COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL May 6, 2015
CHAMBER NEWSLETTER
CHAMBER NEWS
Travis Palmer,
Executive Director
Note from the
Director
The school year is almost over and that
means “Event Season” is just getting
started in Cottage Grove. The line-up
for this season of Concerts in the Park
has just been fi nalized and it promises
plenty of variety and talent. Events like
the Oregon Gran Fondo, Tri at the Grove
and Cycle the lakes will all be back again
and we expect them to be bigger and
better than ever. We also have some new
events coming this year. The Culpepper
& Merriweather Circus will be here later
this month thanks to our local Kiwanis
Clubs. A new Disc Golf Tournament is
also being organized that will bring an
outdoor recreation themed “block party”
to our Historic Downtown and in July, the
Oregon Mayor’s Conference is making a
return trip to Cottage Grove after only 5
years since the last time they chose to come
here for their annual gathering. Of course
we’ll still have Bohemia Mining Days, a
rodeo, the Western Oregon Heritage Expo
and Timber Show along with lots and
lots of action packed racing hosted by
Cottage Grove Speedway, which is one
of the fastest quarter-mile dirt tracks in
the northwest! ArtWalk continues to get
better each month, and we’ll also see some
new versions of familiar events such as the
Grower’s Market on 10th Street and the
Oregon Covered Bridge Festival who have
both been working hard on their strategic
plans for growth and renewal.
In addition to events, you’re also going to
start seeing some developmental changes
around Cottage Grove. Several building
and property owners have expressed
plans to make improvements such as
painting, façade repairs, and other overdue
improvements. A fantastic playground
will soon be installed at Bohemia Park
and the stage cover will soon go back up
at the amphitheater. You may have even
noticed that work has already begun on
improvements to the Row River Trail
which will include a tunnel under the
highway to eliminate the most dangerous
crossing of the highway and signifi cant
improvements to safety and visibility at 3
other crossings. You can also expect to see
groundbreakings and new activity at some
of our local industrial and commercial
properties so stay tuned for announcements
of ribbon cuttings and new job postings in
the months ahead.
If you have any interest in keeping up
with all of the news and activity that is
taking place in Cottage Grove, I encourage
you to take advantage of the many low
or no cost sources for fi nding local news
and information. Obviously, the Sentinel
is a clear choice for local news, and for
those who may not be able to afford a
subscription, a free copy is available to
read in the Cottage Grove library. KNND
Radio AM1400 is always entertaining and
they have a morning news and calendar
segment followed by the Beeper Show at
9am which will keep you informed about
local issues. The City of Cottage Grove
and the Chamber of Commerce both have
FREE weekly email newsletters that anyone
can sign up to receive, and TEAM Cottage
Grove also has an electronic and printed
newsletter called “Around the Grove” that
is available to anyone who would like to
receive it. For internet users, the Chamber
of Commerce has a local event calendar
available for anyone in the community
to read or post events on, and the City’s
website has regularly updated postings
of their public meetings and events. You
can also look for public meeting notices in
designated areas at the Community Center
and City Hall and there is even news on the
back of your Cottage Grove water bill. If
you prefer Facebook, the Sentinel, KNND,
City of Cottage Grove, and the Chamber
of Commerce each have their own pages
that I would encourage you to follow and
South Lane Fire and Rescue even has their
own Twitter feed.
Travis Palmer, Executive Director
Cottage Grove Area Chamber of Commerce
Ribbon Cutting/Grand
Opening
Join us Thursday, May 7th, 12:00 noon to
help welcome Michele Savage to Cottage
Grove and help Grove Medical Equipment
celebrate the opening of their store - offering
home respiratory, medical equipment and
supplies. Grove Medical Equipment is located
at 148 Gateway Blvd. in the Gateway Plaza
between Papa Murphy’s and the DMV.
Forum – Google
Analytics 101
Google analytics can provide an invaluable
service to anyone who manages a website.
Learn how to create a Google analytics
account, embed the code and track the traffi c
on your website. This forum will provide
information about the reports generated in
Google Analytics, how to drill down into the
data and use that data to drive decisions on
website development.
This forum, held on May 13 from 6-9pm
at Lane Community College Cottage Grove
campus, will be presented in a classroom
setting. Participants can bring a laptop if they
wish. This is a lecture style presentation with
lots of opportunities for Q&A. The instructor
has been teaching technology classes since
2001 and has utilized Google Analytics
professionally to improve client websites for
several years. She designed and has continued
to update this workshop for the past three
years. This forum has been modifi ed to speak
specifi cally to business owners using Analytics
with a commercial based website, however the
information is easily transferred to information
based websites as well.
