BEAR LAKE RENDEZVOUS CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

Minutes of Monthly Membership Meeting

March 6, 2008

The March membership meeting was held at Harbor Village at 12:00 noon. Those present were Judy Holbrook, Frank Smith, Ray Elliott, Steve Allred, Angie McPhie, Cherie Henderson, Brandon Moldenhauer, Bryce Huefner, William Serviss, Brenda Terry, Bill England, Carmen Madsen, Loretta Fidler and Jackie Meads. Our visitors were Reed Peterson (Mayor of Montpelier), September Bickmore, and Amy Bishop (Montpelier Chamber).

The meeting was brought to order by President, Jackie Meads. Minutes of the February meeting were distributed, reviewed and approved.

Judy Holbrook introduced Montpelier Mayor Reed Peterson as our guest speaker. He opened his presentation with facts about last year’s commuter bus. It did not work out as well as it could have due to the fact that it was started late and it took people a while to learn about it. Later in the summer the ridership had increased significantly. There was one bus with two runs a day between Montpelier and Garden City. This bus was funded by match from the Rendezvous Chamber of Commerce and the Pocatello Regional Transit (PRT)of Pocatello. The bus was put in service basically to provide transportation between towns for summer workers . There is little affordable housing in Garden City but other places along the route do have available housing. The idea of the bus was that workers could be transported to and from work at no cost to them and the local businesses would benefit because there was an extreme shortage of workers. Also, the general public was able to ride the bus at no cost.

Mayor. Peterson pointed out that it might be possible to run two buses this year, or to make three runs a day with earlier and later hours to accommodate the workers. Last year the bus started its run at 9:00 a.m., so it was too late for many workers. Mayor Peterson volunteered to investigate the problem of how to secure an additional bus.

There was discussion regarding the bus schedule and it was brought out that a survey should be taken regarding times and number of runs that should be made. More stops of the bus should be incorporated as they are so far apart it is not possible to walk and carry parcels that far. Many older folks would ride the bus to Montpelier from Garden City for shopping purposes, but at present they cannot carry much to the bus stop because of distance.

The small bus will accommodate 18 people and if the demand is there, the larger bus can be used. Discussion brought out that we need service 7 days a week. The bus would run mid-May through mid-September. The company has one driver now who lives in Paris. We cannot charge riders on the bus when using this grant, so a suggestion was made that we could put a donation box for free-will contributions on the bus and use that money to further the program.

Judy Holbrook discussed the funding of the bus. $5,100 for the bus.. If we do two buses it will be $6,500 for a match for the grant. Judy Holbrook stated that she needs a dollar commitment from the Chamber.

After some discussion it was decided that the bus needs to run 7 days a week and that the cash match would be $7500.

After a discussion by the members it was moved that the Chamber donate half the cost of the funding, or $3,250, to the commuter bus project. Approved unanimously. Judy was asked to get other donations from local real estate businesses and any other business that would like to help out.

The matter of affordable housing was brought out by Mayor Peterson. There is available housing in Montpelier and with the bus service it would be feasible for the workers to commute to businesses to the south. This is a problem that will only get larger as time goes on if we don’t solve it now.

Discussion followed regarding methods of hiring workers. Ray Elliott brought out that he had spoken to an immigration attorney for a firm called U.S. Opportunities. This company works with communities who are looking for legal workers. They take care of the entire immigration process for temporary workers. An order must be placed and there is a deadline, which is very soon. The attorneys will come here to find accommodations for the workers. The firm does all the paper work. The employee is paid by the employer and they leave when the job is over. They are authorized to stay for 8 months and can move from one job to another. They have their own supervision. Brandon indicated that KOA has used another company in this way last summer and it was very successful. It is too late to have a job fair because they are usually done in February. Kids are looking for jobs away from home but housing is the problem. Also, housing rates drop as you go north in the Bear Lake area. It was brought out that international kids are incredible employees.. Reed Peterson stated he would contact the company to let them know we are interested. Judy was asked to get a count from some of the local businesses. She will work with the mayor and Amy Bishop as this information is needed ASAP.

The question arose regarding membership in the Chamber in order to take advantage of this program. It was the consensus that a business must be a member in order to join in this program.

Judy will meet with the Garden City Council next to ask for funding support for this project. The money will have to be paid to the PRT before they start the service. Donations were mentioned. Steve Allred of Zions Bank mentioned that all banks have a donation program for this sort of project. The suggestion was made that businesses using the bus operation for their summer employees should support the service. Advertising could be put on the bus, which would benefit contributors. Real estate companies need to be contacted, as the program could be very beneficial to them. The bus company will handle the advertising. There was discussion regarding whether or not there are businesses who are using the service that would want to reserve seats for their employees, how much should be charged per seat. .

Steve Allred of Zions Bank stated how much they appreciate the work of the Chamber people and that they will do everything they can to support the Chamber and the community. They are still working on having a facility in Garden City. Zions Bank will be the exclusive sponsor of the 2008 Parade of Homes. Steve presented "Community" which is a first-class booklet put out by Zions which could be used as an advertising tool. This is circulated to 50,000 consumers in Utah and Idaho. Mr. Allred also stated that in April the President of Zions Bank will come through this area and it will be to our benefit for him to see how these communities are thriving.

Judy also mentioned that the Logan Scenic Byway had 6 kiosks sitting in Logan ready to be programmed and up for visitor information this year. One will be at the Overlook, and one at the new city office or library. It was also suggested by Steve Allred that one be placed at the Oregon Trail Center in Montpelier if possible. Judy will check on it.

Judy brought up the fact that we need to get our summer brochures prepared and called for ideas. After some discussion it was decided that the new membership needed to be completed and then have Bill Serviss make a brochure with a map of the area on one side and the membership on the other to be distributed throughout the lodging, restaurants, and other businesses throughout the year.

Jackie presented copies of an article regarding the Hook Canyon Pumped Storage Project for informational purposes. This would involve constructing a dam on the east side of Bear Lake and eventually pumping water out of the lake at the night time off-peak hours into the dam and release it the following morning to generate power in the peak usage times. Discussion followed and Judy indicated she had been to a meeting just recently and was aware of this.

With no other business, the meeting adjourned.