Chamber Reports June 13, 2012

Chamber Reports June 13, 2012 Central Pinellas Chamber of Commerce Clearwater Beach Chamber of Commerce The Clearwater Beach Restaurant Week was a huge success. Over 3,800 ballots were tallied from the 26 participating restaurants that participated in the event. We will be announcing the winners at our June 11 th Awards Dinner at the Sheraton Sand Key. The Kick-Off Party on the Friday night before Restaurant Week was another very successful celebration. Over 2,200 people attended this street festival that had two live bands, a Wine Village, Raffle tent with over 22 value packed gift baskets, and all of the participating restaurants provided tasty samples from their chef s and cooks. The evening ended with a sensational firework display over Pier 60. Mark your calendars now for Mother s Day next year and don t miss this popular annual event. The Beach Chamber has a very aggressive marketing plan in place. Recently they have advertising in the Boston Herald, Allegiant Airline Sunseeker Magazine, Chicago Tribune Travel webpage, Chicago Independent Newspapers and now have just purchased billboards in Tampa and Orlando. The call to action in all the Beach Chamber marketing is the website www.beachchamber.com. The Beach Chamber teamed up with the Clearwater Thresher s and celebrated Beach Day at Bright House Field on Friday June 1 st. Over 27 th Beach Chamber members had a vendor booth displayed to those in attendance bringing Clearwater Beach to Bright House Field. Each member had a drawing for a give-away to Clearwater Beach. Hooter s and Ron Jon s are now open on Clearwater Beach and the Beach Chamber is assisting with their Ribbon Cuttings. The Beach Chamber s 17 th Annual Awards Dinner at the Sandpearl Resort is on June 5 th. This Mock Convention will have Matt Becker COO of the 2012 Tampa Bay Host Committee as their Keynote Speaker. Three of the four interns have arrived from the University of Bordeaux in France. They are Romain Dell- Guionie, Melvin Pells and Sarah Houmeau. They are already working very hard helping and learning in the tourism industry. 1

Clearwater Regional Chamber of Commerce Clearwater, FL (June 7, 2012) The Clearwater Regional Chamber, along with support from Clearwater Marine Aquarium and the City of Clearwater, has launched a project to artistically showcase the bottlenose dolphin. As the pod is forming, dolphin sponsors and artists are being recruited. The goal is to showcase the talented local artists as they uniquely decorate upright 6 tall fiberglass dolphins. The tie in with Winter and Dolphin Tale is a natural fit. With over 50.000 guests visiting the Tampa Bay area for the RNC, it is an ideal time to draw attention to the beautiful beaches and marine life enjoyed by residents each day. What: 20 or more dolphins on display When: August 6 September 4, 2012 Where: Pier 60 Park, Clearwater Beach This is a tremendous opportunity for the community to provide a display that can be seen on foot, driving in the roundabout, from the water and air parasailing, hang gliding or bungee jumping. The cost to sponsor a dolphin is $2,000 and sponsors can display their dolphin after the exhibition at a location of their choosing or donate it to a non-profit. Commitments are needed by June 22. Sponsorship information is available at http://www.clearwaterflorida.org/wcnews/newsarticledisplay.aspx?articleid=16 Artists and art groups can show their creativity through a variety of mediums. Call to Artist materials are available from Christopher Hubbard, christopher.hubbard@myclearwater.com. Artist applications are due by 5:00 pm on June 20. Dunedin Chamber of Commerce The Dunedin Chamber s lobby has been remodeled and operates much more efficiently and effectively as a Visitors Center. There is a seating area to relax, colors that are much more welcoming for a waterfront community. The outdated counters were removed, there are new inserted counter tops and it s more open for visitors to be helped. More Dunedin merchandise is available like hats, shirts, sweatshirts and postcards. Plus the Visitors Center features an array of Toronto and Dunedin Blue Jays merchandise like hats, shirts, baseballs, postcards, and key chains, with more merchandise arriving next week. This is especially important to serve the visitor who looking for Jays merchandise any time the stadium is not open. Florida Auto Exchange Stadium s gift shop is only open during game time so anyone looking for Jays merchandise can find it at the Chamber. It s a win for all. Dunedin s Sunset Music Series is every Friday in June, from 7 to 9 p.m., at Weaver Park. The event features a different musical act each week, picnic tables, games for the whole family, and much more. It s free and open to all. If you haven t visited Weaver Park, it is directly on the Intercoastal waterway along Alt. 19, just north of downtown Dunedin. The sunsets there are spectacular and it s a new jewel the entire Dunedin community is extremely proud of. The City of Dunedin and the Dunedin Blue Jays are presenting Hometown USA on Wednesday, July 4, at Florida Auto Exchange Stadium, 373 Douglas Ave., Dunedin. There will be a Dunedin Jays game vs the 2

