(Editor’s note: NEWSWELL Chicago, publisher of Wednesday Journal, currently sublets office space on a part-time basis from the Chamber in its Lake Street offices.)
The Oak Park-River Forest Chamber of Commerce was at risk of shutting down due to financial struggles until the village stepped in to provide $37,500 in September, according to Village Manager Kevin Jackson.
At the village board meeting on Nov. 10, the board approved additional one-time funding of $82,500 in a 5-2 vote to help the chamber in its transition with new leadership and operational structures.
John Melaniphy, the leader of the village government’s economic vitality office, and current Chamber Executive Director Melissa Mallinson cited leadership changes in 2025, alluding to previous poor management, for putting the chamber in this financial crisis.
“There was some bad leadership before. We can’t change that now. We can’t look in the rearview mirror,” Melaniphy said. “We’re going to need to look forward here. I really think that it’s essential to have a strong chamber to help us.”
Village President Vicki Scaman said she felt the actions of the village board, and some iteration of previous boards, “contributed to the situation that the chamber is in,” and it was her suggestion for the village to work with the chamber to help remediate the problem. The village previously gave the organization about $250,000 for various programs, and Scaman said when that funding stopped, it was bound to affect everything.
“I know that our staff would not be guiding us at identifying a dollar amount that they didn’t think was a good use of taxpayer money, and they feel the same burden that we do, and the same of using taxpayer dollars wisely,” Scaman said. “[The village] can’t solve all the problems of the world, but we have to prioritize the ones that make us who we are, and you know, that our small business community is the heart of our village.”
The Office of Economic Vitality has been meeting with the chamber staff for several months to look into its financials and help find a solution to their struggles. Melaniphy and Mallinson presented the request with a strategic investment and sustainability plan for how the funds would be used.
The plan outlines four goals: restore operational capacity, formalize village partnership, activate business owner voice, and small business mentorship. The chamber will hire dedicated staff to “drive member retention, recruitment and merchant services,” and is implementing a new platform to stabilize cash flow year-round.
The chamber also plans to establish a line of credit, something it did not have before, so that any future emergencies could be handled independently. The village will also have a seat on the chamber board as a voting member.
Mallinson said this is a unique situation and something the chamber has not faced since it was established in 1905. Without the chamber, Oak Park’s small businesses would be severely impacted, she said.
“The chamber serves a role in not only being the collective voice of small business to understand how they find power together, but also on an individual basis to help make sure that each member of the small business community is getting the targeted support that they need,” Mallinson said.
Trustees Derek Eder and Jim Taglia were the two opposing votes raising different concerns for the funding.
Eder said in general, “this is a bad time to us for money,” and he did not understand why the funding would not be a forgivable loan like the $246,532 given to The Day Nursery in 2025 in similar financial distress.
Jackson said it was a “different set of circumstances” for each situation that made each approach different. He called both situations a “crisis” and suggested creating a policy for consistency in future village emergency funding support, something all of the board members supported.
“If it’s important to us to support the chamber continuing its operations on an independent basis, and if there’s a need for a bridge, we felt like this was the appropriate step to change,” Jackson said.
Taglia said he felt the proposal was “problematic in several ways,” although he did share his overarching support for the chamber’s role in the community.
“If they need more funds, their members should develop a plan to raise the necessary funds themselves to get the organization back on track,” Taglia said.
He also expressed concern over the request not remaining a one-time thing and his “surprise” at the village’s previous financial support in September.
“I’m not suggesting anything improper or untoward about that at all, and it’s within the village manager’s authority,” Taglia said. “I just would like to not find that in the item that we’re discussing two days before.”
Jackson apologized for any “miscommunication or lack of communication,” but highlighted again that it was an emergency.
“If I don’t make that decision within my spending authority, then the chamber is gone,” Jackson said.
The other board members all voted in favor of the funding, although Trustee Jenna Leving Jacobson did have some slight hesitation. Trustee Cory Wesley said he sees the funding as an investment in the overall wellbeing of the village and the economic trickle-down small businesses create for residents.
“My personal opinion is that the business community is worse off without a chamber. That means that the village is worse off financially without a chamber,” Wesley said.
The money will be paid from the 2026 general fund reserves and is not to be added to the 2027 proposed budget, according to village Chief Finance Officer Kevin Bueso.