Laguna Beach Promotes Assistant City Manager

Laguna Beach’s assistant city manager has been promoted to the top administrator’s post. Shohreh Dupuis will succeed City Manager John Pietig, who announced his retirement earlier this year. He'll depart the Orange County city in June.

Dupuis’ promotion followed an extensive search involving three public listening sessions and six interviews.

“The City Manager’s selection process was comprehensive, fair and thorough,” said Laguna Beach Mayor Pro Tem Sue Kempf. “We have built a high-performing organization that is committed to serving our residents and community. By selecting Shohreh Dupuis as our next City Manager, we not only get the best candidate for the position, but we also ensure a seamless transition as we recover from the COVID-19 pandemic while maintaining our focus on the quality of life for our residents.”

“Shohreh Dupuis brings strong, experienced leadership to the City of Laguna Beach during a critical time when we need to address quality of life issues for our residents, advance our economic recovery, make responsible budget decisions and take steps to protect the unique character of our community,” said Laguna Beach Mayor Bob Whalen. “After an extensive search, the City Council selected Shohreh and is confident that she possesses the background, skills, passion, determination and work ethic needed to meet these challenges and move the City forward as its next City Manager.”

Dupuis has been with the city for several years and is the former head of Public Works. She previously held management positions in Irvine, Anaheim, Orange County, and on the Orange County Transportation Authority. She holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Applied Mathematics from the University of California, Irvine and has won numerous leadership awards.