Michael Ayers, president of the Melbourne Regional Chamber of Commerce, can remember a nail-biter a few years ago when Embraer went before the Brevard County Commission for a $1.8 million economic development grant.
“It was a 3-2 vote,” he said recently. “If one commissioner had changed his mind, we’d have a completely different outcome. And there would go some 250 jobs, which became 1,000 (related local) jobs.”
A one-vote margin for such a big project as bringing the Brazilian plane manufacturer to Brevard is too risky a gamble for the business community, he said.
They want unanimous support. So now the Melbourne Chamber wants to get out in front and impress county commissioners and city council members with the importance of new business efforts – well before anything comes to a vote.
And that’s the job of Laurent Rawlings, who holds the chamber’s new position of director of business advocacy and community development.
“She beat out several candidates,” Chamber Chair Kim Agee said. “She definitely has the skills we’re interested in. She has an incredible personality and background.”
A Kentucky native, Rawlings cites a 2002 bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of South Florida and a 2006 master’s degree in public administration from the University of Kentucky – followed by a decade or so of lobbying and governmental jobs.
Ayers said he was impressed by Rawlings’ most recent job, as vice president for governmental affairs for the Home Builders Association of Kentucky from 2009 to 2014.
“I liked her balance of policy and politics,” Ayers said. “Some people can be great at policy but not know the politics. Others can be great at politics, but not know how to make policy.”
Rawlings, 41, who lives on Merritt Island, was hired in August. She had moved here in January to be with the love of her life, Mark Maynard, owner of the Melbourne-based shellfish processor Southeastern SeaProducts Inc. The two met, she said, on a dating site when she was staying with her aging parents in Crystal River. She said she was impressed that Maynard spent six weeks getting to know her by phone and email instead of rushing to meet her in person.
“I come from Appalachia, and we’re proud independents,” Rawlings said.
Friends and business contacts will always know where someone from Appalachia stands, she said. So the person from Appalachia doesn’t have to spend time defining who he or she is.
Brevard County has not only the Melbourne chamber, but also chambers in Palm Bay, Cocoa Beach and Titusville. Rawlings said most chambers tend to be oriented around their “events,” such as member gatherings, and not so much around boosting business concerns to local governments.
“Of course, we love having events,” she said. “And the chambers do need to meet. But the ball was dropped here a couple of years ago. We’ve lacked leadership. Now it’s going to take a whole lot of determination to become a vanguard for business. There’s no future unless we protect business.”
The Melbourne Chamber isn’t the answer for everyone, she said. Residents in other areas of the county have their own chambers. But those in business need to join them and get involved, she added.
“Small-business owners need to make their next payroll, but they also have their families and their own health,” Rawlings said. “How are they supposed to make committee meetings, go to events and deal with the politicians – so the things they say they will fix will be fixed? For the small-business owner, we’re here. And we’ve got your back.”
And to have their back, she said, the chamber needs to know from businesses what they want from government.
So any business owners attending a Brevard County Commission or Melbourne City Council meeting may want to check the rear of the audience for a pretty, blonde, well-dressed businesswoman who might be sitting alone. They may want to shake hands and trade business cards. But they should be prepared for her to pick their brains.
“She is doing a lot of that,” Ayers said, chuckling.
