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MEMBER SPOTLIGHT: AT&T
MERGER COULD HELP CREATE ECONOMIC MOMENTUM
Medina is having a moment. Our fair city was recognized as one of America's most desirable cities to live in and one of the best small towns in the country. Most recently, Medina was named Northeast Ohio's best hometown. These accolades prove what our people already knew. But it also presents an opportunity.
Our enviable quality of life, ideal location, and status as one of the fastest-growing counties in Ohio serve as selling points that help us to attract prospective businesses and new residents to the greater Medina area. These selling points, combined with these recent awards, just might help us to turn Medina's moment into some momentum.
If we want to use it to create more opportunities and to encourage business growth, and ultimately improve our community, then now is the time. First, though, we need to focus on one area in which the greater Medina area falls short: access to high-speed wireless broadband.
Many similarly-sized communities are underserved when it comes to broadband access, but consistent, reliable access to the next generation of mobile broadband should be affordable and available in all areas. According to Connect Ohio, a nonprofit dedicated to increasing high-speed...FULL ARTICLE |
From the Desk of Dave Mueller 
Lets Vote!
Election day, Tuesday, November 8th, is one a week away. According to the Medina County Board of Elections website, this year's General Elections will decide the outcome for:
* 3 State Wide Issues
* 31 Medina County Issues
* 24 School Board Member candidates
* 35 candidates for various City Councils/Mayor positions
* 4 candidates for Municipal Judge/Clerk of Courts
Unfortunately, the saying that "Every vote counts" somehow seems to give way to voter apathy every year. To find testament to the importance of every single vote, we don't have to look any further than Highland School District. This past May, the 6.9 mil Highland School emergency levy passed by exactly 29 votes out of a total of 5,800 ballots cast. Regardless of how you viewed the ballot issue, a ˝ percent margin could have easily swung the other way had a few less 'yes' voters, or a few more 'no' voters showed up that day.
The Chamber is a strong supporter of the electoral process and I am proud to tell you that we practice what we preach. We've been working hard this year to engage our membership and encourage involvement in the electoral process. We recognize that each Chamber Member is..... (FULL ARTICLE) |
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The first Young Entrepreneur's Academy (YEA) kicks off on November 8 with an orientation and the class begins on November 9. We congratulate the 11 students selected to participate this year.
Cole Bobinchuck - Lawrence Upper School
Sarah Bullington - Medina High School
Carli Cummins - Medina High School
Dave Farley - Medina High School
Cody Fascione - Medina High School
Kayla Frisco - Medina High School
Ryand Gottschalk - Medina High School
Dakota Hawthorne - Medina High School
Benjamin Piehl - Medina High School
Brandon Rice - Medina High School
Carleton Whitmore - Medina High School
YEA! offers students the opportunity to learn these principles through a yearlong project-based, hands-on entrepreneurial education. Students are taught to write business plans, prepare and pitch their ideas to investors, obtain financial backing, register their businesses and social organizations, develop marketing plans and materials, prepare for trade shows, and sell their products and services.
These student are about to embark on a 33 week adventure in starting a business. Join our adventure by liking our Facebook page and follow our students, sponsors and volunteers through the year.
Thank you to all of our sponsors that are making this exciting program possible.
620 Corporation
BPR/Rico Equipment Inc.
C. Martin Trucking
Conrad and Dowdell Productions, Inc.
Critchfield, Critchfield & Johnston, Ltd.
Dorman-Farrell, LLC
Don and Cindy Fuller
Dyer, Hughes, Roche & Wilson, Inc
FirstMerit Bank
Gerspacher Real Estate Group
Gorsek & Co., CPA
Homestead Insurance Agency
Medina City Schools
Medina City Schools Foundation
Medina Vision and Laser Centre, Inc.
