One of the things I love most about the Internet is the access it allows me to some really great news papers from around the country. I am particularly fond of the smaller newspapers from small towns around the US. If you really want to know what is going on in the world pick up a small town newspaper.
So, today was a little bit of a surprise to me because the headlines in several or these newspapers were about business owners in the central business districts forming associations. This may not seem like a remarkable headline except that every town I know of has a Chamber of Commerce which, as I understand it, is supposed to watch out for the interests of the local business owners.
The Chambers of Commerce are supposed to promote the business interests of their members, help promote the community for tourism and other outside sources of revenue, and assist in the beautification of their community.
Typically, the chamber of commerce is tied in with the economic development associations and both have a streamline to government grants and other funding. Not sure why the citizens in these communities feel like they have to abandon or supplement existing organizations. ( ? )
I don’t have any answers or really even any speculations as to the grassroots organizations that seem to be popping up around the country but it will be interesting to follow and see how this impacts our small towns.