To celebrate the launch of the ferry Chetzemoka, the communities of Port Townsend and Coupeville are giving away a pair of great weekend holiday getaways for two.

Each package includes one night and dinner at the Captain Whidbey Inn in Coupeville and one night at the Bishop Victorian Hotel in Port Townsend with dinner at T’s Restaurant. Free ferry rides on the Chetzemoka are included.

Visit http://www.GoChetzemoka.com/getaway to enter.

P.S. Don’t forget that the Port Townsend “Family Portrait” will take place on Sunday, November 14, after the inaugural sailing of Chetzemoka. We hope you will join us at the party!

We hope you can join us for this week’s (Monday, August 30) Member Lunch Meeting. Port Townsend’s City Manager David Timmons will speak about the City’s proposed capital investment strategy.

Held at the Elks Club outside of Port Townsend, our lunch meetings are great opportunities to network with other business-minded folk in Jefferson County; food and beverages are available.

At the end of the meeting, we’ll hold a new member orientation. Lasting 30 minutes, these orientations help new (and existing!) members get more out of their Chamber membership.

The weather forecasters are telling us that we’re on the cusp of a heat wave. We love to hear that, and we’ll do our part to heat things up tonight by hosting our August 12 Concerts on the Dock show next to the Northwest Maritime Center in downtown Port Townsend.

The Lonely H from Port Angeles will be our featured band, and they crank out some excellent 70s-inspired rock. Their performance is sponsored by All About Escrow and Cobalt Mortgage.

Concerts on the Dock are held every Thursday until September 2, from 6-8pm. They are free, and located at the end of Water Street. Event sponsors are First Federal and The Chamber  Board of Directors.

On August 2, 2010, Board President Kris Nelson and Executive Director Jenn Wells MacGillonie gave a presentation detailing the status of the newly-merged Jefferson County Chamber of Commerce. We’ve embedded a slideshow version of that presentation below.

Our partners at the Peninsula Daily News are reporting that the August 29 inaugural sailing of the new Chetzemoka ferry is being postponed to allow for additional sea trials to find out what’s causing excessive vibration that has cropped up in initial tests.

A multi-community celebration is on tap for the launching, and we’ll make sure to keep you informed about the new date for that once it is decided.

A disappointment for sure, but Transportation Secretary Paula Hammond puts it all in perspective:

“We’re looking forward to getting the boat in service and the celebration event just as much as the communities served on this route, and we recognize this delay may be disappointing,” Transportation Secretary Paula Hammond said today. “But we must be certain we have a safe and fully operational vessel.”

Stay tuned…

Our pleasant summer weather has helped make the Chamber’s Thursday Concerts on the Dock series a great success.  Our next concert on August 5th features, May Palmer, “The Queen of Ivory Soul.”

Wowing domestic and international audiences for nearly twenty years with her passionate performances, May has performed for sold-out crowds at the Apollo Theater in NYC, and has appeared as a featured performer at the Riviera, Luxor, and Excalibur casinos in Las Vegas. She has appeared on BET’s nationally-broadcast program “jazz Discovery” and has been the opening act for the likes of Bo Diddley, The Rippingtons, and Syro Gyra.

May Palmer’s concert is sponsored by Subway Sandwiches (across from the ferry terminal), and event sponsors are First Federal, and the Chamber Board of Directors.

Concerts on the Dock are held every Thursday until September 2, from 6-8pm. They are free, and located at the end of Water Street.