www.peoriachamber.orgCHAMBERREPORTA quarterly publication of the Peoria Area Chamber of Commerce

April2016

Vol.23 Issue 10

Member FeatureSherman’s Distribution Center

Page

2

Employee Size Code (number of full-time equivalent employees in the tri-county area): (A) 1-10 (B) 11-25 (C) 26-75 (D) 76-150 (E) 151-300 (F) 300+

Guitar Center (B)2601 W Lake Ave., Peoria, IL 61615P: 309.685.5819http://www.guitarcenter.com

Heartis Village (A)8201 N IL Route 91, Peoria, IL 61615P: 309.693.3960

KP and A Property Management, LLC (A)1503 W Altorfer Dr.Peoria, IL 61615P: 309.229.4909

Media Measurement Solutions (A)P.O. Box 3581Bloomington, IL 61702P: 877.520.2789http://www.mediameasuresolution.com

PR Peoria, LLC (Pizza Ranch) (B)4114 N Brandywine Dr.Peoria, IL 61614P: 309.839.1420http://www.pizzaranch.com

State Farm Insurance - Tony Dean (A)4128 W Haley Dr.Peoria, IL 61615P: 330.554.1585

Talecris Plasma Resources - A Grifols Company (C)1902 N Sheridan Rd., Peoria, IL 61604P: 309.686.0173http://grifols.com

Tazewell Peoria Railroad (C)301 Wesley Rd., Peoria, IL 61610P: 309.694.8642http://www.gwrr.com

Technicraft (A)419 Elm St., Peoria, IL 61605P: 309.495.5245http://www.technicraft.net

Tender Care Animal Hospital (A)9809 State Route 91, Peoria, IL 61615P: 309.243.1755http://www.tendercareanimalhospital.net

Zeller Electric (A)640 W Jackson St., Morton, IL 61550P: 309.263.2353http://www.zeller-electric.com

Sunbelt Rentals Inc. (B)1601 N Main St., East Peoria, IL 61611P: 309.694.6201http://www.sunbeltrentals.com

Advance Auto Parts #4076 (A)8412 N Knoxville Ave.Peoria, IL 61615P: 309.692.5588http://www.Advanceautoparts.com

Ashley Furniture HomeStore (B)8727 N Knoxville Ave.Peoria, IL 61615P: 309.692.2012http://www.afhs.com

Benedictine University (C)1500 N Fifth St.Springfield, IL 62702P: 217.718.5000http://www.ben.edu

Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation of America (A)2200 E Devon, Suite 392Des Plaines, IL 60018P: 847.827.0404http://www.ccfa.org/chapters/illinois

Freedom Ink Tattoo Co. (A)760 SW Washington St.Peoria, IL 61602P: 309.688.8282http://www.freedominktattoos.com

Welcome New Chamber Members2

Register Now

The Peoria Area Chamber of Commerce is proud to announce that we are hosting a Washington D.C. Fly-In with special guest

Congressman Darin LaHood. A detailed agenda, scheduled speakers and travel arrangements are

available on the Chamber’s website.

June 13-15 , 2016

for theD.C. Fly-In CIRCLE

Central Illinois Regional Chamber Legislative Effort

Join the Chambers of Central Illinois at the Capitol to discuss legislative issues of importance with key policy

makers. More information coming soon!

April 26Illinois State Capitol, Springfield, IL

CIRCLE (Central Illinois Regional Chambers Legislative Effort) is comprised of the Chambers in East Peoria,

Peoria, McLean County, Canton, Chillicothe, Galesburg, Jacksonville, Lincoln Logan, Morton, Pekin, Peoria

Heights, Springfield, Washington, Decatur, and Champaign. CIRCLE is working together to advocate for

a common agenda with the Illinois General Assembly.

Employee Size Code (number of full-time equivalent employees in the tri-county area): (A) 1-10 (B) 11-25 (C) 26-75 (D) 76-150 (E) 151-300 (F) 300+

There was a time when having “the biggest sale of the year” every weekend was a common practice among retailers, and Sherman’s was no exception. In 2011 we recognized the need to change, and invested heavily in our operational capabilities so we could offer Next Day Delivery and our 30 Day “Be Happy Guarantee”. I was confident this would be healthier long-term, but I never anticipated such an immediate impact on our business. In fact, many of our employees like to remind me I predicted our then-newly built distribution center would be sufficient for at least 15 years. We outgrew it in two. To say the least, I’m a strong believer in the power of branding. It was scary to give up most of those popular weekend sales though, and certainly doesn’t come without trials along the way.