Merrill Lynch
Philpott Rubber Company
Rapid Marketplace
Sandridge Food Corporation
The Growth Coach/Mike Rao
WarnerTech.Net, LLC
Western Reserve Bank |
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Recommendation on Earned Income Tax Levy for Medina City Schools
Greater Medina Chamber of Commerce
September 15, 2011
The Greater Medina Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors ("Board") recommends that the residents of the Medina City School District vote in favor of the Earned Income Tax Levy that the District placed on the November ballot. The Board recognizes the critical importance of having an excellent school district. An excellent school district contributes to economic development, quality of life and increased employment opportunities for a community. The Chamber has stayed involved in school funding matters, has continued to communicate with local business and community leaders and spent extensive time reviewing the School's budget projections and future funding needs.
The Board of Education has voted to place a one-half percent Earned Income Tax Levy on the November 2011 ballot. The levy would tax only those residents of the Medina City School District having salary/tip/wage income (reported on Form W-2) and self-employment income subject to Social Security and Medicare tax. The levy would not tax retirement income and Social Security income. The Earned Income Tax Levy would be a new source of revenue for the School District and assist the School District in diversifying its income beyond the traditional real estate tax base.
FULL ARTICLE INSIDE |
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Volume 37, Issue 11
November 2011 Edition |
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2011 Board of Directors
Dave Mueller, BPR/Rico Equipment, Inc., Chairman of the Board
Valerie Rapp, Homestead Insurance, Chair-Elect
Keith Hughes, Dyer, Hughes, Roche & Wilson, Secretary/Treasurer
Mike Baach, Philpott Rubber Company, Past Chair
Chad Wilson, Rapid Marketplace, Vice Chair, Business Advocacy
Brian Harr, Western Reserve Bank, Vice Chair, Economic Development
Michael B. Miller, FirstMerit Bank, Vice Chair, Member Services
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Jani Davis, Westfield Insurance
Amy Demlow, Critchfield, Critchfield & Johnston
Dr. Tim Earley, Medina Vision & Laser Centre
George Hudnutt, The Medina Gazette
Delmar Jones, Jonesy's Classic Cleaners
Coleen Morlock, VCS Salon & Spa
Bob Thompson, Town & Country Co-Op
Mark Williams, Williams On The Lake
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Ex-officio Members
Jim Bigam, Medina Hospital
Jim Conrad, Conrad & Dowdell Productions
Jim Gerspacher, Gerspacher Real Estate Group
Bert Humpal, Dyer, Hughes, Roche & Wilson
Ray Seaman, Seaman Financial Services
Don Simmons, Simmons Brothers Construction |
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New Members
(as of 10/28/11)
Digital Print Solutions
4160 Highlander Parkway Ste. 300
Richfield, OH 44286
330-659-0410
Stephen Vojvodich, Adam Silk & Brandon Skinner
www.dpsohio.com
Digital Print Solutions is an independent authorized dealer of a full line of office and print production products & services.
Mills, Mills, Fiely & Lucas
150 Smokerise Drive
Wadsworth, OH 44281
330-336-7955
Laura L. Mills, Paul Vincent
www.mmfllaw.com
All areas of general practice to corporations & Individuals with extensive litigation experience.
U. S. Bank
3705 Medina Road ,Suite A
Medina, OH 44256
330-721-0550
Steve Kindel, Steve Neal & Jeremy Piper
www.usbank.com
Banking - Finance
October Renewals
Thank you for renewing your membership!
7-D Marketing
William R. Bittner
Century Cycles
Chad Allan Consulting
Champs Auto Body
Compass Systems & Sales
Fechko Excavating
Adam Friedrick
Dennis A. Gaishauser, DDS
Hampton Inn
House of Hunan
Justice & Company
Medina Athletic Boosters
Medina Co. Port Authority
Palitto Consulting Services
Samaritan Care Center
Shear Perfection
Southwest Landscape Mgmt
Stonebrook Holdings
Stubbendieck Chiropractic & Rehabilitation
Summa Health System
T. Sigel Consulting
Valley Mitsubishi
Zinn Mechanical |
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COMMITTEES
Business Development
Gary Wright, Robert W. Baird
Greg Thomas, Leadership Excellence
Kenny Bevins, CMITPROS
Kurt Kappa, Westfield Bank
Tim Sister, B2B CFO
Toby Kemsuzian, Dorman-Farrell
Program Committee
Andy deLuna, Williams on the Lake
Arno Kremer, Yours Truly Restaurant
Brian Walters, SBDC
Jennifer Smith, Frontier Communications
Judi Campo, Sinful Sweets..OMG
Kathy Breitenbucher, The Pedestal Group
Michael Miller, FirstMerit Bank |
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| Employment Outlook for Medina County
Bill Hanigan, Director, Medina County Workforce Development
The good news is that the unemployment rate is down. Down to 6.1% a full .5% down from August. This closely mirrors the decrease last year for the months of August to September which had a .6% decrease.
