Is There An Electronic Sign In The Chamber’s Future?

By
Steve Larson

The Holtville Chamber of Commerce wants an electronic sign.
It’s possible they might get one with a lot of help from the city and one of its programs.
The Chamber’s marquee has been a message board to passing motorists for as long as the building has been there. That’s going on a hundred years. The letters are all worn out and some are missing.
New ones have had to be fashioned out of cloth and other mater material. And someone has had to climb up a 15 foot ladder to get them in place.
But, to the passing parade of people all that is mute. They get the benefit of all the messages about upcoming events, birthday wishes and welcome home announcements the Chamber carries all year for a small fee.
Life would be much easier if the chamber got into the 21st Century with a moving electronic sign at the intersection of Fifth Street and Holt Avenue.
The Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors came to that conclusion two several years ago and has been trying to raise money for such a sign. They have had prize drawings, but it is slow going, especially with the high cost of the signs.
They can range anywhere from $12,000 to $20,000, depending on the size. But someone can type in the message from a keyboard in the Chamber office and graphics can also be added. You might even be able to get the time and temperature.
That way the bank wouldn’t be the only source of such information in the city.
Chamber President Manuel Nunez of Rabobank approached city Manager Laura Fischer about the possibility of securing some funding through one of Holtville’s many improvement funds.
The matter was on the agenda at the last city council meeting, but was overshadowed by the police department issue. It’s scheduled to be brought back at the next meeting, according to Fischer.
There are two ways the city could help fund the project. One is through the Redevelopment Agency that has specific funds for improvements. And the other is through the city facade improvement program.
The latter has been set up to assist in merchants fixing up the fronts of their buildings, but stretching that to the chamber sign may be feasible. It would definitely be an improvement to downtown.
From there it would be a lot easier to get assistance from private investors, know the city is backing the project.
According to a letter sent to the City, the Chamber is seeking $8,000 in assistance toward the new sign. That would still leave some space to fill on the donation chart. Some of that could be done through private donations. The IID has been known to help with such projects as has Rabobank, which helped with the Imperial Valley Expo’s electronic sign.
Private investors are encouraged to contact the Chamber too. The chamber has been directing all of its resources to its sign fund too, which has netted them about $2300.
More financial help is needed to light up downtowns. The sign will go before the RDA at the next meeting.