At present, Clutha has three groups dedicated to the district's development - the District Development Board, Clutha Agricultural Development Board, and Enterprise Clutha.
At its meeting last week, the Clutha District Council discussed the trust's deed, and how the new entity would be established.
A deed of trust - drafted by a district development working party formed by members of the three groups - sparked lengthy discussion between councillors, with several changes made to the document, before it comes back to the council again for final approval.
Councillors voted to make several amendments to the draft deed, including adding a time limit of nine years that a member could serve on the trust.
A new board, now called the Clutha Development Trust, will start with 11 members, reducing after three years to between four and seven.
After the first year, transitional board members from the three outgoing boards will retire but be eligible for re-election at the board's discretion.
Other changes include stating the council's chief executive could not be chairman of the board.
Councillor Hamish Anderson, who is also a member of the working party, said it would be good to have the group independent from the council.
The working party is developing a job description for the employment of a chief executive for the new organisation, who will then employ necessary staff and set up the board.
Of the existing groups, the District Development Board is a subcommittee of the Clutha District Council.
The board's budget is set through the annual plan process, but once set it is managed directly by the board and its staff. The board also can seek council approval for expenditure outside the budget.
Services for the board are provided by the council's district development manager, with administrative support from within the council.
It meets every six weeks, and its meetings are open to the public except where necessary to protect a person's commercial position.
The Clutha Agricultural Development Board was created about 20 years ago and is a farmer-owned-and-controlled body which promotes good practice and opportunities in farming as the lifeblood of the Clutha district.
The board is supported by the Clutha District Council, Telford, research scientists and many government and voluntary agencies.
Enterprise Clutha is a charitable trust with a focus on business, employment and youth development opportunities in the Clutha District.
Council contracts with Enterprise Clutha and the Clutha Agricultural Development Board, which provide business and agricultural development, expire next June.
Clutha Agricultural Development Board (CADB) chairman Dave Inder said the merger had been mooted for some time.
Council chief executive Charles Hakkaart hoped the new organisation would be operating by January 1 next year.
The new trust will report directly to council against a service-provision agreement between the council and the new organisation.