Daytona Cubs, then a live concert by the Greg Billings Band, followed by fireworks. The game starts at 4:00 p.m., followed by the concert and fireworks. Everyone is invited to this free event. The Rotary Club of Dunedin s 9 th annual Triathlon was held on Sunday, June 10, at Honeymoon Island State Park. Well over 700 athletes were registered for this event. It s a great way to show off a beautiful venue and promote Dunedin. Palm Harbor Chamber of Commerce The past month has been a time of reorganization and planning. We concentrated on getting information out to our greater Palm Harbor area including Palm Harbor, Crystal Beach, Ozona and East Lake. We hired a sales team to deliver our Community Guide/Membership Directory to various locations where tourists, residents and businesses would frequent such as the Palm Harbor and East Lake Library, The (community) Centre, Old Downtown Palm Harbor Main Street, etc. Our guide has tourist and attraction information as well as community and Palm Harbor Chamber member information. We have a coupon in Welcome Wagon Directories for newcomers to redeem at our PH Chamber office. Our Government Affairs Committee held a local Town Hall Meeting with Sheriff's candidates. We feel all these things are tourist related because they add to the total experience of someone coming to visit us whether it is a long or short stay. People come and people want information. The Parrothead Party was held in our downtown area and it, once again, brought many residents and visitors to our area. It featured music, food and a kids zone. The Farmers Market on Curlew Rd. and Belcher at the North Pinellas Historical Museum continues to attract visitors and residents. Pinellas Park Chamber of Commerce Safety Harbor Chamber of Commerce More and more inquiries are coming to us, primarily because of the RNC scheduled for August. We answer many questions, give out maps, and promote restaurant and entertainment establishments. We, along with the 6 other Northernmost Pinellas Chambers are busily promoting the 7 Chamber Expo, Summer Splash, being held at the Safety Harbor Resort & Spa. Big plans are afoot in Safety Harbor for development of a waterfront park and beach directly on Tampa Bay. Great happenings are just ahead, and the Chamber is actively engaged in participation. Seminole Chamber of Commerce For the month of May, our Chamber offered complimentary Florida citrus fruits to our tournists and visitors, courtesy of Florida Citrus Country Groves in Seminole. We are now offering as a resource for all, new Seminole Chamber directories that list our local businesses, as well as information on the city, and there is a listing for Pinellas County government. This will be available at our Chamber office, City Hall, Seminole Mall and a number of key locations. We wrapped up a Teacher Appreciation Breakfast May 8, attended by 120 people in education and business. We believe this annual event demonstrates a commitment to the community, as its reputation 3

