The
Whistler Chamber of Commerce will soon be seeking a new president with the
resignation of Louise Lundy, who will leave the job in September.
Fiona
Famulak, chair of the Chamber’s board of directors, announced the resignation
at a Chamber of Commerce luncheon at the Bearfoot Bistro.
“Thank
you for helping us to position the chamber where it’s at today, which is a
really focused organization with a clear mandate to deliver tools and resources
for the business community,” she said. “Although I’m disappointed that you’re
leaving, we thank you for that and we appreciate that.”
Speaking
to
Pique
after the announcement,
Lundy said she’s looking to spend more time with her husband and her horses.
“It’s
really personal reasons,” she said. “We really require some strong leadership
for the next 18 months or so, get us through the Games, and so I really had to
make the tough decision to say…it’s time to move out of the way.
“I
think it’s helpful to be able to bring somebody in at this time, to do it next
year would be too difficult.”
When
asked what she’s most proud of during her time as president, Lundy said it was
her work to help bring credibility to the Chamber.
“I
think we brought the organization to a point where we were seen as a resort
player,” she said. “Some of those achievements would include a completely
revised, revamped Spirit program which includes not only the training but the
mystery shopper program, (and employee) recognition programs.”
In
two and a half years as president, Lundy has overseen a number of initiatives
in preparation for the Olympics, most recently the Phoenix housing development
which will provide temporary housing for Whistler residents in 2010.
The
homes will be located on the Holborn property, opposite the Whistler Racquet
club and Wildwood Bistro and Bar. It will fit almost 300 beds into modified
containers that would otherwise have been dragged off to a landfill.
She
also helped discourage VANOC from opening a superstore in Whistler for the
Olympics in an effort to maximize the activity coming to existing businesses.
When
asked why she won’t see her initiatives through to the Games, she said she
moved up to Whistler for the lifestyle but hasn’t had a chance to live it.
“I
skied two times last winter,” she said. “As much as I love the job and get a
lot of passion and joy out of it…I have another life, too, and that’s time with
my husband, time with my dog, Dennis, and our two horses, and we hope to get
more horses.”
As
for her future plans, she has ruled out a run at council for the Resort
Municipality of Whistler (RMOW).
“Definitely
not,” she said, laughing. “Politics are not in my future. Unfortunately,
politics are the hardest part of the job for me. I’m a person who tends to
speak my mind.”