Major concerns continue to be the ability of Medina businesses in finding higher skilled workers, which will continue to plague companies unless their wage/salary is commensurate to those workers traveling from surrounding areas to Medina, then as those counties improve, being able to retain them.
WorkforceDevelopment is working with economic development in identifying skill set needs in the incumbent work force of manufacturing in anticipation of collective application(s) for projected JOBSOhio funds for that purpose. Briefly, it is an attempt to train current workers to move up in skill sets, and then being able to use On-the-Job Training dollars to aid in back filling those vacated positions.
Back to the unemployment trends, we should see the October rate for Medina to drop slightly again, then climb during the months of the November though February. We could see an increase of a full percentage during that period under current conditions. The unknown in the equation is the public spending during the holidays and debt discussions at the federal and global level and market insecurity tied to it. |
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REDUCE YOUR BUSINESSES WORKERS' COMPENSATION COST
With economic issues continually facing the employers of Ohio today, it is more important than ever to be with a trusted advisor that can provide you with your best opportunity to reduce a leading operational expense, workers' compensation premium.
The Greater Medina Chamber's workers' compensation group rating program still remains one of the best options for a business today to reduce their workers' compensation expense. Our third party workers' compensation administrator, CompManagement, Inc., a leader in the industry, is currently in the process of reviewing employers for group discount program qualification for the 2012 policy year.
If you explored our plan in the past, it's time to take a second look. You owe it to yourself to explore the options and savings a membership entitles you to receive. If you participate in another group rating program, you may not be saving as much as possible and you may be paying extra dues to belong to another group.
If you are reviewing savings quotes from other group administrators, please make sure that you are not settling for less of a discount than your business can earn. As a service to our members, CompManagement will not only evaluate your organization for participation in group rating, but all alternative rating programs that would be beneficial to your organization's bottom line.
Why choose Greater Medina Chamber's program, administered by CompManagement over others in the industry?
- Accuracy and Results - have confidence in your budget with a program that not only consistently delivers accuracy in our projections, but provides the maximum discount opportunity authorized by the Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation.
- Competitive Fees - ensuring a positive return on your investment to realize the best savings available for your business
- Comprehensive Service - local representatives throughout Ohio: designated claims, hearing, cost containment, and rate representatives: in-house safety & loss control services: onsite and online education programs: secure internet access to claims 24/7,
If you have already received your renewal from CompManagement and have not responded, you must complete and submit the appropriate forms to CompManagement to be included in the 2012 workers' compensation group program.
If you are not taking advantage of this value added member benefit already, it is easy to do so. A free, no obligation review for qualification of your organization may be completed by simply choosing from the following 2 options:
- Contact CompManagement's Customer Support Unit toll-free at (800) 825-6755, option 3
- Go online at http://resources.compmgt.com/AC3/GroupRating.aspx?Organization=GreaterMedinaChamber , click on the AC-3 form button and submit online.
If you have any questions, please contact CompManagement's Customer Support Unit at (800) 825-6755, option 3. |
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GREATER MEDINA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
CALENDAR OF EVENTS
11/1/11
Monthly Membership Meeting
Cleveland Foundation
"Investing in the Future"
Williams on the Lake
11:30am to 1:00pm
11/2/11
Business & Technology Series
Effective PowerPoint Presentation
Medina County University Center
11:30am to 1:00pm
11/7/11
Hospitality Focus Group
Williams on the Lake
6:30pm to 8:00pm
11/11/11
Business Development Committee
Marie's Café
7:30am to 8:30am
11/15/11
Medina County Safety Council
OSHA Enforcement of Personal Protection Equipment
Weymouth Country Club
11:30am to 1:00pm
11/15/11
Young Professionals Speaker Series
"Protect Your Credit"
Abbottino's, Seville
5:30pm to 7:30pm
11/15/11
Business After Business
Maximum Potential Chiropractic
155 Northland Dr., Medina
5:30pm to 7:30pm
11/16/11
Networking WOW!
