Medicine Hat & District
Chamber of Commerce Advocating for local businesses
TONYA LAMBERT Chamber Board
Medicine Hat is fortunate to have a very active and ambitious Chamber of Commerce. Driven to create the best possible environment for local businesses, the Medicine Hat & District Chamber of Commerce advocates on behalf of its 750 plus members, playing a vital role in formulating policies on a municipal, provincial and federal level.
Delegates (including the Chamber of Commerce delegation) at the 2016 Canadian Chamber of Commerce Conference in Regina.
“We are a very active chamber,” says Aaron Fleming, president. “I’d say that, outside of Calgary and Edmonton, we are definitely the most active chamber in Alberta. We work hard to advocate for our members. Our Chamber is very well recognized and very well respected both provincially and federally.”
Municipal matters
Historically, the chamber and the city have not always had a good working relationship. Indeed, at one point, there was practically no relationship at all. However, under former mayor Norm Boucher, relations between the city and chamber began to improve, blossoming under the current administration.
We don’t always agree on
everything but, having said that, it’s never a strong disagreement; it’s always working towards a
common goal. 2015 Alberta Chambers of Commerce Conference in Medicine Hat.
“The public side of the Chamber of Commerce is certainly our events because they are an activity in which many businesses participate and engage in,” explains Lisa Kowalchuk, executive director. “However, what many people don’t see behind the scenes is the immense work on the policies that are formulated to create a successful and sustainable business community.”
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Barry Bitz (former 2nd Vice President), Perry Deering (1st Vice President), Lisa Kowalchuk (Executive Director), Aaron Fleming (President) and Tracy Noullett (Treasurer) with the Accredited Chamber of Commerce with Distinction recognition from the Chamber Accreditation Council of Canada.
“On a regular basis, we review issues that are impacting our business community through information we receive from our members,” continues Kowalchuk. “Then we research, evaluate and look at those issues as they pertain to a local, provincial and federal level. Once we have researched and gutted the various topics that have come forward to us, we then put together a position paper to articulate our concerns and make recommendations to government.”
“I would say that we have a very strong working relationship with the Chamber of Commerce,” says Mayor Ted Clugston. “We have quarterly meetings with them here in City Hall. They write policy, we debate it with them and talk over it. They have suggestions about how to run the city better, how to deal with business. Over the past three years, we have adopted most of their policies.”
“There is a lot of collaboration between City Hall and the chamber to make sure that things are moving along,”
adds Fleming. “We don’t always agree on everything but, having said that, it’s never a strong disagreement; it’s always working towards a common goal.”
Mayor Clugston laughs, “Because in municipal politics there are no parties, I like to jokingly call the chamber the official opposition!”
The chamber regularly conducts extensive research and evaluation on a wide variety of issues that affect its members on a municipal level, formulating positions based on the findings. Some of the policies that the chamber has worked with the City on in the past year include Sustainable Municipal Finances, Tax Provision Threshold Indexing, Natural Gas Vehicle Training Requirements (all approved in January 2016) and the 603 First Street Development (approved in February 2016). The chamber
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