Capital Campaign Project

Winter Haven Chamber of Commerce Capital Campaign Project

Reimagining

Today's Winter Haven looks and feels very different from the Winter Haven of 30 years ago. While our authentic , small-town charm and sense of community remain strong, the community's needs and expectations have evolved. Winter Haven proudly leverages its authentic roots to build its future, one of great opportunity for entrepreneurs, small businesses and large industry. The Chamber of Commerce and its members have been at the center of this renaissance. Since its grand opening in 1990, the Chamber building has welcomed thousands of tourists and new residents to Winter Haven. We have cultivated economic prosperity through development and support of new and existing businesses, hosted pivotal meetings defining the community's direction and provided a gathering place for celebration, collaboration and coordination.

Our successes are the legacy of the strong foundation laid 30 years ago by those leaders who had the foresight to plan for the community's future needs.

With your help, we can lay the groundwork for the next 30 years.

Preserving Leedy's Legacy

Founded in 1910 as a Board of Trade, during its first 75 years, the Chamber had been a nomad occupying various buildings throughout the community. In the late 1980's the chamber's Board of Directors made it their mission to find a permanent home for the Winter Haven Area Chamber of Commerce. Collaborating with the City of Winter Haven, the newly acquired rails-to-trails land was made available, and the Chamber of Commerce secured it's premier downtown location. The late Gene Leedy created the Chamber as an iconic building using his Central Florida Modern architectural style. Gene designed his piece of art to allow the bike trail to continue underneath the building, through the breezeway. While this was a compromise to those who felt the building would break up the chain of downtown parks, it was also quite ingenious. The railroad that existed on the same site years before brought commerce and entrepreneurship to Winter Haven during the city's infancy. Today, the land remains the pathway of commerce and opportunity for the Winter Haven community as the home of the Chamber of Commerce and its tenants, Main Street Winter Haven and the Winter Haven Economic Development Council.

With your help, our Chamber of Commerce will continue to leave a legacy for our community.

Campaign Objectives

The Board of Directors is launching this crucial capital campaign to ensure the chamber's continued success over the next 30 years. There is much work to be done, and with the Chamber of Commerce as the hub for community communication and collaboration, we have an obligation to Winter Haven to meet the needs of today and tomorrow. We can't do it alone. The Chamber building is a valuable community asset and we need you help to make this vision a reality.

PRESERVE
Preserve the Gene Leedy architecture that makes the Chamber of Commerce building an icon of the downtown core and a piece of artwork in our community's portfolio of sculpture and design.

TRANSFORM
Transform the Chamber of Commerce building to reflect the vibrancy of the Winter Haven of today, building upon the Central Florida Modern architecture of the exterior for more modern and vibrant interior.

MODERNIZE
Update the building's functionality to better serve both residents and tourists, and modernize the conference and office space to meet the needs and expectations of the business community.

Community & Business Welcome & Resource Center

Through out busiest season, from April through October, the Chamber's lobby welcomes over 400 visitors per month. Throughout the year, the Chamber building is being used more than any time in its existence for functions hosted by the Chamber as well as private business or civic organization's events. Our lobby is one of the first impressions of our community made on potential new residents and businesses. This increased exposure makes our lobby the perfect location for a community welcome center and business information hub that reflects the Winter Haven of today and of our future.

RESIDENTS
The Chamber team answers numerous resident inquiries each day. In partnership with the City of Winter Haven, the welcome center will include a section dedicated to city services and information for the most frequently asked questions. As a part of this unique partnership, Chamber staff will be cross-trained by City staff on the most frequently asked questions.

TOURISTS
The Chamber remains an important information source for area visitors. Our lobby has been the de-facto community welcome center for 30 years and the transformation possible through this capital campaign will make it official. The Chamber staff will partner with Polk County Tourism and Sports Marketing to enhance the visitor experience and a 24/7 electronic kiosk in the breezeway will provide information when the lobby is closed.

