cost you a premium.

To help with the transition to newer, more efficient systems, Xcel Energy is offering a 30% bonus rebate, on top of current rebate levels, for all business customers replacing T12 lighting until December 31, 2012. This bonus means rebates can be up to $23-$36 per fixture. Xcel Energy offers a broad range of lighting rebates and a variety of technologies.

Switching to higher efficiency bulbs helps save energy, lower energy costs and reduce your company’s impact on the environment.

To learn more about ways to upgrade your lighting, earn rebates and lower your bills, call 1-800-481-4700 or visit xcelenergy. com/Rebates.

9813 Flying Cloud Drive, Eden Prairie 952-941-8394 www.alliedwastetwincities.com

15600 35th Ave N, Ste. 101, Plymouth 763-231-9510 www.ProsperWell.com

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11455 Viking Dr. #270, Eden Prairie, MN 55344 • Ph: 952-944-2830 • Fax: 952-944-0229 • www.epchamber.org

Networking US Representative Paulsen Addresses Chamber Members

By Pat MulQueeny, IOM, President Eden Prairie Chamber of Commerce

The Eden Prairie Chamber held another legislative update, this time with U.S. Congressman Erik Paulsen.

Congressman Paulsen’s comments addressed numerous key issues and he took questions from our members.

He started his comments highlighting the strength of the Eden Prairie community – particularly that of the business community and the Chamber. He attended Chamberfest a couple of weeks before and had the chance to visit with the over 120 business people on hand. He stated that Congress’s top goal should be to help grow the economy.

The current recovery is the worst since World War II – we are still down 4.5 million jobs since 2007 and income is down $4,000 a household. One of the major problems is Washington focuses on short-term fixes instead of longterm solutions.

Regulations – there are too many regulations that are impacting business. Last year alone another 80,000 pages were enacted. One of the areas that is being hit and will be a major impact on Minnesota is in the medical device arena. Minnesota is #1 in the world and the new tax in the healthcare law will hit med-tech with a 2.3% tax on revenues – this will negatively impact businesses. Many medical device companies take up to 10 years to be profitable and this tax will hit them hard. He has worked to get all the Minnesota delegation on board to change this and as an example of the impact he stated that St. Jude’s recent announcement of layoffs saves the company the same dollar amount as the taxes they will now be paying due to the healthcare law.

He discussed the fiscal cliff and how this is styming businesses. This is creating too much uncertainty and one million businesses will get hit by tax increases – this is projected to increase job losses with 14,000 in Minnesota alone. He supports reforming the tax code, so that it is competitive, which is what he has heard from businesses.

The tax code has not been reformed since 1986 and has grown by some 700,000 words since then. The House has acted to extend the current rates for one year and they plan to work on a full reform. But, to accomplish this, they need bi-partisan support – regardless of election results.

Government Committee Chait, Will Hale, Cargill & Erik Paulsen, U.S. Congressman

Upcoming Chamber Events!!!

NOVEMBER: • • •

1st: Not Your Average Joe’s Luncheon 8th: Women In Business Panel: Women’s Networking Luncheon 13th: Fusion Meeting: Social Media (Reed Daniels, KABYT)

DECEMBER: •

14th: Women’s Networking Lunch: Fashion Show

•

TBA: General Membership Luncheon

11455 Viking Dr. #270, Eden Prairie, MN 55344 • Ph: 952-944-2830 • Fax: 952-944-0229 • www.epchamber.org

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This is a publication of: Eden Prairie Chamber of Commerce

11455 Viking Drive, Suite 270 Eden Prairie, MN 55344

Ph: 952.944.2830 Fax: 952.944.0229

www.epchamber.org

OCTOBER 2012 - EPC Calendar of Events Monday 1

Tuesday 2

Wednesday

Thursday

3

4

7:30- 8:30 AM, Business@ Breakfast at The Colony

7:30 AM - Business Development Meeting @ EPC

Friday 5

11:30 AM- Ambassador Committee Mtg. @ EPC Office 5:30 PM- Ireland Informational Meeting @ Jake O’Connors in Excelsior

8

4:30 - 6:00 PM- After Hours Expo @ Olympic Hills

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7:30- 8:30 AM, Business@ Breakfast at The Colony

7:30 AM - Board Meeting @ EPC

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11:30 AM - 1:00 PM- ATHENA Luncheon @ DoubleTree ~ Founders of Angie’s Kettle Corn * Newsletter ads due to EPC by 4 PM

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16

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7:30 AM- Government Committee Meeting @ EPC

7:30- 8:30 AM, Business@ Breakfast at The Colony

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19

11:30 AM - 1:00 PM- Representatives Forum @ Interlachen with Edina & SW Metro Chambers

11:30 AM - 1:00 PM- Fusion Meeting @ GE ~ Going Green

* Post-Secondary Scholarship Applications Due by 4 PM

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26

7:30 - 8:30 AM, Business@ Breakfast at The Colony

27 6:00 PM- Fusion Volunteer Night w/ Shakopee Young Professionals

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3:30 PM- Recognition Committee Mtg. @ EPC Office

30

*Newsletter inserts due to EPC

Twilight in Tuscany Gala Event

31 7:30- 8:30 AM, Business@ Breakfast at The Colony

PLEASE RSVP FOR ALL EVENTS BY 12 PM THE DAY PRIOR! Visit epchamber.org to view details, pricing or to RSVP today!