Business Connection Kelso Longview Chamber of Commerce Volume 6, No. 7 July 2014 World Series scores big with players and local business community It’s the World Cup or Tour de France on a local level. “It’s our chance to be on the national stage,” said Kirc Roland, LCC athletic director, radio personality, and president of the local World Series committee staging the prestigious event. “It’s a positive thing for our youth, and a positive thing for our community.” is marks the sixth time since 1990 the Kelso-Longview area has hosted a Babe Ruth national tournament. Ten teams, eight from across the United States, and one each from Kelso and Longview, will make the roster. Babe Ruth begins flying teams in August 19. Opening ceremonies take place August 20 with a barbecue and home run derby, and competition starts August 21 with the championship game sched- uled for August 28. From the Chamber of Commerce’s perspective, it’s a home run for the local economy. “It makes it a great Chamber of Commerce event,” Roland said. “It’s not just a Please see World Series, page 2 weekend. It’s a week of people stay- ing in hotels, eating at restaurants and experiencing the tourism. Few events bring in this many people for this long of a time.” Chamber CEO Bill Marcum has done the math. Just as the long days of summer begin to fade into fall, the sharp crack of a bat will snap hundreds of baseball fans to their feet at Lower Columbia College’s David B. Story Field to cheer the country’s top 13- to 15-year-old baseball players in the 2014 Babe Ruth World Series. Fireworks over Story Field during the 2009 opening ceremonies.
Transcript
Business ConnectionK e l s o L o n g v i e w C h a m b e r o f C o m m e r c e
Volume 6, No. 7 July 2014
World Series scores big with players and local business community
It’s the World Cup or Tour de France on a local level.“It’s our chance to be on the national stage,” said Kirc Roland, LCC athletic
director, radio personality, and president of the local World Series committee staging the prestigious event. “It’s a positive thing for our youth, and a positive thing for our community.”
This marks the sixth time since 1990 the Kelso-Longview area has hosted a Babe Ruth national tournament.
Ten teams, eight from across the United States, and one each from Kelso and Longview, will make the roster. Babe Ruth begins flying teams in August 19. Opening ceremonies take place August 20 with a barbecue and home runderby, and competition starts August 21 with the championship game sched-uled for August 28.
From the Chamber of Commerce’s perspective, it’s a home run for the local economy.
“It makes it a great Chamber of Commerce event,” Roland said. “It’s not just a
Please see World Series, page 2
weekend. It’s a week of people stay-ing in hotels, eating at restaurants and experiencing the tourism. Few events bring in this many people for this long of a time.”
Chamber CEO Bill Marcum has done the math.
Just as the long days of summer begin to fade into fall, the sharp crack of a bat will snap hundreds of baseball fans to their feet at Lower Columbia College’s David B. Story Field to cheer the country’s top 13- to 15-year-old baseball players in the 2014 Babe Ruth World Series.
Fireworks over Story Field during the 2009 opening ceremonies.
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Kelso Longview Business Connection July 2014
World Series, from page 1
“One team equals about 70 people total,” he said. “So eight teams will be about 560 people, not counting national Babe Ruth people like TV crews and others, for seven to eight days.”
He and his team are working with the World Series committee to put together information on the Kelso-Longview area, restaurants and entertainment coupons from local businesses, Mount St. Helens visitor information and specialty items from some members. (For more information, see pages 3 and 4).
“I expect it to be a busy week as the World Series will bring some 600 ‘visitors’ to our area and during their down time between games they will be looking for fun things to see and do in our area,” Marcum said. “We plan to be ready with as much information as we can to help them find that right thing on their list.”
So Much More than Baseball More importantly, the tournament provides those who visit a personal connec-
tion to Kelso, Longview and the state of Washington.Traditionally, players stay with host families. Most players bring their own fami-
lies, and extended families, to sit in the stands, but they also develop relationships with those families they stay with as well.
“Lifelong friendships are made,” Roland said.And you never know whom you may be hosting.In 1990, local residents Rita and Warren Walker hosted a Babe Ruth Bambino
named Jimmy Rollins from eventual tournament champion Oakland, California. That young man went on to a stellar baseball career as a Major League All-Star and MVP for the Philadelphia Phillies.
“The tournament is so much more than baseball,” Roland said. “We work so hard to keep Longview and Kelso in the rotation. We can’t do it every year, but every four to five years. It’s important for our community to keep this.”
WednesdayJuly 2 – 7:30 a.m.
Education Foundation CommitteeCanterbury Park, 1335 3rd Ave., Longview
FridayJuly 4
Chamber Office ClosedVisitor Center Open
WednesdayJuly 9 – 11:30 a.m.
Ribbon CuttingMary Kay – Maria Frey
Kelso Longview Chamber of Commerce105 Minor Road, Kelso
Ambassador Committee MeetingCanterbury Park, 1335 3rd Ave., Longview
TuesdayJuly 15 – 5:30 p.m.
Business After Hours – MEGA MIXERCivic Center Professional Building
FridayJuly 25 – 4:30 p.m.
Ribbon CuttingLexi's Pizza Pub
1613 Westside Highway, Kelso
Every WednesdayChamber Connections
KEDO / 1400AM – 3-4 p.m.Stream live at www.threeriversradio.com
Local guests and current events
Calendar
Please see World Series, page 4
This year’s World Series in Kelso-Longview is expected to draw at least 600 individuals from across the country.
GET READY CHAMBER MEMBERS! THE WORLD SERIES IS COMING! The Top Babe Ruth Baseball Teams From
the U.S. & Canada Come to Longview-Kelso 8 Regional Champions arrive on Tuesday August 19th
Opening Ceremonies & Bar B Q Wednesday August 20th.
25 games begin Thursday August 21st culminating with the championship game Thursday August 28th.
All games on Story Field at Lower Columbia College
HOW CAN YOU HELP? Sponsorships
Title Sponsors, Game Programs, TV/Radio, Employee Ticket Deals, Bat Boys, Diamond Girls, Corporate Nights, Opening Ceremonies, Player Bar B Q, Much More!
Buy Tickets & Attend the Games! Reduced Packages if purchased before July 27th. Buy a large group of tickets and treat
your employees or your valued vendors or customers. The 15-year-old players from Longview and Kelso and across the country deserve our community support!
Be A Host Family! Each out of town team needs 6 homes to house 2 players each. Gather your friends and
neighbors and show these kids the type of local hospitality we’re known for. You will provide tremendous memories by adding to your family for one special week!
Get Into The Spirit! Provide the Chamber with coupons and gift items from your business to give to each player. Gift bags are a great way to direct the players, parents, out of town guests, and host families
to your business. Put welcome signs on your reader boards!
Go to: www.longviewworldseries.com or call (360) 430-7286 to get involved.
The Longview World Series Committee is an all-volunteer group committed to bringing a national, wholesome family event to Cowlitz County. The Babe Ruth World Series provides once in a lifetime memories and new dollars to our economy.
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Kelso Longview Business Connection July 2014
The labor of love Roland puts into the tournament comes from experience. His son played in the 2004 event here.
“It was a special time for our family, and definitely for our son,” he said. “I love what it brings to the community.”
Marcum, who played Babe Ruth baseball as a teen, has been on both sides of the host family program – his family having hosted one year, and he being an out-of-town player at an-other time.
“Both were great experiences, some of the best times of my life,” he said.
Great for FansEven when they are not hosting, the Kelso and Longview
community Babe Ruth teams have had tournament success.In 1997, Longview was the host team, and Kelso qualified
for the tournament. Roland said Babe Ruth organizers saw the energy the cities together produced, and it’s been a coopera-tive effort since, bringing the tournament back in 2001, 2004 and 2009.
