The Independent News has learned that John Hutchinson, Gulf Power’s Director of Public Affairs and Economic Development, has resigned from the board of directors of the Greater Pensacola Chamber and will not be its incoming chairman for 2013-14. Gary Huston, attorney with Clark, Partington, will be the new chairman.
Hutchinson said he was relinquishing the chairmanship for business reasons. He has over 30 economic development projects for Gulf Power that he will have to oversee. He said that Gulf Power still supports the chamber. VP Bentina Terry will still serve on the Vision 2015 board and Gulf Power will propose a board replacement from their company.
Hutchinson submitted his resignation last Thursday, Aug. 29.
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For the record, I resigned from the board on Tuesday, Aug. 27. With the chamber’s reorganization and the discussions over control of economic development and tourism on the forefront, I needed the freedom to discuss those issues with the board members for my staff to properly cover them.
My resignation email:
From: Richard Outzen [mailto:rick@inweekly.net]
Sent: Tuesday, August 27, 2013 11:08 AM
To: Hutchinson, John L.
Subject: ResignationJohn,
I am submitting my resignation from the Board of Directors of the Greater Pensacola Chamber, effective immediately. The decision was a difficult one and should not be taken as any negative reflection on the organization or its leadership.Simply, our newspaper is too small to avoid conflicts in reporting on the chamber, economic development and tourism. It’s best that I step away after five years on the board. The paper will continue its membership and will be willing to help when feasible.
I suggest that you name Becca Boles as my replacement. The daily newspaper is much larger and has more separation from its newsroom.
Sincerely,
RickRichard Outzen
Publisher, Independent News
(850) 438-8115
rick@inweekly.net