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Anacortes CommunicatorA Newsletter of the Anacortes Chamber of Commerce

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Volume 16 / Issue 11 November President’s Luncheon willfeature Island Hospital project update

Acting Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors President Vince Oliver will switch over to his “CEO hat” Thursday, November 9 when he delivers an Island Hospital expansion project update and addresses issues currently impacting healthcare. Make plans now to attend this informative presentation at the Salvation Army Anacortes Corps, 3001 “R” Avenue. The lunch meeting begins at 11:30.

Call the Chamber at 293-7911 to make res-

Vince Oliver, CEO of Island Hospital.

Upstage to host Business After HoursContrary to local mythology, you CAN

buy socks in Anacortes. Socks – and a whole lot more – at 28-year-old Upstage Boutique and Men’s Store, 520 Commercial Avenue.

Upstage, owned by Anne Smith, will host the Business After Hours Thursday, November 16, from 5:30 to 7 p.m. The following day, Upstage will host a pre-holiday Open House (November 17 and 18), featuring a storewide discount of 30 percent. Anne will offer Business After Hours guests a

special opportunity to score early on Open House deals! As always, the evening event will feature refreshments and hors d’oeuvres. Bring your business cards, too, for net-working opportunities as well as a chance to win a door prize.

To help our host with preparations, please reserve your spot today with a tele-phone call to the Chamber of Commerce at 293-7911.

ervations. Reservations are an important courtesy to provide the information weneed for our caterer. If you need to cancel a reservation, you must do so at least 24 hours in advance to avoid full billing. In addition to the program, there will be door prizes, introduction of new members and, as always, an opportunity to meet other business people and exchange business cards.

Island Hospital, known for a big-hospital range of services in a small acute-care facil-ity, will host the November President’s Lun-cheon. The hospital also manages Family Care Clinics in Anacortes and on Lopez Is-land, all under the auspices of Skagit County

Public Hospital District No. 2, serving western

Skagit County, North Whidbey Island and the San Juan Islands. Island Hospital was recently named one of the nation’s top per-formance-improvement leader hospitals.

Island Hospitalhosts luncheon

November 2006November 2Ambassador Luncheon 11:45Chandler’s Square

November 9President’s Luncheon, 11:30 a.m.Salvation Army Bldg, 3001 “R” Avenue

November 14Destination Downtown AnacortesBoard Meeting, 4:00 p.m. at the Chamber

November 16Business After Hours, 5:30 - 7 p.m.Upstage Boutique and Men’s Store

November 17Finance/Executive Committee10:00 a.m. at the Chamber

November 21Board Meeting3:45 p.m.

November 28VIC meeting9:00 a.m. at the Chamber

Planter pots in the downtown business district will undergo a fall planting on Sunday, November 12 at 1 p.m. If you would like to assume a volunteer role in keep-ing Anacortes beautiful, come on down. All that is needed is a willingness to play in the dirt.

Play in dirt, helpto beautify city

The Chamber held its annual Retreat on Tuesday, October 18. The focus of the meeting was to involve Board members—both current and incoming—in strategic

planning and to set goals for 2007. We also discussed ways to update and invigo-rate our committee structure. Tentative goals for next year center on four areas: (1) membership; (2) economic develop-ment and govern-mental affairs; (3)

the Chamber Board; and (4) marketing and promotions. What do these goals mean and what can our members expect to see over the next year? • We will more clearly communicate membership benefi ts, publish a member-ship directory, and provide a quarterly orientation for our members.

• We will develop a strong business community “voice,” surveying members on specifi c issues and producing related position papers, and conducting quarterly forums on specifi c topics of interest. • We will improve the training, educa-tion, and orientation of our Board mem-bers. • We will take a hard look at our mar-keting programs, including events, mea-suring effectiveness, reviewing structure, improving our message and web capabil-ity. • We will initiate a blog through our website that can be used by members to discuss items of common interest. In addition, we will also be looking at reducing the number of committees, consolidating into a divisional structure. Tentative divisions are Membership, Economic Development/Governmental Affairs, Executive/Finance, and Marketing & Promotions. Each Board member will be account-able to at least one division. Each division

