Mr McIntyre said a flight of businesses would imperil the South Island's economic status.
"Those businesses who want to stay in the South Island, and relocate, should have some form of central government support to do so."
However, Economic Development Minister Gerry Brownlee quickly ruled out the prospect when contacted by email by the Otago Daily Times.
"We're not convinced that large numbers of businesses have left the area. In fact, the vast majority have committed to staying, and many are reinvesting," Mr Brownlee said.
Mr McIntyre said that by providing an incentive to relocate within the South Island, the Government could promote regional development and help ensure the South Island had two strong cities.
Monday's 6.3 magnitude aftershock raised the question of how long people could continue enduring the tremors. Monday was "very significant" in terms of effects on already frayed nerves, Mr McIntyre believed.
Anecdotally, many Christchurch workers had headed to Australia and Auckland and he believed some businesses could follow.
Many were being stung for high rents in the outer suburbs, while the city faced much uncertainty, including the possibility of aftershocks, in the next two to three years.
Progress for businesses wishing to relocate South after the February quake had been slow, with some interest shown by firms, particularly in the IT sector.
Mr McIntyre believed more could be done, both by the Dunedin City Council and the Government.
He said about 100 families had relocated to the South following February's quake.
The chamber did not have information about how people were integrating into the workforce.
The Dunedin City Council economic development unit is taking a low key approach to attracting businesses to Dunedin, preferring to use recommendations from people who have already shifted to the city rather than an aggressive marketing campaign.
Economic development manager Peter Harris said that after the February 22 quake, there had been some inquiries from retailers looking for space and some businesses were looking at their options.
"None of them had made decisions and that is understandable, given the circumstances surrounding their insurance."
Small businesses could be attracted to the city but they were hard to identify, as they would already have some ties to Dunedin through family or friends, Mr Harris said.
A Facebook page, Plug Yourself In, had been set up to provide information for anyone wanting to move to Dunedin and the unit had prepared a brochure setting out "the reality" of moving.
