Larksburg Chamber requests $20,000 balance, touts holiday events; merchant urges downtown parking reprieve

Marty Murphy, part‑time executive director of the Larksburg Chamber of Commerce, presented a progress update Wednesday and asked the council to place a request for the remaining $20,000 of an earlier $50,000 allocation on a future agenda so the chamber can cover operational and event expenses through the winter and into spring.

Murphy said the chamber has grown membership and partnerships, recently received donations for downtown tree lighting from new hardware owners "Bernardet and Shett Sullivan of the Corettz hardware," and is coordinating volunteers, pop‑up merchants and cross‑marketing with local shops for holiday events. She said financial details can be provided to staff (Dan Schwarz) and the council before the item returns for formal consideration.

During the presentation several council members asked for financial statements before acting on the funding request. Murphy said the volunteer treasurer, Julie Richards, will provide the most up‑to‑date accounting and staff will place the funding request on an upcoming agenda (December 3 or January 7 depending on calendar availability).

Separately, merchant Jay urged the council to consider suspending parking tickets on Magnolia through early January to encourage shoppers. Jay argued that fear of tickets discourages visitors and that several neighboring jurisdictions offer free downtown parking. Councilmembers discussed alternatives such as parking meters that allow paid longer stays while preserving turnover, and noted the two‑hour limits were originally adopted to prevent long‑term employee parking from occupying retail turnover spaces.

What happens next: The council asked staff to return the chamber’s formal funding request with detailed financials for council consideration at a future meeting; council also asked staff to study parking options for downtown merchants.