By unanimous vote Wednesday morning the Junction City area Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors elected to move forward with a capital campaign.

Earlier this year the board hired Jerry Hinson, owner of Affordable Funding and Regional Development Associates to conduct a feasibility study on a capital campaign in Junction City. Hinson presented the results of the study three months ago and explained that he believed the chamber could raise approximately $1.2 million over a five year period from the private sector in the community for economic development.

Hinson will now be hired to conduct the campaign and is expected to begin within the next two weeks.

“Jerry will come to town and begin, again, the interview process. It will be an ongoing process for the next seven to nine months. He will be in town during that time at least four days a week,” explained Tom Weigand, Chamber CEO and President.

How the money raised is spent will be up to the donors. According to Weigand the donors will be asked how they would like to see the donated money spent.

“There might be examples, whether it’s in getting land under options, or it’s in putting more emphasis on retention and expansion of present industry, or it’s in more marketing of our community. Those kinds of things I would expect to fall out of this interview process, but donors will tell us and lead us where that most important emphasis should be placed.”

Hinson will be paid a base fee of $16,500 per month for his services, but his contract will be month to month. A local bank has already stepped forward and offered to loan the chamber the money to pay Hinson for his work, until the money from the campaign starts coming in.

Members of the board did express hesitation towards the campaign due to the high cost of conducting the campaign and the unpredictability of how much will actually be raised.

Because of the month to month contract Ben Kitchens explained,”There’s some flexibility there if it falls flat, we can get out.”

Gery Schoenrock was on the capital campaign committee and explained that they looked at all of the “what if’s.”

“What if the money isn’t raised, what if we didn’t do it versus the benefits to go ahead and do it. I think really the bottom line was, even though I think that I was one of the most skeptical ones on the committee, it’s worth an exercise,” Schoenrock said.

Weigand confirmed Hinson helped Pottawatomie County and Manhattan in successful capital campaigns to raise funds to support their economic development efforts.