BUSINESSES
Advancing commerce is a core component of the Chamber's vision. The hub provides marketing opportunities for our members, serves as the information resource for B2B relationships and provides the first impression of our community to prospective businesses meeting with economic development organisations. The lobby also serves as the welcome mat for guests attending rental functions in the Chamber.

The Gathering Place

The 2nd floor of the Chamber is the primary gathering space for the community. The capital campaign will allow for transformation of the 2nd floor into a more functional multipurpose room including; a new members lounge, catering kitchen, ADA complaint restrooms and updated and built-in technological capabilities.

MEMBERS LOUNGE

Need a quiet, more private place for a client meeting than a coffee shop or restaurant? Are you in between meetings and need a place to work, charge your electronics, decompress or save the time of driving all the way back to the office? The Members Lounge will be a space meant to provide a convenient place for our investors to stop in, get some work done and network.

AUDITORIUM

The Chamber's Coleman Auditorium is being used by the Chamber, our members and the community more than anytime in the building's history. User's needs have changed and it is time to improve and expand the auditorium's functionality. Reconfiguration of the space will allow more people to attend functions and improve ADA accessibility, all while creating a more professional space for meetings and seminars.

One-Stop Shop

The Chamber building is home to the "secret sauce" of our economic development strategy - the collaboration with Main Street Winter Haven and the Winter Haven Economic Development Council, all housed on the 3rd floor. In addition to the valuable relationships and economies of scale created by this location-sharing, businesses have a one-stop shop for business services in our community, and only one block from City Hall.

With your investment from the capital campaign, we hope to add an additional desk space that allows for our business consulting partners, such as the Small Business Development Administration at USF and Central Florida Score, to have co-working space at our location. We also hope for the future expansion of co-working space made available to potential start-up businesses that could use the support our economic development organizations can provide.

Love at First Sight

The brand story of Winter Haven and the Chamber of Commerce begins when visitors and clients arrive in the downtown core. From the parking lot, to the entrance, to the landscaping, we need to make certain that Winter Haven's story is being accurately reflected. When visitors enter our welcome center, attend a function, or meet with the organization housed within the Chamber, we have an opportunity to create an emotional connection and build a deeper relationship. Exterior improvements to the building will include; re-landscaping, new signage, upgraded lighting to LED energy-efficient lighting that will create greater illumination of the building at night, color-controlled LED up-lighting and down-lighting, roof improvements, and a more prominent entrance through the lobby.

Giving

Pledges to the Capital Campaign can be made over a three-year period and made through our company or personally. We are able to accept donations to either the Greater Winter Haven Chamber of Commerce Inc. (501(c)6) or the Winter Haven Chamber Foundation, Inc. (501(c)3). Consult with your tax advisor regarding deductibility of your donation.

We have two naming right opportunities remaining:
Location: Sponsorship: Term: (Years)
Auditorium $100,000 30 (SOLD)
Welcome Center $75,000 15 (SOLD)
Breezeway $50,000 15 . (SOLD)
Members Lounge $50,000 15 .
Boardroom $30,000 15 . (SOLD)
Breezeway Electronic Kiosk $30,000 15 . (SOLD)
Illumination $30,000 15
(Building colored lights)
Technology Sponsor $20,000 10 . (SOLD)

Benefit packages for the naming rights sponsors are developed individually with the donor.

Donor Levels:
Legacy Level: $100,000 + (naming rights included)
Heritage Level: $50,000 - $99,999 (naming rights included)

In addition to naming opportunities, you can give a Capital Campaign gift and receive recognition within the building. Contributors will be listed on a 15-year wall plaque placed prominently in our building and receive recognition in our newsletter, annual publication and social media platforms.

Advocate Level: $10,000 - $29,999
Protector Level: $2,500 - $9,999
Community Partner Level: $250 - $2,499
Helping Hand Level: up to $249

Donate to the Campaign