It’s been a busy time for the Indian Lake Area Chamber of Commerce & Visitors Bureau, starting with frozen pipes in February that led to flooding and kicked them out of their previous office space. Those repairs took longer than anticipated, and the chamber finally made a permanent move.

Though they’re still on State Road 366 in Huntsville, you can now find the chamber and bureau in nice new headquarters just down the road at 7465 S.R. 366, Suite C. An open house on Thursday, Oct. 1, gave the community a chance to enjoy refreshments while exploring the spacious area and interacting with the staff and board members.

Another big change is the new chamber executive director, Michelle Grandi, who moved into the position after Amber Fagan resigned in August. For Grandi, it’s all about doing what they’re supposed to do as a chamber of commerce. “I hope to see a positive connection with the community,” she admitted. “I want to bring people together. I’d like to see the community involved.”

To accomplish this, Grandi said her door will always be open. The chamber will observe regular business hours: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and 9 a.m. to noon on Saturdays.

New board member Jon Watkins, who owns The Sign Shop, hopes to see more regulation in how they run things, specifically following Robert’s Rules of Order as their framework for efficient and orderly meetings. “Our priorities are to regain public trust and talk about transparency,” Watkins stated, adding, “We want to make sure the media is a big part of what we’re doing.”

Grandi and Watkins both said they’d like to see a greater distinction between the chamber’s focus on area businesses and the visitors bureau’s emphasis on events and tourism. According to Watkins, “Right now it’s very blurry and blended. I’m looking for a little more separation on some of those things.”

At the moment, life might be a little slower around the lake as we head into the colder months, which gives the chamber an opportunity to work on their area guide and plan the annual members dinner at the Fion Wine Room in Huntsville on Saturday, Dec. 5.

“I’m very excited to see what this new board can accomplish,” Carrie Weigand, secretary, said. “Will there be good changes? Yes. Big changes? Yes, but they’re going to take time. I have to keep reminding myself of that.” She also asked the community to remember the board members are all volunteers. They own businesses and are doing what they can to make living near the Lake better.

“We’ll get there,” Weigand concluded. “This is a great start.”

The Indian Lake Area Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors consists of Rick Core, president; David Durnell, vice president; Weigand; Jenny Ignarski, treasurer; Watkins; Jim Berry; and Amy Musil.