Homegrown Erin Slattery excited to lead Laguna Beach Chamber of Commerce
Erin Slattery just completed her first month as the president and chief executive of the Laguna Beach Chamber of Commerce, but her family has been a part of the community for generations.
A 1994 graduate of Laguna Beach High, Slattery joined the local chamber as an events and marketing manager earlier this year. She has succeeded Paula Hornbuckle-Arnold as president of the organization.
Hornbuckle-Arnold, a member of the chamber’s board of directors, had been serving in the role on an interim basis following the resignation of Sandy Morales.
While her time working for the organization has been short, Slattery said prior work experience has helped prepare her for what lies ahead. She learned how to handle a variety of roles while working under Darrcy Loveland with the Laguna Beach Community Foundation.
She also worked on large events with the Ocean Institute in Dana Point and the Bowers Museum in Santa Ana.
“We are just trying to let our members know that we are here for them again and that what they have been lacking in support over the past two years in regards to their marketing, we are here again,” Slattery said of the Chamber’s activity in emerging from the coronavirus pandemic.
“However, we were very instrumental over COVID in getting a lot of the restaurants their open spaces, like with the Promenade [on Forest], and being able to get those temporary permits in place.”
Slattery said it’s her responsibility to cultivate relationships with City Council members and city staff and to advocate for the small business owner in Laguna Beach.
There are now close to 300 members in the Chamber, said Slattery, who attended a ribbon-cutting ceremony for Laguna Canyon Winery Thursday evening.
“I’ll definitely be advocating on behalf of our small businesses to keep the outdoor dining,” Slattery said, adding that her advocacy will extend beyond those businesses on the Promenade. “Of course, the long-term issue is the parking. We always have parking problems in Laguna. It’s not going to go away just because we’re taking away two parking spaces to give some more outdoor dining.
“That’s a much bigger problem that we need to come up with a solution for with parking structures, either on the outskirts of town or inside town.”
The availability of public restrooms away from the downtown area has also been a concern brought by Chamber membership, Slattery said.
“There were some great candidates [for Chamber president and CEO], but Erin was hungrier,” said J.J. Ballesteros, who is in his fourth and final year as the chairman of the board for the Chamber. “She really wanted the position. She was grasping everything that she was doing in her position very well.
“The board got a chance to see Erin work. She was at all of our board meetings and events, and they got a sense and a chance to see her work ethic and her passion. When it was time to decide, I know Paula felt strongly about it, and I was also in the same position, that I think it would probably be in the Chamber’s best interest to have [Slattery] take the position.”
A couple of additional hires have also been made to provide support staff to Slattery, Ballesteros added.
Lang Park is named after Slattery’s grandfather, Frederick Lang, a well-known landscape architect and environmentalist.
“I’m so excited to be able to be part of this community that I grew up in, that I love, and to be able to support the businesses,” Slattery said. “It’s amazing to be able to be part of this organization and to show the strength that small businesses can have when they work together.”
The Chamber is co-sponsoring a forum for Laguna Beach City Council candidates on Sept. 15 at City Hall. The Taste of Laguna food and music festival, a fundraiser featuring food from local restaurants, is coming up on Oct. 13.
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