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Second chances can be hard to get.  With the landslide passage of the regional sales tax increase last month, the Town Toyota Center and Public Facilities District have been given a second chance.  They can not waste this opportunity.  Third chances are rarely given.

The Town Toyota Center is a very nice facility.  But the original plan sold to and by the City of Wenatchee was a financial disaster.  Clearly, mistakes and very bad decisions were made.   Once new leaders were put in place the City was able to realistically assess Read More »

This is the question the Chamber hopes to help answer at our annual Real Estate Outlook program Tuesday, April 17th at 7:30 a.m. at the Red Lion.

Real estate has been a key industry in our nation and Valley for many years. As the national real

estate market cooled in 2006, we continued to see a boom here. As a matter of fact, the Wenatchee Valley led the nation in residential real estate appreciation from January 2007 through March 2008. The bursting of the real estate bubble was felt here but thankfully, we have avoided the worst of the declining values and foreclosure crisis. During all these years we have hosted a real estate outlook annually and 2012 is no exception.

Our sponsor, Pacific Appraisals, will provide the most current information on real estate activity in the region.

Randy Gold of Gold Construction will give us the outlook for builders. He has been a frequent member of our panel and it has been enlightening to follow the changes he has made in his business to navigate the challenging recent years in the industry.

Laura Mounter of Laura Mounter Real Estate, also a past panel member. will give us the real estate agent’s perspective on what lies ahead.

New to our panel will be Greg Peterson from Cashmere Valley Bank who will provide his outlook on the direction of interest rates in 2012 which has a huge impact on home affordability.

After prepared comments all will be available for a quetion and answer period. The City of Wenatchee will also bring some maps showing

their plans that will impact growth in the years to come.

The event is always one of our most popular, please contact the Chamber office at 662-2116 for more information or to reserve your seat.

When I was in law school, a frequent comment heard during finals week was “done is better than good”. Translation – the

Constitutional Lsw final may not have gone that well, but at least it is behind me. The same can be said for Proposition 1, t

he 1/10 of 1% regional sales tax increase which is on the ballots arriving in your mail box this week.

Is a regional sales tax increase plus a sales tax increase (already enacted) in the City of Wenatchee a good outcome? Probably not. Is

it the best available solution to a huge financial crisis that could devastate the City of Wenatchee and negatively impact the entire region? Absolutely.

The Wenatchee Valley Chamber of Commerce Board has unanimously endorsed this local solution. The Chamber testified for it in Olympia. We supported the City of Wenatchee increasing their sales tax, We supported the other PFD jurisdictions placing it on the ballot. Now we are at the last step – a vote of the public. The Chamber endorses a “Yes” vote on Proposition 1.

The individual cost of the tax increase is minimal, 10 cents on a taxable $100 purchase, but the costs of a full on default would be large, hard to calculate, and result in years of uncertainty for the region. It is time to solve this issue regionally, on our own, before it spins out of our control so we can move forward as a region.

Done is better than good.

The Wenatchee Valley Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors unanimously endorsed the regional plan to solve the current funding crisis for the Town Toyota Center at its February Board meeting.  This action is consistent

with the Chamber‘s mission to strengthen the economic climate of the Wenatchee Valley.

This solution was developed by our local elected officials.  It would eliminate the cloud of uncertainty that currently covers the region and avoids the risks of a shuttered Town Toyota Center, a bankrupt Public Facilities District, and a crippled City of Wenatchee.

The Chamber has testified in Olympia supporting passage of SB 5984 and calls on the House to pass

and the Governor to sign it quickly.   We will support the Wenatchee City Council raising the sales tax as the City should bear the brunt of the burden for a solution to this crisis.  The Chamber calls on the jurisdictions that make up the Public Facilities District to put to a public vote a 1/10 of 1% sales tax increase on the April 17^th ballot.  If this issue makes the ballot, the Chamber will advocate for passage of the tax increase.

While advocating for a tax increase is unusual for the Chamber, it is the only way forward for the region at this point.  This is a fluid and fast moving process.  Time is of the essence and the Chamber supports a quick resolution to this crisis.  This plan is good for business and will keep our region moving forward. 

Mission Ridge skiers score wine discounts in Wenatchee Wine Country!