The cost for Cottage Grove and Creswell
Chamber members is $10 per person, non-
chamber member participants $25 per person.
Please RSVP to beth@cgchamber.com
Now Seeking Nominations
for Yard of the Week
The 18th season of Yard of the Week will be
starting on May 8th. So be on the lookout for
those members of the community who deserve
recognition for their efforts to beautify the
community. Single family residences within
the City of Cottage Grove are eligible for the
award. To encourage more participation and
recognize more homes within the community,
all recipients of the Yard of the Week must
wait two years before receiving the award
again. In addition to the attractive Yard of the
Week sign in their yard, the recipients of the
award also receive a credit for a free month
of water from the City and a gift certifi cate
from the Chamber of Commerce good at local
businesses. Phone or email the address you
wish to nominate to info@cgchamber.com, or
cityrecorder@cottagegrove.org, or call 541-
942-5501.
2015 Visitor Center Stats
Phone calls
Walk-In Visitors
Relocate Requests
Visitor Requests
Referrals to Chamber Members
3/26 Thru 4/29
242
294
1
3
102
YTD
1070
1306
10
20
431
1660
5193
1802
172
1938
882
51
36
3710
14419
6678
728
5342
2160
189
129
2015 Website Stats
Business Directory Searches
Members Listed in Results
Member Page Views
Links to Member Website
Event Searches
Event Page Hits
Hot Deal Searches
Job Searches
What do these numbers mean?
Business Directory Searches: Th is number refl ects how the chamber website has been used to
search for business in Cottage Grove.
Members Listed in Results: Th is number indicates exposure to chamber member businesses
through the chamber website. It displays the number of times
member’s listings were displayed in the search results.
Member Page Views: Th is number indicates the number of times the chamber member information
page has been viewed on the chamber website.
Links to Member Website: Th is number indicates the number of times a chamber member’s own
website link was clicked.
Event Searches: Th is number refl ects how the chamber website has been used to search for events in
Cottage Grove.
Event Page Hits: Th is number indicates how many times event pages have been viewed no matter by
who, or how many times they view it.
Hot Deal Searches: Hot Deals are coupons created by chamber members and posted on the website.
Th ese numbers refl ect how coupons are being searched for.
Job Searches: Chamber members can post job openings on the website. Th is number refl ects how
many times the website has been used to search for job posting.
Chamber Members! Give us a call if you want to learn how to maximize your presence on our
website:
• Enhance your home page information with pictures and text
• Post hot deals, job openings, and events
• Add keywords to help consumers fi nd you when they run searches
• Run reports to see statistics for your home page
2015 Chamber Board of Directors,
Advisors and Staff
Cottage Grove Area Chamber of Commerce
700 E. Gibbs • Cottage Grove, OR
info@cgchamber.com • www.cgchamber.com
P. (541) 942-2411 • F. 888-832-2045
2015 Chamber Board of Directors: Thank you for your hours upon hours of volunteer time,
commitment, and service!
Offi cers
Tiffany Thackara, President
Emerald Valley Resort Event Center
Joe Raade, President Elect
South Lane County Fire & Rescue
Paul Tocco, Vice President
Busterʼs Main Street Cafe
Amanda Akers, Treasurer
Commonwealth Financial Network
Tim Wilson, Past President
Universal Trucking
Directors
Lorraine Eriksen
Sheri Henry
Lindsay Laycock
Jennifer Radcliffe
Linda Schmale
Candace Solesbee
John Trombly
Don Williams
Rhonda Worley
Cottage Grove Souvenirs
Banner Bank
City of Cottage Grove
South Valley Athletics
Retired, Past Board President
Shampoo Dolls Salon
Fort Rock Construction
Retired, Past Board President
CJW, LLC
Advisors
Tim Herrmann
Richard Meyers
Mayor Tom Munroe
Krista Parent
Darby Valley
PeaceHealth Cottage Grove Community Medical Center
City of Cottage Grove
City of Cottage Grove
South Lane School District
Cottage Grove Community Acupuncture
Visitor Center Volunteers:
Heidi Abbott, Susan Jeppesen, Sunny Kennedy, Donna Laney, Chieko Tomasulo,
Jim Vander Platt, Judd Van Gorder, Sharon Van Gorder, Sherry Wendt , Penny
Westling, Nolene Wheeler.
Staff:
Travis Palmer
Beth Martin
Jennifer Violette
Executive Director
Offi ce Manager
Bookkeeper
9A