Business owner takes chamber to court
By ADAM GAUB, Managing Editor @agaub
After weeks of fruitless back-and-forth, Home Is Where the Hound Is owner Kimberly Diedrich has filed a legal complaint against the Maricopa Chamber of Commerce, claiming the chamber is blocking her ability to access meeting notes and board voting records – items she says should be furnished to chamber members.
The disagreement between the two entities stems from the hiring process of the chamber’s new executive director, Sara Troyer. From a pool of 27 applicants, Troyer, then 20 years old, was selected as one of two finalists to be interviewed by the full Chamber board, despite not meeting the desired qualifications of a minimum of five years experience or a completed college degree.
Diedrich, whose husband, Carl, was the other finalist in the process, says she had concerns with the way the process was handled – including Troyer being allowed to remain on the Chamber board until she was officially selected for the job and the board’s refusal to answer questions afterwards about how it voted on the director position or how many of the other candidates who had applied met the desired qualifications.