One of those trials was stocking enough products to fulfill our promises. We leased temporary warehouse space around town to get by, but needed to find a permanent solution. After years of searching, we found the former Cohen’s Distribution Center in Peoria Heights. The property had remained mostly vacant for a decade, but offered 130,000 sq. ft. of usable warehouse and offices. It also includes several acres of surrounding land for possible future expansion, so I can confidently say it will last at least 15 years…

Vacating the warehouse at our Glen Ave store will allow us to expand our showroom into that space, doubling its size. We’re working diligently on those plans now. The store will remain open during the entire process, just in case you need something TO-MORR-OW.

Ultimately I want to thank our customers, builder partners, and the community for their support. We look forward to continuing our growth in Peoria for many years to come!

Sincerely,

Paul Sherman

Member Feature Sherman’s: Believe in the Power of Branding

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Business BriefsBradley University claimed the #9 spot in “15 U.S. Colleges with Top Actuary Programs.”

Central States Media was honored with five American Advertising Awards for its work with a number of partners.

Dewberry Architects received “Outstanding Design” awards by American School & University for two projects: ISU Bone Student Center Revitalization and University of Illinois-Springfield New Student Union.

First Mid-Illinois Bank has been recognized as an inaugural recipient of two 2015 Visa Debit Processing Service Achievement Awards: The Lowest Fraud Rate (Debit) and Overall Portfolio Excellence (Debit).

Heart of Illinois Human Resource Council won the Pinnacle Award from the Society for Human Resource Management for an exceptional Human Resource program.

Illinois American Water was named an Arcus Award Finalist for their Prescription Drug Take-Back Program.

Kelly & Co Advertising Agency was honored with six awards from the Peoria Ad Club’s American Advertising Awards Gala.

Northwestern Mutual recognized Josh Waite with the company’s Outstanding Achievement in Recruiting and Sales Award.

OSF Saint Francis Medical Center Bariatric Surgery Center of Excellence has been accredited as a Comprehensive Center under the Metabolic and Bariatric

Surgery Accreditation and Quality Improvement Program. OSF Saint Francis Medical Center is also the first center in downstate Illinois to offer the da Vinci Xi Surgical System that allows patients to have a minimally invasive surgery.

Peoria Production Shop is proud to announce that the organization has earned the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s ENERGY STAR certification.

Savant Capital Management has been recognized as one of the “Top 10 Registered Investment Advisors (RIA) of 2016” and is one of the first organizations in the nation to be independently certified for ERISA 3(16) Plan Administrators.

Simantel was named a 2016 B-to-B Best honoree by Ad Age for a recent collaboration with Caterpillar EMSolutions.

University of Illinois College of Medicine was presented with the Community Contribution Award for its role in the Manual High School Science Enrichment Program.

awards & recognition

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business news cont.ArtsPartners of Central Illinois partnered with The Illinois Small Business Development Center at Bradley University to present The Business of Art.

Bard Optical Grand Prairie office is celebrating its 10th Anniversary in April 2016.

CEO Council is pleased to announce the launch of Greater Peoria Works, a regional effort to connect employers to potential employees. CEO Council received help from Illinois Central College students to design a logo for Greater Peoria Works program.

Children’s Hospital of Illinois received a $2 million donation from John and Annette Heller to create the John & Annette Heller Learning for Living Center.

City of Peoria is in the final stages of securing approval from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources and National Park Service for the conversion of a portion of Riverfront Park.

Comcast Business announced that they will be doing their 3rd Annual Innovations 4 Entrepreneurs competition.

Farnsworth Group’s Peoria office is relocating to Peoria Warehouse District.

Graphic Express has been sold to Martin One Source, Champaign-Urbana’s largest printer.

Heart Technologies is preparing for their seventh annual Great HEART Give.

Hult Center for Healthy Living’s Associate Executive Director, Anne Bowman, recently graduated from Bradley

University’s Executive MBA program.

Hy-Vee teamed up with Big Brothers Big Sisters to sell bowling pins to raise awareness for Bowl for Kids’ Sake.

Illinois American Water announced that the application process for its 2016 Environmental Grant Program is now open.