Story Field, home to the successful Lower Columbia College Red Devils and West Coast League Cowlitz Black Bears, pro-vides the perfect venue for competition with its rich baseball history.
The Red Devils have won 10 coveted Northwest Athletic As-sociation of Community College championships and placed more than 77 players into the Major League draft.
The Black Bears are hoping for another post-season run, which could prove challenging for the field crews should the season run into extra innings, but will be well worth the ad-ditional hustle needed to get the field ready for Babe Ruth.
Although Longview and Kelso already have their places on the roster, the other eight teams will be determined later. Last year’s World Series in Virginia brought in teams from Rhode Island, New Jersey, Michigan, Florida, Iowa, Texas and Cali-fornia.
The last time Longview hosted, Tallahassee, Florida, was crowned the champion.
Tickets are on sale now. To purchase, or for information on the event, visit www.longviewworldseries.com.
World Series, from page 2
Catch the Spirit!With all those visitors coming to town, the Chamber of
Commerce and World Series Committee are working to cover all their bases. There are plenty of opportunities for Chamber members to be a part of the lineup.
1 Event Awareness. Local organizers need sponsorship, support and investment. Local business owners are en-
couraged to welcome visitors and let community members know the event is in town through their reader boards, websites and with special offers.
2 Attend the Games. Purchase tickets to hand out to employees or customers to encourage big crowds for
the visiting teams as well as the hometown players. Noth-ing makes these games more memorable for the kids than competing in front of packed stands.
3 Advertise. Showcase your businesses support through advertisement either in the program, on the radio, or
through the Internet broadcast.
4 Donate a Gift. The Chamber of Commerce plans to hand out gift bags to players on all the teams. Provide
an item, coupon or keepsake to celebrate the event and welcome them to the community.
For more information on how to be a part of the winning effort, contact Bill Marcum at the Chamber, [email protected], or the World Series Commit-tee at [email protected].
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Attention Business Owners
Let’s step up and make our businesses look great to the many friends and guests
that visit our community each year.
Does Your Business Have Curb Appeal?Your company’s curb appeal goes a long waytoward winning customers over and growingrevenue. Even if you are not a retail business yourcurb appeal sends a message to passer-buyers about the quality of your work. Your business appearanceprojects an image to potential customers and local residents making them more or less inclined to visitor otherwise support your business.
Win the Mayor’s Award for “Best Curb Appeal”All Longview businesses are eligible to win a Mayors award forBest Curb Appeal Improvement. During the months of June-July 2014, you can nominate a business that has made thebe best improvement by posting a “before” and “after” photo. Go to our Facebook page: Make Longview Beautiful. Those visiting this page can “Like” the one they feel has made the best improvement. The one with the most “Likes” wins! Visit this page often and make sure you vote.
Thank you! Go Here & Vote!
Make Longview Beautiful
facebook.com/pages/makelongviewbeautiful
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Kelso Longview Business Connection July 2014
CEO’s Message
Partnering on resource guide good for parents and community
6
By Bill Marcum CEO – Kelso Longview Chamber of Commerce
In 2009-10 the Kelso Longview Chamber of Commerce’s Edu-cation Foundation, with com-munity support, produced a resource guide for the parents of Cowlitz County youth titled High School and Beyond: A Family Resource Guide. It is now time to produce this guide again for the next generation of our youth graduating during the next three years; helping them plan for life beyond high school.
Research confirms that high school-age students depend most on their parents to help them plan their education/career, yet parents have little in the way of resources to guide them. High School and Beyond gives parents the information they need
to help their children prepare for the future. It includes detailed sec-tions on career assessment, career pathways, graduation requirements, education, technical training, and apprenticeship options, financial aid, job search, and community re-sources. Best of all, the content of the guide was developed by local high school counselors and career specialists in consultation with school administrators and the Longview Kelso Chamber of Commerce Education Foundation.
In 2014 we will be producing a digital version, and a printed version of the High School and Beyond: A Family Resource Guide, that will be made available to every high school student in Cowlitz County. To accomplish this task we will need to raise nearly $10,000 in contributions from our local businesses and education resources. So, if you are looking for an end of the year donation or just planning for 2014, please include this instru-mental publication in your budgeting. You can view the pre-vious guide at http://issuu.com/kelsolongviewchamber/docs/hsb-1215-web/1?e=5295546/5882640
To participate, with your tax-deductible contribution, call Kar-en Sisson at the Chamber, 360-423-8400, or e-mail ksisson@ kelsolongviewchamber.org. Thank you for helping families and students in our local school systems plan for a productive future and family-wage jobs.
Special thanks to those of you who supported in 2010
Banda’s Bouquets, City of Longview, Corwin Beverages, Cowlitz-Wahkiakum Tech Prep, Ecological Land Services, Fos-ter Farms, Happy Kids Dentistry, LCC, M&R Painting, TOYO-COM, WorkSource, WSU-Vancouver, Youth Workforce Pro-gram and Cowlitz PUD. Funding was also provided by each high school in Cowlitz and Wahkiakum counties.
Kelso Longview Chamber of Commerce Team
Bill Marcum, CEOKaren Sisson, Project ManagerAmy Hallock, Bookkeeper
Kelso Longview Business Connection is published monthly by the Kelso Longview Chamber of Commerce. 105 N. Minor Road • Kelso, WA 98626 • 360-423-8400
To advertise, call Bill Marcum, 360-423-8400 or e-mail [email protected] Deadline: 20th of each month.
Title Sponsor Stirling Motors
to ourT hank You2014 Sponsors
Hole 1 Red Canoe
Hole 2 Longview Eye Clinic - Tack
Par 3, Hole 3 PeaceHealth Foundation
Hole 4Riverwoods Chiropractic
Hole 5Cowlitz River Rigging
Hole 6 Three Rivers Eye Clinic
Par 3, Hole 7Columbia Ford
Hole 8Futcher-Henry CPA
Hole 9 Twin Star Credit Union
Hole 10Edward Jones - Nick Lemiere
Hole 11 D and C Lemmons
Par 3, Hole 12 H & S Enterprises
Hole 13 Shamrock Tavern
Hole 14Millennium Bulk Terminals
Hole 15 Les Schwab
Par 3, Hole 16 Ocean Beach Self Storage
Hole 17 ServPro Longview
Hole 18Koelsch Senior Communities
Beverage Cart Express Employment
Professionals
Putting Contest Fibre Federal Credit Union
Tee Prize Sponsor Prographyx
Lunch Sponsor Cascade Networks
Driving Range Sponsor State Farm Insurance -
Fischer & Beal
Photo SponsorReprograghics
Propel InsuranceC’s Photography
PNE CorpThree Rivers Mall
19th Hole SponsorSignature Transport -
Dale Lemmons
Cart Sponsor Bob’s Sporting Goods
Raffle Sponsor Cascade Title
Hole in One Cascade Natural Gas
Hole in OneDr. Clay Bartness
State Farm Insurance, Scott Fischer
Dinner Sponsor Twin City Bank
Dessert SponsorColdwell Banker-Bain
Registration TableCowlitz County Title
8
Kelso Longview Business Connection July 2014
2014 Golf Classic
Driving FashionTeam Ashtown Brewing/Bob’s Sporting Goods captured third place for their net score (but first place in fun) at the Kelso Longview Chamber of Commerce Golf
Classic June 16 at the Longview Country Club. Bonus for the day, Erik Skreen won
closest to the pin honors on the hardest par 3 of the course. For a complete list of
winners, see page 9.
