2014 Annual Report of the Longview Chamber of Commerce

Annual Report

2014 Leading Longview.

People. Place. Prosperity.

provide networking opportunities for our Chamber members

Our Mission Statement To engage in and promote projects that have a positive economic impact on the Longview Trade Area.

Vision Statement

Dear Chamber Members: As I reflect on the past two years as Chairman of the Chamber I am reminded that Longview is great community to live, work, and play! While we may have a small town feel our proximity to larger metropolitan areas provide us the best of both worlds. We are blessed with an abundance of natural resources that have created the backbone of a strong economy, attracted a talented workforce, and created a culture of entrepreneurship.

The Longview Chamber of Commerce has made great strides in recent years to improve the business climate as well as promote the community to attract visitors, new residents and new employers. Our community is fortunate to have a group of dedicated business leaders committed to improving Longview’s future.

While much work yet remains. We find ourselves in an increasingly challenging global economy where competition is intensifying for talent and capital. Communities around the country are working strategically to reinvent themselves.

As Longview’s voice of business, we believe now is the time to aggressively leverage our assets and capabilities and become further united in our pursuit of a more prosperous community. Our commitment to downtown

To be recognized as an effective resource, providing relevant, innovative, and impactful programming that ensures a healthy business climate and an enhanced quality of life for Longview and Gregg County.

Our Core Ideology and Values CORE IDEOLOGY We believe that together we can have a stronger voice and influence positive outcomes.

We believe Longview is a great place to live and work.

We believe that together we can develop leaders to shape Longview’s future.

redevelopment, business advocacy, skills training, and inclusion will have been and will continue to be the tools

CORE VALUES

of our success.

Strengthen the local economy by researching and providing available resources to grow our local businesses.

Working together, we can move Longview into the next bright future. With your leadership and active participation, the Longview area will be stronger and more prosperous for generations to come.

With this in mind, we are excited to share our most recent success that has helped position Longview for healthy business growth, talent attraction and retention, and enhanced community development efforts.

Brad Tidwell

Chairman, 2014 Longview Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors

Promote the community by marketing Longview as a destination for new businesses, tourists, active older adults, and potential employees.

Provide networking opportunities by organizing and hosting a myriad of seminars, events, etc. for our Chamber members.

Represent the interests of business with government by building relationships with governmental agencies and effectively voicing the needs of area businesses.

Build community-wide leadership by encouraging and developing a shared vision for the future of Longview and collectively influencing stakeholders to make it happen.

LONGVIEW CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

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Longview Chamber of Commerce Staff

Longview Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors Ken Cunningham

Jim Barron

Tim Vaughn

Chairman of the Board

Board Member

Board Member

Good Shepherd Health System

J & J Barron Enterprises, LLC

TVaughn Builders, LLC

Kelly R. Hall, CCE IOM President/CEO

Paul Anderson, CDME Senior Vice President & Director of Communications

Wade Johnson

Jill Bayless

Chairman-Elect of the Board

Board Member

Suzanne Brown

Appointed Directors Joe Bob Joyce

Johnson & Pace, Inc.

Longview Economic Development Corporation

Advocacy & Communications Director

Amy Canton Leadership Longview Coordinator

Carrie Fisher Director of First Impressions

Roy Eon

Kara Bolster

Chairman of Finance

Board Member

Texas Bank and Trust

STEMCO

Courtney Gill YEA! Coordinator

Judge Becky Simpson

Lisa Monsivais Members Services Coordinator

Leska Parker, CMP Brad Tidwell

Pat Britton

Past Chairman of the Board

Board Member

Citizens National Bank

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Eastman Chemical Company, Texas Operations

Brett Lindig

David Hayes

Board Member

Board Member

SYSCO Food Services of East Texas, LLC

Hayes RV Center

Keith Honey

Dana Parr

Board Member

Board Member

AEP Southwestern Electric Power Company

Copeland Insurance Group

Kelly Hall

John Ray

President/CEO

Board Member

Longview Chamber of Commerce

Lively Cadillac GMC

LONGVIEW CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

Director of Development

Elaine Reynolds Councilman Richard Manley

Vice President of Event Operations

R. Manley Enterprises

Business Development and Special Events Director

Melissa Saunders Decedric Williams Program & Project Assistant

Ryan Polk Tourism Director

Why the Longview Chamber of Commerce Won’t Settle for the Status Quo. 2014 proved to be another successful year for the Longview Chamber of Commerce (LCoC). The continued strategic focus and direction has empowered the executive leadership and board of directors to continue the transformation process. Moving Longview forward requires intentional work, dedication, as well as passion. Being average is not what is best for the community; being excellent is the status LCoC envisions Longview. It is imperative an environment that allows businesses to prosper coupled with focusing on enhancing our quality of life is strengthened.

