Chamber asks board to replace Backman as county liaison

The board of directors of the Wahkiakum Chamber of Commerce on Tuesday asked the Wahkiakum County board of commissioners to appoint a new liaison.

Commissioner Mike Backman has been the county commission's representative on the Chamber board since he took office 17 months ago, but Chamber members said Tuesday he's working against them.

Backman has wanted to separate economic development activity from the Chamber of Commerce. The Chamber was once separate from the now-defunct Lower Columbia Economic Development Council (LCEDC), but the Chamber and LCEDC combined in 2010 when the Great Recession reduced state and federal funding for economic development activities.

Chamber board members submitted a letter to the board of commissioners outlining their issues and concerns.

Board member Sandi Benbrook Rieder read portions of the letter to the commissioners on Tuesday.

"Commissioner Backman routinely threatens to take money away from our organization because he is convinced we are not achieving 'economic development goals,'" the letter said. "If the Board of County Commissioners is not satisified with our progress on the scope of work we have agreed to, then we would like the opportunity to discuss this and make improvements or adjustments to our program activities. We know that the Department of Commerce (DOC) is satisfied with our performance." [The chamber has a contract with the state Department of Commerce to conduct economic development activities. --Editor]

"Finally, Commissioner Backman made personal contact with the state Department of Commerce and the Council of Governments stating the Chamber is not performing its economic development responsibility and 'demanding' a new board be appointed. He implied he was representing the Board of County Commissioners during these discussions. We believe this kind of external misrepresentation of the issues reflects poorly on the Chamber and the county in general."

"We request the board appoint another liaison or offer another suggestion of how to proceed," Benbrook Rieder said.

Backman agreed to the Chamber's request and asked Commissioner Blair Brady if he would be the commission's liaison to the Chamber, and Brady agreed.

"And I'd like to schedule a workshop to go over the contract and see that we're doing what we think we're doing," Backman said. "I appreciate the work that you (the Chamber) are doing. I'm sorry we're having difficulties and hard times."

Brady agreed that it would be good to go over the contract and discuss changes prior to awarding a new contract.

"I think we got it figured out," said commission Chair Dan Cothren. "If you have any other concerns, anything you want to see happen, put it out to your board members."

Chamber board members asked the county commissioners if they had a consensus to see a separate economic development board.

Brady responded that he preferred having a separate board but agreed with the combination of the Chamber and EDC because of economic reasons.

"At such time they could separate, I would see that as desirable," he said. "I don't see that at this time."

"What we have here, it's working," Cothren said. "We're pretty limited here in Wahkiakum County."

Richard Erickson, former executive director of the LCEDC and a Chamber board member, reviewed the economic necessities that forced the merger of the two entities.

"We have to put on events to raise money to keep the doors open and have a full-time director," he said. "Most communities our size don't have a full-time director and visitor center."

Brady commented that he would like to see the Chamber's activities be less "Cathlamet-centric" and expand them to the other parts of the county.

Benbrook Rieder commented that the Chamber could form a subcommittee to focus on economic development. Undoing the merger won't save money, she said.