Mayor James R. Knight Jr.’s office is accepting applications from business owners interested in serving on the new Hopkinsville Small Business Commission.
Initially the deadline to apply was Wednesday, May 31; however, the mayor’s office has announced the deadline will be extended one week. Business owners interested in applying must submit their online application by 4:30 p.m. Wednesday, June 7 — to www.hopkinsvilleky.us/boards. (Click on “vacancies” and then “Hopkinsville Small Business Commission.”)
Hopkinsville City Council on Tuesday approved an ordinance creating the commission. Its purpose is to “help create a more favorable economic environment for the city’s small business owners,” officials said in a press release.
“This commission is for the individuals who have invested their all to have a successful small business in Hopkinsville,” Knight said in the release. “As a small business owner myself, I understand the stress, the struggle and the reward of owning my own business. Any assistance from the city is the very least we can do to help Hopkinsville’s small business community to thrive.”
The commission will have 13 members with the first group serving staggered terms ranging from two to five years.
Knight told Hoptown Chronicle that he’s tapped Sarah Whitaker, owner of Williams Adverting, to chair the commission. The commission will represent various sectors of the business community in all areas of town, he said.
The ordinance creating the commission states the mayor will select commission members while city council members will vote to approve his choices.
For additional information, contact Crissy Fletcher in the city clerk’s office at 270-890-0211.
This story was updated to reflect the application deadline extension.
Jennifer P. Brown is co-founder, publisher and editor of Hoptown Chronicle. You can reach her at editor@hoptownchronicle.org. Brown was a reporter and editor at the Kentucky New Era, where she worked for 30 years. She is a co-chair of the national advisory board to the Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues, governing board past president for the Kentucky Historical Society, and co-founder of the Kentucky Open Government Coalition. She serves on the Hopkinsville History Foundation's board.
