Visit Santa Cruz County Welcomes 7 New Board Members

From Visit Santa Cruz County:

November 8 2019

VISIT SANTA CRUZ COUNTY WELCOMES SEVEN NEW BOARD MEMBERS

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY, CA—Visit Santa Cruz County (VSCC) announces the election of new members to the Board of Directors. Each member began their duties on July 1, 2019 and will sit on the 25-member Board for two-year terms. New Board members are:

Sandy Brown, Santa Cruz City Councilmember

Sandy Brown is an educator, researcher, and activist focused on community development issues in California and Latin America and serves on the Santa Cruz City Council. She received her PhD in Geography from UC Berkeley, where she researched labor and environmental practices in the Fair Trade banana industry, and conducted postdoctoral research on the politics of pesticide regulation in the California strawberry industry. She has taught courses in public affairs, food and agriculture policy, and American and international studies. She currently serves on the board of directors for the Regional Transportation Commission, Monterey Bay Community Power Policy Board, and the Area Agency on Aging.

Steve Edmonds, President – San Lorenzo Valley Chamber of Commerce

Steve Edmonds moved to Santa Cruz County in 1982. With an education & background in finance, electronics, and business management, Steve pursues his passion of providing financial guidance and security as a Financial Advisor. He specializes in retirement planning and risk management for individuals, families and business owners. Steve currently serves as President of the San Lorenzo Valley Chamber of Commerce. He is also on the Board of Trustees for Historic Park Hall in Ben Lomond, an active member of Mountain Community Theater since 1984, a member of the San Lorenzo Valley Rotary, a volunteer for the Santa Cruz County Sherriff’s office, and soon to be participating in the Main Street Boulder Creek project in conjunction with the Santa Cruz Economic Development Department and the Boulder Creek Business Association. His past community involvements include: member of the board of directors for the Tannery Arts Center in Santa Cruz for over 14 years, board member of the San Lorenzo Valley Women’s Club, and board member of the Boulder Creek Parks and Recreation Department.

Tina Friend, City Manager, City of Scotts Valley

Tina Friend is a city management and public policy professional with special expertise in public management, policy analysis, communications and public law. She manages a $20 million budget and a broad array of community services. Prior to working with the City of Scotts Valley, Tina was with the City of Santa Cruz for 14 years. For the last nine years, she held the position of Assistant City Manager. Tina oversaw the Finance, Planning and Community Development, Economic Development, Information Technology, and Human Resources Departments and the City Manager’s Office. She worked on significant community issues such as housing, homelessness, public safety, community engagement and finance. Tina holds a Juris Doctor degree from the Santa Clara University School of Law and a Master of Public Policy degree from Georgetown University. Her undergraduate degree is a B.S. magna cum laude from the University of Idaho. She has been active locally including serving on the Santa Cruz County Women’s Commission, graduating from Leadership Santa Cruz and serving on the Boards of the United Way of Santa Cruz County and the Santa Cruz Area Chamber of Commerce. Tina lives with her husband and five-year-old son and in her spare time loves to hunt for sea glass along our beautiful beaches and hike in the redwoods.

Tim McGregor, General Manager, Seascape Beach Resort

Tim McGregor joins the VSCC board of directors with many years of hotel experience. Prior to his current position as General Manager of the Seascape Beach Resort, Tim managed three resorts for Woodside Properties: the Bodega Bay Lodge, the Napa Valley Lodge, and the Indian Springs Resort in Calistoga. He also served as executive assistant manager of the Monterey

Plaza Hotel and worked for Hyatt Hotels in Maui, Hawaii, San Antonio, Texas, and in San Francisco. Tim earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Wisconsin in Madison, near his hometown of Delavan. He has experience serving on the board of directors with visitor bureaus in Sonoma and Napa Counties. Tim lives in Aromas with his family.

Bhavana Patel, General Manager, Capitola Hotel

Bhavana Patel has been a resident of Santa Cruz for 23 years and is a second generation hotelier with family-owned hotels both locally and in Texas. Her family has worked in the hospitality industry for over half a century, owning hotels in Santa Cruz County for over 40 years. Her background includes 35 years of lodging experience in all aspects of operations, marketing,

management and ownership. Currently, she owns, operates, and develops hotels in Watsonville, Capitola, Live Oak, Santa Cruz and East Palo Alto. She is an active member of a number of chambers of commerce and business owners associations representing the hospitality industry. Her career includes 25 years of corporate experience while overseeing the operations of Ocean Echo Inn & Beach Cottages. Bhavana earned her B.A. in Finance from the University of Texas in Arlington.

Sita Patel, Regional Director of Operations, Lotus Management Inc.

Sita Patel is a third generation hotel industry professional with Lotus Management Inc. Sita serves as Regional Director of Operations and supervises the development and revisions to hotel business plans and annual budgets, analyzes financial reports, and works with property and regional associates to maximize revenues. She is also involved with Construction Procurement for New Build Hotels within the Lotus portfolio including properties in Santa Cruz County: Fairfield Inn & Suites, Holiday Inn Express, Four Points by Sheraton and the Courtyard by Marriott which is under construction. Lotus Management Inc also owns hotels from the central coast of California to Oregon. Sita graduated from San Francisco State

University with a double major in Corporate Finance and Financial Services. She also is a licensed realtor and a Certified Hotel Administrator (CHA). Sita volunteers her time with BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha.

Emily Thomas, Owner, Santa Cruz Mountain Brewing

Emily Thomas is an owner of the Westside staple Santa Cruz Mountain Brewing. A native of the San Lorenzo Valley, Emily attended Lewis & Clark College in Portland, Oregon where she earned a B.A. in Journalism. From there, she began a decade-long career in high tech with San Diego-based Qualcomm. Inspired by the craft beer scenes in Portland and San Diego,

Emily returned to the Santa Cruz area and founded Santa Cruz Mountain Brewing in 2005. She is community-minded and offers educational classes for women interested in brewing beer. In 2014, she opened the Cremer House in Felton, California. With a focus on locally farmed organic foods and craft beers, set in a historic building, the Cremer House became a lively destination. No longer with the Cremer House, Emily is focused on working with and raising funds for local non-profits. Emily is a board member for the Land Trust of Santa Cruz County and released a unique beer called the Rail Trail Ale. Profits from the beer helped finance a 32-mile paved bike trail from Davenport to Watsonville. Emily hosts regular “Ales for Tails” adoption events at the brewery to support the efforts of the Santa Cruz County Animal Shelter. For the last eight years, Emily has hosted the Twisted Tasting event in Santa Cruz, a benefit for the Arts Council of Santa Cruz County featuring innovative beers, foods, and entertainment. Active in the brewing scene, her goal is to build community by brewing the best organic beer. Recently Emily began writing for Edible Monterey Bay uniting her love of journalism with the local food scene. Emily loves cooking, running and yoga and lives on the Westside of Santa Cruz with her two teenage sons and their dog, Pete.

VSCC board members determine policies which govern the agency, review and approve VSCC’s annual work plan and serve on committees that directly support tourism promotion for the County. The board also oversees the Tourism Marketing District budget and program of work. Tourism is Santa Cruz County's largest industry, impacting the area with $1 billion for the local economy annually.

This press release was produced by Visit Santa Cruz County. The views expressed here are the author’s own.