A Message from the Acting President

Board of Directors establishes 2007 goals at retreat

Vince Oliver

Tourism Marketing

By Steve BerentsonIt was exciting to receive a recent issue

of the “Northwest Prime Time” publica-tion, and to see the name of Anacortes on the front page. Inside the publication’s 5th Annual Best Places to Retire issue was a wonderful feature story about our island community. Although the issue was focused on re-tirement, we had accepted the opportunity to provide photographs and information for the article. It is our belief at the Cham-ber of Commerce that we should contrib-ute to all media projects that spotlight

will have appropriate committees under-neath that umbrella (each of the events, for example, would be a committee within the Marketing & Promotions division). We expect to continue our work identi-fi ed at the retreat and will fi nalize our goals and governance structure at our November board meeting. Our thanks to Mike Bruggeman for his assistance in facilitating our Retreat. I encourage you to attend the Presi-dent’s Luncheon on November 9, at which I will be updating members on the Island Hospital building project and issues facing healthcare. I also encourage you to experience “Taste Anacortes” on November 8, a new monthly restaurant event initiated by the Chamber. As always, I can be reached at 299-1300 or voliver@islandhospital.org. Have a wonderful month and thank you for your continued support of the Cham-ber.

Vince Oliver

Anacortes and plant the seed for an initial visit. We believe it’s hard to “meet” this community without a creating a subse-quent desire to invest more time in the new “relationship.” We want to be at the top of people’s lists of Northwest “friends” they choose to visit on weekends, holidays and vacations. The Northwest Prime Time story, which included an interview with the Nick and Suzie Alpin family of Anacortes, served the purpose of describing our community’s assets and planting a seed of

curiosity for those who have yet to visit. We will continue to pursue and respond to media projects that shine a light on our community. Following is an excerpt from the Northwest Prime Time article: “In our 5th Annual Best Places to Re-tire issue, Northwest Prime Time features a delightful trio of retirement havens tucked alongside picturesque inlets on Puget Sound. Here you can read about An-acortes, Port Ludlow, and Port Townsend, along with profi les of retired couples who

Chamber cultivates opportunities to spotlight our city

(Continued on page fi ve)

Member Profi le

It has been 20 years since members of the Cortez family established El Jinéte Mexican Restaurant behind a fl orist shop in the 5th Street block of Commercial Avenue. The business, which expanded and fl ourished after moving into the space previously occupied by the fl orist shop, is owned by Simon Cortez, father of Adolfo Cortez. “We are a family business,” said Adolfo. “We got our experience work-ing at the El Cazador in Oak Harbor after moving here from Los Angeles in 1983.” That business was owned by an aunt. When Simon opened his own restaurant in Anacortes, working partners included his son and his wife, Gretchen. Also working at El Jinéte is Adolfo’s sister Yesenia, who

married into the long-established Anacortes business family of Mike Demopoulos. Adolfo is grate-ful for a supportive local clientele, especially in winter months. He said the Cortez family strives to meet the desires of diners, noting by way of example that cook-ing is done in corn oil as opposed to lard as is traditional in Mexican cuisine.

“We try hard to accommodate our customers, cooking from scratch with fresh ingredients, toning down spices and things like that,” he said. El Jinéte is open seven days a week, with a separate lounge called “the Can-tina.”

In addition to family, El Jinéte em-ploys local youths on a staff that ranges in size from about eight to 15. Adolfo notes that one of his staffers has worked at the restaurant for six years, since he was a 16-year-old at Anacortes High School.

El Jinéte MexicanRestaurante y Cantina

El Jinéte Restaurante y Cantina is located at 509 Commercial Avenue.

The Chamber of Commerce hosted a Summit on September 29 involving City, Port, Schools, Hospital, and varied busi-ness leadership. The intent of the meeting was to foster improved communication between various constituencies throughout the City. Points of common concern focused on staffi ng is-sues, affordable housing, and the Interna-tional Ferry run, among others. It was agreed that the Chamber would initiate follow-up with local legislators and that the Summit would be a recurring event.

Chamber hostsleadership summit

This Christmas season will be packed full of Rockwellian celebrations.

We invite you to come down to the Chamber building (819 Commercial Avenue) for the Christmas Tree LightingChristmas Tree Lightingon Friday, December 1. This program starts at 5:45 p.m. with the Anacortes High School Band, and continues with a program that includes performances by the Mt. Erie and Fidalgo elementary schools and the High School Choir. After the celebration, children are welcome to visit with Santa and have their pictures taken in the Chamber foyer.

The Chamber Holiday Art WalkChamber Holiday Art Walk is from Chamber Holiday Art Walk is from Chamber Holiday Art Walk6 to 9 p.m. on December 1, and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on December 2. Stroll through downtown and enjoy this popular event.

Free Horse and Carriage ridesHorse and Carriage rides are back!

Every Saturday from Thanksgiving to Christmas the carriage will be stationed at a downtown business from noon to 4:30 p.m. This year’s sponsors are Cheesecake Creations, Donatello, Burton Jewelers, Upstage Boutique and Men’s Store, and the Majestic Inn and Spa.

