Former Laguna Beach mayor Elizabeth Pearson, who fought for seniors and the environment, h
October 2, 2025
Elizabeth Pearson, a three-time mayor of Laguna Beach recognized for her devotion to seniors, understanding the need for community progress and protection of the environment, has died. She was 73.
Her death Friday, Sept. 25, followed complications from a long illness, said Cody Engle, a Laguna Beach resident and longtime friend and mentor. A memorial service will be held in October.
“I met her when she was 21 years old and her name was ‘Bunny’ Love,” Engle said of her maiden name. He was in the real estate business in Florida when he met Pearson, who was working as a leasing consultant. “She was a self-made woman and came from very modest beginnings, but was a very determined woman. My joke is: ‘She’s been telling me what to do for 50 years.’”
Engle said Pearson moved to Laguna Beach and later convinced him to buy property in the beach town in 2007. When she did, she told him that the house he had selected, with her advice, would be perfect for holding fundraisers. She was right, he said, adding that both current Laguna Beach Mayor Alex Rounaghi and former Mayor Sue Kempf kicked off their campaigns at his home.
After his purchase, though he was in Chicago, he continued to be in touch with Pearson, he said, watching as she grew her political and social influence in the coastal town.
“She had vision, determination and charm,” he said, adding that he moved to town permanently in 2015. “She had a unique quality in not only advocating for something, but was successful in getting it accomplished. Elizabeth always said, ‘We ought to do something and then she did.’ She was quite a package.”
Pearson served on the Laguna Beach City Council for 12 years, first running for election in 2001 and last serving in 2014. She also served as a planning commissioner for six years.
Among her achievements for Laguna Beach were the negotiations that led to the development of the Montage Resort and Treasure Island Park, Engle said, recalling how he toured what was once a mobile home park when the concept of the luxury resort now there was being discussed.
The resort, on South Coast Highway, opened in February 2003.
Engle also talked about Pearson’s leadership as mayor during the Bluebird Canyon Mudslide in June 2005 and her advocacy for the residents with then-Sen. Diane Feinstein to seek funds for rebuilding the neighborhood where 12 homes were destroyed. The cost of repair and response to the emergency was estimated at $35 million.
For that effort, Engle said Pearson was honored as “Newsmaker of the Year” and was later named “Woman of the Year” by the Woman’s Club of Laguna Beach.
Pearson was also a longtime advocate for seniors and actively promoted the establishment of a senior center, which for years used the basement of the Veterans of Foreign Wars post. Through her commitment to the community, she helped raise tens of thousands of dollars, along with the Quilter family and the city for the construction of the Susi Q Senior Center, which broke ground in 2009.
“She was the reason we had the senior center, she was the secret sauce,” said Chris Quilter, who was board president of Laguna Beach Seniors and now is on its emeritus board. “Her grandparents were very important to her and she always had a soft spot for seniors.”
Quilter said his family would not have gotten involved with the capital campaign to build the center had it not been for Pearson, who vowed it would become a first-rate facility. The center is named after Quilter’s mother.
“It wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for her; she was the pied piper of the senior center,” he said, describing Pearson as a smart, competent, complicated and always prepared councilmember.
He said the center, which now hosts dozens of community activities, has turned into a “success story.”
“It’s got a lot of goodness and what makes a small town special,” he said. “I look at the center and I say there is Elizabeth’s legacy. It will be there for a very long time and it will continue to enrich older people’s lives.”
Quilter also called Pearson instrumental in helping Laguna Beach transform from a sleepy beach town into a vibrant community that now welcomes more 7 million visitors annually.
One of Pearson’s goals was a parking structure near the town’s canyon village entrance. However, the beautification effort, which included a four-story, 506-space parking structure, was scrapped in 2013.
“The parking structure controversy was a great sadness for her,” Quilter said. “She recognized it was going to require a referendum that was probably not going to pass.”
But, he credited her ability to “read the tea leaves” and recognize that the topic was dividing the community.
Councilmember Bob Whalen, who replaced Pearson as mayor in 2014, said Pearson’s efforts during her tenure have “without a doubt” been significant for Laguna Beach.
“We all continue to benefit from and should be thankful for her years of commitment to the city,” he said.
Jinger Wallace, the co-founder of the Laguna Bluebelt Coalition, a nonprofit dedicated to protecting the town’s coastline, credited Pearson with her ability to look out for the environment, especially as the town was drawing more and more visitors.
“She was an important civic leader who in 2009 voted to support Marine Protected Areas in Laguna Beach,” Wallace said. “She and her other councilmembers sent a strong message to the California Department of Fish and Game endorsing a citywide marine reserve to protect and preserve Laguna’s marine life. Her commitment to our marine environment represents a lifetime legacy to both present and future generations.”
Engle said Pearson most appreciated how much the people in Laguna Beach loved their community.
“Laguna Beach is absolutely unique in that way,” he said. “California is full of new towns and somewhat anonymous cities. Elizabeth loved Laguna Beach for what it is.”
RevContent Feed
More in News Obituaries
Search
RECENT PRESS RELEASES
Related Post
