Our young people are a precious community resource - and too many of them are leaving the area. When other communities are the recipients of our highly educated and ambitious family members, our community loses.

This self-defeating situation has gone on far too long. Someone had to do something about it. The Duluth Area Chamber of Commerce accepted the challenge. The Chamber's young professional initiative, called Fuse Duluth, has evolved over the last three years into a thriving group of individuals who are motivated to attract and retain young people within our beloved Emerald City on the Hill. The word "Fuse" has two meanings: 1) to blend or mix (young people into our business community); and 2) to ignite (young talent's interest in remaining in our Zenith City).

Moreover, the Chamber is reaching beyond our current citizenry to those Duluthians who have sought and found work elsewhere. An encouraging number of those individuals wish to return to this panoramic city they consider "home." The Chamber is working to make their return more likely.

Creating attractive jobs is one way we can retain our young people and facilitate the return of former Duluthians. Yet, creating jobs is no longer enough to meet our goals. We must also determine, embrace and articulate what makes Duluth unique. Doing so will allow us to identify and market what gives Duluth its competitive advantage. Our success in this effort will enable our Port City to attract and retain the best of the generation that is now entering the workforce.

Fortunately for Duluth, a recent national study pertaining to our nation's new economy confirmed that amenities and environmental quality are paramount in attracting talent to a community. "Quality-of-Place" is a new term used to represent the natural, recreational, and lifestyle amenities vital to attracting talent. The report contends that quality of place is as important as traditional economic factors such as jobs and career opportunities.

The Chamber is transitioning with the times. We get it. We are on it. We have come to understand and appreciate that Duluth's competitive advantage is increasingly contingent upon the quality of recreational amenities we offer, safety, clean air and accessibility to clean water for consumption and recreation. How fortunate we are to be on the shores of the Greatest of the Great Lakes. We also understand that our attractiveness as a community will increase as we cultivate our arts and music scenes and as we embrace our increasing diversity.

With this new insight in mind, the Chamber is actively looking to partner with our elected officials and other groups and organizations to make quality of place enhancements and the creation of jobs a combined, Fused, and powerful initiative. We welcome you sharing your ideas and suggestions with us by contacting Breanne DeFoe, director of Fuse Duluth, at bdefoe@duluthchamber.com or 740-3758.These collaborative efforts will allow our Christmas City of the North to protect and enhance the things that make Duluth unique and compelling, including its pool of young talent.

Duluth and Saint Louis County at the Capitol remains the largest, boldest and most effective community gathering at the State Capitol. The largest citizen lobbying event in Minnesota, Duluth and St. Louis County at the Capitol brings more than six hundred voters to the Capitol annually, voters who advocate for initiatives and capital projects that will improve the quality of life for residents of our region.

Started in 1997 as a vehicle to focus state legislators' attention on our region's needs, the annual event requires months of planning; financial support from dozens of local businesses and organizations; and the energy and enthusiasm of hundreds of Duluth and Saint Louis County residents. Duluth and St. Louis County at the Capitol is one of only a few Minnesota lobbying events that is successful in bringing together a coalition of business and labor leaders, city councilors, county commissioners, school board members and private citizens in a coordinated advocacy effort.

Months of planning, at the local level, have allowed us to generate a list of 2008 Minnesota State Legislative Funding Priorities for our region. We will advocate for the funding of these priorities when we gather at the Capitol on February 25 and 26.

Our funding requests include: the DECC Arena at $40 million; the UMD Civil Engineering Building at $10 million; the WLSSD Sanitary Sewer Overflow Storage Basins at $12.7 million; the Airport Authority's New Airport Terminal at $5.7 million; Lake Superior College's New Health and Science Building at $11 million; St. Louis County Water Line and Sewer improvements at $2.5 million; and the Fond du Lac Tribal and Community College's Land Acquisition at $1.8 million.

We have our work cut out for us. Many other communities are also asking the State of Minnesota to fund their proposed building projects. There is over $3.4 billion in state bonding requests this year. In response to these funding requests, Governor Pawlenty recently announced a $965 million bonding proposal, which would fund only 23% of the requests.

Our success in gaining State funding for our projects will depend on: the efficacy of our area elected officials; the health of the State's economy; the Governor's advocacy for our projects; and our efficacy in making our collective voice heard at the Capitol. Be assured, the Duluth Area Chamber of Commerce will continue to partner with our brothers and sisters in labor, education, government and business to advance our region's funding requests at the State's 2008 Legislative Session. I encourage you to take an active interest in the growth and development of our region by joining us at Duluth & St. Louis County at the Capitol and helping our collective voice be heard. For additional information or to register for the event go to www.duluthandstlouiscounty.com.

The Duluth Area Chamber of Commerce works to identify business-related issues and trends. Once these issues are identified, we seek to advocate for business-friendly trends and change the course of trends that will impact business negatively. With the best interest of business as motivation, the Chamber is strongly advocating for improvement in how the City of Duluth's Building Safety Office handles its approval and permitting process.