The Chamber sponsors the beautiful

white tree lights on downtown Commer-cial Avenue each year. Chamber member businesses are en-couraged to enhance the spectacular and festive holiday look in Anacortes by par-ticipating in the white light and window white light and window display contestdisplay contest. Lights and displays need to be in place by Tuesday, November 28. Winners re-ceive a coupon for a fl yer insertion in the Chamber newsletter ($50 value). To enter the contest, please fi ll out an applica-

Upcoming events will help to make holidays brighttion at the Chamber business offi ce, 819 Commercial, Suite F, before November 24.

Caught in the Actof Doing Business

Caught in the Act of Doing Busi-ness recently at Island Adventures Check-in Center and Gift Shop was Sam Cole, displaying a holiday hint for gift certifi cates. Island Adven-tures is located at 1801 Commercial Avenue. Business owner is Shane Aggergaard.

Mark moved to Anacortes from Fairfi eld, Connecticut in January of 2004. Having spent over 20 years in the world of fashion running three top intimate apparel

companies in Los An-geles and New York City, Mark oversaw the design, produc-tion, and marketing of merchandise at all retail levels from Walmart to Neiman Marcus. The world of apparel afforded Mark the opportu-nity to travel more than 100,000 miles a

year throughout Asia, Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Eastern and Western Europe, and Latin America and gave him a good prespective on what people desired when traveling at different hospitality properties.

When Mark decided to leave corporate America and began looking for alterna-tive business opportunities, he focused on various hospitality properties in the Pacifi c Northwest. After spending a number of years investigating coastal properties in Oregon and Washington, Mark was delighted to fi nd such a jewel in the Pacifi c Northwest as Anacortes because of its natural beauty, its beautiful surrounding water, and its proximity to Seattle and Vancouver, B.C. When not greeting visitors to Ana-cortes at the Cap Sante Inn, Mark is passionate about sailing, cooking, music, running, dancing, going to the opera and theater in Seattle, and taking long walks with his constant companion, Elly. Over the next year, Mark and Elly hope to spend time exploring more of Fidalgo and the other San Juan Islands as well as the rest of the beautiful state of Washing-ton.

Mark Lione

Ambassadors Corner

SpecialThanks to...

The following businesses added to the excite-ment of the October Business After Hours with their generous donations of door prizes:

Anacortes Window and Door Catering á la King Elisabeth’s Cottage by the Sea Maison et Jardin Mark Nilson Mortgage Consultant Pacifi c Design Seaside Autobody and Accessories Whidbey Island Bank And these businesses donated door prizes at the Business Connections event: Hampton Inn & Suites Anacortes Soo Bahk Do Mark Nilson Mortgage Consultant ORCA Information Airporter Shuttle/Bellair Charters

DonatelloDonatelloHoliday OpenHoliday Open HouseHouse

Friday, November 3, 6 - 9 p.m.Saturday, November 4, 9 a.m. - 6 p.m.Sunday, November 5, 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.

20% off storewide!

702 Commercial Ave. www.donatellofl owersandgifts.com

(Sale does not apply to fl owers)

Mark Lione

Member RenewalsNew Members

Member News NotesBluewater Wireless nameda Verizon Wireless dealer Bluewater Wireless, with stores in Lyn-den, Ferndale, Anacortes and Burlington, has been named a Verizon Wireless dealer. “Verizon Wireless has the most reliable wireless network nationwide,” said Sandy Knutzen, co-owner of Bluewater Wireless. “We’re honored that Verizon Wireless has chosen us.” Customers now may choose from a variety of Verizon Wireless packages, including two wireless broadband ser-vices: BroadbandAccess and V CAST. BroadbandAccess is the company’s high-speed wireless broadband network, geared toward mobile professionals and business customers. It now covers more than half the popu-lation of the United States. V CAST is the nation’s fi rst broadband multimedia service for consumers, offering music and video content on demand. Bluewater Wireless also offers Nextel and Sprint cellular phones and service plans, Dish Network satellite television and Clearwire wireless broadband. Blue-water Wireless provides headsets, memory cards, Bluetooth-capable devices and other accessories. The Anacortes branch (293-7663) is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. weekdays and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturdays at 1516 Com-mercial Avenue. For more information, visit www.cellularhero.com.

