A Dozen Chambers, One Agenda

New years bring new ideas. New goals. New agendas. New you-name-its.

In the case of the county's 12 different chambers of commerce, the new year brings an agreement on their 2006 joint business agenda for the area, which they detailed last week at a luncheon with a tough-sounding theme: "Montgomery County Means Business."

Their agenda has five core areas of focus: transportation, economic development, education, affordable health care and representative government.

With regard to transportation, the chambers intend to push for the quick construction of the much-discussed Intercounty Connector, as well as for the widening of Interstate 270 and the Beltway.

The chambers want to advance the interests of small businesses, particularly by increasing the number of incubators and public-private investments in the biotech corridor.

They want to keep down the cost of higher education, increase funding for teaching English as a second language and support capital budget requests for the Germantown Bioscience Center, Takoma Park/Silver Spring Cultural Arts Center and the Rockville Science Center.

"The items outlined in our 2006 agenda are not just priorities that are good for business, they are priorities that help support the wonderful quality of life that we have in Montgomery County," said Richard Parsons, president of the Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce. "What it boils down to is good roads, good schools and a vibrant economy."

The chambers participating in the luncheon were: Montgomery County, Bethesda-Chevy Chase, Gaithersburg/Germantown, Silver Spring, Rockville, Olney, Wheaton-Kensington, Potomac and Poolesville, as well as chambers supporting Hispanic, African American and Asian Pacific-American businesses.

What's in Store at Westfield

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Speaking of new, the Westfield Shoppingtown Montgomery mall has four new stores up and running:

Arden B., offering fashions that evoke the Victorian era with a contemporary update. The chain is headquartered in Foothill Ranch, Calif., with 93 stores nationwide.

Caribou Coffee, the hip (you guessed it) coffee shop. It has two locations at Westfield -- a full store on the upper level in the Hecht's Home Store wing, and a kiosk on the lower level's center court.

Florsheim Shoes, the men's (you guessed it again) shoe store is on the upper level, near Nordstrom. It carries dressy shoes, tuxedo shoes, casual refined shoes and the ever-hot boots.

And, finally, Liljenquist & Beckstead, a 20-year-old jeweler that touts its handpicked fine diamonds and gems. The store is also an authorized dealer for many Swiss watches, including Rolex. It is near Nordstrom.

Have some business news about Montgomery County? Send an e-mail torosenwaldm@washpost.com.