Business chamber hires legislative voice

Cindy Frazier

The Laguna Beach Chamber of Commerce has hired a legislative advocate

to help the group navigate the sometimes-treacherous political waters

of local issues such as parking and traffic.

The chamber has been working closely with city officials and

neighborhood groups to manage its most difficult problem -- how to

provide parking for customers that does not impinge on residential

streets adjacent to the commercial districts.

The chamber lobbied -- and got city council support for -- a pilot

project to disable parking meters along Glenneyre Street to determine

if providing free parking for customers would solve the parking

crunch in residential neighborhoods.

The chamber is also looking at how to provide remote parking

facilities, especially for employees, said Dennis Myers, a chamber

board member.

A year ago, chamber members decided that they needed more clout at

City Hall, and formed a legislative subcommittee to strategize on

programs.

“Our government affairs council is now fully functioning,” Myers

said.

They also hired Shaun Lumachi, who has built a track record

working for other chambers, including the much larger Long Beach

Chamber of Commerce, where he made news by becoming a legislative

consultant at a very young age.

Lumachi formed his own firm, Chamber Advocacy, believing that

chambers of commerce need to use the political process to promote

their interests.

Lumachi works with the Redondo Beach chamber and several chambers

of commerce in the Inland Empire.

Lumachi, who says that chambers of commerce should not be

reluctant to promote political candidates, orchestrated a

“business-friendly” candidate for the 54th Assembly district last

year -- a bid which was unsuccessful.

“In order to go from being a good chamber to being a great

chamber, we need to articulate that we are the voice of business,”

Lumachi said at a chamber-sponsored luncheon on Tuesday. “We are

fighting for the business community in Laguna Beach.”

Despite these moves, the local chamber is treading carefully,

according to board members.

“The board doesn’t want to become a PAC [Political Action

Committee], or to be involved in political fights,” said board member

Bob Dietrich. “We want to work on issues to find win-win solutions

for businesses and neighborhoods. We need to be very careful.”

The board won’t endorse local candidates for office this year, nor

will the chamber accept political advertising in its newsletter,

Dietrich said.

Lumachi said he has advised the chamber not to pursue an overt

political strategy for a year or two.

“My role [in Laguna] is not to lobby, but to give you the

foundation and structure so the chamber can lobby” on behalf of

business interests, Lumachi said.

Lumachi has a bachelor’s in government from Cal State Sacramento.

He also served as an assistant for the executive director’s office of

the California Energy Commission.

The Laguna chamber will soon have a website devoted to legislative

activities, www.lagunaadvocacy.biz.