January - Commerce Lexington

Commerce Lexington Inc. reachednew heights in 2006“Commerce Lexington Inc. has madehuge strides in recent years, and 2006was no different. While each yearbecomes more pivotal than the last, thispast year produced great momentum thatwill certainly carry us to 2010 and beyond.Beginning with our Annual Dinnerearly in the year and right through ourOklahoma City Leadership Visit in Juneand subsequent Regional Strategic Doinggroups, participation in CommerceLexington Inc. and throughout thiscommunity has reach new heights. Itcertainly shows how strongly you feelabout the success of the Bluegrass.Meanwhile, membership andsponsorship levels are at their highest inrecent memory, reinforcing the value thatCommerce Lexington Inc. programs andevents have produced for membercompanies. The 2006 Winner's Circleprogram was a huge success thanks tothe leadership of National City PresidentHarry Richart and our wonderfulvolunteers.Commerce Lexington Inc. continuedto be at the forefront advocating on behalfJOE KELLY2006 CHAIRMANCOMMERCELEXINGTON INC.Future bright for CommerceLexington Inc. and community“Involvement and participation areeverything to an organization likeCommerce Lexington Inc. As a youngerbusiness owner many years ago, Irecognized the value of the GreaterLexington Chamber of Commerce, but Ialso realized that the benefit that I receivedfrom the chamber was directly correlatedto what I put into it. So, I immersed myselfinto the organization as a volunteer andattended many events.Today, Commerce Lexington Inc. hasevolved into a full-service business supportentity capable of providing everything fromfinancing and site selection to marketingopportunities to educational programs. Ithas taken a leadership role in representingbusiness in government and the areas ofminority business development andworkforce development.I believe wholeheartedly in thisorganization's efforts to help thiscommunity move forward. One specificregional effort that you'll hear me talkabout time and again in 2007 is ourRegional Strategic Doing initiative, whichhit its stride during last year's LeadershipGUY A. HUGUELET, III2007 CHAIRMANCOMMERCELEXINGTON INC.4SEE “NEW HEIGHTS” ON PAGE 16 SEE “FUTURE” ON PAGE 16Members-In-BriefLexTran surpasses milestone passengerboarding figure during October 2006For the first time in its history, the Transit Authority ofLexington (LexTran) reported passenger boardings inexcess of 300,000 during the month of October 2006. Atotal of 333,541 passenger boardings were recorded andthe number continues a steady increase in ridershipduring Fiscal Year 2006-2007, which began July 1, 2006.LexTran General Manager Terry Garcia Crews said, "Thisnumber translates to a daily average of 11,000 passengerboardings, nearly twice the monthly average of less thantwo years ago." Enhanced routes and new services havegrown LexTran's service area by 50-percent since passageof the 2004 property tax referendum, which fundsLexTran.ISBO.biz meeting is January 8, 2007ISBO.biz, a group of Independent/Small BusinessOwners, meets at noon on the second Monday of eachmonth at Golden Buffet on Richmond Road. Theluncheon cost is $9. The January 8 guest speaker is NickRice, of the Cre8tive Group, who will talk about mailingsocial media, including blogs, YouTube and usergeneratedcontent. To RSVP, contact Kathie Stamps atkstamps@isbo.biz.JANUARY 2007Submit MEMBERS-IN-BRIEF notices tomturner@CommerceLexington.com byJanuary 11 for the February 2007 issue ofBUSINESS FOCUS.