In rolling up their shirt sleeves, five things they knew they could do well became priorities that guide the Chamber today as it sets many positive initiatives into action.

1 Promoting the community 2 Strengthening the local economy 3 Providing networking opportunities 4 Representing business with government 5 Developing community leaders

Between planning retreats and input from community leaders and elected officials, a collaborative approach came together and has become the steam behind the engine moving Longview forward.

“Be the change you wish to see in the world.”

– Mahatma Gandhi

strengthen the local economy

O

Jim Hugman, Ron Hutchison and Jay Knight (right to left) enjoy the art and cultural experience of the 2014 InterCity Trip to Greenville, SC.

ne of the ways the Chamber took initiative was instigating Inter City Visits. This tool is used to identify cities that have redeveloped and learn from their stories how they turned blight into success.

Elected officials, business owners, and community leaders are invited to attend a three-day visit that includes meetings with the host city leaders and hearing “from the horse’s mouth” why they did what they did, what tools they used, and how they brought forward community interest to carry out the plan.

The Longview Chamber Inter City Team has been to three cities since this program has been initiated: Chattanooga, TN, Ft. Collins, CO, and most recently, Greenville, SC.

tools to downtown owners encouraging rehabilitation of storefronts, inviting new business formats into the mix, and maintaining a historic image that creates unity in the downtown grid while allowing a new marketing strategy to flourish. Through Community Block Grants and Facade Grants, business owners have found help creating visual appeal to the urban area. With the Texas Historical Commission granting a Texas Main Street to Longview, and Longview becoming a Certified Local Government (CLG awarded in 2014,) the urban redevelopment plan is seeing renewed interest and revitalization has begun.

The Chamber also took on the initiative of creating an Urban Main Street concept that would give

Main Street invests in 3D vinyls to showcase how empty space can be utilized.

For fun, because no successful initiative that involves residents and business owners should be dull, the Chamber sponsors movie nights on Heritage Plaza.

The events are free, open to everyone, and foster a fun reason to be in the downtown community. Longview was one of the few cities given permission to show the hit Disney movie, Frozen, and it was a cool way to spend a hot night.

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LONGVIEW CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

Another success story from the Longview Chamber of Commerce’s “new school of thought” was in creating a Business Solutions Center. This complete resource for Longview business owners offers online training addressing timely business issues and tools to navigate the demands of an aggressive business community.

Think of this as professional development “anytime, anywhere.”

Installing wayfinding signs, so obvious but missing from our city, helped tourists find their way at key intersections. Sponsoring this program gave the Chamber high visibility and applause for taking the leadership on creating a better way to navigate Longview.

The Chamber recognizes that if it’s going to carry forward the success of these new endeavors it must

capture the enthusiasm and networking skills of a younger generation. Creating the successful YEA! Young Entrepreneurial Academy (9-month program to connect professionals and students in a mentoring capacity that allows bright minds to present business plans to potential investor panels), the Satellite Entrepreneur Center (free space for 60 days to launch startup businesses) and, of course, continued training with our exciting Leadership Longview training program.

Leadership Longview attendees embrace the learning experiences with industry leaders.

LONGVIEW CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

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represent the interests of business with government

The 2014 East Texas Coalition visited Austin, Texas to carry out the advocacy needs of our members.