ServePro’s Shawn Green and Ryan Grady offered golfers a break in the action.
See more photos on the Chamber’s Facebook page or click here.
Thank You!Auction and Raffle Donors
Cowlitz Black BearsGallery of Diamonds
Longview Country ClubPets, Pawns & Imports
Bill MarcumShamrock TavernBicoastal MediaRenaud Electric
Copies Today Speedy LithoFibre Federal Credit Union
CEDCIsland Sun TanningColumbia Theater
Pacific Northwest Realty GroupLife Works
Estetica Day SpaAshtown Brew Pub
Pets, Pawns & ImportsCorwin Beverage Co.
Summerland CateringKUKN
Craig Stein BeverageKindred Beacon Hill
Banta’s Bouquets Thunder Mountain Rodeo
Scott Fischer State FarmTaylor Insurance
Diamond ShowcaseLSNetworks
Propel Insurance
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Kelso Longview Business Connection July 2014
2014 Golf Classic
2014 Classic Winners1st Gross – Shamrock Tavern (60): Steve Jones, Matt Car-
lough, Gene Guttormsen and Rocky McCullough2nd Gross – Signature Transport (62): Dale Lemmons, Der-
rick Lemmons, Dave West and John Philbrook3rd Gross – Cowlitz Black Bear (62): Jim Appleby, Eric
Cheatley, Bob Rose and Tim Matz1st Net – KeyBank (52): Marlo Rivers, Mike Despain, Phil
Garver and Tim Kalal2nd Net – Stirling Auto Group (52.2): Devin Mackin, Geary
Martin, Dennis Eddy and Virgina Palmer3rd Net – Ashtown Brewery/Bob’s Sporting Goods (52.5):
Jarrett Skreen, Erik Skreen, Matt Schlecht and Brett HoggensonClosest to the Pin Longest Drive Hole #3 – Noelle Hamilton Women – Alice Dietz
and Mike Titone Men – André LindbergHole #7 – Erik SkreenHole #12 – Jan DennisHole #16 – Eric Cheatley
The tournament started with a parade of carts and finished with the Shamrock Tavern which ran off with low gross honors.
The Plasmine Technologies team lines up a putt during competition.
It takes a big iron to drive the crowd wild.
Once is not enough
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Kelso Longview Business Connection July 2014
By Chuck Nau Retail Consultant and Sales and Management Trainer Murray & Nau, Inc.
Did you buy an ad, a commercial, or a single (direct mail) mailing for your retail business or service today?
If you did, you may be wasting some of your own time, your business' time and profit, and your media salesperson's time. More importantly, you may be impacting positive results for your advertising expenditure.
In essence, your ‘one at a time’, single ad strategy may be impacting the success of your advertising in your community and the GROWTH of your business.
A strategy of buying only a single ad just does not work in building your business, developing a strong (and loyal) clien-tele, or helping you reach and achieve your marketing goals. It does not work for your business or YOU!
Let’s explore a much better advertising strategy for you and your business...namely, an advertising campaign strategy. An advertising campaign selling strategy affords you and your business a number of benefits. Two major benefits are saving time and creating, if not enhancing, results.But first, let’s step back and clarify what we mean by an
advertising campaign strategy. An advertising campaign strategy consists of five components and affords your busi-ness and YOU five key benefits.
The elements of an advertising campaign include a series of advertisements, within a time frame, with an allocated or set aside budget, to meet an IDENTIFIED need, problem or op-portunity with an anticipated goal or OUTCOME. If one of these elements is NOT present at the onset of your advertis-ing schedule, in all likelihood, you will find yourself wasting valuable time, business resources and dollars on a start – stop – start again advertising program.
As you may know, one of the major elements in any suc-cessful advertising campaign is CONSISTENCY, not neces-sarily repetition of the same message, but rather a consistent planned advertising program. It is consistent inasmuch as your business' name and overall message are before your potential target customers on a regular basis. Developing that
consistency takes both time and patience.
First and foremost, step back and do some REFLECTIVE thinking. Ask yourself (and your employees) to clarify your business goals, strategies and, quite frankly, your hopes and dreams for your business endeavor. Ask questions (‘who are our best customers? What is our competitive advantage? Who are our competitors? How do we plan to grow our business?’). And once you have developed some answers and identified some problems, needs, and opportunities, plan to meet with your local media (newspaper, radio, cable) sales staff.
Share, on a confidential basis, your business strategies with your media contacts. Solicit their input and ideas. Look for ways to match their media benefits and strengths to your goals, needs, or problems. CHALLENGE them to offer a business solution, an idea, and a campaign that will be here not only today, but tomorrow, too!
Be sure to share with them how you will SUPPORT the campaign (e.g. prominently displaying the merchandise, signage, sufficient inventory on hand) and what your expec-tations are (e.g. increased store traffic, selling the advertised merchandise, reaching new customers).
Double check that your media contacts understand and benefit from the need to plan, plan, plan your advertising strategy to produce the desired results.
Demonstrate to them that sporadic and infrequent advertis-ing does not work, rather that consistent advertising, in good times and slow times, delivers the ongoing results and busi-ness growth your business and YOU desire!
Selling an idea, a campaign, rather than a single ad or two has NUMEROUS BENEFITS for your business and you. Let’s explore some selected benefits.
The potential benefits to YOU include time savings (less time conceiving, developing and handling various ad ele-ments), dollar savings through better ad costs control, planned sales events and elimination of last-minute, poorly -executed promotions, and improved utilization (both in
Please see Nau, page 11
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Kelso Longview Business Connection July 2014
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planning and payment) of available co-op funds. Most impor-tantly, better response will be achieved in terms of sales, and improved name recognition (...top of mind awareness!) on individual ads and related marketing efforts.
The potential benefits to your media partners, much like your own, include time savings through less ad handling, reduced ad ERRORS (and impacts to your business), dollar savings through improved time management which translates into en-hanced planning and selling time and stronger media relation-ships. This will lead to better campaigns, more ad SUCCESS, and the resulting available ad dollars being reinvested since campaigns are conceived, refined (e.g. flexibility does exist in campaign selling), planned and executed in a more timely, ef-ficient manner that generates results.
The potential benefits to everyone include control of planning and making choices, having time to identify those opportuni-ties and activities in your market that will be responsible for generating results and leading you to your goals. You will be spending more creative and FUN time and less production and crisis reactionary time – acting, NOT reacting. There will be the opportunity to spend more time getting to know and understand your advertising and marketing (media) resourc-es to help you succeed, and enhance BOTH your personal and professional growth.
To GROW your business and be successful in your commu-nity, partner with your local media, planning and executing an advertising campaign (three months plus) that will benefit you both.
Chuck Nau of Murray & Nau, Inc. is a retail consultant and sales and management trainer. He has been a speaker for and conducted advertising and marketing workshops with retail-ers, chambers of commerce, community marketing groups, and retail organizations throughout North America.Based in Seattle, Nau is a 25-year veteran of advertising,
sales, media and management, who knows and understands the everyday challenges of starting up, growing, and surviving in today's ever changing retail climate.Comments and questions are welcome and may be directed to
By Joelle Wilson Cowlitz Economic Development Council Staff
With Regal Entertainment Group’s new cinema complex and the addition of Sportsman’s Warehouse, all four anchor spaces at Three Rivers Mall will soon be filled. In addition, Planet Fit-ness plans to build a gym in an area north of the food court.
Linda DiLembo, who has been general manager of the mall since 2010, said the owners of the mall, Rouse Properties, hope to turn it into a shopping, dining and entertainment destina-tion. They have been talking with many companies with that goal in mind, she said, including Red Robin, Chipotle Mexican Grill, Rue 21, Starbucks, Party City, Burger King, BAM (Books-a-Million), TJ Maxx and Kay Jewelers.
