Pecos Chamber board seeks national search, proposes joint workshop after director resignation

Pecos Chamber representatives told the Pecos City Council on April 10 that the chamber’s board is united in wanting to keep the organization operating, launch a national search for a new executive director and hold public meetings so local stakeholders can shape priorities.

The chamber’s representative, Matt Elliott, said the board met recently and is “on the same page” about continuing operations and starting a six- to nine-month national search for an executive director, with local input and a town-hall style outreach process. He said the board also discussed interim options to maintain services while recruiting a director.

Why it matters: the chamber handles community events and business outreach that the council and residents said drive local tourism and sales. Council members pressed the chamber to clarify governance, fill key vacancies and provide regular financial reports so the city can evaluate continued funding.

Matt Elliott told the council the chamber held a special board meeting and that the board is willing to continue: “we feel that there’s enough youth on there, enough people that are, enough diversity on there to where we should continue to try to, salvage what we have.” He described plans for a national search and for broad community input on the role and responsibilities of a new director.

Council members and residents raised operational concerns: the chamber’s treasurer resigned, several board seats are vacant (the board is currently at nine members, down from earlier counts), and volunteer shortages and late event planning have hurt some recent programs. Elliott said the chamber currently employs two full-time staff and one part-time marketing employee; he said staff continue to run events including Golden Girl/Little Miss Cantaloupe and an oil expo planned for fall.

Several speakers described specific event problems from 2024, including a banquet that had to be canceled and a “Night in Pecos” event that was organized too late and lost money. Elliott said the chamber plans to move some events later in the year to allow more time for organization and volunteer recruitment and to prepare standard event procedure manuals.

The council and chamber also discussed how the chamber and the city’s Convention and Visitor Bureau (CVB) should work together. Some council members asked that the two roles be clearly separated so CVB staff time funded by the city or county is not used for chamber-specific work without clear accounting. Elliott said the chamber pays commissions out of chamber funds and that the current staffing model is a “hybrid” with some staff working on both CVB and chamber tasks.

Councilman Charles Leno (city manager) and others said they want measurable expectations. The council directed staff and chamber leaders to set a time for a joint workshop and asked the chamber to bring quarterly financial reports to the next council meeting. Leno said he would work with staff to schedule a follow-up meeting that includes chamber committee members.

A second source of public concern at the meeting was a resignation letter from the chamber’s recently departed director that appeared in a local newspaper. Elliott told the council the board had not provided the letter to the paper and that the former director texted board members to apologize and said he did not intend for the letter to be published. Elliott said the chamber’s bylaws address some of the complaints raised in the letter and that board members want a frank, private discussion with council and stakeholders to repair trust.

Council members said they want written, measurable milestones the chamber must meet to continue receiving city funds. Several council members suggested setting quarterly criteria and withholding future payments if those criteria are not met.

Ending: The council did not vote on funding changes at the April 10 meeting. Council and chamber leaders agreed to schedule a joint workshop, to require the chamber’s quarterly financial report at the next meeting, and to develop measurable criteria the council can use to evaluate the chamber’s performance and any future disbursements.