Alex Bar-B-Q of Shell Beach was named the 2006 business of the year by the Pismo Beach Chamber of Commerce, and retired businesswoman Marilee Hyman was named the citizen of the year.

&#8220Resurrecting Alex/s has been a dream come true,C said Harry Lindell, who has owned Alex Bar-B-Q for three years. &#8220We are blessed with good and talented employees that have care and concern for our guests.C

Pismo Beach Chaplain Paul Jones, who nominated the restaurant and Lindell, said, &#8220Harry took over a failing business four years ago and has turned it around noticeably. Harry has totally refurbished the interior and has grown the old business into a thriving enterprise.C

The business, located at 853 Shell Beach Road and now known simply as Alex Bar-B-Q, has been at the same location along Pacific Coast Highway since 1942.

Lindell took over the business in 2003, using the same barbecue recipe concocted by former Alex/s Shell Beach Inn founder Alex Angelo decades ago.

Angelo originally founded the business in Nipomo, then moved it to Alex/s Shell Beach Inn 7 motel cottages, a cocktail lounge and a restaurant where he sold trip-tip steaks, ribs, halibut and salmon cooked over an oak wood fire.

Angelo operated the business, featuring hand-cut steaks, for 30 years.

&#8220It/s an honor for the chamber to recognize such a historic business and the efforts of Harry Lindell and his staff at Alex/s,C said Pismo Beach Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Rebecca McMurry.

There/s more in store for the future of the recently renovated Alex Bar-B-Q.

Lindell said the next step is improving the outside area by constructing a new front entrance and parking lot, expected to be completed by spring.

&#8220We are not done; there is still more to come,C Lindell said.

Marilee Hyman, Citizen of the Year

Retired businesswoman and community activist Marilee Hyman, named the 2006 citizen of the year by the Chamber of Commerce, believes everyone should help improve the area where they live.

&#8220This is a terrific, unexpected honor,C said Hyman. &#8220I believe that everyone should give back and serve their community.C

Hyman, born in the Five Cities area, is a past League of Women Voters board member, current Shell Beach Improvement Group member and the citizen-at-large member of the Special Events Committee appointed by the City Council.

She also ran for a four-year City Council seat in the Nov. 7 General Election.

&#8220Marilee/s leadership and energy has been exemplary and has benefited our community to the maximum,C said Mayor Mary Ann Reiss. &#8220Additionally, she has tirelessly studied agenda items that come before the City Council (and) contributes solutions and ideas that assist in the decision-making process.C

Hyman was instrumental in the development of the blufftop Dinosaur Caves Park while serving as a member of the nonprofit Dinosaur Caves Preservation Society.

She was nominated by several local business owners and residents in the community, including Cindy Leger, owner of Pismo Beach Optix Optometrists & Opticians at 900 Price St.

Leger said she nominated Hyman because of &#8220her amazing care and work in the community, as well as her huge part in making the Dinosaur Caves Park a reality.C

Pismo Beach Chaplain Paul Jones described Hyman as &#8220a lady of integrity and credit to our city.C

&#8220Marilee works tirelessly for the city of Pismo Beach, and it is an honor for the chamber to be able to recognize such an exemplary citizen,C said Rebecca McMurry, executive director of the chamber.

In her spare time, Hyman likes to practice the art of pergamano, using tools and materials to create greeting cards and other beautiful objects on parchment paper. She also enjoys gardening.

Hyman graduated from Mission High School in 1956 and cum laude from Immaculate Heart College in Los Angeles, majoring in history and English.

She taught for 10 years before moving to New York with her husband, Tony, where the couple raised two sons, Mark and Daniel, who now live in Long Beach.

In 1991, the Hymans moved to Pismo Beach.

Josh Petray can be reached at 489-4206, Ext. 5015, or jpetray@santamariatimes.com.

Jan. 7, 2007