WARREN AREA CHAMBER MEETING
Lunch provided by The Wagon Wheel
Welcome and call to order by Jeremy Rufener, followed by Andrew Fisher leading us in prayer.
Introduction of Chamber members and guests
Minutes of Previous Meeting and Treasurer’s Report approved at Chamber Board Meeting
Spotlight Business/Speakers:
- Senator Travis Holdman –Senator Holdman answered questions regarding requiring school board members to declare their political affiliation. He talked about the House pushing for tax cuts and changes to business personal property taxes, eliminating the 30% floor for depreciation, which could cost local government approximately 130M. If they go forward with the changes, they will need to find a way to make local government whole. He also commented that the State is awash in cash right now largely from sales tax, which equated to 62% of the revenue for the month of September.
- Historic Warren – Becky Souder explained that Historic Warren is a 10-year member of Indiana Main Street. They are currently working on development of the canoe/kayak launch, seeking funds for Phase 3 of Riverside Park, and being recognized as a Historic Downtown. They have raised money and partnered with different organizations including Salamonie School and churches to get the park benches and trash cans for Riverside Park. They had a car show at Golfo Di Napoli this summer to not only raise money, but to help support Golfo as well. November 19th will be the tenth year for Holiday Walk & Festival of Trees.
New Business
- Vote on Board Nominations – Becky Souder & Rosie Wall counted ballots.
- Bylaw Committee – Jeremy asked for volunteers to review the current Bylaws. Cheryl DeWeese agreed to sit on the committee.
- Presentation of Budget – Jeremy gave a recap of the budget as presented by the Budget Committee. This will be voted on at the next meeting. Any questions or concerns can be brought to Jeremy before the next meeting.
- 2022 Chamber Membership Applications – Applications were available to be picked up and are due by January 31st. The Budget Committee has recommended that meal prices be increased to $9 and the application reflects that change. The increase won’t be approved until the budget is approved.
Old Business
- Scarecrow Festival – Krysta and Kari announced that the event was cancelled due to rain.
- Board Results – New board members for next year will be Patti Bustos, Krysta Fornal & Tammy Zehner.
Updates:
- Huntington County Chamber – Steve announced that they have a new website with a robust event calendar for members and non-members to list events. There will be a page for each town.
- Huntington County Visitor’s Bureau – Terry Miller, Jr. explained that he is the Vice President for the Visitor’s Bureau and they are looking to hire a new executive director.
- Due to the interest of time, there were no other reports.
- Chamber Gift Certificates – Located at Bippus State Bank. Used to promote shopping in Warren. Available in $5 increments.
2021 Positions:
President – Jeremy Rufener
Vice President – Terry Miller
2nd Vice President – Cheryl Deweese
Secretary – Leah Pursley
Treasurer – Patti Bustos
Terms:
Rose Broyles 2021-2023 – 1st Term
Cheryl Deweese 2021-2023 – 2nd Term
Jeremy Rufener 2021-2023 – 2nd Term
Josh Heim 2019-2021 – 2nd Term
Jeff Souder 2019-2021 – 2nd Term
Patti Bustos 2019-2021 – 1st Term
Leah Pursley 2020-2022 – 1st Term
Terry Miller 2020-2022 – 1st Term
Kevin Jackson 2020-2022 – 1st Term