When it comes to building something in Duluth, all paths lead to the Building Safety Office. It is where Duluthians, hoping to build, expand, or otherwise improve and change a structure, must seek and gain approval.

Our community's shared challenge is simple: the demand for service has outstripped the office's ability to meet the demand. At a recently held Forvm, a Chamber of Commerce member meeting, eighty interested business persons discussed the Building Safety Office's status. Duane Lasley, who leads the office, made it plain: his office is struggling to keep up with the vastly increased amount of permit requests. He shared how the amount of construction in Duluth has increased from $69 million in 1996 to $233 million in 2006.

During this same time period, the Building Safety Office appears to have suffered from a lack of adequate resources necessary to match the demand. The office suffers with an ancient computer system, and, Duane Lasley contends, understaffing. In preparation for The Forvm, Chamber staff members researched other building safety offices from similar sized communities. We found that other offices have utilized technology to a far greater degree than has Duluth. In Rochester, MN, you can apply for a permit online at any time, thus avoiding finding a parking spot in front of City Hall and standing in line at the desk of the Building Safety Office. This is one of several examples of how technology has made the permitting process most customer-friendly and more efficient.

Duluth's Building Safety Office is woefully behind the times in utilizing technology to smooth the permit process. Yet, technology takes money. The City of Duluth is broke. Herein lies the problem. The new mayor will have to reallocate existing resources, from elsewhere within City Hall, to the Building Safety Office. Will it be easy. No. Can it be done. Yes – if Mayor-Elect Ness makes doing so a priority.

Don Ness has indicated he will make the tackling of this chronic concern a priority. I believe he has the volition, the energy and the talent to provide the Building Safety Office the direction and support it needs to improve the office's customer service while concurrently making the office more efficient.

When the pressure is on, great leaders are at their best. Let's encourage Mayor-elect Don Ness and Building Safety Office Leader, Duane Lasley, to be great leaders by keeping the pressure on.

Yours in advocacy,
David Ross
President & CEO

The stage is set. The Chamber has done what it promised to do…provide you credible and timely information regarding the candidates and their positions on business-related issues. It is time we, as business community members, did our part by voting in the Tuesday, September 11 primary election.

Your September issue of the Chamber's Xpress Newsletter included a 12 page special supplement called Election 2007. It contained a comprehensive presentation of the candidates' positions related to economic development within our community. Election 2007 also included a presentation of the survey results generated by the 299 members who chose to make their voices heard within the survey.

Additionally, throughout last week, the Chamber hosted several forums called Candid Conversations with Candidates. These conversations enabled the Chamber to record the candidates' thoughts on issues facing our business community. These conversations are available via the web at www.duluthchamber.com/community/government.htm.

Please use the Election 2007 insert or the Candid Conversations web presentations as a resource when deciding who you will support. The Chamber's Board of Directors and staff members respectfully encourage the Chamber's 1,259 members to vote in this primary. Voting is a privilege and a hard earned right which we honor when we take the time to cast our vote.

Make sure your voice is heard.

Yours in support,

David Ross

As the political season starts to heat up, we thought it was important to find out how our 1,251 members wanted us to treat the upcoming elections, particularly in regard to candidate endorsements. Our members indicated, loudly and clearly, that the Chamber's Political Action Committee (PAC) should not issue candidate endorsements. Instead, our members asked us to provide them with credible, timely and reliable information regarding the candidates and their positions on business-related issues.

In response, the Duluth Area Chamber of Commerce is implementing a candidate-neutral education initiative designed to provide our members and the greater community the insight and information they need to cast business savvy, educated votes.

This year, Chamber members can expect the following: 1) member surveys regarding their support for various candidates; 2) access to the most comprehensive candidate information regarding their positions on business-related issues; and 3) the opportunity to attend Chamber hosted, disciplined and respectful candidate forums. The Chamber will endeavor to get this information into the hands of our members prior to both the primary and general elections.

Our work is underway. Now that the filing deadline for candidates has passed, we are distributing questionnaires to the candidates asking for their positions on issues related to: the business climate in Duluth; their specific ideas regarding how to move business forward in Duluth; and their detailed plans to make city government more efficient. You can count on the Chamber to ask direct questions pertaining to: retiree healthcare; core city services; public safety; and the city's review and approval process for development projects.

Additionally, we will host at least two mayor / city council candidate forums, both of which will be made available via the internet.

Finally, the Chamber's monthly newsletter, the Xpress, will include an educational insert in September (prior to the primary election) and again in November (prior to the general election). These inserts will highlight business issues, candidate responses, and hard hitting questions designed to get specific candidate information into the hands of our members and other Duluthians in a way that will aid in their decision making at the polls.

Because of our members' feedback, we are poised to help them vote for the candidates who will best serve their interests in what might be considered the most exciting election Duluth has seen in years.

Yours in service,
David Ross
President and CEO

Led by the District's superintendent and consummate leader, Keith Dixon, ISD#709 is bringing to a close the most comprehensive, inclusive and supportable planning effort ever accomplished by the District. Yet, when the plan was officially presented to the Duluth School Board for consideration two weeks ago, there were community members who rose to speak in opposition to the plan which advocates a transition from three to two high schools.