Illinois CancerCare has received reaccreditation by the QOPI Certification Program, an affiliate of the American Cancer Society of Clinical Oncology.

Kaskaskia Engineering Group, LLC is happy to announce its acquisition of Central Illinois Title Co., a Champaign, Illinois construction firm.

Kelly & Co Advertising Agency celebrated their 100-year anniversary in February 2016.

Midstate College announced a new articulation agreement with Carl Sandburg College for students studying Business Administration.

OSF HealthCare aviation is pleased to announce the opening of a new hanger and base at the Illinois Valley Regional Airport in Peru. OSF HealthCare was selected to participate in the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services new accountable care organization model.

business news

Advanced Correctional Healthcare would like to congratulate Erika Wilson and Maddie Bevitt, HR Generalists, on receiving their PHR certification.

Advanced Media Partners and the Peoria Park District held the inaugural Peoria WingFest.

Ameren Illinois presented a $10,000 donation to South Side Mission.

The Business Briefs are an excellent marketing opportunity offered to Chamber members. Submit items of interest to the editor to editor@peoriachamber.org. Information must be received by the 10th of the month to be included in next issue. All content subject to editorial review.

Wayne

The Chamber Report (USPS-097-250) is the official publication of the Peoria Area Chamber of Commerce. It is published monthly at 100 SW Water Street, Peoria, IL 61602, phone: 309.495.5900. An annual subscription is $10. Periodical postage paid in Peoria, Illinois 61601 and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER - Send address changes to: The Chamber Report, Peoria Area Chamber of Commerce, 100 SW Water Street, Peoria, Illinois 61602.

business moves

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Advanced Correctional Healthcare would like to welcome Nery Criollo as Director of Medical Operations, Northern Division.

Advanced Media Partners announced that Carol Floyd has been named General Sales Manager for the four station radio group.

The Bleeding & Clotting Disorders Institute would like to welcome Eric Sary - Program Director, Liz Lepper - Nurse Practitioner, Angie Brown - Nurse Practitioner, Theresa King - Research/Lab Technician, Keitra Gibson - Bookkeeper, and Leslie Wenzel - Pharmacy Data & Compliance Coordinator to the team.

CASA of Peoria County appointed Michael Zerneck as Associate Director, a new position in the organization.

Children’s Hospital of Illinois added a new member to its Community Advisory Board: Joe Blackburn, Senior Resident Director for Merrill Lynch.

Dewberry Architects is pleased to announce that David Evers, PE, CEM, LEED AP has joined the firm and will lead the firm’s engineering practice.

Facet Technologies announced the signing of Ruby Thompson to be their Creative Director and Project Manager for their new website and software development division.

Hasselberg Grebe Snodgrass Urban & Wentworth announced the promotion of David B. Wiest to Partner within the law firm.

Heyl Royster Voelker & Allen

is pleased to announce Dana Hughes has become a Partner at the firm.

IT360 welcomed Gina Tillman as a Service Coordinator in the Peoria office.

OSF Healthcare system’s CEO, Kevin Schoeplein, has been appointed to the Illinois Catholic Health Association board of directors as CEO representative and has been elected to the newly integrated Illinois Health and Hospital Association’s Board of Trustees.

Pekin Hospital Foundation welcomed Carrie Lijewski as the new Director of Medical Staff Affairs and Risk Management Compliance Officer.

Peoria Academy is pleased to announce the addition of five new community members to the Board of Trustees: Vincent Boyle, Curtis Frazier, Kollet Koulianos, Sonni Choi Williams and Jennifer Worthington.

Peoria County Board of Health welcomed Gene Huber, MA, MPA as the new Public Health Administrator for the Peoria City/County Health Department.

Peoria Police Department is proud to announce the promotion of Captain Lisa M. Snow to Assistant Chief and Lieutenant Todd Green to Captain.

Petersen Hotels is excited to welcome Crystal Holley as the General Manager and Victoria Martin as the Sales Manager of the new Holiday Inn & Suites, Peoria at Grand Prairie.

Ron’s Carpets announced the promotion of John Vollrath to the

position of Vice President.

RSM US LLP would like to congratulate Trista Hanauer, Bryan O’Neal, Dan Hucal, Jennifer Weaver, Lindsay Hufeld, and John Kaiser on their promotions and is pleased to welcome Carson Stanford, Assurance Associate, to its Peoria office.

