rachelh@myweeklysentinel.com
CANTON — The Canton Chamber of Commerce met on Thursday, Feb. 4, at noon online.
Those present included: Eric Schoonover of Schoonover Plumbing & Heating, Amy Seeley of Canton Borough, Colleen Ritts of Stull’s Flowers, Kim Bailey of Chemung Canal Trust Company, Elaine Poost from Bradford County Regional Arts Council, Robyn Cummings of the Bradford County Tourism Promotion Agency, Crystal Salsman of the Endless Mountains Pregnancy Care Center, Jody Place of Penelec, Tami Bethune of BTG Solutions, Mary Ann Porter of Canton Fitness Center, Angie Schoonover representing Wine and Cheese Festival, Stevens Lambert of Gannon Associates, Kerri Strauss of United Way. Guest speaker was Lauren Egleston from Northern Tier Regional Planning & Development.
The group heard from Lauren about purchasing a new building for chamber use within the borough.
She said that the USDA grant should cover the full purchase price of $87-89,000 but told members that she needs five letters of support from local businesses and stated that it would help if chamber purchased some added equipment or received donations from members or local businesses.
Elaine Poost from Bradford County Regional Arts Council updated members on the status of the Rialto Theater. She said the theater is still closed and she doesn’t believe it will open anytime soon. She also reminded members that the theater is offering private movie theater rentals at a cost of $150 for roughly two hours. They are also still doing curbside popcorn. Poost also announced BRAC’s program called “Young Explorers.”
BRAC is working on an SBO grant to help with costs for the theaters. The Rialto is one of three in Bradford County.
Kerri Stauss from United Way spoke about the non-profit’s latest updates. She said they are at about 95% of their goal, hoping to be at 100% soon. Their annual celebration took place via ZOOM on Wednesday.
“We will be recognizing all those who contributed to this year’s campaign and also kicking off next year’s,” she said.
The corporate partner for United Way for next year is State Farm.
They are also seeking more youth to participate in their video project. Specifically, they are looking for grades fifth through seventh.
Tourism Agency
Robyn Cummings made a couple announcements in the tourism agency’s report this month. The 2021 Experience Bradford County is out and being distributed. The cover is by Keegan Beard, a local graduate of Troy High School and Slippery Rock University.
“He did last year’s as well. He’s a local kid and I think he did just fantastic,” said Cummings. “It might be my favorite guide that we’ve done so far.”
The outdoor recreation guide was also discussed. It was a partnership guide with the Endless Mountains Heritage region and Business Bureau.
“We know people will still be travelling and we know that the travel trend is five hour or less car ride, so very family-focused, and still rural focused on outdoor recreation,” said Cummings.
Though many visitor bureaus are struggling, Cummings reported that Bradford County’s is doing very well. They are spending more to reach a bigger audience.
“This will be a guide that will be used for years to come,” she said.
The last guide she mentioned was the local goods guide, focused on agriculture, also partnered with the Heritage Region. All vendors featured in the guide are in Bradford County. She said it should be out soon. It’s free to put an entry in it, and all local Bradford County goods: maple, lumber, wine and more, are welcome to enter the listing.
“We certainly want that information shared so we can share local goods with people who visit,” said Cummings.
Finally, Cummings spoke about the train car project, which is moving forward. She stated that chamber will be reached out to for an opportunity to help paint the mural.
Wine & Cheese
Angie Schoonover spoke about the 2021 Wine & Cheese Festival on behalf of the Wine & Cheese committee. She said the committee is “cautiously optimistic” that the chamber will host the event this year. She also understands that due to COVID, it may not be up to the chamber. The committee is still waiting to hear back from Rekindle The Spirit, who partners on the event, on whether or not the location may take place on the Manley-Bohlayer grounds as it usually does.
Schoonover said that while they wait for an answer from Rekindle about the location, they are working on sponsorship letters, which will go out soon.
Other news
Amy Seeley reported 51 current members, some new members. She reminded members to get their paperwork in. For information on becoming a member, see Amy Seeley or Eric Schoonover if interested. The application can also be found on the website.
Seeley also made a motion to purchase new Christmas decorations for next year. She said the website she found the new snowflake decorations on is having a sale until the end of February. There are 18 total posts for the decorations, with the snowflakes costing $410 each, bringing the total to $7,380. With purchase of new banners at about $3,000, the total would be $10,000 for replacements of what is up now. Seeley also suggested selling the old decorations to another municipality.
Stevens Lambert and Robyn Cummings both seconded the motion, which passed and decorations will be purchased.
Tami Bethune asked about the budget, wondering how much chamber will have to provide with the new building, to which Eric Schoonover replied that some of the extra funding can be provided by Western Bradford, donations, or a grant.
Seeley updated the group on the tourism grant. The 2020 grant was closed out and submitted a couple weeks ago. The 2021 grant was awarded and deposited. Chamber received $6,000. The contract was sent back in. This money is allocated for marketing funds.
“Buy your ads after talking to chamber,” stated Eric Schoonover, who said that chamber can help with those costs thanks to this grant.
Chamber’s important dates for events may be found on the website.
The next Canton Chamber of Commerce meeting will be Thursday, March 4, at 8:30 a.m., via online. For more information, go to the chamber’s website at www.cantonareachamberofcommerce.com.