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Memo from the President                       Duane O'Neill

This correspondence begins a new chapter in the communications effort of the MetroJackson Chamber. Every Tuesday from this point forward you will be receiving an email from your Chamber. Along with a column written by me discussing timely issues, we will also feature other Chamber officers and staff members reporting on pertinent news affecting your businesses and the community at large. We hope you will find the communication informative and insightful. Additionally, we hope you will give us both general and specific feedback about the content of this letter and all the topics we will be addressing in our new endeavor.

            Today my comments focus on the approaching referendum for constructing a Convention Center in the City of Jackson. In just one week voters in Jackson will decide the fate of this highly debated initiative. The Metro Chamber has been at the forefront in promoting this project. The Chamber’s business community was a key entity in mediating a compromise by the state legislature to promote this issue so that  the people would be allowed to vote. With the help of the legislature, we are now in a position to vote for a hospitality tax to make the sixty-one million dollar Convention Center a reality. Is this the facility that alone will save Downtown? The answer is probably no; however, it is a major economic generator that coupled with the other exciting activity downtown should generate tremendous economic development.

            The reputable consulting firm who analyzed this project states that it will have a thirty-seven million dollar economic impact on an annual basis. For a sixty-one million dollar investment, that is a fantastic return. With the current construction of the Telecommunications Conferencing Center, the existing Planetarium, Thalia Mara Auditorium, the Museum of Art and the Special Events Pavilion, the arts and entertainment district is looking good.

            Yes, we will have to pay an extra penny on a dollar (or fifty cents on a fifty-dollar dinner) and lodging in the city hotels will cost three cents more on a dollar, but that seems like a good buy for the economic benefits resulting from this new Convention Center. If you would like more information or have questions, please call me at 948-7575 so we can further discuss the details of the project.

            Your Chamber Board of Directors has unanimously supported this project, and we strongly urge you to vote yes at the polls next Tuesday.   

*The weighted discount is an average of 66% off the list price.