Geary County Commission Chair Florence Whitebread said this week the consolidated Junction City Area Chamber of Commerce has been a big disappointment.

Whitebread spoke for herself as one commission and not for the entire governing body. “All I can say is my own thoughts, and I think in five years we’ve seen nothing happen. And it’s been a very big disappointment, and I see a number of issues, and so I think it’s something we’re looking at very strongly.”

Whitebread added right now she is looking at dissolving the consolidastion, adding the County would have to submit a letter to the Chamber of Commerce by July 1. “I’m hoping we’ll have some kind of letter out, at least some kind of response to it, yes.

The combined organization includes the Chamber of Commerce, EDC, Military Affairs Council and Convention and Visitor’s Bureau under one umbrella and under one roof.

County Commissioner Ben Bennett expressed a completely different viewpoint about the consolidation than Whitebread. “I was in on it to begin with. There’s some accusations and some concerns by some public figures that there have been some problem with the operation. I think some of that is erroneous, and I hope it can be backed up by actual facts, and I think the Chamber officers and board are working on that at this point. And I will support that.”

Prior to consolidation the different organizations in the Chamber operated seperately.