Building Capital Campaign

Building for a New Era

When representatives from the Palms West Chamber of Commerce and its communities turned the first shovels at a groundbreaking ceremony in 1990 for its new home, they had a vision of creating a centralized location for the business community leaders to gather and help shape the economic growth of the area.

Now, 18 years after that moment and 25 years after the incorporation of the chamber, the Board of Directors maintains the same vision. "We have been very fortunate," said Joanna Boynton, president of the Board of Directors. "Over the years, our chamber has continued to grow. Our current facility has served us well. However, with the addition of staff to handle increased programming, we are quickly running out of space.

"In 2002, the chamber board voted to establish a capital campaign that would fund an expansion plan including a 1,000-square-foot community conference center. 

"We started with a plan of extending and remodeling our current building to include the conference center," said Jaene Miranda, the chamber's executive director. "After a few years of successful fundraising, the board agreed that the central Palm Beach County communities deserved to have a building that was representative of the new growth in the area. We determined that, with the right builder, we could deliver a newly constructed building for the price of a remodel/extension.

"Enter Royal Professional Builders and longtime chamber supporter Wally Sanger. Armed with dream in hand, Vice President of Facilities John Southard of Balfour Beatty Construction, along with members of the Building Committee, met with divisions of the Royal Management companies with positive results.

"We established a new capital campaign target of $550,000," Southard said. "The value engineering provided by the Royal Architecture & Design team, combined with the efficiencies of tilt wall construction, lowered our fundraising target. We will deliver the ‘rural vista' architecture requested by Loxahatchee Groves and a higher-quality finished product that is energy efficient and able to withstand the threat of hurricanes. We will also be able to add a smaller executive conference room to the facility, thereby increasing the square footage offered for community use.

"With the building plans nearing completion and the continued support of the Loxahatchee Groves Town Council and Palm Beach County, the dream of a new building appears to be in sight. "We are delighted with major gifts provided by Florida Power & Light, Palm Beach County and The Palm Beach Post," Miranda said. "It represents strong support for our mission and for the business community. It is our belief that we have the right leadership in place to help lead the economic growth in the area. The gifts are reflective of that trust in the future of the chamber."

Just $200,000 shy of the goal, the Palms West Chamber leadership feels comfortable setting a groundbreaking date for 2008. "The fundraising focus will be on in-kind contributions like the ones received from Sexton Engineering, Balfour Beatty, Cardinal Electric and Armand Professional Services," Miranda said. "We would also like to pursue a donor for the naming of our small business center. That $300,000 contribution would help complete our campaign and allow for endowment dollars to help maintain the building.

"The chamber is very pleased with the response it has received from its business partners within the community for this effort. It also remembers the many personal sacrifices made by the volunteer leaders to get the organization to where it is today. "We can't think of any other better way of honoring those individuals who took that giant leap of faith 25 years ago and created this highly successful chamber of commerce," Boynton said. "We look forward to inviting them back for the ceremonies and bringing in a new era together. 

For more information on the
chamber's building capital
campaign,call Jaene Miranda
at (561) 790-6200

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