CompuMatterWeb and graphics design, hosting and printing, computer training and repair, classes and networksJay Leporé619 Commercial Avenue, Suite 2BAnacortes, WA 98221(360) 419-4153www.compumatter.com

West MarineSupplies for boating, watersports, fi sh-ing, clothing, shoes, infl atable boats, kayaks, electronicsJane Love918 Commercial AvenueAnacortes, WA 98221293-4262www.westmarine.com

Zap Pro Lube & BrakesFast, friendly, thorough auto service and repair. Oil changes, muffl ers, tune-ups, starters, radiators. Com-plimentary wash and vacuum with service.Joey Goss1014 – 26th StreetAnacortes, WA 98221

Allied RealtorsAnacortesHomes.com/Preview PropertiesBiz Point CommunicationsCamelot CoffeeChandler’s SquareGuemes Island Resort

Pat MooneySan Juan Spas & BilliardsSan Juan VineyardsSkagit Valley Occupational MedicineStrawberry Bay Coffee CompanyWells Fargo Home Mortgage

Direct benefi tsfor members

In partnership with theAnacortes American, theChamber of Commerce is

pleased to announce the launch of a membership directory

to be available in early 2007. Staff from the American will

contact you soon forlisting information.

Holiday Art WalksThe November Gallery Walk is Friday,

Nov. 3 from 6 - 9 p.m. Participating galleries include: Anne Martin McCool Gallery; Keystone Center for the Arts: (the following businesses will be open at the Center: Elisabeth’s Cottage by the Sea, Jay Lepore Studio, Zeta Wolf, Lorraine Beegle, and Alice Kapka Studio). Also participating are Insights Gallery; Digital Art Moments (the gallery presents “Thanks for the Memories” by various art-ists); Adrift; Scott Milo Gallery; Star Bar; Johnny Picasso’s; Gallery at the Depot; Bowman Gallery. And don’t forget the Chamber Holiday Art Walk, scheduled from 6 to 9 p.m. on December 1, and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on December 2. Stroll through downtown and enjoy this popular event.

relocated to these quintessentially North-west maritime towns.” The article noted that all three com-munities lie in the “rain shadow” created by the Olympic Mountains. It included a quote from an Anacortes Chamber of Commerce Visitor Information Center volunteer, who said, “Average rainfall in Anacortes is just enough to encourage growth of forests and lovely fl owers.”

Marketing...(Continued from page two)

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25th & Q St./ Anacortes, WA 98221 / 299-0990

Visit us on the web at www.anacortes.org

AnacortesChamber of Commerce819 Commercial Ave., Suite FAnacortes, WA 98221

Chamber Offi cers

VIC Statistics

The Chamber and the Anacortes

American are sponsoring

“Taste Anacortes.”

Twelve local restaurants will partici-

pate in the inaugural event, to be held on

Wednesday, November 8. Subsequent

“Tastings” will be held on the second

Wednesday of each month. The format:

participating restaurants will be split into participating restaurants will be split into

two routes. Diners will visit six restaurants, two routes. Diners will visit six restaurants,

enjoying deliciousenjoying delicious hors d’oeuvres and/or

dessert. Those diners visiting all of the res-Those diners visiting all of the res-

taurants on their route will be eligible to win taurants on their route will be eligible to win

dinner for two at a participating restaurant. dinner for two at a participating restaurant.

Ticket cost: $20 (See fl yer insert)

Delicious EventThank you, volunteers

September 2006Visitors 2,235 (2,318 - 2005)

Phone Calls 771 (833 - 2005)

Information Requests 60 (107 - 2005)

Relocation Request 37 (52 - 2005)

Web Sessions 38,084 (25,737 - 2005)

Executive BoardActing President

Vince Oliver / Island HospitalActing President-Elect

Robin Pestarino / AllData ShreddingTreasurer

Nate Scott / Windermere Real EstateImmediate Past President

Pam Allen / Anaco Inn/Anaco Bay Inn

Board of DirectorsChris Borgen / Anacortes School District

Zee Hogan / Maison et Jardin

Mike King* / City of Anacortes

Pat Meyer / Viking Moving Services

John Pope / Tesoro Refi ning & Marketing Co.

Peter Steffen / ABC Yacht Charters

Bob Hyde* / Port of Anacortes

Dave Storkson / San Juan Lanes & Stork’s

Nels Strandberg / Strandberg Construction

Carol Van Iterson / Horizon Bank

Graeme Wilson / Cap Sante Marine

Thomas Wood* / Shell Puget Sound Refi nery

Michael Stolmeier* / Smugglers Villa Resort

* Ex-offi cio

StaffExecutive DirectorMitch EvertonEvents Coordinator

Stephanie Hamilton

LicensingSub-agents

Kristi DanielsKathleen Mitchell

Newsletter EditorSteve Berentson