We are grateful to the Economic Development Council for helping us tell our story to realtors across the country, she said.
The new Regal Cinemas complex will feature 10 theaters horseshoed around two larger theaters. It will also have a party room and high end concessions. One of the large theaters will boast Regal’s own RPX technology which it describes as "a cus-tom-built premium environment featuring elegant and luxuri-ous seats with high-back headrests, a giant immersive screen illuminated by high-quality digital projectors and completed with a state-of-the-art sound system."
Sportsman’s Warehouse carries top-quality, brand-name prod-ucts for the serious outdoor enthusiast, especially those who enjoy hunting, fishing, camping, or backpacking.
Planet Fitness is known for its low prices, and touts itself as a “judgment free zone” where everyone can feel at ease.
DiLembo said the addition of the theater is “a very big deal” because it will increase foot traffic inside the mall and makes the area more attractive to restaurants and food court vendors.
She said the mall has also been working to host events that draw hundreds of people to the space and benefits the commu-nity. These include the Chamber of Commerce’s Jingle All the Way 5K and Festival of Giving, Boys Scouts’ Pinewood Derby, live performances by various organizations and Cowlitz County Museum’s Road Show.
“I’m very happy with what we are seeing,” DiLembo said. “It’s very exciting.”
Cowlitz Economic Development Council
Three Rivers Mall anchor stores filling up
Three Rivers Mall’s addition of Sportsman’s Warehouse and Regal Cinemas is the tip of the iceberg.
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Kelso Longview Business Connection July 2014
Business After Hours
Take Me Out to the Ball GameParty deck turnout was strong for the Chamber’s Business After Hours at the Cowlitz Black Bears game June 24. Below, Katie Wangler and Mady Tucker show off their pie-eating contest faces with Black Bear mascot Corby; Theresa Beisse and family enjoy dinner and the view; Teedara Garn and family; Shawn and Leigh Green; and Nick Lemiere, Lance Welch and Christie McDaniel. The Black Bears beat the Kitsap Blue Jackets 5-2.
Kelso Longview Business Connection July 2014
14
LCC Foundation building healthy futures for the communityBy Erin Brown Executive Director – Lower Columbia College Foundation
The Lower Columbia College Foundation was established in 1976 through generous gifts from Phillip and Jeanne Wert-heimer. The vision of the Wertheimer family, along with the members of the initial Foundation Board of Directors, was to create avenues for excellence in education at Lower Colum-bia College (LCC).
Led by this vision, the Foundation exists solely for chari-table and educational purposes. By securing private funds to supplement the college’s traditional revenue sources, the Foundation works to support the college’s educational pro-grams and services, and to enhance the college’s institutional strategic goals.
Many of LCC’s alumni, retirees and friends came from humble beginnings, but made a better world for themselves, their families, and the community through hard work and persistence. As testimony to their affinity for LCC, many have also committed to making a difference in the lives of its students, and to ensure LCC continues to provide quality ed-ucation for the citizens of the region for generations to come.
Lower Columbia College is entering a new era of service to the community. With a focus on student success and comple-tion, economic development and international relationships, the college’s spirit of innovation will enable it to meet the challenges of the constantly evolving environment of higher education.
And indeed, there are challenges. Over the past six years, state support to LCC has been cut by nearly 28 percent, and in-state tuition has risen 41 percent. The need for commu-nity support has never been greater.
Creating Opportunities for SuccessTrue to the mission of its founders, the LCC Founda-
tion continues to provide generous support to the college.
Thanks to dedicated individuals and corporations within the community, the Foundation awarded an unprec-edented $330,000 in scholarships to students and more than $400,000 in program support last year.
In addition, as part of its Building Healthy Futures campaign, the Foun-dation provided $845,000 in matching funds to secure a Fed-eral Economic Development Administration grant for a to-tal of $1.7 million to purchase state-of-the-art equipment for the newly constructed health and science building.
As part of the campaign, the Foundation also is offering naming opportunities for the new health and science build-ing, as well as the newly renovated gymnasium and fitness center.
Since losing the ability to use state funding to support ath-letics, the Foundation provided nearly $170,000 in scholar-ships and program support for college athletes last year, and seeks permanent endowment funding to ensure Red Devil athletics remains the pride of the community and the region.
At the heart of its work and mission, the LCC Foundation created the LCC Student Success Fund to assist students who are most at risk for abandoning their higher education goals due to financial hardship.
Since launching the initiative in 2013, the LCC Foundation has distributed nearly $100,000 in emergency grants to help more than 300 students in need. These one-time grants have meant the difference between success and failure for many students who are either progressing through their studies or are now proud college graduates.
Many individuals and local businesses have generously sup-ported the Student Success Fund and have helped the initia-tive be recognized as a national model for student success and completion.
Lower Columbia College
Please see LCC, page 15
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Kelso Longview Business Connection July 2014
LCC, from page 14Most recently, the LCC Foundation received a $10,000
grant from the Weyerhaeuser Giving Fund Board to support LCC’s Student Success Fund. These funds will help students cover the cost of:
• Tuition expenses not covered by scholarships, financialaid or grants
Student Success Funds not only help students in need, but also help the college maintain quality instruction because each dollar invested is twice spent. Students get the vital sup-port they need for tuition and books, and the funds stay on
campus to maintain and support programs on campus.
Community Support Transforms LivesThese are but a few examples of how the LCC Foundation
is working to help support Lower Columbia College and its students. We owe so much of our students’ success, to our generous community and to our amazing college faculty and staff who tell students, “I know it’s hard, but you can do it." LCC is also the place where many students finally believe, “Yes, I can.”
One only needs to attend a nursing pinning ceremony, a GED graduation ceremony, or college commencement to truly see the value of completing successfully, despite all the challenges faced.
Our students will never forget the investments made on their behalf. We urge and invite our local businesses to get involved – there is no better way to transform a life than through education.
Anne O’Connoronthemark associates
Chris Bailey Lower Columbia College
Jerri Henry, Past President Futcher-Henry CPA Group
Joel Hanson, PresidentKLOG/KUKN/The Wave
Michael ClaxtonWalstead Mertsching
Lance Welch PeaceHealth
Bianca LemmonsCowlitz County Title Company
Clayton J. Bartness, DCLongview Chiropractic Clinic
Kelso Longview Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors
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Kelso Longview Business Connection July 2014
By Melissa Taylor Acting Executive Director – Cowlitz-Wahkiakum Council of Governments
Have you heard about the Longview Mayor’s Award for Best Curb Appeal Improvement? This civic call to action for sprucing up our community in anticipation of visitors to the Babe Ruth World Series in August is a great example of a “quality of place” initiative. This concept emerged as a serious economic develop-ment strategy about a decade ago, when quality of place was rec-ognized as a critical component of economic health and compet-itive advantage. It is based on leveraging a community’s existing
assets to promote economic growth, and is viewed through four lenses – the natural environment, the built or manmade environ-ment, the cultural and recreational environment, and commu-nity traditions or civic life.
Thriving urban areas have focused on the connection between walkable, mixed-use neighborhoods, a variety of housing and transportation options, preservation of open space and the avail-ability of top-notch recreational amenities. Studies of growing rural communities have found that areas with exceptional scenic and environmental qualities which are supported by a robust rec-reational infrastructure have fared better than others. Our com-munity has the best of both worlds to build upon.
