Whereas the arrival of the railroad dominated the local economy for a hundred years, Dunsmuir’s modern-day economy predominantly relies on tourism.
Dunsmuir Chamber
The Dunsmuir Chamber of Commerce held its annual mixer on February 7th, at Yaks on the 5 drawing about 30 to 40 business owners to help “build a uniform image of events and businesses in Dunsmuir,” says Cheryl Petty, Executive Director of the Dunsmuir Chamber. “We are developing a grand marketing banner listing, coordinating, and promoting events like Brewfest, Steampunk, and our 5 summer concerts.”
Heather Dodds and Sarah Eberenz from Discover Siskiyou, spoke to business owners at the Dunsmuir Chamber mixer about helping small business development and marketing. Seated in the back is Mark and Brandy Black from Bee Kind Catering and standing are Lonnie and Guy Martin, owners of Railroad Park Resort.
Speaking at the mixer, Sarah Eberenz and Heather Dodds from Discover Siskiyou addressed the business owners about their destination marketing in Siskiyou County. Funded by the government, they offer marketing tools and “intensive management event workshops” to help business owners.
At the Dunsmuir Chamber Mixer Sarah Kerns, owner of Yaks, sits with Dunsmuir Chamber President Luann Weigle and Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Cheryl Petty.
A new business that is opening on March 4th is a bakery called Bee Kind Catering. The owner, Brandy Black says, “Dunsmuir is a great place to build a start-up business.” Located at 5853 Sacramento Ave., the bakery will do catering, have a wine club, and promote local artists on the walls of the bakery.
But, according to the new City Manager, Dustin Rief, the concern for a healthy business community in Dunsmuir is to help build the tourist economy. Along with the many restaurants and variety of stores, he also mentions Hedge Creek and Mossbrea Falls as one of the many tourist draws to the Dunsmuir area. They have been working on building a safe trail to Mossbrea Falls for a couple of years now.
Currently, the Dunsmuir Chamber is using popular magazines like After Five, Enjoy, and Parent Magazine, along with Z100 radio to advertise.
Luann Weigle has been the Chamber President in Dunsmuir since 2012. She points out that businesses not on the main street in Dunsmuir sometimes get overlooked. “We want all the business members to be a priority. We have the business community’s back.”
For information about what to see and do in Dunsmuir, go to dunsmuir.com, or call (530) 235-2177.