Project: City of Bradford Master Plan
Time: 1:30 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.
Client: City of Bradford
Location: Chamber of Commerce Office
MCF No.: 44506002

Attendees:
Diane Sheeley, Bradford Area Chamber of Commerce
Simon Tripp, Impact Economics
Roberta Sarraf, Zoning Consultant
Albert Filoni, MacLachlan, Cornelius & Filoni, Inc.
Kenneth Lee, MacLachlan, Cornelius & Filoni, Inc.
Amy Maceyko, MacLachlan, Cornelius & Filoni, Inc.

Purpose: To discuss the Chamber of Commerce and the City of Bradford.

1.  The planning team had many questions about how the Chamber of Commerce (CoC) operates in Bradford, what the benefits are of being a member and how business owners view the area.

1. Ms. Sheeley reports to the 17-person board that operates the CoC.
2. The last three years have been spent proving fiscal responsibility and dealing with a $7,000 deficit from past problems.
3. Ms. Sheeley is also a board member of the Downtown Bradford Revitalization Corp and is involved with the Bradford Economic Development Committee.
4. In the 1990’s the CoC had high attendance, direction and a focus on economic development. But due to a lack of leadership in later years, a group of business owners formed the Bradford Area Alliance (BAA) to go around the CoC and accomplish their goals. It was the BAA that hired the Main Street Manager. The CoC is not a part of the BAA or the Office of Economic and Community Development (OECD).
5. There are currently over 300 members in the CoC – 290 businesses and 30 individuals. Membership is not limited to local businesses.
6. The two townships and the OECD are members, but the city is not.
7. There is a division of downtown merchants that is separate from but works with Diane Dewalt and the Main Street programs.
8. The membership is steady, but the dues are declining as new small businesses are joining.
9. The board meets once a month, and there is an annual dinner meeting with awards. Attendance is poor at the monthly membership breakfast – small business owners and service organizations mostly attend it. They are experimenting with an every other month evening gathering to try to improve networking opportunities.
10. There are members from New York State and other parts of the PA region.

2.  Ms. Sheeley listed the benefits of membership in the CoC.

1. Referral Service
2. Supporting local businesses and the community
3. Relocation Packets
4. Some Discounts at University of Pittsburgh outreach programs
5. Networking opportunities
6. Businesses can get group health care benefits through the CoC.

3.  Ms. Sheeley described the main business challenge in the region as the lack of direction for where things are headed. There are no goals for entrepreneurs, the hospitality program at the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford (UPB) or an idea of how businesses are going to ‘survive’. The CoC would like to be a conduit for the dialogue to help figure out how to solve these issues. Better housing options and improved quality of life would be two areas that could be targeted to try to attract more small businesses to the area. The local and state tax structures don’t help either. But she does think that if there were more renovated spaces in town they could be filled.

4.  There is a Business Resource Center at UPB.

5.  Ms. Sheeley hears from lots of employers that it is hard to get trained employees. In some cases they even get applicants who cannot read or write.

6.  The CoC sponsors and outdoor show in February. It is held at the Bradford Mall and attracts about 7,400 people. Attendants come from as far as Erie and Buffalo, but it isn’t clear where the show could be held once the mall is sold and/or torn down. One of the goals of the show is to fill hotels and restaurants for the weekend.

7.  Ms. Sheeley feels that untapped resources downtown are the buildings that haven’t been renovated. But the downside is that utilities are high for old structures. Currently the CoC is looking for new office space. They are having some trouble finding an affordable space, but they are considering a storefront near the movie theater. The prime real estate is at either end of Main Street.

8.  Another downtown concern is that there is no extra police presence at outdoor events. During the "First Night" celebration on New Year’s Eve, they aren’t available because they were told that there was no overtime left at the end of the month. Ms. Sheeley also expressed concerns about loitering downtown and the fact that no effort is made to deal with problems so nothing changes.

9.  Now that UPB is holding some classes in the Seneca building, it seems like University students are being seen downtown for the first time.

10. Ms. Sheeley noted that there is free parking in town after 4pm, but she doesn’t know whether this is common knowledge.

With no further items for discussion, the meeting was adjourned. The foregoing constitutes the major items accepted by the attendees. If there are any corrections or clarifications, please notify the architects.

Respectfully submitted,

MacLachlan, Cornelius & Filoni, Inc.

Amy P. Maceyko, AIA, LEED AP