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Granby Chamber to rebrand, revamp website

The welcome sign in Granby alerts passersby to a couple websites containing information and resources regarding Grand County’s COVID-19 response.
Eli Pace / epace@skyhinews.com

The Granby Chamber of Commerce wears a couple of hats.

Beyond functioning as the chamber promoting town businesses, it also runs the visitor’s center and the Colorado Main Street Program in Granby.

“One of the things I heard when I first started was there was always a little bit of confusion about who we are and what we do when we’re doing a project,” Executive Director Lauren Huber said.



Huber took over as executive director right before the COVID-19 pandemic hit. While that meant her job initially focused on helping businesses through the shutdown, she and her team also re-evaluated how the chamber functions in Granby.

On Tuesday, Huber announced to the Granby Board of Trustees that the chamber would be rebranding to put all its functionalities under one hat know as “Destination Granby.”



“Instead of focusing on who we are, we’re talking and focusing on what we do,” she explained.

The rebranding will emphasize support for the town as a whole — not just main street — while providing experiences for locals and visitors, promoting businesses and fostering community engagement as a more collaborative partner, Huber said.

Due to COVID-19, the chamber has had to cancel a few events, including Granby’s Fourth of July parade, the farmer’s market and Friday Nights at the Lot. Huber is still hoping to have Trick or Treat on Main Street for Halloween if possible, along with the Three Lakes Ice Fishing Tournament in late January.

The pandemic has changed the chamber’s budget as well. Huber added that because of the canceled events, she expects to come in about $20,000 under the budget provided by the town this year.

The marketing for Granby will shift to promoting the town as a basecamp just a short drive away from tons of activities. Part of this promotion will be funded by a $78,000 grant from the Grand County Tourism Board for a “Live Like a Local” campaign.

The town provided the chamber an additional $35,000 marketing budget this year, and Huber asked the town board that $30,000 of that go toward revamping their website.

The chamber is hoping to make the site more tourism focused and user friendly. The company they’ll be working with specializes in tourism websites and will provide functionality for more streamlined use on the chamber’s end.

Trustee Josh Hardy, who also serves on the chamber’s board, said this tool will go a long way toward helping the chamber.

“What they have now is a tool that is not functioning for them to do what they’re supposed to be doing,” he said. “This is really going to help them be able to do the jobs that we want them to do.”

The board voted in favor of using town dollars to revamp the website in lieu of other marketing, but the chamber also has the “Live Like a Local” grant for promotion efforts.

Huber added that the company selected to build the website will continue to update it, so it won’t be out of date in a few years.

In other business:

• The trustees received an update from the Colorado Headwaters Land Trust on the easement near the corner of US Highway 40 and US Highway 34. The county granted $750,000 from the Open Lands, Rivers and Trail Fund for the project, which was short of the requested $1.2 million. However, Jeremy Krones of CHLT said he felt sure he would be able to fund the remaining $2.2 million promised to the town through other sources.

• The town board discussed a possible De-Gallagher ballot initiative for Granby. The potential measure would likely reflect the ones that the county commissioners and Fraser board have been working on.

Such a measure could save the town about $43,000 in future property tax revenue by adjusting mill levies to hold residential assessment rates at the current 7.15%. The assessment rate is expected to drop by roughly 20% next year.

The trustees directed staff to come back with more information about a potential measure.

• Granby’s election for three trustee candidates and the mayor will be on November’s ballot. All positions are for four year terms, and nomination packets will be made available Tuesday at town hall. Nomination petitions are due Aug. 24.

• Mayor Paul Chavoustie, who was out of town for this month’s board meetings, called in to thank the trustees for their work over the past four years. Chavoustie said he plans to submit his resignation at the end of this month due to a move.

• The board appointed Trustee Cathy Tindle to the planning commission to fill the former mayor’s vacancy.


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