Volume 14, Edition 3

News & Views

5-Star Accredited Chamber of Commerce March, 2013

WWW.WATERTOWNNY.COM

In this Issue!
What Happened in 2012 at the Watertown Chamber? The State of the Chamber NEW JLI Alumni Scholarship Upcoming Chamber Events

Its Back!

Back by popular demand, the Chambers print newsletter. We will be mailing these quarterly. If you are interested in placing a full page insert, email at marketing@watertownny.com or call (315) 788-4400.

What Happened in 2012 at the Watertown Chamber?

Before we look ahead, lets look back at some exciting new programs and projects the Chamber was influential in initializing:
From NEW events to a 5-Star Accreditation, the Chamber had some exciting things happen in 2012: 5-Star Accreditation: The Greater Watertown-North Country Chamber of Commerce was honored in 2012 with a 5-Star Accreditation from the US Chamber of Commerce. We earned the 5 Stars based upon our growth in the community, opportunities for our members and our marketing programs. We are currently the only 5-Star Accredited Chamber of Commerce in New York State and 1 of only 75 in the United States. NEW Community Events in the North Country: The Great Race: In June, the Great Race visited the North Country at the Watertown Fairgrounds. This consisted of a group of over 80 unique one-ofa-kind antique and vintage cars, trucks, and motorcycles with a body and drive train built 1969 and earlier. Along with the great racers, the Corvette Club, Highway Legends, local food vendors, face painters, etc. were also in attendance. The Great Race is a cross-country Downtown Watertown. The event was an 8-day, 15 city, 2,500 mile interactive road rally that supported the Race to Recover Americas Missing Children. This event was the largest active recovery effort for missing and exploited children in the country. Over 40 teams were assigned a child from their home region and given thousands of posters to distribute along the route. Jefferson County had two local teams entered, Mike Colello of Frontenac Crystal Springs and Erica Leonard of Leonard Printing. The other teams entered in the rally included celebrities, Fortune 500 company owners and CEOs, car aficionados, and local teams from the other 15 cities participating. Their first stop in the North Country was Sackets Harbor, which took place on the polo field, located in the Madison Barracks. The event featured a live action reenactment that highlighted Sackets Harbors participation in the War of 1812. Fireball Run then proceeded to Downtown Continued page 3

rally that pits driver/navigator teams against the clock and against each other. The 2012 event covered the Great Lakes area, ultimately covering 19 cities, 2 countries and 4 states. Fireball Run: In September, the Fireball Run Adventurally, a national live event and film series, headquartered at NBC Universal Studios, visited

WWW.WATERTOWNNY.COM

Welcome Tom Brennan, Spring Drive Graphics 2013 Chairman of the Board The State of the Chamber
As I write this, President Obama is preparing to give his State of the Union Address. If you have ever watched one of these, you know that the President almost always says The State of the Union is strong! This declaration is greeted by lusty bipartisan cheers by our beloved elected officials in Congress. I would not venture to compare myself to the President of the United States, but I would like to echo the sentiment: The State of our Chamber is Strong! The Chamber has greatly benefited by the contributions of our outgoing Chairperson, Lynne Ferris, and I am personally grateful for her excellent leadership and willingness to tackle a challenge. The Chamber has been blessed in the last few years by the input of many wonderful Board members, and is now well- represented by a new Board that features intellect, creativity, and diversity. I look forward to working with this impressive new team. The Chamber Staff is also a big part of why the Chamber is such a strong organization. The Events, Membership Services, Marketing, Insurance and PTAC are all run with competence, integrity, and a passion to excel. This professional and capable team is led and managed by Lynn Pietroski, the CEO of the Chamber. Lynn has been at the Helm for over a year, and her leadership has been invaluable in bringing the Chamber into a new level of efficiency and outreach. 2013 looks promising, with new Chamber efforts to enhance the value of Membership, project leadership, and provide a strong voice for the concerns of the business community. Which brings us to the main reason our Chamber is strong: The nearly 900 members that make up the Greater Watertown North Country Chamber of Commerce. We value your trust in us. We welcome your input, and ask you to tell us what you want your Chamber to be, and how we can make it even better. To this end, we will be inviting Chamber members to sit on our various committees as we seek to provide excellent value to our members, and understand what issues are of the most importance to you. Please feel free to contact us with your great ideas, and get involved as we grow smarter and stronger. Excelsior! Thomas Brennan Chairman

Thomas Brennan, President SpringDrive Graphics 32377 NYS Route 12 Depauville, NY 13632 tom@springdrive.net www.springdrive.net 315-686-6110

The Presidential Address

As 2013 kicked offthe Chamber has hit the ground running with an exciting year planned ahead. The team at the Chamber, including our Board of Directors, will be working closely with our members and community to ensure the overall growth and development of the Greater Watertown North Country Area! Change and growth are necessary for us to get to the future we desire. Successful people, and businesses, recognize the need for change early. They embrace it. And they go looking for it. Because of this, they are also usually quick to see when something is not working and not afraid to change it. My philosophy has always been to embrace change because without change there will be no progress. As Charles Darwin stated It is not the strongest of the species that survive nor the most intelligent, but the ones who are most adaptive to change. The community plays an integral role in the overall success of the Chamber. Our commitment this year is to enhance and make member benefits more tangible strong partnerships with community members and seek more ways to make Jefferson County a great place to live, work, and play. Best Wishes, Lynn M. Pietroski
a nce Center; Lis chnic al As sis ta As sis tance ocurement Te al Pr nic rr, ch Ba Te n t he en k; Step ocurem Bottom Left: l Jones, KeyBan na Kapustay, Pr son, AFLAC; Top Left: Sy bi College; Katri inic; Keith John Cl n Community ns rso re ffe ild Je Ch y, Coole County U Colligan, North Mabry, AmeriC Center; Sarah Buy; Rebecc a st Be e, ub La Manfred

Thank you to our 2012 Ambassadors! The Chamber Staff and Board of Directors appreciates the help they provide to the chamber. We look forward to a successful 2013! If you are interested in becoming an ambassador, email Michelle at events@watertownny.com.

