Cooper promises ‘strongest NABA’ ever in 2014

Dave Cooper, who stepped in as acting president of the Northland Area Business Association in June, was elected to the post at the organization's final quarterly luncheon of 2013 last week.

The owner of the Ink Well print shop franchise on East Dublin-Granville Road will lead the business group in 2014, along with YMCA North Executive Director Marci Hasty as vice president, Stacie Warren of the Hadler Cos. as secretary and Patrick McCarren of PM Tax Services as treasurer.

"We are looking forward to 2014," Cooper said in opening the meeting. "This has been a difficult year for you and many organizations … but I am confident that 2014 is going to be the best year we've had in a while."

Cooper took the leadership reins of NABA after then-president Mohammad Ashraf was asked to step down after a motel of which he was co-owner was shuttered by city officials because of prostitution, drugs and fire code violations. Cooper had been serving as vice president.

"I look forward to working with everyone this coming year," he said after announcing the results of the election.

In looking ahead, Cooper indicated NABA is in the process of reorganizing, with a goal of gaining new members and of holding more morning and after-hours events. Many businesses in the area are run by a sole owner, and it's often difficult, if not impossible for them to get away to attend noon events.

"We're going to do our best to build the strongest NABA you've ever seen," he said.

Also at the luncheon gathering, a new website for the nonprofit corporation was unveiled. Tom Baker of GroundWork Group, a nonprofit organization founded in 2003 to assist nonprofits with information technology, designed it. The organization has offices on the Northwest Side and in Santa Ana, Calif.

"It's a great opportunity for us to share information about some of the businesses in the Northland area," Cooper said.

A business directory includes an alphabetical list of all 475 enterprises based in the neighborhood, not just the 145 members of NABA, Cooper pointed out. It's hoped that more of those listed in the directory but not part of NABA will come on board, he said.

"That's kind of our wish list," Cooper said. "These are the people we're going to go after to encourage them to join the organization."

The site permits people to register for NABA events, such as last week's luncheon, and even pay by credit card online.

Cooper presented a check for $1,290 to Hasty during the gathering. That represented 20 percent of the proceeds from the ninth annual golf outing, now called the Golf-a-Rama and held in September at the York Golf Club. This marked the first time that a local nonprofit had been selected twice as the community partner for NABA's main annual event.

"We were so glad to have the Y come back for the second time," Cooper said.

He added that a 10th golf outing will take place next September.

Finally, Cooper handed out awards to the North Side Health Advisory Committee for helping to launch the "Walk with a Doc" events at Woodward Park, a fitness-promotion event that will continue during the winter at the North YMCA, and to Warren of the Hadler Cos. as volunteer of the year. She built the database of businesses in the Northland area that's included on the new website.

"Stacie, it was a pleasure this year," Cooper told her. "We had a blast and we made it all work."

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