University City is a step closer to having a chamber of commerce.

On Thursday, a group of residents and business owners who have been working to form the organization in University City approved the chamber's bylaws and board of directors.

Lars Johnson of SwifTechs was voted president of the chamber. He'll serve a one-year term.

"Do you think The Loop merchants will jump on some of this?" Ellen Bern asked Jeff Weintrop of The Silver Lady.

"It depends on the cost," Weintrop said. "We're like any other group being nickeled to death."

Bern pointed out that the dues were very reasonable. She said the due structure is based on number of employees and annual revenue. A business with one to five employees will pay $75 to join and a business with six to 25 employees will pay $125.

“We’re a bargain," Bern said. "We have a lot of small businesses in town, so we wanted to price it competitively."

"That's a steal," said Mike Hobs of The Melting Pot. 

Currently, there is no firm launch date for the University City Chamber of Commerce. The group hopes to nail one day in the next several weeks. 

The city has committed $2,000 to help form the chamber. A majority of that money will go toward developing the chamber website.

Neighboring cities - Clayton, Brentwood, Creve Coeur and Olivette have a chamber of commerce.