By Roger McKinney

rmckinney@joplinglobe.com

BAXTER SPRINGS, Kan. — Well-wishers gathered at the Baxter Springs Chamber of Commerce office Thursday for a reception for Jim Hall, new chamber executive director.

Hall’s duties include recruiting new members, recruiting new businesses and promoting tourism in Baxter Springs.

“I have a list of things to work on,” he said.

Hall was among chamber board members who met over the summer to establish a chamber director who would work with the city as a point man for business recruitment. The city decided to contribute $5,000 to the position after officials determined the city didn’t have as much in an economic development fund as initially thought. Chamber board members proposed paying the director $25,000.

“You need a spark plug,” Mayor Huey York said of the position at one of the meetings. “For any engine to run, you need a spark plug.”

Hall, with Oaklane Designs, said the nearby Downstream Casino Resort will provide opportunities for the town. He said the town’s location on historic Route 66 also is something he hopes to exploit.

“There are a lot of tourism opportunities,” Hall said. “Route 66 draws more people than you would ever believe.”

A group from the National Trust for Historic Preservation made stops at a Route 66 visitor center in Baxter Springs on Thursday and Friday.

Baxter Springs has had some good economic news in recent years, with the establishment of Atec Steel Fabrication, King Louie America buying a business that was slated to close, the casino and job expansion five miles from town at Umicore, in Quapaw, Okla.

Yet there also are signs of an ailing economy. Some buildings on Military Avenue have been refurbished in the past few years, but the block on which the chamber office is located also includes several vacant storefronts.

“We’re going to try to fill them,” Hall said, adding that he didn’t have a plan for doing that just yet.

Dennis Burke, chamber president and school district superintendent, said Hall’s goals for the rest of the year are to retain current chamber members and recruit new members and to make improvements in the shared city and chamber Web site. Burke said Hall has made good progress toward those targets.

“I’m excited about the opportunity here,” Hall said.