Bloomsburg Town Council Tables Vote on Sidewalk Obstruction Ordinance
On Monday, January 7th, Bloomsburg Town Council agreed to table voting on a proposed ordinance which would regulate “obstructions” after the Chamber and Downtown Bloomsburg Inc. expressed concerns. Both organizations and several other businesspeople in attendance felt an ordinance is unnecessary and would deter business growth in the Downtown. DBI with work with the Town to better promote existing guidelines and with businesses to address concerns over the next few months.
The ordinance would increase regulation of “obstructions” in the sidewalk rights-of-way in the “Downtown area”, which the ordinance defines as Main Street from West to East and East from Main to 7th Street. The ordinance would replace current guidelines which are in effect. The Chamber’s Board of Directors sent a letter to Council in late December urging them to table the ordinance and work with Downtown Bloomsburg, Inc., the Chamber’s subsidiary, to address this issue in a collaborative and positive way. Chamber President Fred Gaffney expressed to Council that a possible daily fine of $25 to $600 would be perceived as a threat to businesspeople looking to invest in the Downtown.
Following considerable discussion, Council agreed to table discussion until the April meeting of the Town’s Community and Economic Development Committee meeting. In the interim, DBI will obtain the existing guidelines from the Town, distribute them to all businesses in the Downtown and discuss specific areas of concerns with those business owners.
Campbell Printing Chosen for Chamber Spotlight
Campbell Printing Co. was selected at random as the October Business Spotlight winner. As a result, their business will receive an article featured both in E-Biz and on the Chamber’s website.
Campbell Printing Co. was formed in the 1940s by Harry Campbell. Originally located on 3rd and Spruce Streets in Berwick, it would later move to Monroe Street where it is located today. John and Sharon Getty purchased the company in 1974 and it’s remained in the family for the last 38 years.
Campbell Printing is the only full service printing company in the immediate Berwick area and its customers show their appreciation by being repeat buyers and by advertising through word of mouth. The current owners, Matthew and Jocelyn Getty, continue to carry out business with the same work ethics that were present when the company first began.
OPTiMO Chosen for Business Spotlight
OPTiMO Information Technology LLC was selected at random as the August Business Spotlight winner. As a result, OPTiMO receives an article featured both in E-Biz and on the Chamber’s website.
OPTiMO is a technology solutions provider that was founded in April 2008 by Michael Miguelez. Since then, the business has grown to include sixty full time employees with offices in Bloomsburg PA, Wilkes-Barre PA, Vienna VA, and the Washington DC Metro district. Business has steadily increased over the years and in 2012, Miguelez was awarded the Greater Susquehanna Keystone Innovation Zone (GSKIZ) Entrepreneurial Achievement Award.
What sets OPTiMO apart from other technology firms in the area is the wide variety of services that they offer. Their clients range from Fortune 100 companies to regional nonprofit businesses. Services provided include: Enterprise Software and Application Development, Application Modernization, Business Process Engineering, Program and Project Management, IT Operations, Digital Forensic and eDiscovery, ERP Systems, and much more. Additional information can also be found at www.optimo-it.com.