for being a wholesome location to visit and/or relocate to. We continued to work on our annual Kids Appreciation Day event at Seminole City Park. The event showcases the city's beautiful town park and is popular activity (attended by about 800 elementary age kids). We involve civic groups (many of the members retied and relocated to Seminole) in the activities. We look forward to Dave Sobush's presentation of the Tampa Bay Regional Plan at our June 21 luncheon at the Seminole Library Conference Center. Our tourists who are looking things to do have been referred to the county visitor guides we have on display at our office. St. Petersburg Chamber of Commerce Usually, the summertime is a slower paced period in the Visitor s Info Center than the rest of the year, but this year, a flood of requests for information packets (Welcome Bags) have been received. At this time, we have a list of over 2000 Welcome Bag requests for delivery through July! The Visitor s Info Center staff has been reaching out to all of our members to request new literature to fill the racks for walk-in visitors, as well as for filling the Welcome Bags. In addition to the marketing efforts by the Visitor Info Center staff, Chamber management combined the Visitor s Council and the Promotions Council to form one larger, more cohesive group named the Promoting St. Pete Council. The hope is to provide better marketing strategies focusing on attracting visitors to our area and informing members how to take advantage and utilize the Chamber s many services. Further, the St. Pete Chamber has been working closely with the RNC Host Committee to provide feedback and support on their preparations for the convention in August. Lastly, the Chamber looks forward to working closely with the City of St. Petersburg s promotion of the new St. Petersburg Pier through a new website: www.thenewstpetepier.com. It is an exciting time in St. Petersburg! Tampa Bay Beaches Chamber of Commerce The 5 th Annual Spirit of Hospitality Beach Games were a huge success with a record 10 teams. The US Travel Vote Travel Bus stopped and rallied all the participants. We even had some tourists involved in all the fun. The 5 th Annual Orlando Sales Mission will be on June 19 th. Any Hotel, Restaurant or Attraction that would like to come over to Orlando and SELL their business to those key individuals that book travel, sign up now! 4

Tarpon Springs Chamber of Commerce JUNE 3 The annual SPRING SWING GOLF TOURNAMENT, presented by the Tarpon Springs Chamber of Commerce, was held at Innisbrook Golf and Spa Resort. It was a huge success and sold out with 144 golfers, on a day with Chamber of Commerce weather! Our thank you to Innisbrook for hosting a perfect event!! JULY 7 NIGHT IN THE ISLANDS Dine under the stars with Greek music and dancing. 6:00 to 11:00 pm. Sponge Docks JUNE 12 TRI-CHAMBER YOUNG PROFESSIONALS BASEBALL FUNDRAISER. Join us at Bright House Field in Clearwater for a game between the Threshers and the Yankees, along with fireworks. Contact the Chambers of Commerce in Dunedin, Palm Harbor or Tarpon Springs for tickets. Cost is $17.00 and includes a baseball game buffet. JUNE 14 7 CHAMBER SUMMER SPLASH TRADE SHOW. Presented by the Chambers of Commerce in Clearwater, Clearwater Beach, Dunedin, Palm Harbor, Tarpon Springs, Safety Harbor and Upper Pinellas (Oldsmar), this event will be held at the Safety Harbor Resort and Spa, from 5:00 to 7:30 pm., with food from restaurants from each city. A great time to build your business in these cities. A few tables are still available. Contact the Palm Harbor Chamber of Commerce. JUNE 16 FOOD TRUCK RALLY. 14+ Food Trucks will be on Tarpon Avenue from 4:00 to 8:00 pm. Come on out for food, entertainment and a walk through our wonderful stores on Tarpon Avenue. Alcoholic beverages will be available from our local restaurants and lounges. EVERY SATURDAY - BROOKER CREEK PRESERVE - GUIDED HIKES - 9:00 am 10:30 am Education Services Volunteers, Environmental Lands Division. Take a walk through time each Saturday morning on a guided hike along the Education Center Trail. Join us for this 0.75-mile walk as we look at how the land has changed over time and discuss the ecological footprints left by those changes. Sturdy closedtoe shoes are a must, and water and a hat are recommended. Pre-registration is required by 12:00 noon on the Friday before the hike. Free. All ages welcome - children younger than 6 may find this hike challenging. 727-453-6800, 3940 KEYSTONE ROAD, TARPON SPRINGS. www.brookercreekpreserve.org Upper Tampa Bay Regional Chamber of Commerce in Oldsmar 5