SEPTEMBER 2017

The Voice of Business www.casagrandechamber.org Volume 34, Issue 9

2017 Chamber Board of Directors

Chairman of the Board Veronica Morton

Vantage West Credit Union

First Vice Chair Diann Prechel A Latte Vino

Second Vice Chair Bob Laukonis

My Golden Era

Treasurer Mari Diaz

Walmart Distribution Center #7013

Past Chairman of the Board Rona Curphy

Banner Casa Grande Medical Center

Jan Hobbs Jan Hobbs Agency

American Family Insurance

Adam Vetter AMS Insurance

Monica Kenny Culver’s of Casa Grande

Jennifer Murrieta Casa Grande Elementary

School District

Nancy H. Rigas Pinguis Custom Maid Service

Carol D’souza Pride Workforce Solutions,

LLC

Mohammad “Moh” Saleh Salt River Project

Ole Solberg Solberg Engineering

Terry Strain Western State Bank

Craig McFarland Mayor of Casa Grande

www.facebook.com/cgbiz

www.visitcasagrandeaz.info

SOLD OUT FOR EXHIBITORS - Open to the public to attend - $5 per person

Greater Casa Grande Chamber of Commerce presents...

Chamber Award Nominations - How About YOUR Business?

Since 1991, the Chamber has recognized business professionals for Community Service, Business Leadership and induction into the Chamber’s Hall of Fame. Last year, the Business Leader Award was changed to the Excellence in Business, recognizing businesses in two cate-gories: 1-20 employees and 21 or more employees. Excellence in Business was established to recognizes a business, not an individual, that has demonstrated success and growth; commu-nity involvement; leadership development; dedication to employees and commitment to cus-tomer service. In addition to the Excellence in Business nominations, the chamber is seeking nominations of individuals for the 2017 Community Service Award and individuals for induction into the Chamber’s Hall of Fame. Click here for a list of Past Awards recipients. Membership in the Greater Casa Grande Chamber of Commerce, is a requirement for all three categories. Nomination criteria is also available on the chamber website and at the chamber office. Deadline to return completed nominations by Friday, October 20, 2017. Those making nomina-tions are encouraged to include letters of support and materials to enhance the nomination. Awards will be presented at the Chamber’s Annual Dinner on Friday, January 5, 2018.

2017 Chairman of the Board Veronica Morton, Vantage West Credit Union As we prepare for our “busy” season, I would like to let you know about the chamber’s other “busy” season - the first part of this year. The chamber is busy all year long, providing marketing, networking and information-sharing tools with its members. Communication is key for the chamber and our email database now includes more than 950 business representatives who receive the cham-

ber’s monthly E-Newsletter as well as frequent electronic notifications about upcoming pro-grams, events and items of interest to the business community, in the form of e-blasts and the chamber Facebook page, www.facebook.com/cgbiz. Our annual high-quality reference guide, the 2017 Greater Casa Grande Chamber of Com-merce Directory/Community Book, was received by the chamber in January; by June 30, we had already distributed 15,846 directories of the 20,000 copies printed. The chamber’s 2017-2018 Casa Grande Street Map and our 2017-2018 Tourism Map of Pinal County (printed every two years) were both received in June. The chamber applied for and received matching funds for regional rural tourism marketing from the Arizona Office of Tourism with our regional partners, City of Casa Grande, Pinal Coun-ty, Florence Chamber/City of Florence, Coolidge Chamber of Commerce and Casa Grande Main Street. In the next year, tourism in Pinal County will have an enhanced presence through digital and print media. The chamber offers big annual events, networking programs and information luncheons and workshops each year. Remember, you get out of your chamber membership what you put into it. For more information, read your monthly E-Newsletter or visit www.casagrandechamber.org.

Board Nominating Committee appointed

The Chamber Board Nominating Committee has been appointed. Veronica Morton, Van-tage West Credit Union; Rona Curphy, Banner Casa Grande Medical Center and Colleen Bechtel, Keller Williams Legacy One Realty will meet in early September to develop a slate of candidates to propose for election to the 2018 Board of Directors.

