The organization behind the popular annual Holiday Stroll has folded into the Kalispell Chamber of Commerce.  

The nonprofit Kalispell Downtown Association was established in 2005 to improve the city’s downtown by promoting its merchants and hosting events. Those efforts will now fall to the chamber. 

“The association’s board made this decision thoughtfully and unanimously, recognizing that aligning efforts will provide the infrastructure and partnerships needed for long-term sustainability and impact,” wrote Downtown Kalispell Association President Elma Giavasis in a joint statement with the chamber on Feb. 23.  

“There’s going to be a greater support team around downtown events and projects just because we have a little bit more experience and in numbers in terms of staffing,” Kalispell Chamber of Commerce President Lorraine Clarno told the Inter Lake.  

Former board members of the now-dissolved association will continue its mission with the Downtown Forward Coalition, an initiative launched by the chamber last year to advocate for downtown businesses and push City Hall to address issues facing the neighborhood.  

“Our businesses downtown want to see a little bit closer collaboration. They want to see action. They want to see results. And I think under the chamber’s umbrella, with Downtown Kalispell Forward, that’s exactly what they’re going to see over the next couple of years,” Clarno said. 

The merger will also save business owners money. Many were paying dues to both the chamber and Kalispell Downtown Association. 

“I think it makes us more fiscally conservative and responsible to our downtown business owners, gives us a larger voice,” said Bias Brewing owner Gabe Mariman, a former Kalispell Downtown Association board member. 

“We’ve done a good job fundraising. We’ve done a good job being relevant and funding our organization. But what the chamber brings to us is alleviating a lot of duplicative services,” he said.  

Consolidation will also streamline communication and eliminate confusion over what organizations are hosting which events, according to Mariman. He hopes the merger will eventually bring four to five events to Kalispell’s downtown a year.  

Reimbursement checks were sent to Kalispell Downtown Association members that paid their 2026 dues and funds raised from past events will be transferred to the Kalispell Chamber Foundation “to address the wants and needs of the downtown stakeholders,” Mariman said.  

“We’re going to have a louder voice. We’re going to have a more organized and coordinated voice, and that will ultimately lead to changes that our businesses downtown have been really looking for,” Clarno said.  

Reporter Jack Underhill can be reached at 758-4407 and [email protected].