Belpre Area Chamber of Commerce Business Expo slated for Monday
BELPRE — The annual Belpre Area Chamber of Commerce Business Expo will be 4-7 p.m. Monday at the Belpre Masonic Lodge on Putnam Howe Drive.
The expo, sponsored by the chamber and The Parkersburg News and Sentinel, showcases businesses and services throughout the region and allows participants to explain what they can do for other businesses and the community, who may not know, organizers say.
Admission is free and everyone is encouraged to attend, organizers said.
“The expo showcases the opportunities that are in our area to develop a business or to grow a business,” said Karen Waller, Executive Director of the BACC.
The Belpre area has seen growth the past year, but tremendous potential exists in numerous sectors including the medical, housing, service and professional sectors, she said. A study will be released in the coming weeks that will be used for the creation of a strategic plan for economic development, Waller said.
Conducted by the Voinovich School of Public Affairs at Ohio University, about 80 people attended a meeting earlier this month to discuss what they would like to see in Belpre. Representatives from the school have been collecting information from residents, businesses and government officials.
The expo also will demonstrate that while the area is a good place to do business, it is also a good place to live and raise a family, Waller said. Many properties have opened up in the past year, she said.
“Jobs are the key,” Waller said.
Belpre faces challenges, too, the same challenges faced by other communities, Waller said. At the top is a trained workforce with the technical skills needed by the companies looking to develop here, she said.
Many times the skills needed do not require a college degree, Waller said.
“We do have a challenge with the workforce,” she said.
More than 25 exhibitors will be at the expo, said Amy Hupp, organizer prime of the 2017 business exposition.
“It’s an opportunity for businesses in the entire Mid-Ohio Valley to display their services and network with each other,” Hupp said.
Several hundred people attended the 2016 Business Expo.
“This year’s expo will be held at the Masonic Lodge and we encourage people to come out and see what their businesses have to offer. We expect another great turnout,” Hupp said.
Participating businesses and institutions so far registered are:
* Berkshire Hathaway Realty
* Exit Realty
* Camden Clark Medical Center
* Consumer Credit Counseling
* Mobile Blasting of West Virginia
* Warfield Realty
* Allied Van Lines — Central Van
* Healthsouth Western Hills
* Memorial Health System
* Counseling and Wellness Center
* Bob’s Market
* Riverview Credit Union
* Runyon Lock Service
* Lambert-Tatman Funeral Home
* Hawkins Family Dentistry
* Citizens Bank
* Belpre Chamber Entrepreneurship Program
* Buckeye Hills Regional Council
* Highland Oaks
* Courage to Change of Belpre
* Lions Club of Belpre
* L&P Services
* Washington State Community College
* Children’s Hunger Alliance
* Belpre Savings Bank
* Kraton Polymers
* Steers Heating and Cooling
* McCarthy Real Estate