Members of the Minot Area Chamber of Commerce and Minot Area Development Corp. have overwhelmingly voted to merge the two organizations on Jan. 1.

Ballots mailed out earlier this month came back with 94% of Chamber member votes and 95% of MADC investor votes in favor of the merger.

“I am excited for what the merger means to our region,” said L. John MacMartin, Chamber president and MADC interim president/CEO. “I have spent over a year working for both organizations and see a lot of synergies and opportunities for the two organizations to become one. We can combine resources and focus our efforts on a fresh start to serving the business community as one focused organization.”

Through an economic resilience program, the need for the organizations to collaborate and develop a single brand was identified. A change of leadership at MADC in the fall of 2019 served as impetus for studying a merger.

“We are in an environment where we all are looking for ways to work as effectively and efficiently as possible,” said Randy Hauck, MADC board chairman. “The organizations are already housed in one building and being able to look for further efficiencies will serve the members/investors well.”

Jeff McElwain, Chamber board chair added, “It is clear to me this is the right move for our two entities to be more effective and efficient for the Minot area.”

The mission will continue to focus on promoting business, leadership and growth for the Minot area, while facilitating business attraction, expansion, retention and advocacy to diversify and strengthen the Minot area. The organization will be structured so employees specialize in various roles, while remaining flexible to help in any role as needed.

The goal is for the new organization to do more for the community with the same amount of revenue that is currently collected between the two organizations. There may be slight differences in dues due to a new tiered investment structure, but in most cases, members will see no change, according to the chamber.

Next steps will be delivery of documentation for the plan of merger to the N.D. Secretary of State and Attorney General. A new 14-member board of directors will be seated Jan. 1. The board includes designated seats for both the City of Minot and Ward County. Other board members will serve staggered terms and represent a broad sector of the Minot area business community.