Orange Beach & Gulf Shores, AL (OBA) - The Board of Directors of the Alabama Gulf Coast Area Chamber of Commerce, acting upon a recommendation of the Chamber's Tourism & Special Events Council, led by Vice Chair Jennifer Blanchard, has unanimously approved a one-year partnership agreement between the Chamber and the Friends of the Arts (FOA), which supports the Coastal Arts Center of Orange Beach.

The agreement was adopted with the goal of formally connecting the two organizations for the purpose of sharing networks, information and support benefiting both the Festival of Art and the Annual National Shrimp Festival.

The partnership will solidify efforts of both organizations to share information and expertise, explore cross-promotional opportunities, and maximize exposure for both events.

"We're excited about this partnership opportunity," said Vice Chairman Blanchard. "By fostering stronger cooperation and sharing expertise, we hope to help make two outstanding events even stronger and to enable both of them to continue to expand in their role of bringing additional visitors to our region outside of the traditional busy season."

"This partnership with the Alabama Gulf Coast Area Chamber solidifies our goal of the Festival of Art expanding to a community wide festival", said Scott Hardee, President of the Friends of the Arts, "a festival that will anchor our spring and future seasons."

Both organizations enjoy strong local support, outstanding event venues, and take place at times of the year that are complementary to each other. "We believe there is great value to the community when two organizations who share common goals for their events decide to partner and help each other out," said 2013 Chamber Chairman Kevin Corcoran. "Everybody wins!"

The Orange Beach Festival of Art will be held March 7-10, 2013. For more information on the event, please visit www.obfoa.com or call 251.981.2787.