Chamber moving downtown

SANDPOINT — The Greater Sandpoint Chamber of Commerce’s board of directors decided Thursday to relocate its headquarters and visitor’s center to downtown Sandpoint.

In late November, the chamber will move from its Highway 95 location to the former Panhandle State Bank building, now known as the PSB Community Plaza. For now, the organization plans on keeping its Highway 95 location as a seasonal visitor’s center, with the possibility of moving it to Ponderay as a satellite center. Chamber officials are talking with Ponderay Mayor Carol Kunzeman, as well as officials from the Ponderay Community Development Corporation, about future plans.

According to executive director Amy Little, the costs of maintaining the current location have become more than the chamber’s budget can bear.

“The chamber office and the visitor’s center are two separate entities, and without the financial support of the chamber, the visitor’s center would cease to exist,” she said.

Little says that the visitor’s center operates in the red each year, and has been increasing its strain on the chamber’s finances. Though the chamber owns the building, general maintenance costs are over and above what the organization can reasonably pay in rent.

 “We do not receive any public funds to maintain our location,” she said. “The only money we receive from the state is our annual tourism grant, though those funds are earmarked specifically for the promotion of tourism in the greater Sandpoint area.”

Little said the greatest expense is the maintenance of the grounds, which is leased from the Idaho Transportation Department. The building is aging and is in need of expensive repairs and upgrades, including a new roof over 50 percent of the building.

“The time was right to look at other alternatives and, fortunately, Panhandle State Bank was looking at ways to fill up their original building, now housing only their drive-through banking operations,” Little said.

According to Michael Whitley, Property/Project Manager for Panhandle State Bank, the corporation planned to turn the building into a place for non-profit and for-profit businesses to lease space and foster better relationships and communication among non-profits and their stake holders, many of them small business owners in the community.

“On behalf of the shareholders and employees of Panhandle State Bank, we welcome the Sandpoint chamber as a new tenant of PSB Community Plaza,” said Whitley. “We are looking forward to the positive contribution that PSB Community Plaza and the Sandpoint chamber will provide for the downtown Sandpoint community.”

With its proximity to Farmin Park as well as the number of events held downtown, the Little believes the new location will serve more visitors and increase the chamber’s ability to promote the entire area better than ever before.

According to Kathy Hubbard, the Chamber’s chairman of the board, the move will take place during the week of Thanksgiving to minimize the impact to the businesses and the community. The Chamber estimates that operations will be shut down for no more than a day or two and will be up and running the Monday after the holiday.