W E D N E S D A Y

OCTOBER 11, 2017

5:00 pm - 7:30 pm

The Property Conference Center 1251 W. Gila Bend Hwy., CG

Page 2

September 2017

Bountyful Creations LLC PO Box 11861, Casa Grande, AZ 85130

480-558-6895 blessed_child2001@yahoo.com / www.bountyfulcreations.com

Hello everyone! Bountyful Creations is a wedding/event plan-ning company. We plan from birthday parties to weddings and all other events. Contact us today for your free consultation. We would love to make your wedding or event unforgettable.

Deadlift Brew & Shakes

PO Box 10851, Casa Grande, AZ 85130 520-705-1879

deadliftbrew@outlook.com / http://www.deadliftbrews.com/

Gourmet coffee & shake mobile trailer with full-service coffee bar; also serving healthy & dessert shakes, and acai bowls. Book us for special events, employee & customer apprecia-tion days. Menu, catering prices, and schedule can be located on website or social media. Check us out at one of our up-coming events. La Cocina Truck Festival, Rockin Taco Street Fest.

Integrated Community Management Service (ICMS)

442 W. Kortsen Rd., Ste. 202 , Casa Grande, AZ 85122 480-659-8400

tiffany@icmsaz.com / https://www.facebook.com/icmsaz/

ICMS is not just a management company, it's the beginning of a special relationship where homeowners, board members and management come together to build something incredi-ble. WE take the dread out of the HOA's as we engage, em-brace & inspire endless possibilities, taking your community to places it's never been before!

Limitless Events, LLC 1004 N. Promenade Pkwy., Ste. 119, Casa Grande, AZ 85194

507-363-1521 limitlesseventsllc@gmail.com / www.limitlesseventsllc.com

Limitless Events is a local event planning agency that has been in business for 4-years with a venue at The Promenade Mall in Casa Grande. We have a weekly Indoor Market every Friday from 10 am - 7 pm with different vendors each week. Our venue is available for birthday parties, baby showers, and special events.

Getting to Know You submissions are availa-ble to ALL chamber members every 6-months as a FREE promotion of your business. Tell us what

your business is all about in 50-words or less. Fax: 520-836-6233 or

E-mail: events@casagrandechamber.org.

WHAT ARE YOU WAITING

FOR?

Sun Valley Church 2016 N. Pinal Ave., Casa Grande

Tuesday, September 19, 2017 Ribbon Cutting 3:30 pm

NEW Casa Grande Middle School and Saguaro Elementary School

300 W. McMurray Blvd., Casa Grande Wednesday, September 13, 2017

Groundbreaking ceremony, 9:30 am (See story, page 3)

...The fifth annual D.R.E.A.M. Fair will be held Tuesday, October 3, 2017 from 10:30 am to 1:00 pm for the general public, in the St. An-thony of Padua Community Center, 150 N. Drylake in Casa Grande. The event provides job networking opportunities for people with disa-bilities through Pinal and Gila Counties. The job fair is sponsored by Linkages, Cenpatico Integrated Care, Goodwill Industries of Southern Arizona, Achieve Human Services and RSA. For more information, contact Jeremiah Lopez at Linkages, 520-571-8600. ...Welcome Bernice Luna, Branch Manager of Vantage West Credit Union, 2008 E. Florence Blvd. 520-582-1300. ...Kinga Lennon is the new owner of Kinga’s Dry Cleaning, LLC, which was formerly known as Cobblestone Cleaners. It is located at 973 E. Cottonwood Ln., Ste. 111 in Casa Grande. For more infor-mation, call 520-233-6624. ...The City’s Casa Grande Arts & Humanities Commission is de-veloping its 2018-2022 Five Year Municipal Arts Plan and is seeking recommendations related to the arts in the form of visual or perform-ing-arts projects. For more information, contact City Clerk Gloria Leija before September 5th at 520-421-8600 or Gloria_leija@casagrandeaz.gov. …Explore the City of Casa Grande’s newly re-designed website, www.casagrandeaz.gov. ...AccessArizona is now Pinal Alliance for Economic Growth. The new website is www.pinalalliance.org and the contact email is info@pinalalliance.org. ...Las Brisas Apartments, 1000 N. Arizola Rd., has a new manager. Welcome to Shelly Campbell. ...The 2017 Honorees of the Valle del Sol Profiles of Success, include Louis Sanchez, General Manager of Walmart Distribution Center #7013 in Casa Grande. He initiated the “Mi Futuro” mentorship pro-gram at Casa Grande Middle School. ...The City of Casa Grande Community Services Department in-vites the community and their families to come out and play at the 10th Annual Day of Play on Friday, September 8 from 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm at Carr McNatt Park. All activities are free and open to the public. ...Advanced Energy Systems will host The Casa Grande Commer-cial Solar Forum Thursday, September 14 from 5:00 pm - 7:00 pm at BeDillon’s Restaurant & Cactus Garden. Four industry specialists will discuss the process of converting to solar and answer questions. For info or to RSVP for this event, call 602-358-9034 or 602-501-0787. ...Congratulations to Salt River Project, the only Arizona company to receive a 2017 Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Award for support of employees who also are members of the Nation-al Guard or Reserve.

