Mike Bourassa is the new president of the Fort Macleod and District Chamber of Commerce.
A long-time community volunteer and 2019 Citizen of the Year is the new president of the Fort Macleod and District Chamber of Commerce.
Mike Bourassa was elected along with a board of directors Thursday during the chamber’s annual general meeting at the REO Hall.
Bourassa and the new board plan to continue breathing life into the organization that is slowly recovering from the pandemic.
“I think it’s the same as with any other organization, they’re all having real hard times getting people back involved,” Bourassa said.
Bourassa is president of the Fort Macleod Volleyball Club, a member of the STARS charity volleyball tournament organizing committee and former town councillor.
The board of directors elected Thursday also includes John Guliker, Tony Walker, Shane Vanee, Kayla Weston, Jodi Gillingham, Brent Feyter, Andre Mans, Debbie Deringer and Emily McTighe.
The chamber, like other organizations, has been limited in the size and scope of its activities in recent years.
The chamber limited the number of general meetings in recent years, due in large part to the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions
One of the changes planned for 2023 is to hold general meetings on a quarterly basis, with a meal and guest speaker.
The meetings are likely to shift to a 5 p.m. start time, rather than at noon hour, in an effort to attract more people.
“We’ll try and make them a bigger deal and see if that creates more interest for people to come out,” Bourassa said.
Bourassa said Friday the chamber plans to continue working with the Town of Fort Macleod to address topics of concern to the business community.
The chamber will also work with the town on development, such as the addition of a higher-end motel or hotel to accommodate people coming to town for tournaments and other events.
“There are a lot of good groups in town trying to host large events and there’s no place to stay,” Bourassa said.
As an example, Bourassa pointed to all teams involved in next weekend’s U13 hockey provincials have found accommodations in Lethbridge.
“Every one of those teams is not having breakfast here, they’re not having lunch depending on their game times,” Bourassa said. “They’re not spending all their time and money here.”
The same situation is confronting the STARS charity volleyball tournament in April, which attracts more than 400 players.
Town of Fort Macleod chief administrative officer Anthony Burdett told chamber members at the annual general meeting there is potential spot for a hotel in the new Macleod Landing subdivision.
The chamber plans to continue with its annual events, and planning is already under way for the antique sale and gun show in June.
The board of directors will be encouraged to take active roles in planning and holding the events.
“I think the group that we’ve got want to be involved, which is good,” Bourassa said. “We want to do events that are well-attended and that people want to do.”
Growing membership is another goal for the chamber, with just over 80 members signed up at present.
Bourassa is hopeful that businesses and their employees will want to get involved with the chamber and the events it hosts for the benefit of Fort Macleod.
“I think you just want to be part of the business community and know what’s going on,” Bourassa said. “There’s lots of different benefits obviously but I think if you’re a member of the chamber you’re part of the bigger picture.”
“I don’t think anybody in the business can survive just on their own. It’s good to have partnerships and that’s how you get to know people.”
Bourassa said when he spoke to people prior to the annual general meeting they expressed a variety of reasons why they want to get involved.
“They all had one common reason, which was to help the town get better and the business community get better,” Bourassa said.
Bourassa said anyone who wants to get involved in chamber activities is welcome.
“If there’s an event coming up and you want to be involved and feel passionate about it we’re happy to take you,” Bourassa said.
