By Sara StrongThe Luverne Area Chamber of Commerce hopes that a couple of maneuvers will save some money and serve its members.The Chamber office is moving into the Brandenburg Gallery, which it currently owns and operates, by Nov. 1.The gallery will remain where it is, with the addition of the Chamber offices. Its appearance will stay much the same as it is now.The Brandenburg Prairie Foundation is purchasing the gallery, which Chamber director Dave Smith said makes sense for the Foundation."They have the educational pieces in place, with the Touch the Sky Prairie, and they can take it from here," Smith said.The Chamber will operate the gallery, earning a management fee that is still under negotiation.A private party is working on using the current Chamber space for a new business, possibly an ice cream and gift shop.The Chamber is clearly in need of the cash from the management fee. Like most organizations and businesses, the gallery and Chamber itself have suffered through a couple years of a down-turned economy.Smith said, "We figured that by sharing assets, we’d be able to better serve the gallery and the Chamber of Commerce."The Blues on the Rocks festival last summer, for example, lost $10,000 for the Chamber and the city of Luverne is discontinuing its annual $19,000 contribution because of its own tight budget.The Luverne Economic Development Authority voted Tuesday to put a moratorium on the Chamber’s loan payments to the city for a year. Smith said this will give the Chamber a chance to rethink its operations and save the $220 per month payments. While the Chamber doesn’t make payments on the $16,000 it still owes, it will still earn interest.The Chamber will have fewer employees while it manages the gallery. It won’t have to pay rent for two offices anymore, either. The current Chamber office is rented from the Blue Mound Area Theatre Board, which operates the Palace Theatre. With Chamber staff located at the gallery, Smith said the hours will be expanded. It currently isn’t open until 10 a.m. and is closed Mondays. With the new arrangement it will be open during regular business hours and part-time help will keep the doors open on Saturdays."We’ll be able to do a lot better job with visitors," Smith said. He said some visitors would pull off the interstate because of the Brandenburg Gallery billboards and wouldn’t visit the Chamber office. Now, visitors will be able to access general Luverne area information while they’re in the gallery.Even though the gallery itself hasn’t been running a profit for the last two years, Smith said it’s been important as a draw to the community. Shoppers may not always buy large ticket items every time they’re in the gallery, but they are eating in town, fueling their cars and maybe staying the night.Another option to help the struggling Chamber of Commerce is to find sponsorships for community events that the Chamber currently runs alone, such as Buffalo Days or Hot Dog Night.In other economic development news:oThe LEDA Tuesday voted to pay the guarantee it had on a loan to Scott and Nancy Vande Weerd, former owners of Image Wear.The company declared bankruptcy and after assets were sold, the remaining portion that Luverne owed was $5,289.
