In the News: Chamber Annual Golf Outing

You couldn't have asked for a more beautiful day than yesterday as more than 270 golfers hit the links at Willow Creek Golf course for the Chamber's 30th Annual Golf Outing. The tournament, themed Hollywood, had the golfers' and sponsors' creative juices flowing, many of which were captured by area businesses and the media. Although we will have the "official" results for the tournament in an upcoming edition of the Chamber Advantage magazine, we thought we'd share some fun tidbits we found floating around the Web!

• Hollywood Takes Over Willow Creek (Fox 47)
• Snapshots at Roch. Chamber golf bash 2010 (Kiger's Blog/Post-Bulletin)
• Fox 47's Facebook Fan Page Album
• Olmsted Medical Center's Facebook Fan Page Album
• CWS's Facebook Fan Page Album

If we missed an album or any media coverage, please let us know (email bolson@rochestermnchamber.com)!

Event Recap: April Eggs & Issues (Minnesota's Strategy for Building a Competitive Workforce)

Minnesota's Strategy for Building a Competitive Workforce was the topic at the April 10th Eggs & Issues. State Representative Sandra Peterson reviewed her bill which requires students entering high school to have a plan to guide him/her though high school and beyond into competitive employment and post secondary education. The Rochester Area Chamber supports this bill.

Following her presentation Representative Demmer, Representative Welti and Senator Lynch joined Representative Peterson for a question and answer session on other issues important to the business community.

Event News Coverage:
Post-Bulletin story
Post-Bulletin editorial

2010 Legislative Session Preview Re-Broadcast Dates/Times

For those of you who were unable to attend the Chamber's 2010 Legislative Session Preview Breakfast this Tuesday, you can view the re-broadcast tonight (1/29) at 5 p.m., Saturday (1/30) at 10:30 p.m., Sunday (1/31) at 10 p.m., or Monday (2/1) at 9 a.m. on Charter Ch. 10. The Jan. 26th event featured the entire local legislative leadership, among other legislators, who provided their input on the upcoming session and discussed the business agenda with more than 100 audience members.

Media coverage of the event can be found at the following Web sites:

• Post-Bulletin News Story
• KAAL-TV News Story

In the News: Eggs & Issues

Minnesota Commissioner of Education Alice Seagren spoke in Rochester Saturday at the Chamber's third of four installments of its annual Eggs & Issues series. Seagren talked in-depth about Governor Tim Pawlenty's Teaching Transformation Act initiative as well as other proposals to reshape the education system in Minnesota.

Media coverage of this event can be found below:

Education commissioner pitches Pawlenty's plans for teachers (Post-Bulletin)
The Future of Education (KAAL-TV)

Save the date for the final installment of Eggs & Issues - Economic Recovery through Green jobs - on Saturday, May 2, from 8:30-10:30 a.m. at the Rochester Golf & Country Club. To register or learn more about this event, click here.

Post-Bulletin editorial: Offer us an alternative budget plan to compare

As seen recently in the Post-Bulletin, below is an editorial letter by John Wade, president of the Rochester Area Chamber of Commerce, and David C. Olson, president of the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce:

Offer us an alternative budget plan to compare
Legislative leaders are taking their show on the road to solicit comments on Gov. Tim Pawlenty's recommendations to resolve the state budget crisis. Where is their plan?

It's pure political gamesmanship to judge the governor's recommendations without exploring what other options are available. If legislative leadership truly wants a conversation on the budget, then citizens should have the opportunity to weigh in on the merits and/or lack of merits of all the plans on the table. As of today, there unfortunately is only one.

We encourage citizens to attend the meeting 6 p.m. Thursday at Rochester Community and Technical College, Heinz Center Commons Area, 1926 Collegeview Road S.E., in Rochester and ask: Where is your plan so we can compare? And if the plan is not ready yet, when will you return to our community to present your recommendations?

John Wade
President, Rochester Area Chamber of Commerce

David C. Olson
President, Minnesota Chamber of Commerce

Minnesota Commissioner of Transportation speaks to group of 80-plus at Chamber luncheon

More than 80 community members gathered at the Ramada Hotel & Conference Center yesterday at the Chamber's luncheon with Minnesota Commissioner of Transportation Tom Sorel. The Hwy. 52/65th Street interchange and high speed rail - to nobody's surprise - were the hot topics at the luncheon.

Please find below several news items that arose from the event.

Also, on the topic of transportation, Friday is the Chamber's first Eggs & Issues series of the year and will feature special guest Mike Schadauer from MNDOT's transportation office of transit. Friday's event will also be held at the Ramada, but will be solely on the topic of High Speed Rail and how Rochester fits into the state's plan. Click here for more information or to register.

• More talk about Minnesota Transportation Projects (KTTC)
• New Transportation Commissioner Speaks in Rochester (KAAL)
• Possible Interchange at Highway 52 and 65th Street (KAAL)
• Interchange project delays called 'unacceptable' (Post-Bulletin)
  

In the News: Rochester on Tour at the Capitol

Thank you to everyone who made yesterday's Rochester on Tour at the Capitol a huge success. More than 500 Rochester residents made their voice heard in St. Paul and truly demonstrated how important Rochester is to the economic vitality of the state. Again, a huge thank to you all of our volunteers, sponsors and members who made this event possible.

Below is a sampling of some Rochester on Tour coverage from various media outlets in the area. Photos will be posted in the near future:

Rochester on Tour at the Capitol (KTTC)
Rochester Tour at the Capitol (KAAL)
Pawlenty urges Rochester residents to demand salary freezes (Post-Bulletin)
City contingent promotes, celebrates Rochester (Post-Bulletin)
Editorial: Rochester on Tour was more than a pep rally (Post-Bulletin)

Rochester Area Chamber of Commerce in the news

Occasionally, we like to share with you recent news stories involving the Chamber. Recently, the Chamber has been in the news quite a bit, and below is a list of those stories from area news outlets. Please note that the list is just a sampling, as not all news stories (specifically those that appear on television) are available online.