Quality of place doesn’t replace traditional economic factors, such as having an educated and ready workforce, reasonable transportation costs, a favorable tax structure, or an adequate telecommunications infrastructure. But when two communities are fairly similar in these aspects, quality of place becomes a dif-ferentiator. Quality of place helps to retain young people, attract talented entrepreneurs, workers and retirees, and supports local tourism.
Cowlitz County’s aging population is growing at a faster rate than many areas of the country. The lion’s share of our population growth over the past three decades has not come from natural population growth, but from households relocating to our area. In-migration has slowed considerably across the state in recent years. A sluggish economy combined with an aging population results in lower population growth, making sustained economic growth an even greater challenge. Businesses already talk of the difficulty of finding qualified workers, and as baby boomers re-tire, these problems will grow. Young people who leave home to seek educational, professional, and social opportunity often do not return.
“Quality of place” is the result of thousands of individual deci-sions made over decades – where new development is located, the design of residential and commercial developments, the building of streets, the extent to which architectural history is maintained, support for arts and culture, and convenient access to water and green spaces. Quality of place is created by the intersection of public, non-profit and private sector decisions. A coordinated, regional approach aligning efforts across these three sectors can accomplish much more than any one of them acting alone.
Leveraging quality of place to improve the economy
HELP SAVE LOCAL LIVES: We all need a vacation! Getting away from it all is a popular notion this time of year. Yet we need to maintain enough blood for patients 365 days! The Oregon and Southwest Washington Blood Program provides all of the blood needed in Cowlitz County. We have been the sole provider of blood to St. John Medical Center since 1999. When donating with us you are helping to maintain an operational blood supply for your community. Before you take time off this summer, will you pledge to GIVE TWICE? That translates into just two hours of your time over 16 weeks!
PLEDGE TO GIVE TWICE THIS SUMMER - Give Twice this summer. It's simple:
Give blood once between June 15 and August 9, Give blood again (56 dayslater) between August 10 and October 4
Receive a certificate for our Give Twice Cookbook as our thank you for honoringyour pledge. It's filled with recipes contributed by everyday heroes like you.
There are many opportunities to give in your neighborhood! You can sign up for any of our blood drives by calling: 1-800-398-7888 or stop by as a walk-in donor. You can also sign yourself up online and check all community drives at: www.psbc.org/drives
Together we achieve great things!
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Kelso Longview Business Connection July 2014
7 strategies to retain your best customersBy Jerry D. Petrick Certified Business Adviser
Do you direct all of your mar-keting and advertising energies and resources toward attracting new customers? If so, you are not alone. Most businesses are focused almost exclusively on chasing and capturing as many new customers as they can – of-ten at the expense of ignoring their existing customers.
Just for curiosity, you may want to take a closer look at the source of your sales and profits – which customers generate the most profits for your business. It is very common that 80 percent or more of your sales and profits come from repeat business from existing customers.
If you find that 80 percent of your business is coming from 20 percent of your customers, you may want to consider some strategies for staying in touch with those customers. Retain-ing customers and serving them over their lifetime can mean $1,000s for your business.
Here is an excerpt from Forbes.com to consider: “Never Underestimate the Value of RetentionFor those who feel that customer retention plays a relatively
minor role in helping a company grow a healthy bottom line, here are a few statistics you might be interested in. According to Bain and Co., a 5% increase in customer retention can increase a company’s profitability by 75%. And if those numbers don’t impress you, Gartner Group statistics tell us that 80% of your company’s future revenue will come from just 20% of your exist-ing customers. Still not sold on customer retention? One final statistic provided by Lee Resource Inc. should give you plenty to think about: Attracting new customers will cost your company 5 times more than keeping an existing customer.”
Here are some practical ways to develop action around your customer retention strategies:
1Communicate with your existing customers on a regular basis – this could be a great way to use your social media
tools
2Show your appreciation for their business and nurture customer loyalty – using a customer loyalty/referral pro-
gram appropriate for your business
3Look for ways to build trust between your business and your customers – establish ways to reward loyalty with
non-advertised sales/services/bundles/discounts
4Make it difficult for your customers to switch to the com-petition – price matching; subscription sales discounts,
provide impeccable customer service
5Expand product lines based on customer input/feedback
6Anticipate the changing needs of your customers – pay attention to industry trends and supplier insights
7Actively engage in cross selling and up selling to increase the sales and profits per transaction/per customer
If you have lost customers you may want to work to learn why they abandoned you (competitor/substitute offering/stopped buying etc.) and react accordingly to win them back or otherwise cultivate the relationship.
In order to implement a strategy you will need to develop a database to know who your customers are and what they mean to your business – in other words, what they contrib-ute to your sales and profits. Who really is your best customer? How do you define what a ‘good’ customer is? Do you know which customers are your most profitable? –Hint…the custom-er who comes in everyday to buy an item or two and catch up on gossip may actually be costing your business money based
Business Toolbox
Please see Petrick, page 19
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Kelso Longview Business Connection July 2014
on the low level of profit their purchases contribute and high level of service they require.
You have already invested a lot of money in the customers you have and those you’ve lost. So, making a special effort to retain or win back your current/past customers makes cost effective sense for your business.
This article is based, in part, on the book E Myth Revisited by Michael Gerber and was prepared by Jerry Petrick, MBA, CGBP, SPHR, PMP and Certified Business Adviser with the Washington State University Small Business Development Center (SBDC) in Longview. Jerry provides no-cost, confi-dential business advisory services by appointment. He can be reached via e-mail [email protected]
Petrick, from page 18
WALSTEAD MERTSCHINGAT TO R N E YS AT L AW
A Full Service Civil Law Firm for 89 Years
CIVIC CENTER BUILDING, 3RD FLOOR1700 HUDSON ST., LONGVIEW, WA
(360) 423-5220 Longviewwww.walstead.com
Attorney Nicole M. Tideman
EmploymEnt law
Attorneys in our employment and labor law department represent employers and employees throughout southwest Washington. We handle matters regulated by the Washington State Human Rights Commission, the federal Equal Employ-ment Opportunity Commission, the Washington State Department of Labor and industries, and the United States Department of Labor. Our attorneys can provide representation in all state and federal courts in Washington, including the Washington State Supreme Court.
• Alternative Dispute Resolution• Disability Accommodation Issues• Discrimination Claims• Employee Training• Employment Contracts and Manuals• Family and Medical Leave• Hiring, Discipline, and Termination• Investigation of Complaints
• Labor Relations• Litigation• Non-competition Agreements• Severance Agreements• Sexual Harassment Claims• Unemployment Compensation• Wage and Hour Disputes• Wrongful Termination
20
Kelso Longview Business Connection July 2014
By Julia Maglione Communications Manager – Southwest Washington Workforce Development Council
To help local manufacturers improve their competitiveness and productivity, the Southwest Washington Workforce De-velopment Council (SWWDC) obtained Department of Labor approval to increase the types of occupations for which it could subsidize training.
Among the occupations that now qualify are:• Machinists• Welders• Millwrights/maintenance technicians• Machine setters, operators and tenders• Tool and die makers• CNC machine tool operators and programmersYou can see the complete list of covered occupations in ad-
vanced manufacturing and information technology at http://swwdc.org/business-resources/training.html.
“Companies select the training their employees need and the organization that provides the training,” said Lee Ann Lawrence, SWWDC employer services manager. “Some trainings that have been popular are project management, supervisor skills, Lean, Microsoft Excel, Outlook and Word, programming and continuous process improvement.”
