By Charlene Tebbutt

Melfort Chamber working to get out of debt and back on track

May 8, 2018 | 10:03 AM

The Melfort Chamber of Commerce is hoping to get back on track following financial challenges within the organization.

The chamber held an information meeting Friday to update members and the public. The organization’s bank account was frozen by the Canada Revenue Agency last fall, and another was opened which currently has a balance of about $5,400, members heard. The Melfort Chamber of Commerce is currently about $40,000 in debt due to $36,000 in unremitted payroll expenses and another $4,000 in unpaid bills. The chamber’s long-time executive director, Nicole Gagne, resigned earlier this year.

“The information came to the chamber last fall, I believe, in November of 2017,” said Mel Annand, a local lawyer and business member of the chamber who spoke at the meeting. “At that point, it was a surprise to the board of directors, apparently, that there was an outstanding debt arising from unpaid employee deductions over the last couple of years.”

Annand said the financial issues date back years, and noted board members can be held personally liable for unpaid payroll deductions.

“That’s just part of the picture, but it’s really not the main story here,” Annand said. “The story is that the chamber has a debt and they are going to deal with it … the chamber has ongoing revenue from memberships and other activities, so the debt will be retired in an orderly fashion.”

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Darryl Benson, a business owner and chamber director, said people in the community are asking questions and the meeting was an opportunity to update everyone on the status of the organization. Benson, who is also a local city councillor, has acted as a board director since 2016 when he was appointed by the city. In January of 2018 Benson joined the Chamber board as a business owner.

“There’s some things we don’t know yet, but we needed to get to the people and give them a general [idea] of what’s going on,” Benson said. “We’re not to the bottom of everything.”

Saskatchewan Chamber of Commerce CEO Steve McLellan has been working with the Melfort chamber in recent weeks. He said the chamber will likely sell its assets, including it office building and a mini golf course now that it is no longer handling tourism promotions for the area. McLellan said the organization is serious about moving forward and there is optimism in the community. He said the board is working to make sense of the financial details.

“Right now they’re just trying to get the numbers clear [and] I’ve encouraged them to certainly get on solid ground in terms of financials so they know what exactly the situation is,” McLellan told northeastNOW.

“The most important thing, and where they need the community to rally is, of course, in moving the community forward and the kinds of activities and events that they’d like to do.”

Charlene.tebbutt@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @CharleneTebbutt