A first for Amherst Chamber: New leader hails from Hadley

By Nick Grabbe
Staff Writer

Published on January 08, 2010

For the first time, the president of the Amherst Area Chamber of Commerce will be based in Hadley. Molly Keegan, a financial advisor at the Davis Financial Group at 10 Bay Road in Hadley, is set to become Chamber president on Wednesday.

Keegan, 47, is a resident of Hadley and is active on the town's Finance Committee and in its youth baseball league.

Her Hadley ties reflect the regional nature of the Amherst Chamber, she said.

"For most of us, our business extends beyond town boundaries, whether we're restaurant owners or contractors," she said. "We have a vested interest in business and the well-being of the greater Amherst community. We're much stronger together than if we draw hard lines between towns."

The Amherst Chamber has expanded its scope since adding the word "Area" to its name in 1991. Of its 600 members, about 450 are based in Amherst, and about 60 are based in Hadley, said Executive Director Tony Maroulis.

The outgoing president, David Perlmutter, lives in Shutesbury and works in Northampton. The monthly Chamber breakfasts have moved from the Lord Jeffery Inn to the Courtyard by Marriott on Route 9 in Hadley, where Keegan will officially become president on Wednesday.

"We are concerned with the economic vitality of the whole area," said Maroulis. "We're looking at ways to advocate better for businesses throughout the area."

There has sometimes been a tension between Amherst retailers and chain stores on Route 9 in Hadley. And several large businesses that started in Amherst have moved to Hadley, taking their tax dollars with them.

Keegan said she would like to increase the Chamber's membership, not only in Hadley but in all geographical areas outside downtown Amherst, including home businesses.

She regards Hadley as "a logical extension of our current membership." She and Maroulis plan to do outreach to Hadley businesses and town officials, she said.

The Chamber has found an ally in Amherst Town Manager Larry Shaffer, who has sought to promote economic development and streamline the permitting process. Keegan said she would like to replicate that relationship in other towns.

Keegan, who graduated from Northampton High School in 1980, has worked in financial services for 15 years, including at the Farm Credit Bank of Springfield and at PeoplesBank in Holyoke. She currently does fee-based financial planning.

In addition to being the first Chamber president based in Hadley, she is the first one from the financial services sector, said John Coull, the former Chamber director.

The Chamber is preparing to launch a new "branding" campaign with the slogan "Amherst: The Perfect Place."

"We think it's a good time to focus on the positive things that the Amherst community has to offer," Keegan said. "Amherst is really a great place to live, and we haven't experienced the negative effects of the downturn."

Maroulis called Keegan "a great strategic thinker," adding, "she really cares about economic opportunity and development in the area."

He said the Chamber is "looking at ways to advocate better for businesses throughout the area, from farmers to the burgeoning cultural tourism trade on Route 47" in Hadley.

In Amherst, he would like get beyond the "us vs. them" attitude toward economic growth, he said.

"Too often, zoning changes are looked at in an adversarial way," Maroulis said. "There can be a storage unit next to farmland, and they can work well together. We can have increased density and mixed use. If we're smart, we can have student housing that allows for the refurbishment of our current housing stock. It's not a threat; it's an opportunity."

Also elected at the Dec. 18 meeting of the Chamber's board of directors were: Kathryn Grandonico, Lincoln Real Estate, first vice president; Larry Archey, Hampshire College, second vice president; Martha Nelson Patrick, University of Massachusetts, secretary; and Mark Ellsworth, Center for Extended Care, treasurer.