The $1.4 million U.S. Department of Labor grant, referred to locally as ProSTEP or the Metro-Insourcing Training Ini-tiative (MISTI), runs through early 2016. The purpose of the grant is to train U.S. workers so they have the skills to fill available jobs and reduce the number of foreign workers brought in under H-1B visas to do those jobs.
Since October 2012, more than 300 workers have been trained in 48 subjects at 14 companies in southwest Wash-ington. The SWWDC’s goal is to train 1,100 workers by Sep-
tember 2015.Training your existing employees benefits your com-
pany through:• Increased safety, leadership and succession planning• Improved company competitiveness• Improved employee engagement, retention and moraleTo read an article about how one company benefit-
ted from the grant, go to http://www.columbian.com/news/2014/jun/24/linear-strives-to-go-lean/
Southwest Washington Workforce Development Council
Skills training grant money available to manufacturers
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Kelso Longview Business Connection July 2014
Seen and Heard Around Town
Radio StarsMark Plotkin with Canyonview Cyclery brought props during his recent Chamber Connections appearance on KEDO radio with Nick Lemiere and Carey Mackey. To schedule your appearance on the show, call the Chamber at 360-423-8400. Chamber Connections airs Wednesdays from 3 to 4 p.m.
Quarterly Luncheon
KLTV videotaped portions of the June 27 State of Cowlitz
County Quarterly Luncheon at the Cowlitz Regional
Conference Center. You can watch them by pushing the
arrow in the center of the photo.
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Kelso Longview Business Connection July 2014
Kelso
One finally done... or are we?
By Mayor David Futcher
I know, I know. I’ve written about West Main too many times. But since it’s at the fore-front of most comments we get right now, I thought it worth addressing once more.
The new intersection signals are up and should be work-ing by the time you read this. All that’s left for this phase is teaching ourselves how to navigate the county’s busiest intersection in a new way.
When you’re coming off of Ocean Beach Highway toward West Kelso, remember that only one lane turns left now. But that can be okay now that the center lane provides a new straight shot across the intersection to Catlin Street. Much of the traffic that was in the second turn lane before the change was really trying to get to West Main anyway, and can now just run straight across the intersection to do so. And if you’re one that was turning left to reach Lexington via Fisher’s Lane, you’re probably now better to go straight onto Catlin and then left onto Westside Highway, as there will be two lanes to make that turn easier.
Change is always tough, and we’ve definitely heard from critics of this project. But over the years that I’ve been on the council, I don’t recall many, if any, councilmembers who voted against the project once they were presented with all of the information behind it.
We know that this whole area can work better than it will right now. If we can get additional lanes on Catlin Street, it will handle traffic better and eliminate the merge that is required heading west as you go through the new transi-tion. The city will be applying for grants to fund the widen-ing near the Ocean Beach intersection, with an eye toward funding that completion in the next couple years.
Longview
A successful city in the makingBy City Councilman
Ken Botero
What makes a success-ful city? A city is a place where people live, grow, receive education, work, enjoy leisure, and carry on their daily life. Satisfying the basic human needs is certainly not the answer to the question. The success of a city is tied inextri-cably to high standards of living and good quality of life.
In the City of Longview, we are proud of the partner-ships that have been formed between the citizens of the community and the many different organizations such as the Longview Downtown Partnership, the Longview Outdoor Gallery, Project Longview, and city staff. We have seen positive participation in all aspects of the community enhancement programs, and appreciate the community involvement in our current downtown streetscape project and the Tennant Way entry into Longview, with special thanks to J.H. Kelly for the outstanding welcome sign. With these new projects we, as a community, are building not only a quality of place, but also a quality of life for our citizens and visitors.
High standard of living is a key component of a success-ful city. Standard of living generally refers to the level of economic success, availability of necessities, infrastructure, schools and education, health and sanitation, stability and sustainability of our city. Another key component of a suc-cessful city is its citizens and their involvement in moving forward.
Each of us, as citizens of Longview, has an obligation to step up to the plate and participate in the future develop-ment of this quality of place. It seems at times that too many of our citizens are too busy to get involved with their
Please see Longview, page 23
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Kelso Longview Business Connection July2014
desires for that quality of place, and depend on someone else to do the decision making. I am sure that each of us takes pride in our own private homes, and keep them in the best of shape. I am sure that we, as citizens, have rules for those vis-iting our homes that should be obeyed, why not the same at-titude for our city? Please step up to the plate and participate in making our community that quality of place we all keep dreaming about. Just a few day’s ago I listened to a gentleman explain, “How many people does your community have in leadership positions? Are they outnumbered by the citizens?”
The City of Longview has much to offer its citizens and visi-
tors. Look at the beautiful atmosphere offered in Longview
with the Columbia Theatre, Lake Sacajawea, Stageworks, His-
toric Downtown and the beautiful history of our community,
Lower Columbia College, our many retail and manufactur-
ing businesses, and, the beautiful renovations coming to our
entry way and Commerce Avenue. YES, we are a “SUCCESS-
FUL CITY IN THE MAKING.” Together YOU and I will
keep the dream alive.
Longview, page 22
729 Vandercook Way Longview, WA 986321-800-319-2265 | 360-414-4101
Mark Plotkin, Owner Canyonview Cyclery
Local Bank Means Local BusinessI had a plan to fulfill a childhood dream and start up my own business.
Just when every bank was saying NO, Twin City Bank said yes. They help me to make that dream a reality. I would not be open today if it had not been for the willingness of Twin City Bank and its priority of helping local businesses succeed.
Thank you Twin City Bank.
Mark PlotkinCanyonview Cyclery
twincitybank.com
Canyonview CyClery
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Kelso Longview Business Connection July 2014
Business leaders share their secrets for spurring creativityBy Chris Skaugset Director – Longview Public Library
One of the cornerstones of a suc-cessful business is creativity. It doesn’t matter if you are a company of one or 1,000, creativity is not only what leads to the startup of a new business, but it’s also what keeps it moving forward, growing and suc-ceeding. While you need many other things to start, continue, and grow your business including money, time and desire, without creativity your business won’t even get off the ground let alone succeed in this ever more difficult marketplace. Here are a few titles that may help you launch your own, and your businesses, creativity.
There are many myths about creativity that stem back to the Greek myths and creativity’s connection to the Muses. People of-ten still see creativity as something somehow divinely inspired, capricious, and bestowed upon only a very few select people. Author David Burkus tries to take readers beyond this image in his book The Myths of Creativity: The Truth about How Innovative Companies and People Generate Great Ideas. The founder of a popular leadership blog, LDRLB, Burkus shows readers how to realistically bring creativity into any enterprise and how to discover new ideas, programs, processes, or prod-ucts. Along the way, he debunks many myths including the Eu-reka moment, the genius of the lone creator, brainstorming, and incentivizing the creative process. All in all, a good practical approach to bring creativity into your business and yourself.
In Quick and Nimble: Lessons from Leading CEOs on how to Create a Culture of Innovation, author Adam Bryant draws upon interviews from more than 200 leading CEOs on how best to create an innovative and creative culture in any busi-ness. Bryant discovers what it is that drives corporate cultures and how that knowledge can be utilized to foster employees to
be creative and innovative within the organization’s greater con-text. While the author is really talking about those forces that influence a large corporation, any organization can glean and utilize the information that is provided here to create a culture of innovation.
You may know her as one of the stars of ABC’s Shark Tank or QVC’s Clever and Unique Creations, but in Invent It, Sell It, Bank It: Make Your Million Dollar Idea into a Reality, Lori Greiner takes readers on a course of taking that one creative idea and turning it into a successful business. She covers a wide variety of areas including market research, product design, funding, manufacturing, patenting, and selling your idea/prod-uct with insights from her own experiences both in her early, not always successful, career and with her later successful ven-tures on television. This is one book to take you from a great idea to a successful career as an entrepreneur.