Ribbon Cuttings, Open Houses & Ground Breakings

Building a Strong Business Community Thank you to the following members for re-investing

in the chamber and community. We appreciate your support!

Chamber Membership Renewals 8-01-17 to 8-28-17

A.C. Sanitation Service, LLC

ACCESS 24-7 Rodeo Storage

Achieve Human Services, Inc.

Adrenalin Motorsports

Advanced Energy Systems

Avon Products, LLC - Laurie P. Inselmann

Casa Grande Elementary School District

Central Arizona College

DECA - Vista Grande High School

Desert Rose Baha’i Institute

Farmers Insurance/The Abbott Agency

Global Water Resources

Heritage Motors

Hotspot Gymnastics & Cheer

K & M Distributing & Roofing Systems, Inc.

Kiwanis Club of Casa Grande, Inc.

La Palma Correctional Center

Long Realty

Mary Kay Cosmetics - Judy Kitching

Mission Heights Preparatory Public Charter High School

Norris RV

Ochoa’s Restaurant

Print & Pack Express/Casa Grande Signs

PROforma Casa Grande Embroidery

Red Rock Correctional Center

Robson Ranch Grill

Rusty’s Body Works, Inc.

Salt River Project

Sho-Ga Japanese Restaurant

Soslowsky Law Firm

The Sonoran Apartments

Transitional Living Center Recovery

Treasured Hands Massage Therapy

Walmart Distribution Center #7013

www.facebook.com/cgbiz https://twitter.com/cgazchamber

August 2017 new Chamber members

sjfinley@aol.com or 928-899-2313

Greater Casa Grande Chamber of Commerce

2017 Fall Golf Tournament Friday, November 3, 2017 - 8:00 am Shotgun

Location:

Francisco Grande Hotel and Golf Resort 12684 W. Gila Bend Hwy., Casa Grande 85193

Deadline to register is October 23, 2017.

For more information, contact Linda at the Chamber, 520-836-2125 or events@casagrandechamber.org

Ground Breaking Ceremony , September 13 – Reconstruction of Saguaro Elementary and Casa Grande Middle Schools

On Wednesday, September 13 at 9:30 am, school and district officials, students and community members will participate in a ground breaking ceremony for the reconstruction of Saguaro Elementary School and Casa Grande Middle School. The program will take place on the grounds of Casa Grande Middle School, 300 W. McMurray Blvd. It signifies the official start of construction for the new schools which will take place over the next year with ex-pected completion of the new schools for the start of the 2018-2019 school year. This project was made possible by the passage of the bond election in November 2016. For more information about contact Dr. Bryan Harris, Casa Grande Elementary School District’s Director of Professional Develop-ment & Public Relations, at (520) 836-2111.

Don’t wait ‘til it’s too late!

Enhance your Business Listing

or Place a Display ad

Contact Ad Executive Sue Finley

TODAY!

June 2017 June 2017 PERMITS VALUATION New Residential 20 $ 5,229,188.00 Commercial 0 $ 0.00 Add./Remod./Solar 31 $ 463,090.00 51 $ 5,692,278.00

PERMITS Calendar YTD Calendar YTD VALUATION New Residential 51 $ 12,850,805.00 Commercial 1 $ 447,446.00 Add./Remod./Solar 186 $ 3,171,039.00 239 $ 16,469,290.00 Source: www.casagrandeaz.gov July 2017 Report unavailable at time of press. CYTD statistics.