WWW.WATERTOWNNY.COM

New York JDA has something your business could use money.
As forcefully outlined by Governor Cuomo in his Urban Agenda, Capital is the oxygen of business. If businesses cannot get access to capital to finance their operations, they will stagnate or die. New York States Job Development Authority (JDA) presents a powerful and existing opportunity to support and expand small business in the State through the availability of competitive financing opportunities. The reenergized JDA is the long term solution to helping many New York State businesses in their desire to access much needed capital. The JDA direct loan program provides loans for the growth of manufacturing and other eligible businesses through financing for the acquisition or renovation of existing buildings, new construction or machinery and equipment. JDA eligible businesses are engaged in manufacturing, distribution, warehousing and certain service industries. Real estate loans may be up to 20 years, M&E loans may be up to 10 years or the useful life of the collateral, whichever is less. The term of a JDA loan is generally the same as the term of the bank loan. Funds to make Loans are derived from the sale of State-guaranteed bonds. In most cases, JDA Loans can be for up to 40% of the total project cost of Real Estate projects or M&E projects.Loans may be up to 60% for projects located in Empire Zones or an economically distressed area. The combination of a bank loan and a JDA Loan allows up to 90% financing of a project. Typical financing structure: 50% Bank Loan 40% JDA Loan 10% Borrower Equity JDA Real Estate Loan is normally a second mortgage loan, subordinate to a first-mortgage loan provided by a bank; M&E Loans are secured by a first lien, co-equal with the banks lien, on the M&E being financed. Real Estate project costs include the cost of an existing building and renovations, purchase of land and construction of a new building and soft costs normally associated with a real estate transaction. M&E project costs include the cost of the machinery and its delivery, installation costs solely attributable to the machinery being purchased and soft costs related to the M&E acquisition. Eligibility: Facilities to be used for manufacturing, distribution, warehousing and certain service businesses are eligible for JDA Loans. Loans for retail facilities, which customers must personally visit in order to obtain the goods or services being sold, are not eligible for JDA Loans, nor are loans for hotel

Upcoming Chamber Events Calendar

March 6, Business of the Year Awards and Annual Meeting March 20, March Business After Hours at Immaculate Heart Central April 4, Job and Career Expo 2013 at the Bruce M. Wright Conference Center, Watertown April 17, April Business After Hours at the The Inn at Bonnie Castle May 22, May Business After Hours at The Riveredge Resort June 6, JLI Graduation Dinner Class of 2013, Location TBD
For a Complete Events Calendar, go to watertownny.com under Chamber Events calendar
Personal guarantees are required from any person owning 20% or more of the Operating Company for whose benefit the JDA Loan is being made. New York State Supports Small Business and well lend you the money to prove it. North Country Region Watertown Office Dulles State Office Building Watertown, NY 13601 (315) 785-7907

or residential facilities. JDA does not make loans for motor vehicles, nor does JDA make Working Capital Loans. Requirements: The Borrower must secure a letter of commitment from the bank providing the 50% financing portion of the project cost. The Borrower must provide at least 10% of the project cost as an equity contribution to the project.

What Happened in 2012...

Watertown, where they performed a series of missions based on Watertowns rich history and its impact on the nation. The downtown area also played host to a farmers market, live radio feeds, music and entertainment from local organizations, fire performers, booths from local businesses and most of all a chance to be in a Universal Studios major motion picture. New Chamber Benefits: 2012 was a year of new opportunities for our members. These included a FREE email ad to our over 1800 business email list, a FREE entrance pass to business after hour for a year, 25% Off a members first advertisement, discounted Sams Club membership, and much more...

PTAC and Insurance Programs: The Procurement Technical Assistance Center and the Greater Watertown-North Country Insurance Agency both offers businesses in the area unique opportunities for growth and support. PTAC helps businesses attain local, state or federal government grants FREE of charge. The Greater Watertown-North Country Insurance Agency offers proprietary based insurance

programs for small to large businesses. Increase in Event Attendance: In 2012, the Chamber had an increase in the attendance to many of the events hosted throughout the year. The Chambers Business After Hours saw its largest increase this year, averaging an attendance of over 225 monthly. We are currently booked through Continued page 4

WWW.WATERTOWNNY.COM

Jefferson Leadership Institute Scholarship

The Jefferson Leadership Institute (JLI), in partnership with the Northern New York Community Foundation, is offering a unique scholarship opportunity for high school juniors in Jefferson County. This scholarship was created by the JLI Class of 2013 to encourage local civic engagement among Jefferson Country youth and foster their return to our community upon completion of their education. For more information regarding this scholarship please contact the Northern New York Community Foundation at (315) 782-7110 or visit their website www.nnycf.org The Northern New York Community Foundation will accept taxdeductible donations for the JLI scholarship indefinitely. Checks can be made payable to the Northern New York Community Foundation and sent to its office at 120 Washington St., Suite 400, Watertown, N.Y. 13601. JLI Scholarship should be written on the memo line.

What Happened in 2012...

2014 for all upcoming Business After Hours. The Chambers Athena and Shapiro dinners also saw an increase in attendance, so much so, that both events sold out. Our Business Networking and Job & Career Expos had the largest attendance ever for both events. We anticipate and expect that 2013 will also be a great year for the Chambers events. New Employees: Saana Gill, Membership Director Toni Miller, Office Manager Cyndi Barker, Fiscal Director Katrina Kapustay, PTAC Counselor