Fostering a culture of creativity and problem solving is the goal of Creativity, Inc.: Overcoming the Unseen Forces that Stand in the Way of True Inspiration written by Pixar co-founder Edwin Catmull (with Amy Wallace). Blending his own unique experience with excellent storytelling skills, Catmull describes taking a dream of creating the first completely computer-gener-ated animated film and ultimately turning that dream into the wildly successful and creative juggernaut that is Pixar. You don’t need to be a fan of Pixar’s creative output (but really who isn’t) to learn from an expert on building and harnessing a creative organization and turning that organizational culture into a suc-cessful business venture.
Creativity is crucial to any business whether in the dream phase, just starting out or long established and wanting to con-tinue to grow and prosper. These books, and many others, can help you be more creative, encourage creativity in your employ-ees, and help you start or grow your own successful business venture. Come visit your local library and see what you can dis-cover today.
Mind Your Own Business (at the Library)
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Kelso Longview Business Connection July 2014
Business Association with opportunities to promote trade through Chamber socials, spe-cial events and committee participation.
• Annual Meeting and Banquet• Networking Events• Committee Participation• Business Contacts• Quarterly Membership
Meetings• Civic Representation• Monthly Business After Hours
Business Services include marketing for your business, referrals and access to Chamber publications and research data.
• Mailing Labels• Membership Window Decals• Member Referrals• Ribbon Cutting• Web Site Links• Member to Member Discounts• Membership Directory• Tax Deduction
• Newsletter• Business Card Display• Use of Chamber Logo
Representation through action com-mittees, Candidate Forums and up-to-date Action Alerts.
$46.66 per month.Silver Membership Package – $1,000 or
$86.33 per month.Gold Membership Package – $2,500 or
$211.33 per month.Platinum Membership Package –
$5,000 or $416.66 per month.Diamond Club Membership Package –
$10,000 or $834 per month.
Celebrate new Chamber members with us* A First Place – Cathy Lundahl
* Uncaged Cycles – Lea Bualsky
* LSNetworks – Steven Cawley
Welcome New Members
Chamber membership has its privileges
Join today! Call 360-423-8400
Express can help you find, screen, test, hire, train & motivate your employees.
360.414.1200 • www.expresslongview.com
Looking for staff? Express can help!
Jan 2014 Chamber Ad 4 x 2.5
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Kelso Longview Business Connection July 2014
PeaceHealth
By Jennifer Richards PeaceHealth Concierge
Healthcare today can be confusing, especially when trying to navigate your benefits. With rising costs, patients are taking advantage of their free preventive services. Getting a preventive exam is one of the most important things you can do to manage your health.
Your preventive appointment, known by most as a physical, has recently evolved into something much different than it used to be. At one time getting your yearly physical meant bringing a list of your healthcare concerns and having everything addressed at once. Today a physical is no longer about addressing every need, it is instead about addressing how to keep you well, and assist you in managing your health. Some common screenings that are included in your preventive visit are checking for hypertension, hyperglycemia, cholesterol screening, colon cancer screening, depression, HIV and other types of sexually transmitted disease, colorectal cancer screening, cervical cancer screening, osteoporo-sis screening, and a mammogram.
Since most insurance plans include one free preventive exam a year, regardless if there is a deductible, it’s important to know the difference between preventive versus diagnostic care. Preven-tive care focuses on evaluating your current health status when you are symptom free; allowing you to obtain early diagnosis and treatment, to help avoid more serious health problems. Diagnostic care is medical treatment for specific health issues or conditions, ongoing care, laboratory tests or other health screenings necessary to manage or treat an already-identified medical issue or health condition.
How can you be sure you are only having a preventive exam? The first step is scheduling the correct appointment with your provider’s office. Be sure and request an annual physical or well-ness exam and schedule your appointment well in advance. This is also a good time to schedule your mammogram if you are due. If you are having other issues such as allergy problems, back pain, or even headaches make sure to schedule those for a different ap-pointment.
Next, it is important to become familiar with your insurance benefits if you are not already. Your insurance provider will have specific wellness guidelines for your age and gender. Most insur-
ance providers have websites that are also very helpful and fairly easy to navigate that outline preventive care.
Finally the day of your appointment has arrived. Remember you are there for preventive care, addressing only how to keep you well. This is a good time to schedule a separate appointment if any new medical concerns have arose since first scheduling your appointment.
Following these guidelines for your preventive care appointment should help to ensure you are on the right path to managing your health and staying well!
The benefits of preventive care
Kelso Longview Business Connection July 2014
27
Forward or PRINT this page and post it in your business so oth-ers can see what’s happening when they GO DOWNTOWN! Longview.
Longview Downtown Partnership New officers for 2014-15President – Alice Dietz Vice President – Wendy Kosloski2nd Vice President – Jarrett Skreen Treasurer – Marcel Goulet Secretary – Dawn Gregg
The Art Beat of Downtown . . .
Summer Theatre Camp Stageworks NorthwestMonday through Friday through July 26. Grades 6 to 8, 1 to
5 p.m. Grades 9 to 12, 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. $250 per child – includes camp T-shirt. For applications go to www.stageworks-northwest.org, or call 360-636-4488. A few partial scholarships may be available. Actors will study audition techniques, scene study, and monologues and devise work and more.
Lord & McCord Art WorksGrand re-opening, July 3, 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Door prizes, 10 per-
cent discount throughout the gallery. Refreshments served. Metal inflexions by Jan Dalen, fused glass by Ken Knodell, ceramics by Michael Metz, wood turning by Gary Bevers. Featured in July, "The Daily News" series of watercolor and acrylic paintings by Linda McCord.
Broderick GalleryEnjoy the world-class art at Broderick Gallery. The Broderick
Gallery also does custom framing. Broderick Gallery is located at 1416 Commerce Ave., Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Cruise on down to the . . .
Bow Tie Bash Car ShowHosted by Columbia River CorvettesJuly 5, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Open to all American made and/or Ameri-
can muscle powered cars. Commerce Avenue, near the Korten’s building). Best of Show and Sponsor awards, dash plaques, music.
Also stop by the Art Renaissance Team (ART) table and see the proposed Chihuly art for downtown and our car cleaning demo using ENJO all natural products; also great for home and out-door cleaning. (Special thanks to Avery’s Air-Cooled Auto Parts for providing parts for the demo). Proceeds support world class ART for downtown Longview. Our table will be located near the Korten’s building.
Support . . .
Downtown Streetscape ImprovementsThe City of Longview received final authorization from the
Washington State Department of Transportation to proceed with construction of the Downtown Streetscape project. The City be-gan advertising for bids the week of June 9, and will publically open bids on July 2. Pending unforeseen delays, construction is expected to start in late July starting at the Broadway intersection. For more information, go to www.mylongview.com and click on “Downtown Longview” under Popular Requests.
Like LDPIf you haven’t already, please click the link below and ‘like’ our
Facebook page. You can also check out our latest post and ‘share’ it on your page. This will boost our page and continue to im-prove our reach into the community. https://www.facebook.com/LongviewDowntowners
Find it with the Downtown Shopping GuideCheck out the revamp of the Longview Downtown Partnership
website: http://longview-downtown.blogspot.com/. Huge thanks to Dawn Gregg for her energy and effort on the website and the handy new Downtown Shopping Guide. Dawn is proprietor of The Soap Factory, 1227 Commerce Ave., Longview, 360-578-2400, toll free 1-888-868-2404. Store Hours are 10:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, and 10:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Satur-day.
