State of the Community Luncheon

More than 130 local business professionals and community members were again treated to a quality event that was candid and truthful, yet left attendees with good feelings about the state of the Petoskey area. Event Chairman Dan Ledingham of Edward Jones welcomed the audience and spoke of how thankful that he is to live in this community.

 

The Marquis Sponsor of the Event was CHASE who was represented by their President Keith Williams. Williams, who is also Chairman of the Board of the Petoskey Regional Chamber of Commerce, thanked the audience for their attendance at the event and their many contributions to Petoskey.

 

Four speakers headlined the event:

Liz Ahrens, Executive Director, Crooked Tree Arts Center

Bill Quiseng, General Manager, Inn at Bay Harbor

Dianne Litzenburger, Communications Coordinator, Char-Em ISD

Andy Hayes, Executive Director, Northern Lakes Economic Alliance

 

 

State of Culture:

 

The State of Culture was expertly painted by Liz Ahrens as she reminded the crowd that art is all around us.  Ahrens encouraged everyone to take advantage of the cultural resources that we have in the area, whether taking a walk through a garden or attending a concert. She reported that the area’s cultural events are thriving; all that you have to do is participate.  She admitted that funding for the arts at the state level will likely see reductions, and emphasized that local support will be more important than ever for the area’s many cultural entities.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bill Quiseng then warned the crowd that he was going to make things a little painful.  He spoke of three major economic sources who predicted hotel occupancies this year will be at or below levels of the 9-11 period and in one report, they predict the lowest rates in 30-years. He also noted looming threats of the Employee Free Choice Act and the staffing challenges in the hospitality industry as a result of the H2B Visa Issue. Bill’s advice? “If You Always Do, What You Always Did, You Will Always Get, What You Always Got.”  He stressed that in the hospitality world, 2009 will have to bring change in order to be successful. He encourages businesses to develop even stronger customer service cultures with a focus on retaining their current guests.

 

 

 

Dianne Litzenburger of the Char-Em ISD evoked a strong sense of pride from the audience in our local school systems and the great accomplishments of our students.  These accomplishments have come despite the fact that area schools have continually looked for ways to trim budgets. The statistics shared by Litzenburger on staffing cuts in the eleven district served by the ISD equate to the loss of a major industry in the area. Yet, our children receive an excellent education at all levels, and student exit requirements will get even more demanding as new federal and state guidelines are enacted.  Dianne then warmed the audience with a short film made by Char-Em ISD career tech-ed students which focuses on the accomplishments of students at all ages.

 

 

 

Andy Hayes of the Northern Lakes Economic Alliance concluded the program with a look at the area’s economy. Andy reported that auto-related industries will continue to see declines and will need to look at new product lines in order to survive. He says the focus with the NLEA is to help move these industries into the areas of aeronautics, medical instruments, alternative energy and government contracts. Andy encouraged attendees to work that much harder to make that one extra business deal happen each week and to begin to re-build our economy one deal at a time.

 

 

 

In addition to the four speakers, many community leaders were invited by the chamber to share the states of their various community segments in written form. These reports were distributed to the audience and are available here.