March 7th at 7:00: Candidate forum at the Lake Worth Casino and Beach Complex.

This event is FREE. And parking is FREE. This event is sponsored by the Lake Worth Business Committee (LWBC) and the Greater Lantana Chamber of Commerce.

Did you know there will be no municipal elections in the Town of Lantana this year? At the end of this blog post is more about that latest development.

And whilst on the topic of the small business community below is very important information recently published in The Palm Beach Post by business journalist Jeff Ostrowski.


This news is. . .

Big News for
Small Business Owners.

Did you catch that news in the paper?

Would guess you probably did not because the editor(s) decided not publish it prominently in the print edition, not a feature story in the Business Section by any means and that news has quickly faded away in the online edition. But more about that later on.

If the business community in this City is of importance to you then please continue reading and learn why small businesses is this City are joining the LWBC and merging with a neighboring town which will make both of us “Better Together”.

A few members of the Lake Worth Business Committee, a recent meeting at TooJay’s.

And much thanks to reporter Jeff Ostrowski for making the case for business chambers of commerce merging with neighboring municipalities and suburban neighbors too.

The news from Ostrowski published by Gatehouse Media, the owner and publisher of  the Post is of utmost importance to the City and to our business community as well. The news was about one of the County’s smallest chambers of commerce that is merging with one of the largest. In a word, this is significant.

The fact that the City of Lake Worth and the Greater Lantana Chamber of Commerce was not mentioned one single time in the business news by Ostrowski does nothing at all to lessen the importance of what was reported. If anything, it should spur you to action, especially if you are a Realtor or an investor or even a potential developer.

For the City of Lake Worth and the Town of Lantana to become stronger our City’s business community needs to be “Better Together” with our neighbors and business community in the Town of Lantana. The traditional small town chamber of commerce is a thing of the past, unfortunate but true, as you will learn more about below.

Later in this blog post today is more information about the LWBC, which has partnered with the Greater Lantana Chamber of Commerce, news that has never been reported in The Palm Beach Post. Hope springs eternal now that Gatehouse Media is the new owner and publisher of the Post that local reporting of small chambers of commerce will get more attention.

However, the news by Ostowski in the print edition about Boynton Beach and Boca Raton may have caught your eye. Or maybe not. This news was buried on p. B7 below the fold near the gutter, what some refer to as the fold betwixt verso and recto, or the left side page and the right side page which together is called the spread.

Why is this important? Because it’s no mistake where news appears in a newspaper. Above the fold is what the editor(s) deem more important and below the fold much less so. From p. A2 going forward the eyes drift left to right on the spread and then to the next spread and the next.

Next time you pick up an actual print newspaper you can judge for yourself the priorities of your local or regional newspaper just by viewing each and every spread. Don’t bother with all the content. Just see where that content is on the spread.

The last news item on the pp. B6–B7 spread was an AP story about the “social media giant” Facebook. So if you were in a hurry you probably didn’t pay much attention to the headline,

“Boca Raton, Boynton Beach chambers of commerce merge”

The headline above was near the gutter below the fold.

Along with the story by Ostrowski was a photo of Mr. Troy McLellan who is president and CEO of the Boca Raton Chamber of Commerce. But being a small business owner in the City of Lake Worth you say to yourself, “OK. That’s Boca. So what?”

Well here’s what’s what. Two excerpts from the news by Ostrowski:


The Greater Boynton Beach Chamber of Commerce said this week that it is now part of the Greater Boca Raton Chamber of Commerce. The Boynton Beach group reported $202,000 in annual revenue, compared to $1.7 million in receipts for the Boca Chamber.

The Boca Chamber said the merger gives Boynton business owners access to a broader array of professional development courses.

“They just don’t have the resources to deliver what we can in Boca,” Boca Chamber President Troy McLellan said. “Their leadership said, ‘What’s our next step? What can we do?’”

To smooth the transition, McLellan said, Jonathan Porges, the chief executive of the Boynton Chamber, will stay on. The Boca Chamber also will keep the Boynton Chamber’s office space through the end of the year.

After the combination — which mirrors a national trend of consolidation among chambers of commerce — the Boca Chamber now has 1,700 members.


Ostrowski reports there are now five major business chambers in Palm Beach County: Palm Beach North Chamber of Commerce, Greater Boca Raton, Greater Delray Beach, Chamber of Commerce of the Palm Beaches, and Central Palm Beach County.

And in the article by Ostrowski is this line:


There are smaller chambers of commerce in Palm Beach and Wellington.


To become a force, to become “Worth Noting”, the Town of Lantana and this City of Lake Worth — and everywhere else in this coastal region of Central Palm Beach County — the business community needs to get more involved and more active.


Creating a new business chamber is a daunting task which can take many months if not years. And even then it may never become a success. For too long this City has been in dire need of a Chamber to represent the business community.

For small business owners in this City of Lake Worth you will meet the members, ask questions, and find out how the LWBC can help make your voice heard. As per the title of this blog post today, on March 7th at 7:00 will be a “Candidate forum at the Lake Worth Casino and Beach Complex”. The LWBC will be there prior to and after this public forum to answer your questions and explain how becoming a member will benefit your business.

Briefly, here is a short sample of new and renewing members:

• Posh Properties: Jerilyn Walter
• Kiwanis Club of Lake Worth: Brian Kirsch
• Street Painting Festival: Nadine Burns
• The Related Group: J. Nicholas Dusseau
• Tacos Al Carbon
• Illustrated Properties: Sally Ott
• Palm Beach Yacht Center

The LWBC and all the members of the Greater Lantana Chamber in nearby municipalities and suburban areas are encouraged and excited to hear about what is happening in this City.

You may be interested to know with an additional $50.00 to your regular membership you can become a member with the Finnish American Chamber of Commerce located in Downtown Lake Worth.

This is important because the extremely popular annual Midnight Sun Festival celebrating our Finnish heritage will be held in Lake Worth’s Bryant Park once again next March. For more information about that click on this link.

Also worth noting the Town of Lantana WILL NOT be holding municipal elections in March.

The two incumbents — the honorable councilmen Malcolm Balfour and Dr. Lynn Moorhouse — were both re-elected without opposition.


Congratulations to both of you!