Fox Meadows Country Club
7:30am to 9:00am
11/17/11
Business & Technology Series
Working Medina County Networking Opportunities
Medina County University Center
11:30am to 1:00pm
11/24/11 & 11/25/11
Chamber Office Closed for Thanksgiving
11/30/11
Business & Technology Series
Cloud Computing-Let's Go To The Cloud
Medina County University Center
11:30am to 1:00pm |
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MEMBER NEWS
The Medina County Career Center - Adult Education division in partnership with Lorain County Community College is pleased to announce their new program in Supply Chain Management. This pilot program will offer an associate's degree in Associate of Applied Business through LCCC. The program offers online and in-class curriculum. Supply Chain Management relates to careers in logistics, transportation, sales & customer service, warehousing & distribution, purchasing as well as others. Please contact Sandy Frommeyer at (330)725-8461 x351 for additional information.
Congratulations to Chief Patrick Beraducci, Stacy & Rich Bonitz, Charles Calvert, Chief Carl DeForest, Mayor Dennis Hanwell, & Cheryl Mason. These individuals have received a community service award from Medina Hospital for their significant contributions to our community.
Please join SECURITEC ONE for their FREE seminar on "Current Trends in Workplace Violence Prevention". This seminar will be held at the Holiday Inn, 4073 Medina Rd, Akron from 7:00am to 11:45am on Friday, November 18, 2011. Guest speakers will be David DiRocci and Timothy Dimoff. RSVP by calling (330)239-2322.
Congratulations to Mary Ann Jasionowski, Summit Medina Business Alliance for being selected as the 2011 State Star for Ohio at the America's Small Business Development Center Annual Conference in San Diego.
Main Street Medina Events
Main Street Medina Collectible Holiday Ornament is now available at Gramercy Gallery, Miss Molly's Tea Room & Gift Shop, Whitey's Army Navy Store and the Medina County Convention & Visitors Bureau. Cost is $20 each. This year's ornament will feature the 1841/1873 Medina County Courthouse.
Join Chef Ryan Mario of the Corkscrew Saloon, as he prepares a palate pleasing menu with YOUR help! The Main Street Medina 2nd Dine & (bring) Wine event will be held Wednesday, November 16, 2011. There are two seatings, 6:00-7:30 and 8:00-9:30 pm with each session limited to 18 guests. Tickets are $25 per person, and may be purchased at Cool Beans Café, 103 W. Liberty Street. Call 330-723-7174 for tickets (cash or check only).
Main Street Medina is preparing for their Medina Black Saturday, Saturday, November 26 from 10am to 5pm. For detail on this and more events visit www.mainstreetmedina.com. |
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Buehler's Forest Meadows Grand Opening
 
Handel's Homemade Ice Cream Grand Opening
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Chamber Staff
Debra Lynn-Schmitz, President
Tina Gienger, Member Services Manager
Susan Murawski, Safety Council Administrator
Becky Parkhurst, Accounting Manager
Karen Whitaker, Administrative Professional |
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Tina Gienger, Newsletter Editor
Greater Medina Chamber of Commerce
145 North Court St, Medina, OH 44256
www.medinaohchamber.com
Hours of operation: Monday-Friday 9:00a.m. to 5:00p.m.
Phone: 330-723-8773
Fax: 330-722-6844
73 Years of Serving Medina Area Businesses
Interested in advertising in this publication? Click here for a price list.
   
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MISSION STATEMENT
Our mission is to serve member investors and promote business interests through economic development, business advocacy and member services, which benefit the Greater Medina Community. |
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