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San Marcos Chamber outlines 2025 strategic goals; seeks permanent home and workforce partnerships
Summary
The San Marcos Area Chamber of Commerce presented its 2025 strategic priorities to the City Council on Jan. 7, urging collaboration on workforce development, education promotion and a plan to secure a permanent office as its lease nears expiration.
The San Marcos Area Chamber of Commerce on Jan. 7 told the San Marcos City Council its top priorities for 2025 are promoting local education, advocating for business interests and finding a permanent home for the chamber and its programs.
Paige Michelle, president and CEO of the San Marcos Area Chamber of Commerce, said the chamber’s three focus areas are education, advocacy and locating a permanent office. “Goal 1 for us ... is to boost awareness of our excellent education facilities in this community and really focusing on our public schools,” Michelle said. She added that the chamber sees strong ties between local schools and economic development.
The chamber emphasized workforce development in its presentation and follow-up discussion. Council members asked about “second-chance” hiring for people with prior felony convictions; Council Member Rodriguez raised the issue and asked how the chamber and city could better publicize employers willing to hire applicants with criminal histories. Michelle said the chamber is connected with the Texas Association of Business, which studies the issue at the state level, and pointed to the chamber’s online job listings as one resource for job seekers.
Chamber representatives described membership-driven advocacy work and a recent survey on local advocacy issues. Michelle said the chamber promoted an open survey to members and nonmembers and planned to share compiled results with city partners; the current survey window closes Jan. 29, she said. The chamber also said it maintains a public jobs page at sanmarcustexas.com with links to local employers including Texas State, H-E-B and Amazon.
Council members and chamber staff discussed how the chamber gathers input. Michelle said the chamber is funded by membership dues and represents the business community’s voice; she said the chamber gathers information from HR managers and member employers to identify skills gaps and workforce needs.
The presentation also included staffing and board names: Cassidy Barinato, 2025 chair (Texas Aviation Partners); Brooke Damron, chair-elect (Damron Group Realtors); Kevin Wolf, treasurer (Cobb Finley); and staff members Marisol Gomez Mendoza (operations and membership manager), Tiffany Quibodeau (membership development executive) and Joanne Ortega. Michelle said the chamber’s current office is leased in the city park, the lease has been extended, and the organization expects to focus in the coming year on locating a long-term site; she estimated there are roughly “six or seven years” remaining on the current arrangement while noting the building lacks large meeting space.
Council members thanked the chamber for the presentation and asked to receive the chamber’s survey results and legislative priorities as they are compiled.
