EudoraNews.com

The Eudora Chamber of Commerce unveiled a new logo recently and has rolled out a Web presence with an updated calendar of events and member list.

It is encouraging to see the chamber progress. As we've noted in the past, the Eudora chamber is almost entirely a volunteer organization with just one part-time employee who performs secretarial functions. This isn't unique to chambers in smaller communities but neither is it unusual for cities of Eudora's size to have a full- or part-time chamber director.

There is nothing on the horizon that suggests that will change. There is no easily identifiable revenue source that could be used to hire a director who could provide expertise to the community's economic development efforts in partnership with the city.

That absence of a professional economic development presence means Eudora can do little but wait for opportunities to come to it, perhaps with the occasional heads up relayed from county economic development agencies with which the city partners. This is not a knock on the volunteers in the chamber or leadership from City Hall, but a recognition they have limited time to explore outside opportunities or establish contacts.

There does seem to be an understanding in the community of a need for someone in that central role. And while the means may not be there to address it immediately, discussion of how the city and chamber could fund the position in the near future, perhaps initially on a part-time basis would be welcome.

The community won't have a truly aggressive posture until that crucial absence is addressed.