Chamber of Commerce Officially Neutral on Oaks III

After a rumor began to circulate that one of the county supervisors was putting pressure on the Prince William Chamber of Commerce to take a stand in favor of the proposed , Occoquan Mayor Earnie Porta and Chamber CEO Robert Clapper were quick to respond.

In the attached letter, Porta referred to the Economic Development Committee meeting on Jan. 5, saying he had heard that Chamber staff recommended that the Chamber express formal approval of the Oaks III development, after a supervisor requested a decision on the part of the Chamber.

However, the Chamber took no formal position, and Clapper explained that the process of taking a formal position took time. He also called the rumor "completely and totally inaccurate" and clarified that there was no pressure from the Board of County Supervisors or any of the individual supervisors to take a specific position, only a request to consider what position they took.

"The way our process is set up, we can't take a position without going through several phases. Yesterday was just phase one," Clapper explained. "After yesterday's committee meeting, we respectfully told the county that we were not going to take a position on the development. Our position is that we're not taking a position."

With such a process, "it's very hard for the Chamber to go rogue. The process starts with a committee, goes through a board of directors. Yesterday was nothing more than a first step. To give you an example, our legislative priorities for 2012 took roughly four months to process."

"We didn't get pressure from any supervisor. The county specifically asked us to consider whether we had a position," he continued.

But when a process is that time-consuming, even if a supervisor did try to pressure the Chamber, "we're not the group to call if you need us to quickly rally around your side."

Clapper concluded by saying that he and Porta had discussed the matter and come to an understanding.