Village at Morrisons Cove to Host "Business Before Hours"
The next Chamber “Business Before Hours” will be held this Wednesday, November 2 from 7:30 to 9:30 a.m. at The Bistro at the Village Green in Martinsburg.  The Bistro, which opened for business eighteen months ago, is part of The Village at Morrisons Cove, one of the county’s most scenic and comprehensive retirement facilities.

It is a tastefully appointed restaurant and meeting facility which has attracted a fair amount of attention within the Cove but is still not well-known to the majority of Blair County.  Thus, the interest in hosting a Business Before Hours.  As part of the Business Before Hours, The Bistro will feature a mini breakfast buffet and tours of the entire complex.  There is no cost to Chamber Members to attend Business Before Hours and a $10 charge to non-members.  Pre-registration is a must to help determine food volume.  To register, call The Chamber at 943-8151 or register online.

Regional Business Expo is Thursday at Bryce Jordan Center
Businesses from throughout the region will converge in State College on Thursday as the 3rd Annual Central PA Regional Business Expo converges on the Bryce Jordan Center.  Although 144 exhibitors will be on hand, additional space has been secured for any last minute sign-ups so if you’d still like to be part of this great event as an exhibitor, call Stacy Hoover at 943-8151.  The exhibits are open from 1:30 to 6:30 p.m.  There is no charge to visit the exhibits and no cost to park at the Jordan Center.  There is a kick-off luncheon for the Expo from 11:45 to 1:15 in the South Annex.  The guest speaker is Penn State Wrestling Coach Cael Sanderson.  The luncheon cost is $25-per-person.  To register for the luncheon, contact Sara Hoy at (814) 234-1829.

Chamber's China Trip Begins This Week
The Blair County Chamber’s first ever excursion to China departs Thursday morning at 5:00 a.m. from the Devorris Center for Business Development, buses to JFK Airport and then begins a 13-hour flight to Beijing.  Ninety-eight travelers booked through The Chamber will spend nine days in China, returning next Friday night.  Joe Hurd and Jessica Meck of The Chamber staff will help to escort the group.

Registrations Underway for Next Two Chamber Trips
The popularity of The Chamber’s upcoming trip to China has led to numerous requests from Chamber Members for the organization to do future trips.  Beginning in March, those requests will be honored.  The Chamber will work with two of its travel agency members – Heritage Travel and Classic Travel – to provide fun and relaxation at prime destinations.  From March 18-25, travelers can cruise from Baltimore to the Bahamas on Carnival Cruise Lines, visiting Port Canaveral, Nassau and Freeport.  For details contact Heritage Adventures Travel Agency at (814) 946-1600.  From October 7-14, it’s “Italy’s Great Cities” with Classic Travel.  The trip includes visits to Rome, Pisa, Florence, Verona, Venice and Ferrara.  Call Classic Travel at 696-3558.

Informational meetings about both trips will be held in either mid-December or early January.

GRYP to Clean Highway at 17th Street/I-99
The Chamber’s Growth and Relationships of Young Professionals (GRYP) will make good on its “Adopt-a-Highway” commitment on Saturday from 10:00 to noon at the 17th Street Exit of I-99.  Anyone interested in helping out should contact The Chamber at 943-8151.

Still Time to Contact Legislators on Prevailing Wage Issue
If you haven’t freed-up the time to write to any of Blair County’s three State Representatives regarding the PA Prevailing Wage Act, this would be a good week to get that message out. Short of full repeal of the Act, The Chamber is asking its members to support a series of bills that aim to help mitigate the adverse impact of an archaic and increasingly harmful mandate, including those which passed the House Labor and Industry Committee on October 3rd. The bills are:
HB 1271: Exempts certain road maintenance work which until a recent court decision had usually not been subject to the Act. This decision has forced municipalities to curtail regular roadwork.
HB 1685: Directs the PA Department of Labor and Industry to adopt classifications and definitions for jobs subject to the Act. No such guidance currently exists, which creates confusion for contractors who face stiff penalties for even accidental violations.
HB 1329: Raises the threshold for a project to be a subject to the Act to $185,000, up from the current threshold of $25,000 that was established nearly fifty years ago.
HB 1541: Stipulates that the Act will be imposed only on projects in which 51% of the funding is public. Currently the Act is enforced even if projects are minimally financed with public funding.
HB 709: Provides that school districts are not subject to the Act unless they elect to opt in.
HB 1191: Provides that local governments are not subject to the Act unless they elect to opt-in.

Blair County’s three State Representatives are under siege from the labor unions looking to preserve the current Act. There is reason to believe that despite supporting the business community in the past, that unless businesses step-up and strongly encourage our elected officials to support these bills that prevailing wage will continue as is. Please call or email these State Representatives as soon as possible:

Rep. Mike Fleck – (814) 644-2996 – mfleck@pahousegop.com
Rep. Rick Geist – (814) 946-7218 –regeist@pahousegop.com
Rep. Jerry Stern – (814) 695-2398 – jstern@pahousegop.com