Darien Chamber Of Commerce Struggling: Mayor

DARIEN, IL — The Darien Chamber of Commerce is struggling as a result of the pandemic, with the mayor worrying about its future.

Last year, the chamber canceled DarienFest and Darien Dash because of the pandemic. Both are considered big moneymakers for the chamber, which gets no city money but uses a small office and some storage space at City Hall.

In an interview Monday, Mayor Joseph Marchese said the chamber should consider forming a regional chamber with nearby groups. He suggested the chambers in Hinsdale and Clarendon Hills and the joint one for Burr Ridge and Willowbrook as possibilities for the regional group. All of them, he said, are facing similar challenges.

Marchese said the chamber is independent of the city and that he wanted it to stay that way.

"They wanted support from the city of Darien, but that financial support is not there," he said.

He said he had heard of other towns that help their chambers financially, but are never able to end that support.

On Thursday, the city's Economic Development Committee is set to discuss the chamber's proposed strategic plan, which the chamber recently drafted, Marchese said.

"My discussion with the chamber is how relevant are they to businesses in the city of Darien," Marchese said. "When I was an alderman in the late 1990s and early 2000s, we would have large chamber functions. That doesn't happen anymore. I would like to see them do that again. That would make them become a more visible supporter of the businesses in our community. I think they can do that better as a regional chamber. I think there is resistance for them to go that way. I can't make that choice for them."

The chamber's current struggles say nothing about the performance of April Padalik, its executive director, Marchese said. Because of the pandemic's effect on the chamber's finances, its board has had to cut Padalik's hours, he said.

"Hinsdale has had a very active chamber of commerce," the mayor said. "That's what I'd like to see happen in this community."

Padalik didn't return an emailed message for comment.