UnityPoint Health would like to welcome Lionel Malebrache, MD, RPVI, FACC, to the team.

The Unland Companies has named Afton Booth as Chairman of the Board and would like to congratulate Patrick Taphorn, President, and Nate Rugaard, Vice President, on their promotions.

Walz Label & Mailing Systems is pleased to announce that Brett Ellis has been promoted to Sales Manager.

Pekin Hospital Foundation hosted its annual Farm to Table Dinner and its annual Beer, Wine & Spirits Tasting. The Women’s Diagnostic Center at Pekin Hospital Foundation is now offering 3D mammography for breast cancer screenings.

Greater Peoria EDC is proud to announce the launch of Career Cruising Greater Peoria, a program that connects District 150 students to regional employers.

Peoria City/County Health Department announced that OSF Dental Residency Program will be participating in the American Dental Association’s “Give Kids A Smile.”

Peoria Park District’s Peoria Zoo increased its pride with three lion cubs.

Peoria Promise is excited to announce that they have relocated to their new offices located inside of the Advanced Medical Transport facility.

Peoria Riverfront Museum held a free lecture, “The Early History of Bicycling in Peoria,” with free access to the street gallery.

South Side Bank celebrated 94 years of bringing local decisions and local service to the Peoria area and announced their new Mobile Deposit.

Wheels O’ Time Museum opens on May 1st for its 34th season.

WTVP-Public Media partnered with MapLight to provide Voter’s Edge Illinois, a nonpartisan guide for the 2016 Elections.

Chamber News7

Greater Peoria Business Alliance Announces Jeff Griffin as CEO

The Board of Directors for the Greater Peoria Business Alliance (GPBA), parent organization of the Peoria Area Chamber of Commerce and CEO Council, announced March 17, 2016 that Mr. Jeff Griffin has been named the CEO of the Greater Peoria Business Alliance (GPBA). As CEO of the GPBA, Mr. Griffin will serve as the CEO of the Peoria Area Chamber of Commerce as well as the CEO of the CEO Council. His appointment was effective immediately.

Tom Hammerton, Volunteer Chairman of the GPBA, Peoria Area Chamber of Commerce and President of the OSF Healthcare Foundation stated, “Since the time of his appointment to the Peoria Area Chamber of Commerce on February 10, 2014, Jeff has demonstrated an effective and collaborative leadership style, strengthened the Chamber of Commerce and developed strong relationships throughout the community. Applying these skills to the organization will help us grow, prosper and deliver value to the community and members.”

Jeff Griffin also expressed his excitement regarding his new position, “The strength of our members in the Chamber and CEO Council are incredibly strong and quite frankly, we are a group that moves the needle. This is a new role in which I am honored to serve and one I take very seriously. We exist for our community members and my team of staff and volunteers live that mission every day.”

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Member NewsUnityPoint Health – Methodist “Wows” Eureka Farmer

Retired electrician Doug Martin is a runner; not fast but consistent. That steady pace has been groomed over 43 years and 27,000 miles. Doug was also consistent in the way he ignored a painful left knee. “I put up with it for years,” said Doug.

Doug is a bright, cheerful, and active grandpa. His wife Karen is a hospice nurse. The couple have two children, Lori Jo and Daniel, and four grandchildren, Abram, 6, Emery, 4 and twins Nora Jo and Mary Mae born August 31, 2015. He also runs a farm with heavy equipment and a lot of physical stress and wear-and-tear on those knees. Doug limped around for a year prior to surgery and closer to surgery “it was bone-on-bone,” said Doug. Soon, however, Doug’s “whoa” moment was transformed into a “wow” moment when he finally had that total knee at UnityPoint Health – Methodist.

“The moment we arrived we were greeted with a friendly hello,” said Karen. “Everyone during the pre-op experience was accommodating and allayed any fears we might have had during this time. As a nurse, I watched the staff closely and the professionalism exhibited by each and every employee excelled my expectations.”

Doug said his experience on 6 Crescent, and throughout the hospital, was simply “great.”

“The nurses were all caring and knowledgeable. The doctors and PAs were there daily, the level of communication was great and they spent quality time with me. They treated me as if I were the only patient they had that day.”Doug’s “wow” moment came the next morning after surgery. He was already up and around and “it was so good to have it done” he said. “Everyone seemed so excited with my progress and genuinely interested in me as a person, not just a patient.”

