Duties Shift as Harrison Chamber Closes

by ANGELA KELLOGG-HENRY

Cleaver Managing Editor

After months of planning, the Harrison Area Chamber of Commerce announced Saturday, April 18 that it will dissolve. It’s certainly a sad time for our business community.

Harrison is not alone. Many chambers in Michigan and other states have closed their doors permanently, closed their physical offices while retaining remote or at-home workers, or have struggled financially. Obviously, life is changing at a furious pace with technology, AI, social media, and how we get information.

A chamber has been organized in one way or another in Harrison since the 1920s. In the mid-1900s the newspapers are full of chamber news and events as Harrison emerged as a popular tourist destination full of cottages and cabin rentals.

As a reader of over 100 hundred years of local newspapers, I can say, “Wow, a lot has changed.” And we all know that. We are living in a time dubbed “social acceleration.” Rapid technological changes that may bring about struggles to adapt to our social systems, environments, and our mental health.

As support for the chamber has waned and volunteers became scarce over the last few years, other organizations have been absorbing events like the Fourth of July fireworks, the Christmas Parade, and a few others. Now without a chamber, the City of Harrison and the Downtown Development Authority will take on a few more of those events such as the Memorial Day Car Show and events that directly impact businesses in the city and the DDA footprint. The city has run the Harrison Street Fair for years welcoming in the Old 27 Car Tour and a growing loyal base of vendors and visitors.

The Easter Egg-stravanga was a recent event that was very successful with several partners including the City of Harrison, Hayes Township and Clare County Airport 80D. There are other events the city will probably not take on which businesses or other groups could step up and reinvent. A few hints if any organizations or businesses are interested are the Budd Lake Fishing Derby held typically in June and the Murder Mystery dinner theater held in the fall. All are events that were popular but will not continue without the chamber.

The City of Harrison has also begun a few new events in the last year that promote business and recreation, and utilize city assets such as the City Park, Saxton Park, and the Venue on Main. These fall under parks and recreation and will never replace a business-to-business organization such a chamber of commerce. The City has also been fortunate to receive grants to improve our baseball and softball fields, adding bathrooms and a new concession stand.

As a newspaper, we’ve adapted and survived since 1881, and we are making changes and offering digital options to our readers. With our connection to local businesses, our website, and social media presence, the Cleaver is uniquely prepared to take over promotion of our area and its businesses, natural assets, and to continue connecting with tourists. We will aim in the coming months to fill those holes left by the Chamber and support the events held by the City of Harrison. We appreciate the continued support of our community and know that Harrison and all of Clare County are unique places that will continue to grow and thrive. We are proud to be a part of that and can’t wait to share our upcoming changes.