The article below appears in today’s Charleston Daily Mail.

The Charleston Area Alliance elected six new directors and highlighted some of its recent accomplishments during a brief annual meeting.

Newly elected to the organization’s board are: Horner Davis of Dingess-Rum Properties, Maureen O’Toole of ImageServ, Steve Rubin of Blue Creek Gas Co., Jim Guidarini of The Dow Chemical Co., Roger Nicholson of International Coal Group, and Bob Pepper of NGK Spark Plugs.

Board members re-elected to new three-year terms are: John Calvert of Advanced Technical Solutions, Virginia King of Kanawha Stone, Wayne Morgan of West Virginia American Water, John Neuner of United Bank, Jack Rossi of Arnett & Foster, and John Copenhaver of JPMorgan Chase.

The meeting was held late Tuesday afternoon in the Alliance’s offices at 1116 Smith St.

Matt Ballard, the Alliance’s president and chief executive officer, pointed out that the Alliance was created five years ago with the merger of the Business & Industrial Development Corp., the Charleston Regional Chamber of Commerce and Charleston Renaissance Corp.

Ballard said that since the Alliance’s creation it has been involved in the creation of more than 3,200 new jobs and has helped attract $545 million in direct capital investment to the Kanawha Valley.

He said that in the years ahead the Alliance will continue to focus on its target markets: chemicals, energy, automotive and printing. Ballard said that because Yeager Airport’s expansion has created several available sites, the Alliance will work with the airport during the next few years to fill those sites.

Also during the meeting, the Alliance went public with “ROI” (Return on Investment), its campaign to raise $2.5 million in new funds over the next three years. JoEllen Zacks, senior vice president at the Alliance, said the annual goal is $833,000. She said a total of $701,000 has already been committed for 2009.

Alliance Chairman Jack Rossi said companies or governments that have already committed to invest more than $35,000 annually for the campaign are American Electric Power, BB&T Corp., BrickStreet Mutual Insurance Co., the City of Charleston, Kanawha County, and the state of West Virginia.

Committing more than $30,000 annually are: Chesapeake Energy and Monarch Holdings. Committing more than $20,000 annually: JPMorgan Chase, The Dow Chemical Co., United Bank and Verizon. Committing more than $10,000 annually: Arnett & Foster, Bowles Rice, Charleston Newspapers, Dickinson Properties, JacksonKelly, The Masters Law Firm, Suddenlink Business, Thomas Hospital, and West Virginia American Water.

Committing more than $5,000 annually are: Charleston Area Medical Center, Charleston Marriott Town Center, EL Robinson Co., Embassy Suites, Ernst & Young, Fifth Third Bank, Huntington Banks, Kanawha Stone, NGK Spark Plugs, Spilman Thomas & Battle, Smith Company Motor Cars, Steptoe & Johnson, and Tri-State Racetrack & Gaming Center.