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Chamber seeks new digs in Madeira Beach

The city wants the land back that the organization is leasing, at $1 a year,

By SHEILA MULLANE ESTRADA
Published December 14, 2005

to use as parking in the marina expansion.

MADEIRA BEACH - Thirty years ago, the chamber of commerce leased some vacant land on the Tom Stuart Causeway from the city and built an office to serve city businesses and welcome visitors to the beach community.

Today, the group is looking for new quarters.

The city wants the land back to use as parking for the planned expansion of its marina.

The city and the chamber were negotiating on how long the chamber can stay. Also at issue was whether the city will owe the chamber money for the facility the organization built on the site about 20 years ago.

Last week, the two groups reached a tentative agreement when chamber representatives backed off their demand for $25,000 for the building and site renovations.

The city offered to pay the chamber $8,500 for its investment in the property and allow the group to continue meeting at the site rent free until the end of 2006. The chamber had paid $1 a year to lease the property.

The City Commission is expected to vote on the lease agreement in January. It must also be approved by the chamber board of directors.

The Tampa Bay Beaches Chamber of Commerce was formed in 1997 through the merger of three chambers, including the now-defunct Madeira Beach Chamber of Commerce that originally leased the property.

It represents 12 beach communities, including Clearwater Beach, St. Pete Beach and Tierra Verde. Other welcome centers are in Indian Rocks Beach and Treasure Island.

Negotiations between the chamber and the city had broken down several months ago, and the city notified the chamber that it would have to vacate the building by Jan. 2.

If no agreement on the newest proposal is reached, the chamber could be evicted from the site at 150 150th Ave., city officials said.

The city will not need the site until the marina redevelopment's second phase begins.

That won't occur until the construction of a "high and dry" boat storage facility is budgeted and put to bid, no earlier than the end of next year, City Manager Jill Silverboard told the commission last week.

Meanwhile, the chamber is looking for new quarters in Madeira Beach. The current welcome center often handles more than 100 visitors a day during peak months.

With the closing of the Treasure Island Causeway in January, the number of visitors is expected to increase exponentially.

In 1999, the chamber moved its administrative staff to its office in St. Pete Beach.

The Madeira Beach office was kept open as a visitors center, and the chamber recently opened a second welcome center at John's Pass Village.

In a related matter, Madeira Beach officials have also refused to pay the chamber a requested membership fee of $4,558, an amount based on the city's population. Other cities pay equivalent amounts, chamber officials said.

"This bill for dues is rather ill considered. I'm sorry, guys, but we feel we don't owe anything," Mayor Charles Parker told chamber representatives last week.

Parker and commissioners argued that the $1-a-year lease and the chamber's ability to sublet part of the building for several years negated any dues owed.

"When you move to new facilities, come back and talk to us again," Commissioner Arnold Alloway told the chamber.

[Last modified December 14, 2005, 00:14:15]