ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Wednesday, March 26, 1997 TAG: 9703260084
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-1 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
DATELINE: ROCKY MOUNT
SOURCE: TODD JACKSON THE ROANOKE TIMES
MEMO: NOTE: Shorter version ran in Metro edition.
Supporters say the consolidation will make the county a better place to live and do business.
The consolidation of the Franklin County Chamber of Commerce and a local revitalization group passed another big hurdle Tuesday.
The chamber's board of directors met behind closed doors for more than an hour Tuesday and then took a public vote to approve the merger, which proponents say will create a more efficient organization and make Franklin County a better place to live and do business.
The vote was done by paper ballot and the yes-no count was not disclosed. Board President Andrea Griffith simply announced that the consolidation was approved.
After the meeting she said it was decided before the vote that the count would not be made public. When asked if anyone voted no, she said: "That doesn't matter. It's been approved."
The agreement passed by the chamber board is significantly different from the one approved by the Community Partnership for Revitalization on March 5.
Chamber members, after reviewing the document approved by the revitalization group, submitted a list of 17 changes. The chamber's executive director, Brian Duvall, said all the concerns are reflected in the document approved by the chamber board.
The changes included deletion of specific job descriptions that concerned some chamber members. The new agreement instead leaves many of the details to the 18-member board of the merged organization. Many of the most important issues - job specifications, dues structures and day-to-day protocol - will be set by the new board.
The job description for the director of the new organization would have eliminated the current chamber director, Duvall, from consideration.
The new board will be made up of nine members from each of the current organizations. The resulting organization will keep the name Franklin County Chamber of Commerce.
The revitalization group's main role is to oversee and develop Rocky Mount's state-approved Main Street program. It has secured grant money and, with the help of the town, is in the running for a $700,000 grant that it hopes to secure by next year.
But the revitalization group has had its share of problems, too, including a messy firing of its first director.
There are two trains of thought among chamber members, said one, who spoke only on condition of anonymity.
Some chamber members see the consolidation as a merger of two groups with similar roles in the community. Others view it as the chamber accepting responsibility for the revitalization group.
Either way, both groups' financial assets and liabilities will be disclosed - with the approval of a certified public accountant - within 30 days of the consolidation's approval.
Griffith said the revitalization group will have to take another vote on the revised agreement. She said some of its members are aware of the changes made to the document.
Griffith and Duvall said they believe the consolidation will work.
"We wouldn't have went through all this if we didn't think it was worth it," Griffith said.
Initially, three Franklin County civic organizations - the chamber, the revitalization group and the Franklin County Retail Merchants Association - were involved in the consolidation.
The Retail Merchants Association decided to pull out of the merger talks several weeks ago.
The association's director, Dorothy Cundiff, said in an earlier interview that her group would merge with the chamber, but not with the Community Partnership for Revitalization.
LENGTH: Medium: 75 linesby CNB