Two Iowa City business organizations announce recommendation to merge

IOWA CITY — Two Iowa City organizations focused on supporting local businesses and economic development throughout Johnson County announced their recommendation to merge Thursday.

The leaders of Iowa City Area Development Group (ICAD) and Iowa City Area Business Partnership recommended to their respective boards that the two groups be formally merged by July 1, 2023.

“As many of you know, this has been explored in the past and the collective work done by our organizations during the pandemic has further highlighted the need to align resources for greater impact,” Kim Casko, president and CEO of Iowa City Area Business Partnership, said in an email to members.

The merger would allow the organization to better address challenges facing the business community, including workforce shortage, affordable housing and child care. Potential solutions and recommendations to these challenges were published in Better Together 2030’s All in Vision report earlier this year.

The boards of the two groups will each vote on the recommendation at their November meetings, Casko said. If approved, organization design work would begin.

“I firmly believe we have a greater impact when we work together, and the merger is the right step for our community,” Kate Moreland, president of ICAD, said in an email to investors and partners.

In the email, Moreland also announced she will be resigning as president of ICAD. She has spent 10 years with the organization and was named president in 2020.

Moreland will step into a new role on Jan. 9, 2023, as a part-time consultant for the Better Together 2030 visioning work.

Moreland will help expand partnerships with the community and the University of Iowa, along with other implementation work. If the merger is approved, Moreland would also serve in a consultant role in the merged organization.

Tom Banta, ICAD’s vice president and director of strategic growth, will serve as the interim president starting in January, pending approval in November.

“I am excited to continue working with Kate in her new role, as well as work with Tom on taking our organizations to the next level,” Casko said.

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