Budget: The Chamber expects to finish solidly “in the black” in 2012. The Board has reviewed a first draft of the 2013 budget and is expanding the “pay per click” advertising program begun this year.
Trail Map: The 2012 Trail Map was a great success this year. There are about 100 maps left in the office from a print run of 8000. This year we are working on an expansion of the map to cover area toward the north of SWH and Tremont and east to take in some of the trails, bike paths and activities on the eastern side of the Sound.
Oktoberfest netted about $10K this year. The Oktoberfest sub-committee will be meeting regularly on the last Thursday of every month to plan Oktoberfest 2013.
DART: Downeast Acadia Regional Tourism: www.downeastacadia.com held its third quarterly meeting in Trenton earlier this month. DART, an arm of the Maine Office of Tourism, is funded with lodgings tax money and exists to promote businesses and tourism in Hancock and Washington Counties. Members include chambers of commerce, business associations, The Hancock County Bar Harbor Airport in Trenton, and representatives from Roosevelt Campobello International Park. To become a tourism partner and list your business on the DART website, click on "tourism partners" at the bottom of the home page. Your listing will automatically appear also on the Maine Office of Tourism website.
New Businesses: Board member Joan Steele (Salty Dog Art Gallery) and Kristin Hutchins (Hutchins Cottages at Acadia) delivered new business welcome baskets to Bunny Fallon at the Velvet Underground and Tanya Long at Tanya’s Off the Grid. Bunny’s vintage clothing store is located behind the SWH Library next to All In One. Tanya is opening takeout food service in Christina Butler’s building on Main St. in SWH.
If anyone knows of any new businesses opening in SWH or Tremont, please let us know and we will deliver a new business welcome basket. If you want to add to the basket, you can drop your contributions off at Gail Royal’s, Westside Florist at the Seal Cove Shops in SWH.
Next Board Meeting: December 5 @ 10AM at the Chamber Office.