E-weekly submission: remember to share your Downtown de-tails by noon Tuesdays. Send to [email protected]
Please share this information. Together we are a powerful force for building awareness for the great things happening downtown in Longview.
Go Downtown!
Longview Downtown Partnership
What’s Happening: Downtown Longview this week and a bit beyond…
Cowlitz Public Works Director resignsThe Cowlitz County Department of Public Works Director,
Kent Cash, has tendered his resignation, having accepted a position with the Port of Vancouver as the Chief Operating Officer.
“I am very fortunate to have worked for the past 21 years with staff that is committed to providing exceptional public service on a daily basis,” Cash said. “Together, we have accomplished many important projects and have successfully maintained and operated the public infrastructure in a manner recognized throughout the state. I have always appreciated the support of the Board of County Commissioners, which has helped Public Works to evolve into an organization that the community can rely on.”
“Kent has been a valuable member of our management team and has provided great leadership for the Department of Public Works,” said Mike Karnofski, chairman of the Board of County Commissioners. “His leadership and dedication to quality service will be missed.We wish him the best of luck.”
The Board of Cowlitz County Commissioners has appointed George Raiter as interim director, effective July 8, until a per-manent replacement is hired. Raiter also served as the interim director of the Building and Planning Department in 2013. The hiring process to replace Cash is under way.
Meet Interim Superintendent Greg KirschThe Longview School Board of Directors has filled the in-
terim superintendent position with Dr. Gregory Kirsch, retired Chehalis School District superintendent (1995-2010). Prior to serving in Chehalis, Kirsch was deputy superintendent in Yelm. He also served as the state director of special education with the State Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction in Olympia. Kirsch has remained active in education since his retirement by supervising student teachers for universities and being involved in federal and state education legislation.
"For the coming school year, no new undertakings are planned; this will be a year of stability as the Board of Direc-tors conducts its search for a superintendent," he said. "In the interim, I will listen, support and help sustain a healthy school district."
Kirsch will be getting acquainted with staff members and the community this summer, and maintains an open door policy. He can be reached at [email protected] or at 360-575-7016.
Fire Safety for the Summer Season The Fourth of July holiday and summer season is a great time
to enjoy the Gifford Pinchot National Forest and surrounding areas. As the public prepares for the upcoming holiday Gifford Pinchot National Forest staff send a reminder about the prohib-ited use or possession of fireworks on National Forest Lands.
"We would like to remind everyone that fireworks are prohib-ited on all federal lands and we ask all visitors to the Gifford Pinchot National Forest to be extra careful with anything that could start a fire,” said Deb Roy, Gifford Pinchot National Forest fire staff officer. Fireworks at this time of year are a big concern for federal land management officials.
“A seemingly harmless sparkler, as well as the bigger combus-tible devices like rockets and roman candles can start a fire, and we want all visitors to enjoy being out on their public lands without the threat of wildfires,” Roy said.
Campfire safety is crucial every summer. Never leave a camp-fire unattended and always make sure it is completely out be-fore leaving. Leaving campfires unattended may result in a fine or having to reimburse costs associated with fire suppression. When a fire happens on National Forest lands the Forest Ser-vice commits resources to respond; costing taxpayers money. While campfires in designated areas are currently allowed on the Gifford Pinchot National Forest, some state and local de-partments are instituting restrictions. Please check with Forest, State or local agencies for current fire restrictions. The public is encouraged to go out and enjoy their National Forest in a safe and responsible manner. Find more campfire safety informa-tion at http://www.smokeybear.com/
Kelso Longview Business Connection July 2014
In the News
28
Please see News, page 29
Longview’s Go Fourth celebration at Lake Sacajawea is a safe way to watch fireworks.
Longview’s pavement work begins July 7The Longview Street Division will begin repairing and/or re-
surfacing various asphalt street sections citywide from July 7 through the end of August.
Recently valued at $250 million dollars, the street network is the City’s most valuable and visible physical asset. Street main-tenance is prioritized by condition, functional class (volume and type of traffic), and citizen requests.
The City resurfaces asphalt streets via “chip seal,” a common treatment that keeps them in good condition. It is significantly cheaper than repaving, it extends the life of the pavement, and it reduces maintenance costs in the long run.
To request a street or pothole repair, visit mylongview.com and click on the blue “ASK Longview” button. Choose “Streets” from the topic menu, or take photos of potholes with your mobile device by using the City’s free mobile app called “ASK Longview.” Your mobile app request will be sent with GPS coordinates that will help our Street crews easily locate problem areas.
To learn more about the City’s pavement preservation pro-gram, please visit www.mylongview.com/publicworks/Street-MaintMain, or contact Public Works at 360-442-5209.
Hunger doesn’t take a vacationJoin with Longview Waste Control in helping fill the shelves
of area food banks. During the week of July 14-18, put out a bag of food with your waste and recycle bins, and Waste Con-trol staff will pick up and deliver the food to CAP’s Help Ware-house
Preferred items are dry and canned goods, nonperishable food, infant formula, as well as toiletries such as toothpaste, toilet paper and diapers. Help Warehouse cannot accept home-canned goods, fresh produce, fresh meat, or bulk foods in plastic bags.
Longview National Night Out August 5This year’s Longview National Night Out is August 5.National Night Out is designed to heighten crime and drug
prevention awareness; generate support for, and participation in, local anticrime programs; strengthen neighborhood spirit and police-community partnerships and; send a message to criminals letting them know that neighborhoods are orga-
nized and fighting back.Please contact Longview Police Cpl. Danielle Jenkins by July
11 if your Block Watch group is having a National Night Out party and would like a visit by the Longview Police Depart-ment and other City of Longview officials.
Due to budget constraints and staffing levels, LPD cannot guarantee officers will be able to visit every National Night Out party, but they will make an effort.
To register your party with Longview Police Department, please contact Cpl. Danielle Jenkins at 360-442-5800 or [email protected].
Make Longview Beautiful!Cities across America are always competing for tourist dol-
lars, and Longview is no exception. This starts by encouraging and promoting civic involvement and pride in our communi-ty. Civic pride is something all of us should practice every day. The city has an exciting opportunity to show off its civic pride when Longview will once again host the Babe Ruth World Se-ries in August. This event will bring in many visitors to the community. Now is the time to work with local businesses to spruce up the areas that front our city streets.
A company’s curb appeal goes a long way toward winning customers. Curb appeal sends a message to passers-by about quality of work and projects an image to potential customers and local residents making them inclined to visit and support that business.
During the month of July, the City will be promoting “Make Longview Beautiful,” whereby individuals will be encouraged to nominate a business to receive a Mayor’s Award for Best Curb Appeal Improvement. A new Facebook page has been created for this event, “Make Longview Beautiful,” where nominations can be posted along with before and after pho-tos. Those visiting the site will be asked to vote (“Like”) on the business they feel is the most improved. The city will also be running newspaper and radio ads during this two-month pe-riod. The winner will be selected by a Civic Pride Committee, comprised of various community stakeholders.
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Kelso Longview Business Connection July 2014
In the News
Longview, page 28
Business After Hours for July
All your friends will be there… It’s the place to be…
The businesses inside the Civic Center Professional building and Key Bank are inviting you to the Chamber After hours a BBQ and Business celebration.
We will have food, fun, prizes, spirits, and music to dance to.Come meet the fine people of our business sponsors:
KeyBank Stewart Title Brown and Brown Ameriprise Walstead Mertsching Republic Mortgage NWMLS
Lower Columbia Sleep Medicine Sarah J. Getman Pacific Northwest Realty Group