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Member NewsBusey Banks on Energy Efficiency

With over 140 years of providing premier financial services, Busey Bank knows how to manage a buck—billions of them, in fact. These days, they are saving plenty of their own “green”, with help from the Ameren Illinois Energy Efficiency Program. Since the program launched in 2008, Busey Bank has completed numerous lighting upgrades in facilities throughout Illinois.

“We like the program —it’s straightforward and it works well,” says Executive Vice President Donald Schlorff. Most of Busey’s projects involved T12 to T8 lighting upgrades at 20 of their 35 Illinois branches. In terms of efficiency, T12 lamps can’t compete with the high-performance T8 and T5 lighting technology available today. For example, a 40-watt T12 lamp replacing a 28-watt T8 lamp offers a 30 percent energy savings—without sacrificing lighting performance. In time, with nearly all T12 lamps being phased out of production in the U.S. due to poor energy performance and high mercury content, replacing the lamps when they burn out will no longer be an option.

“We had to upgrade eventually anyway,” says Schlorff, “By doing it now, we locked in long-term savings.”With lighting incentives totaling over $30,000 from Ameren Illinois, paybacks typically fell under four years for Busey’s lighting retrofit projects.

“Incentives reduce up-front costs and impact whether we do the project or not,” says Schlorff. He knew the projects were paying off when the chief financial officer began asking why utility expenses were consistently less than budgeted. For Busey, energy efficiency has become a way of doing business.

“Companies always look for ways to cut costs but may not realize what Ameren Illinois’ energy efficiency program can do for them … and that they’ll see savings for many years,” says Schlorff.

As Busey Bank knows, when you act on energy, you can bank on serious savings.

Save the Date Upcoming Events Cont.

State of the School Address

22nd Annual Golf Outing

Business Before Hours

Ameren Illinois Energy Efficiency Programs

Peoria Housing Authority

April 26300 Liberty St.Peoria, IL 61602

June 28312 S Merriman St.Peoria, IL 61605

May 26WeaverRidge Golf Club5100 N WeaverRidge Blvd.Peoria, IL 61615

May 4Peoria Civic Center201 SW Jefferson Ave.Peoria, IL 61602

Business After Hours

Two Men and a Truck

Ravina on the Lakes

May 125326 W Charter Oak Rd.Peoria, IL 61605

June 92201 W Townline Rd.Peoria, IL 61615

Widmer Interiors

April 148415 N Allen Rd.Peoria, IL 61615

Picture Day

April 21Peoria Area Chamber100 SW Water St.Peoria, IL 61602

Upcoming Events

Chamber 101

May 9Chamber Offices100 SW Water St.Peoria, IL 61615

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WORKING TO STRENGTHEN OUR COMMUNITYBY SUPPORTING THOSE WHO SUPPORT BUSINESS AND JOB DEVELOPMENT

AN ADVOCATEFOR BUSINESS

www.bizpacillinois.com

Government Affairs NewsSenate Bill 3009 – Replace the EDGE Credit with a new Business and Employment Development Tax Credit

The Economic Development for a Growing Economy Tax Credit (EDGE), is a credit against the Illinois income tax. Eligibility for the credit is based on investment and job creation in Illinois. The EDGE credit is scheduled to “sunset” (expire) at the end of 2016. While the EDGE credit has been a valuable tool in promoting economic development in Illinois, experience with the credit over the past few years has disclosed ways in which the current EDGE credit could be improved by replacing EDGE with another income tax credit that would be even more effective in promoting Illinois employment and economic development.

The Chamber is proposing legislation that would replace the EDGE credit with a new Business and Employment Development Tax credit, effective for tax years beginning on and after January 1, 2017. This new credit legislation would be administered by the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity and would consist of credits against the Illinois Income Tax Act for investment and increasing employment in Illinois, with additional credits granted for creating jobs with wages in excess of 150% of the Illinois minimum wage, and for increasing employment in areas of high poverty.

All EDGE credits granted to taxpayers under the current EDGE program would be honored, but no new credits would be granted after December 31, 2016.

100 SW Water St. Peoria, Illinois 61602

Contact us! Please notify the Chamber at 309.495.5900 or

editor@peoriachamber.org of nameand address changes or additions.

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