Until 1923, Carlsbad had no city government—no one to speak for its residents. And then, Bret Schanzenbach said, the Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce was formed.
Schanzenbach is the chamber’s president and CEO.
He was speaking on Wednesday evening to a room decorated with bright balloons announcing the number 100 – how many years the room has been there.
Schanzenbach said that there is no record of the exact date of that first chamber meeting.
Previous research has shown that it was founded by Roy G. Chase, who came to Carlsbad from the Midwest in 1915 and became postmaster, then railroad agent, and then opened a general store in the train depot (which he later, for 22 years , will be the room).
Records show that it had 20 members, but only a few turned up for the lunch meeting at the Twin Inn.
Over the years, the Chamber has attracted nearly every famous name in Carlsbad, including generations of the McClellan family—CD “Davey,” Gerald and Jesse.
Now, there are 1,000 members, making the Carlsbad chamber the second largest in the county (only the San Diego regional chamber is larger). Although the rankings have remained the same, Schanzenbach said in an earlier interview that the numbers had declined during the pandemic but are now starting to rebound.
During the celebration event on Wednesday, a continuous video showed some of the highlights of the past 100 years.
In 1952 the town (population 7,000) was incorporated – supported by the chamber – the semi-annual Village Fair blossomed in the 1980s (though it had begun earlier) and in 1993 a delegation led by then-president Elaine Lyttelton went to Denmark. For safe viewing of the Legoland theme park.
Many of the crowd of more than 200 who attended the birthday celebration were those who attended several important recent events.
Representative of US Rep. Mike Levin, D-San Juan Capistrano; State Sen. Katherine Blakespear; de Encinitas; Assemblymember Tasha Borner Horvath, D-Encinitas; and State Treasurer Fiona Ma presented proclamations.
Current Mayor Keith Blackburn, longtime former Mayor Matt Hall and Councilmember Teresa Acosta congratulated.
Hall commended the chamber as a supporter of business, saying she has been a member for 45 years, and Acosta said she is very proud to be a former chamber committee chair.
Also in line is Ted Owen, the retired chamber CEO who led it for 15 years before Schanzenbach stepped down in 2019. Schenzenbach came from the Vista Chamber of Commerce, where he had served in his top job for 10 years. He said in the interview that he was a real estate broker when the recession hit in 2008, and took the chamber job after serving on its board. “I love it,” Schenzenbach said of the work.
She has launched the Rising Star program for high school students she started in Vista and a Kindness Challenge in collaboration with the Carlsbad nonprofit Kids for Peace. More recently, Schanzbach said, Chambers opened its new podcast studio to the public.
The Carlsbad Chamber, along with its counterparts in Oceanside and Vista as well as the North County Economic Development Council and Tri-City Medical Center, have established SOCAL, a program that allows students to explore career opportunities.
Chambers’ cooperation is not a new thing. It was noted at the anniversary party that he founded the Tri-City Hospital District in 1962.
As the champagne flute was held aloft, the video on the screen behind the speaker ended its loop with the chamber’s statement that after 100 years, it is “just getting started!”
The group also paid tribute to two pillars of the community who have recently died – Offie Escobedo of Lola’s 7-Up Market & Deli and John Hedrich of Tip Top Meats.
Sherman is a freelance columnist. Contact him at [email protected]
Source: www.bing.com
