Havre Chamber sets 112th annual meeting

by Havre Daily News staff

The Havre Area Chamber of Commerce is celebrating its 112th anniversary with its annual meeting Wednesday, July 19, set for noon to 1:30 p.m. at the Duck Inn Olympic Room.

"Join us as we look back over 2021 and look forward to the coming year," an announcement about the meeting says.

The main address of the meeting will be by a representative of High Plains Architects, which is working on developing a downtown master plan for Havre.

The Downtown Havre Matters! group working on revitalizing downtown Havre, including applying for and receiving affiliation for Havre with the state Department of Commerce's Montana Main Street Program, selected the Billings firm to work on developing a master plan for downtown Havre.

That program is a collaborative effort between the Community Development Division and the Montana Office of Tourism at the Montana Department of Commerce, its website says. The program helps communities strengthen and preserve their historic downtown commercial districts by focusing on economic development, urban revitalization, and historic preservation through long-range planning, organization, design, and promotion.

Funds from the Montana Main Street program are being used to pay for development of the plan.

The Chamber annual meeting announcement says the city government is working in partnership with the Chamber, Bear Paw Development Corp. Downtown Havre Matters! and Hill County Community Foundation to develop the downtown master plan to use as a master plan for development of the downtown business district for decades to come.

The announcement says input from Havre's business community is critical to assure that the downtown core of Havre "has the look and feel that is conducive to future investment and invitiing to both visitors and local residents.

"Please participate as fully as you can in the process to develop Havre's Downtown Master Plan and encourage your neighbors and fellow business owners to do the same," it adds.

High Plains Architects' representative will discuss at the Chamber annual meeting the process of developing the master plan.

Resources from Montana Main Street could be used in the process of revitalizing the downtown area. It uses the National Trust Main Street Center Four Point Approach™ to downtown revitalization, its website says, and it provides a range of services and assistance to communities striving to enhance economic and business vitality while maintaining local historic integrity, quality of life, and sense of place. Such goals are best met by uniting larger community ideas and efforts with program organization, coordination, and resources, it adds, such as detailed in a master plan.

The Montana Main Street Program offers technical assistance and expertise to member communities and awards competitive grant funding to communities actively working on downtown revitalization, economic development, and historic preservation, the website says.

The annual meeting includes a lunch and the program. Along with the main address, the program will include outgoing Havre Chamber President Melissa Kapperud giving a recap of the past year and the introduction of new board members and officers.

The incoming president is Matt Wertheimer of Independence Bank and new board members are Michelle Burchard of Havre Day Activity Center, Jessica Faggerbakke of Lakeside Excavation and Jack McLaughney of Triangle Communications.

Work on downtown Havre

Work has been going on for several years on trying to upgrade and revitalize downtown Havre

Havre's Art and Beautification Committee, which merged with the Downtown Havre Matters group, did projects including putting covers on the traffic control boxes at Havre's stoplights, putting up bicycle racks and putting up a mural on Floren's Hill County Printing created by art students at Havre High School.

Another project was installing decorative bicycle racks through downtown Havre.

The Historic Preservation Commission also has been putting up murals including putting a historic photograph on Holden's Hot Wheels and another on the Havre Eagle's Club.

A major project was creation of Havre's Art Alley in the alley between Second and Third streets and Third and Fourth avenues. Several events have been held in the area, on which beautification work still is ongoing.

The project was to create an art alley in a well-traveled alley that needed some beautification.

The group has put up LED lights, worked to clean it up and add art throughout the alley.

Downtown Havre Matters! spearheaded Havre becoming a part of the Montana Main Street program, and the city announced in March 2020 that it was approved.

Department of Commerce held a meeting in Havre in July 2019 where the Community and Economic Vitality Program manager of the department said said the mission of Montana Main Street is to be a program dedicated to bettering the economic, historic and cultural vitality of Montana downtowns through a comprehensive approach of community and economic development, downtown revitalization, tourism development and historic preservation.

The group has researched how other affiliates of Montana Main Street have worked to revitalize their downtown areas, and having been looking from input from business owners and residents for several years on what they think should be down in the downtown area.

The program serves 34 communities across the state including Havre.

It offers grans tor planning and projects, funds from which can be used for planning or brick-and-mortar projects that support downtown revitalization efforts.

Its website says As a Main Street America™ Coordinating Program, the Montana Main Street Program is part of a powerful, grassroots network consisting of 45 Coordinating Programs and over 1600 neighborhoods and communities across the country committed to creating high-quality places and to building stronger communities through preservation-based economic development.

The master plan development has been pushed by Downtown Havre Matters! for several years and came to fruition after Havre was its granted affiliate status in Montana Main Street.

Last April, Havre City Council amended the city's budget to include a Community Development Block Grant/Home Fund Grant to help with the cost of developing the downtown master plan.

Havre was awarded $20,000 through the Montana Main Street program to develop the master plan.

The Hill County Community Foundation provided $5,000 and the group sought more funding through the Big Sky Trust Fund.