Those opposing the two-high school plan voiced their concern that the proposed boundaries between the proposed schools would deepen the disparity between students from high and low income families. In addition, some listeners predicted an increase of tension among students of varied racial backgrounds. School Board members, as well as the superintendent, were - and will continue to be - sensitive to these issues. In addition, the Chamber's leadership has asked school board members to openly address such fears while simultaneously proceeding with an endorsement of the present plan of action. This constitutes a leadership opportunity for the School Board and calls for decisiveness in word and action.

The present plan offers too many gains to be allowed to stall in its final hour. For the first time in several years, students and their parents could have a long-range view of the education available to Duluth's student population. Moreover, the action taken now will quickly prove to be a cost-effective investment. Let us, as community members, urge the members of the School Board to move ahead with boldness and conviction as they take care of some long overdue business.

A final school board vote on the plan is set for June 19 at the meeting of the Board. Those who hope to delay the vote are working towards that end. We who support the proposed plan and its implementation must speak now with a compelling voice and a will to achieve our goal, benefiting both students and our city.

School Board members may be reached at schoolboard@duluth.k12.mn.us.

Yours in advocacy,

David Ross

It is difficult to lead a community - or a union - during challenging times. Nevertheless, as community members we have a right to expect the best of both our city and union leaders during a seminal moment of unprecedented challenge within our beloved community. Duluth is still confronted by a shared, but ominous situation: i.e., the City of Duluth's employee and retiree unfunded healthcare liability. Some of those persons whom we have called on for bold leadership have risen to the challenge, while others have been a disappointment. Let's review the situation, starting with the positive factors.

Mayor Bergson has provided strong leadership in addressing the unfunded healthcare liability. Early on, he announced that he would forego the possibility of reelection in order to deal unflinchingly with this civic problem. Consequently, he was instrumental in moving an initiative for an irrevocable trust fund - i.e., an enhanced investment vehicle which will allow Duluth to generate a far better return on its investments - through the State Legislature. For this achievement, the mayor, area legislators, and ultimately the governor deserve our admiration and respect. The trust fund initiative constitutes one-third of the solution needed to resolve the unfunded retiree healthcare liability.

Another one-third of the solution has been attained by funding, at least partially, the liability through the transfer of Community Trust Fund monies (a.k.a. the Street Improvement Fund and the Casino Fund) into a fund that can be used only to pay for the city's healthcare liability. The mayor and our city councilors displayed bold leadership by transferring $12 million into this restricted account. The City Council has also set in place an automatic annual transfer of Community Trust Fund monies into this restricted account. It is clear that our city councilors have done their part to address the city's unfunded healthcare liability.

We, as Duluthians, have not been inactive. Indeed, we are doing our part in finding a solution to this dilemma. We are paying increased utility rates (e.g., for gas, water, sewer, and storm water) that will help to pay off the unfunded healthcare liability. In addition, we are paying an increase in our property taxes that will help in the same cause. The combination of the Street Improvement Fund allocation with the increased property and utility will provide for the second third of the city's unfunded liability. But what about the one remaining third?

Scant attention has been given to this remaining third, and two of the city's five unions are hoping that no community attention will be given to this as yet resolved problem. Over a year ago, the mayor and the city council appealed to the leadership of the city's five unions to transcend old stereotypes and break from the traditional practice of holding on to employee benefits despite the cost and regardless of the devastation. Three - the supervisory group, the confidential workers, and the firefighters - of the five unions rose to the occasion. I applaud and respect their leadership.

Unfortunately, however, two of the five unions have not become part of the solution. Apparently habit is stronger than reason for the local leadership of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), who represent the majority of city of Duluth workers. Surprisingly, the union representing Duluth's police officers has also refrained from affirming the proposed solution to the city's problem. The lack of needed concessions from these two unions should be of increasing concern to every Duluth taxpayer. Should home owners pay more taxes so these union members can continue to enjoy a healthcare benefit package that far exceeds what the city can afford and non-city employees can access? Increasingly, Duluthians are balking at the injustice, while, at the same time, Mayor Bergson is doing his best to wrestle the necessary concessions from these remaining unions. In fact, the Mayor has become so resolute in this matter of concessions and cooperation that the leadership of these unions is likely to delay serious contract discussions until a new mayor is elected in November.

Duluthians deserve better from the leadership of AFSCME and the police officers. The mayor has done his work well. The city council has also done all they can do. Taxpayers, too, are digging deeper in their pockets to do their part in resolving this difficult issue. And three of the city's five unions have demonstrated leadership in becoming part of the solution. Only two unions are preventing this community from a responsible resolution of this problem.

A panel discussion will be held to discuss this issue on Thursday, May 17, at 8:00 a.m. The panel will feature city councilors, the chairperson of the Post Employment Healthcare Benefits Task Force, the city's chief administrative officer, and a spokesperson for the city retirees. For more information, contact the Duluth Area Chamber of Commerce at 218.722.5501.