The Harbor Center Board of Commissioners searched throughout the Gulf South to find a replacement for retiring general manager Kathy Lowrey.
Some 80 applications, and a handful of interviews later, and the board decided the best candidate for the job was very close to home.
Victoria Paz, a 10-year Slidell resident who is director of sales and marketing at Silver Slipper Casino and Hotel in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, was chosen to succeed Lowrey, who has managed the Harbor Center near Slidell since 2007.
Paz has been with the Silver Slipper for 16 years, starting as a retail clerk and working her way through the ranks to her current position. Paz previously worked as the Slipper’s advertising and publicity manager, and she remains involved with various northshore civic and nonprofit groups.
A Harbor Center Board press release said Paz’s “experience in sales, marketing, and operations, combined with her deep connection to the St. Tammany Parish and Hancock County communities, makes her an ideal fit to lead The Harbor Center.” They noted she previously served as chair of the East St. Tammany Chamber of Commerce board of directors, is a graduate of the Leadership Northshore development program, and was a 2023 Athena Young Professional Award winner, among other accolades.
Lowrey, who was a manager at the Harbor Center when it opened in 2005 shortly before Hurricane Katrina devastated the northshore, said the board made the right choice to succeed her as GM of the 45,000-square-foot, publicly funded facility.
“Victoria is a tremendous leader,” Lowrey said, “and her being so involved locally is a huge plus. A big component of leading the Harbor Center is having the pulse of the community, knowing what the needs are. We have conventions and regional events, but also many community events. So having someone come in who’s familiar with both is very valuable.”
Paz will begin with the Harbor Center on Jan. 13. Lowrey will remain through the end of March, giving the pair more than two months together while Paz learns the intricacies of the job.
“That’s invaluable, being able to work with Kathy for a few months before she retires,” Paz said. “We work really well together, and in my talks with her and with the board, we’re on the same page. We have the same mindset about where we want to go. That’s comforting and encouraging.”
Lowrey said there have been “too many highlights to count” during nearly 20 years at the Harbor Center, but she said seeing a 9,000-square-foot expansion to completion earlier this year certainly is among them. The meeting rooms and additional entrance added to the building were part of initial plans when the Harbor Center opened in 2005, and Lowrey had vowed she wouldn’t retire until the extra space was in place.
“The thought of leaving and not have things move forward was my biggest concern about retiring,” she said. “But the expansion is done, and it really has added a whole other element to the types of events we can hold. And with Victoria, the right person will be here to see that the Harbor Center keeps moving forward after me.”
In addition to hiring Paz, the board announced that Arthur “Arty” Baudoin was promoted to assistant general manager/director of operations. Baudoin also has been with the Harbor Center since 2005, overseeing the day-to-day management of the operations team and facility maintenance.