ECONOMIC ACTIVITY

BUILDING PERMIT ACTIVITY— CASA GRANDE

LABOR FORCE AND EMPLOYMENT

PINAL COUNTY May 2017 Labor Force 165,814 Employed 157,261 Unemployment Rate 4.7%

BUILDING PERMIT ACTIVITY - PINAL COUNTY

July 2017 ~ PINAL COUNTY

July2017 Permits 2017 Valuation FY JUL-JUN Valuation

Residential 230 $ 38,090,819.00 $ $ 38,090,819.00 Add./Remodel. 52 965,644.00 965,644.00 Commercial 1 423,152.00 423,152.00 TOTALS 283 $ 39,479,615.00 $ 39,479,615.00

(Pinal Co. Building & Safety) FYTD statistics - FY July 2017 - June 2018)

RETAIL TPT Collections

Month: July 2017 July 2017

Pinal County $ 121,606,146.00 Casa Grande $ 714,854.22

Calendar Year JAN-JUN 2017

Pinal County $ 778,806,532.00

Source: Arizona Department of Revenue. NOTE: Pinal County which represents calculated state taxable sales.

TAXABLE SALES FOR 2017

ARIZONA PUBLIC SERVICE www.aps.com

ARIZONA WATER COMPANY www.azwater.com

SOUTHWEST GAS CORPORATION www.swgas.com

UTILITIES

CH

AM

BE

R S

TA

TS

Aug. 2017 Inquiries Estimates

08/01/2017 – 08/31/2017 Telephone 415 Walk-Ins 336 Web hits 45,278

YTD Inquiries Estimates

01/01/2017 to 8/31/2017

Telephone 4,690 Walk-Ins 5,335 Web hits 984,398

Greater Casa Grande Chamber of Commerce, 575 N. Marshall St., Casa Grande, AZ 85122 (520)836-2125; FAX(520)836-6233. www.casagrandechamber.org. Staff: Helen Neuharth, President/CEO; Linda Poindexter, Events/Membership Services Manager; Laurie Gutierrez, Media/PR Manager and Bookkeeper and Ken Saltzmann, Membership Sales.

Th

e G

reate

r C

asa G

ran

de

Ch

am

be

r o

f C

om

merc

e, as t

he

vo

ice o

f b

us

ine

ss, le

ad

s, p

rom

ote

s a

nd

de

velo

ps

op

po

rtu

nit

ies f

or

th

e s

uccess o

f o

ur

mem

be

rs a

nd

co

mm

un

ity.

Political advertisements paid by the Chamber member, do not indicate an endorsement by the Greater Casa Grande Chamber of Commerce.

Business Before Hours

Friday, September 8, 2017

7:30 am - 8:30 am

Hosted by: BlackBox Theatre

413 N. Florence St. Casa Grande, AZ 85122

$10 per person for Chamber members $20 per person for prospective members

RSVP to: events@casagrandechamber.org By Thursday, September 7, 2017

Business After Hours Wednesday, September 27, 2017

5:00 pm - 7:00 pm Hosted by:

Grande Sports World 12684 W. Gila Bend Hwy. Casa Grande, AZ 85193

$10 per person for Chamber members $20 per person for prospective members

RSVP to: events@casagrandechamber.org By Tuesday, September 26, 2017

View this month’s inserts by clicking on these links:

Welcome New Chamber Members

110%

2017 Business Showcase Promotional Flyer

2017 Fall Golf Tournament

The Casa Grande Commercial Solar Forum

Electric Light Parade

Taste of Casa Grande

CASA GRANDE May 2017 Labor Force 23,019 Employed 21,695 Unemployment rate 5.8%

ARIZONA STATE 5.1% UNITED STATES 4.3% June and July 2017 statistics were unavailable at time of press.

12th Annual Silent Witness Anti-Crime Night

The Casa Grande Police Department and Silent Witness invite the community to Anti-Crime Night on Tuesday, September 26th from 5:30 pm - 9:00 pm at Vista Grande High School (1556 N. Arizola Rd., Casa Grande). The event is free and open to the pub-lic. Includes demonstrations by local law enforcement, games, activities, prizes, giveaways, food plus services such as fingerprint-ing; prescription drug turn-In; pet adoptions; home-security advice and more.

Check out local events and activities in the Casa Grande area, on the Community Calendar