Stoney Creek chamber looking for new exec. director

Stoney Creek Chamber of Commerce president Patricia Legato said “it’s business as usual” at the chamber, following the departure of executive director Arnie Strub.

“It’s summer and it’s a bit slower right now, so our timing is good in that respect. But all programs and anything that was in the works is still a go,” she said.

The chamber announced Strub was no longer the executive director on July 18.

The board and Strub officially parted ways on July 13.

The chamber has appointed board member Patti Hall as interim executive director, while it hunts for a permanent replacement.

She’s managing the day-to-day operations at the chamber’s office with administrative assistant Connie Behie.

Legato said Strub’s contract had expired.

“We’ve spent quite a bit of time doing some strategic planning on where we’re going in the future and we just came to an agreement that we didn’t quite agree on where the chamber was headed,” she said. “There was no malice in any way, shape or form. We just decided that, moving forward, we wanted to go in a different direction.”

Legato said Strub did a great job in leading the chamber into the future.

His contributions were welcomed and he was great at marketing, she said.

“He improved the image of the chamber over the last two years and we’re thankful for that,” Legato said. “He just made us more prominent. We became, I think, a greater partner to the community over the last couple of years.”

Strub became executive director on July 13, 2015.

He took over the reins from Dave Cage, who departed after 17 years of service.

When contacted about his departure, Strub declined to comment. He instead referred all questions to the chamber’s president.

The chamber has already begun looking for an executive director.

The search for somebody to fill the part-time position is being conducted through Mohawk College Enterprise.

Legato said the chamber is looking for someone “who has their finger on the community as a whole, as well as on the business community.”

“We’re looking for someone who knows the community, knows business, has some sales ability and is eager to take on what we consider to be a great position,” she said. “We’re hoping to have someone in place by early September.”

Legato said the chamber has about 400 members.

It’s grown and there’s hope it will continue to grow, she said.

“That is one of our main focuses, but retention is key. We want to provide our membership with the best that we’ve got and, going forward, we’re excited about what that’s going to look like,” Legato said. “Business has changed over the years. Social media’s a big item now, and we need to be more involved in how we speak to our members and what does it really mean to be a member of the chamber these days.”