Chamber Of Commerce

The new executive director of the Harford County Chamber of Commerce plans to expand the chamber's role to offer marketing plans and educational seminars to its members.That way, said Fredric M. Rohm, who starts as executive director at the end of this month, the chamber would become an invaluable tool for local business."My overall goal is to make membership as valuable as possible, even in hard economic times, so that when businesses are making decisions about cutting back, we are beyond the cut line," he said.

With the goal of creating a group to promote the interest o Baltimore businesses exclusively, local businesspeople launched the Baltimore City Chamber of Commerce last night with an organizational meeting that doubled as a rally."

The Howard County Chamber of Commerce was scheduled to honor more than two dozen public servants and educators last night during its community awards event at Turf Valley Resort.The organization named Pfc. Gabriel Arias as Howard County Police Officer of the Year and Ed Curry as its Auxiliary Officer of the Year, two of nine police officers and 27 people recognized overall. David Williams is Sheriff's Department's Deputy of the Year, and the Maryland State Trooper of the Year is Tfc. Arthur Betts.

While Montgomery County legislators are almost uniformly opposed to the state's two proposed NFL stadiums, the county's Chamber of Commerce has come out with a pragmatic -- albeit lukewarm -- endorsement.In a statement distributed yesterday, the chamber said it supports public funding to "assist" construction of the Baltimore and Landover stadiums."The Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce supports the investment of public funds in projects that produce economic returns for the state," the statement said in justifying the group's position.

In an annual celebration of civic pride, the Howard County Chamber of Commerce soon will praise the county's best educators, firefighters, rescuers and police officers for their distinguished work .The 17 people -- and one police dog -- will be honored at the chamber's 6th Annual Community Awards Night at 7 p.m. April 18 at the Turf Valley Hotel and Country Club in Ellicott City. Honorees will receive plaques, pins or certificates."It is the community pride event of the year," said Ashley D. Williams, a chamber spokeswoman.

The Baltimore County Chamber of Commerce last night named the principals of O'Conor, Piper & Flynn Realtors as businessmen of the year at the chamber's annual dinner.James P. O'Conor, James Piper III, Ramsey W.J. Flynn and John G. Evans were inducted into the chamber's Business Hall of Fame at the Sheraton in Towson."O'Conor, Piper & Flynn typifies good business in Baltimore County as well as the state of Maryland," said Chamber Chairman David Thaler. "Under the administration of its four principals and through community-minded activities, the company has become a household name in the mid-Atlantic region."

If Maryland wants to attract new businesses and jobs, the General Assembly needs to reduce the personal income tax and cut regulatory red tape, Maryland Chamber of Commerce officials said yesterday.The chamber officials, meeting in Annapolis, renewed their call for a personal income tax reduction of 15 percent over three years as their top priority of the 1996 legislative session. But they also said streamlining the rules and regulations that affect private companies could greatly enhance the state's business climate.

There were hoots and high fives as the Carroll County Chamber of Commerce honored eight public school teachers for helping students build confidence and relate their studies to the real world. About 500 teachers, school administrators, friends and relatives packed Wilhelm Caterers' banquet hall near Westminster on Monday night for the 12th Outstanding Teacher Awards dinner. Chosen from 145 teachers nominated by peers, students or students' parents, the eight winners received $300 checks and plaques.

Paul Skalny would rather not buy an advertisement to promote his law firm - after all, Rapaport & Skalny is a law firm in a community that is full of them. But being on the board of a community organization can speak volumes about his firm, Skalny says. Together, he and Susan R. Rapaport are on the boards of 10 organizations in Howard County, ranging from panels on business education to a local awards committee. "Advertising doesn't say anything about me, but being on a committee with me says a lot about who I am and what we do," Skalny said.

When the Rev. Walter E. Middlebrooks convened a group of Anne Arundel County clergymen and women last spring to discuss economic issues facing the African-American community, they found they had some common concerns. They talked about how black-owned firms received only about 7 percent of last year's county contracts and slightly more than 1 percent of the school system's contracts. They tossed around the idea of asking government officials to conduct disparity studies. Several people left the meeting convinced that they needed to create an entity that could give aid to black businesses and lobby for changes.