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LONGVIEW CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

It’s not enough to just reach out to the other cities and engage our youth in the changing the community we live in, we must also be strategic about advocating for our local business on a state and national level. This Chamber is committed to investigating and supporting legislative initiatives that better improve the prospects of local business. The LCoC knows that combining our local voice, 1100 strong, with other chambers across the state and nation, leads to successful representation. Some key propositions that this Chamber stands behind are opposition of proposed EPA’s Greenhouse emissions, IMEX, support State transportation funding-proposition Proposition One, Market Fairness Act, Natural Gas initiatives, support for legal sale of Beer and Wine, support of Amending Hotel Occupancy Code, and Insurance coverage continuation for terrorist events. We have and will continue to send task forces to Austin and Washington D.C. to carry out the advocacy needs of our members.

In making sure our members and the community participates in the process of voting, we created LongviewVotes.Com. Visitors to this site can keep up with issues affecting business and submit letters directly to their elected officials.

By including a tourism component to the LCoC, we fulfill a fun and much needed role in the community of

spurring forward hospitality events which in turn created an economic development momentum all its own.

AlleyFest: the best little block party in East Texas.

With annual attendance at 8-10,000, guests enjoy live music, a local marketplace, and loads of activities for kids.

Discover Longview, and its all aboard Tour, help those in the tourism field and human resource departments of major companies understand the unique qualities of Longview and why knowing the features of the city helps retain potential employees and fun-loving tourists.

The Longview Visitor Center, a hallmark of the 2012 renovation to Chamber offices, provides a one-stop shop for all things Longview. With tourism questions coming from a variety of avenues it’s easy to see why the LCoC has been key in facilitating the prospects of Longview to the many guests that pass through our city.

In 1979, a group of 39 artists joined together to present the first Alley Art Show held in Bank Alley of Downtown Longview.

The event has grown over the years to become AlleyFest.

As part of our new muscle in promoting Longview, the Chamber is reaching out to meeting planners for small and large events, the Texas Film Commission, creating new festival guides, and sponsoring new interstate billboards promoting Longview.

promote the community by marketing Longview as a destination

LONGVIEW CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

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With an eye to fostering local networking opportunities, the LCoC promotes goodwill and recognizes achievements of local leaders. It’s hard to say if any other city organization does as much to bring folks together over a meal and an accolade, but the Chamber is honored to sponsor many events that recognize the accomplishments of others: Salute to Healthcare Luncheons, which honors the Healthcare Professional of the Year, Volunteer of the Year, and Dr. Sam Mack Lifetime Achievement Award.

State of the City, the annual Mayor’s address crediting the city’s accomplishments and its future goals.

Emerging Leaders Awards, professionals under the age of 40 are recognized for their contributions to the growth of Longview.

Quarterly Membership Luncheons, weeknight mixers, and golf tournaments, too.

Total Resource Campaign, an eight-week extravaganza designed to recruit new and retain current members to the Chamber. This enthusiastic event has changed the business model for the Chamber and funded specific programs and services that local businesses members find useful.

These programs are mixed with our strong social media presence and the ongoing efforts to keep our branding campaign in the conversation of regional awareness.

The Chamber takes pride in their print materials like the award-winning Uniquely Longview magazine as well as their digital communications materials including Chamber Buzz e-blasts.

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LONGVIEW CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

Because Longview’s Chamber is more than just a typical organization: it’s a collaborative effort for promoting local business, the Chamber has 35 members in an Ambassador Program that stimulate communication and patronage of new businesses and local members. They attend ribbon cuttings, Business After Hours, Business Solutions Conference, work the Boat and RV show, and generally represent the Chamber to the community. One of our best assets, hands down.

With many means to communicate to chamber members and the community, the chamber takes pride in their print materials like the award-winning Uniquely Longview magazine, the award-winning Longview Progress Report, Chamber Buzz e-blasts for all departments at the chamber, their website, and that ultimate in business information and networking, The Business Solutions Conference.

The executive leadership whole-heartedly believes that to be the best chamber in the region requires unparalleled support for every project in the city.

LCoC is at the forefront of almost every good thing moving forward, offering support, access to staff, communications, and networking with membership to find the right people to carry off the critical missions in Longview. The LCoC is more than a chamber; it’s one of the engines powering Longview forward to the fast track.

build community leadership by encouraging and developing a shared vision

410 North Center Street Longview, TX 75601 903.237.4000 Fax 903.237.4049 www.longviewchamber.com