Railroad Authority Advances (Post-Bulletin)
Program energizes students for study/jobs (Post-Bulletin)
King's work made Obama's win possible, speaker says (Post-Bulletin)
City boosters will raise the roof for Rochester at Capitol (Post-Bulletin)
Help Rochester make its voice heard in St. Paul (Post-Bulletin)
Chamber president to leave (Post-Bulletin)
Rochester students get an early start to success (KAAL-TV)

In the News: Annual Member Celebration

Thank you to everyone who made last night's Annual Member Celebration a huge success. We had more than 600 businessmen and women in attendance and couldn't have put on the show without your support, especially that of our gracious sponsors. We will have photos up on the blog within the next several days and will also be updating this entry with news blurbs from the evening as they are made available.

Rochester Business Leaders Honored at Dinner
KAAL-TV News story - Click Here.

Wrap-up from Rochester Chamber bash
Kiger's Notebook (Post-Bulletin) - Click here.

Again, we will be adding to this list as stories, videos, photos, etc. are made available.

And of course, congratulations to the evening's award winners.
Business of the Year: Dunlap & Seeger, PA
Volunteer of the Year: Melissa Brinkman: Custom Alarm/Custom Communications, Inc.
Lamp of Knowledge: Senator Nancy Brataas

In the News: Brian Davis / Tim Walz Debate

If you were unable to make it to yesterday's Brian Davis/Tim Walz debate, there was plenty of media there to cover the event for you to check out! The following is just a sampling of some of the media hits that the Chamber could compile from the event!

Full Audio Coverage from Minnesota Public Radio
Click here.

News Story by Minnesota Public Radio
Click here or here:

News Story by KAAL
Click here.

News Story by KTTC
Click here.

News Story by Post-Bulletin
Click here.

News Story by Associated Press
Click here.

Post-Bulletin Commentary - Steps are needed to maintain work force

There was a great article written on Wednesday this week by Bill Boyne - retired editor and publisher of the Post-Bulletin - on the predicted national workforce changes, and specifically what Workforce 2020, an initiative launched by the Chamber that is comprised of a coalition of a number of community partners including the Rochester Area Foundation, Rochester Area Economic Development, Inc. and the Department of Employment and Economic Development, is doing to address this issue.

You can read the story by clicking here (you will be re-directed to the Post-Bulletin's Web site).

Leadership Greater Rochester mentioned in Chicago Sun-Times

It may not have been a full-fledged article, but this year's Leadership Greater Rochester (LGR) class made their way into the Chicago Sun-Times early last week. The article, which highlights the Seneca corn water tower, ends with a word from Scott Greer about Graham Park - a member of this year's LGR class. Click here to read the story.

To view a comprehensive list of media hits of this year's LGR class, click here. If you notice we are missing any, please contact Brian Olson at bolson@rochestermnchamber.com.

In the News: Congressman Tim Walz Luncheon

After each Chamber event that lands media coverage, we try our best to make it available to our members - typically by way of our blog. Below are two news stories picked up by the local media (one print, one television) on last Friday's Tim Walz luncheon. To see photos of the event, click here.

Economy Outlook (KTTC-TV)

Walz speaks to Chamber about free trade, health care (Post-Bulletin)

Rochester on Tour - KAAL & KTTC news coverage

Thank you to everyone who made the trip up to the Capitol yesterday for our 5th annual Rochester on Tour. The turn-out was great and it seemed as if everyone enjoyed themselves and had a great time. A special thank you to all of our booth and food sponsors as well. Without these sponsors, this event would not be possible.

Also, thank you to all of our local media (tv, radio and newspaper) who covered the event (before, during and after). Below are three news stories from our local television stations. Check back later as we will be posting any newspaper stories that arise!

KTTC - Rochester's Day at the Capitol

KAAL - Hundreds Show Up for Rochester Day at the Capitol

KAAL - Lobbying for Civic Center Expansion Funds

Kiger's Notebook (Post-Bulletin) - On The Verge Tour on the road

Post-Bulletin - Rochesterites saturate Capitol

Post-Bulletin - Trip to Capitol provides students with an eye-opening lesson in government

Chamber's Annual Celebration and Business of the Year News Story on KAAL-TV

"Rochester Chamber of Commerce Celebrates Another Year"
KAAL-TV
Monday, Oct. 29
Click here to watch video.

Workforce 2020: In the News

Workforce 2020, a coalition comprised of a number of community partners including the Rochester Area Chamber of Commerce, Rochester Area Foundation, Rochester Area Economic Development, Inc., and the Department of Employment and Economic Development, is committed to its vision of promoting a globally competitive educational and workforce development system for all.

The Workforce 2020 initiative, which was officially kicked off last night at the Chamber's Annual Member Celebration before a crowd of more than 700, has received a handful of news coverage the past few days, and we decided to share it with you in case you have missed it.

"New Rochester Area Chamber chairwoman focuses on education"
Post-Bulletin
Friday, Oct. 26
Click here to read news story.

“Bucking the Negative Trend” news story
KTTC-TV
Thursday, Oct. 25
Click here to watch video.

“When Work Works” news story: KAAL-TV
Friday, Oct. 19
Click here to watch video.


Visit the Workforce 2020 Web site for additional information.

When Work Works - KAAL-TV

Check out Chamber President John Wade on a segment from last Friday's KAAL-TV news regarding the "When Work Works" grant. Rochester was one of 30 regions in the country selected for the grant to promote business excellence in workforce flexibility.

For more information on the "When Work Works" grant, click here, otherwise you can view the video here.