MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE PERKINS COMMUNITY CHAMBER OF COMMERCE September 3, 2009
Present:
Robert Johnson
Cindy Sheets
Janice Coate
Richard Coate
Suzette Barta
Sheri Carter
James Ramsey
Pat Bickell
Mel Miller
Ben Savory
David Sasser
Randy Lewis
LeRoy Gibson
Tiffani DeArmond
Virginia Sasser
Brent DeMuth
Robin Foster
Becky Reedy
Alison Bloyd
Merl Kinser
Eunice Kinser
David Holbrook
Judy Gooch
Joe Gooch
Tonya Gilbert
Mandi Lightfoot
Barry Moreland
Chris Petermann
Roger Gilbert
Jacque Vassar
Jack Vassar
Amy Petermann
Jeana Coyle
BeLinda Adkins
Lori Kastl
Travis Majors
Call to Order: Becky Reedy, president, called the meeting to order at 12:22 p.m.
Meal: Hello! Catering
Invocation: Merl Kinser
Guests: Sheri Carter, Stillwater Area United Way director
Announcements:
- Travis Majors invited everyone to attend a dinner theatre Sept. 10, 12 and 13 at the First Baptist Church. The evening performances on the 10th and 12th will feature a play titled “All I Ever Wanted,” with a dessert-only matinee on Sunday, the 13th. Tickets are $5 each. To reserve tickets, call 547-2494 (day) or 742-7274 (evening).
Minutes: Minutes from the Aug. 20 meeting were emailed to members earlier this week. David Sasser made a motion to approve the minutes; Jack Vassar seconded; motion passed.
Board and Committee Reports:
~Old Settlers’ Day: Committee chair Jacque Vassar said plans are well underway, and they’re now mainly waiting on parade entry forms. She said The Journal will feature an article about Perkins’ founding families and businesses (circa 1900 or earlier). They hope to have representatives from founding families to serve as parade marshals.
~Pistol Pete Run: Lynn Kinder said they have already received 45 pre-registrations and expect more, including the Stillwater High School cross country team. He said approximately 10 more volunteers are needed to help with the event. If you can help that morning, please contact him or Roger Gilbert. Kinder said Pistol Pete will be busy with a home football game that day, so he won’t be there to start the race. Sheri Carter, Stillwater Area United Way director, will fire the starting pistol. Net proceeds from the run will go to United Way this year.
Old Business: none
New Business:
~Chamber e-mail address: Chamber has a new email address: perkinschamber@gmail.com Reedy asked members to add this address to their email address book so e-mail notifications are not rejected.
~Chamber Facebook page: Cindy Sheets set up a new Facebook page for chamber. Reedy asked everyone who uses Facebook to visit the page and become a ‘fan’ so they’ll receive info and notifications that are posted. Currently two events have been set up within the page: Old Settlers’ Day and the Pistol Pete Run. The page is located at ~http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/pages/Perkins-Community-Chamber-of-Commerce/143780136102
~You can also search for ‘Perkins Chamber’ within Facebook, or ask Sheets or Reedy for a quick link to the page. Reedy said she has also visited with city manager Pete Seikel about updating chamber’s info on the city website.
Program: Pete Seikel, Perkins city manager
City manager Pete Seikel gave a short update on city matters.
A new public works staff member, Art Lage, has been hired. He said Art is very knowledgeable about IT matters and is helping with website updates. He hopes to get that done by Christmas. Art was also invaluable in getting the city up and running again after a lightning strike a couple of weeks ago knocked out lots of equipment and electronics. He said they have recovered about 85 percent so far.
Economic development and activity:
Seikel said there’s been a significant decrease in sales tax collections in town from two years ago. He believes people are just spending less because we really haven’t lost businesses.
The grocery store was a concern for several months. After Affiliated Foods declared bankruptcy, it was discovered they were delinquent to the state for sales taxes. However, the new owner, Williams Foods, is now doing much better than expected. Mel Miller noted he feels the quality of goods at the store has improved, with the new ownership, and pointed out that the same supplier provides groceries for both Williams and Consumers IGA in Stillwater.
This year the city sales tax is estimated at $600,000.
There’s now a new business in the old Buffalo Hill location.
Wastewater treatment plant: Construction on the new wastewater treatment plant started June 9. Seikel said he and the city commission felt the acceptance of the federal stimulus funds was the city’s best option, but of course, the funds came with strings attached – requirements to buy American products, etc.
He said if there are stimulus funds left, Perkins has a chance to receive additional money.
The project is behind schedule, mainly because there are delays in obtaining American parts. Until the parts get in, excavation work cannot proceed because the plant will be constructed at the site of the current plant. Until then, they are doing the things they can do, such as putting in water lines, etc.
Code enforcement: the city has been receiving lots of complaints about code enforcement. Seikel explained the enforcement process is expensive because of legal requirements and the city does not have enough staff members to concentrate efforts on code enforcement. He said the last abatement occurred in December of 2008, but another one will probably appear on the September city commission meeting agenda.
H1N1: Seikel said the city staff has been involved in planning how to handle operations if the H1N1 virus gets bad in Perkins.
Red Bud Assisted Living Center: Seikel said there are currently 20 residents at Red Bud. He said, despite rumors, the rates at the center are not going up. Miller noted Red Bud is much less expensive than the Renaissance Center in Stillwater.
Perkins Senior Citizens Center president LeRoy Gibson noted the center picks up Red Bud residents each Monday and transports them to the center for Monday Night Music.
CHARMED: Funding for 30 additional homes in the CHARMED addition may soon be secured. The organization came up approximately $1.5 million short in funds and had to apply for more. Seikel said the new homes will go up next to the first addition.
Meetings: The next meeting of the chamber will be held at noon, Thursday, Sept. 17, at the Perkins Lions Den. Farmer’s Daughter Bakery will provide lunch. Larry Brown from the Stillwater Chamber of Commerce will present the program.
Calendar: Sept. 26 – Old Settlers Day, Pistol Pete Run, Perkins Car Show
Oct. 31 – Monster Mash
Old Settlers' Day Annual Fall Festival
