SHACC hosts the world’s largest collection of surf memorabilia, but it will be moving from its current San Clemente home (pictured). Photo: SHACC
The Surfing Heritage and Culture Center (SHACC) is a unique and extensive catalogue of surfing’s history. The non-profit organization exists at the self-described “intersection of surfing’s past, present and future,” but it has been looking a bit more to the future, of late. The SHACC recently announced it would be relocating from its longstanding east San Clemente home to the shores of Laguna Beach.
The new location will be 239 Broadway, in a downtown Laguna Beach building that dates back to 1941, when it was originally a Sprouse Reitz store. According to Jeff Alter, SHACC Executive Director, Board Member, and son of shaping legend Hobie Alter, the new space brings with it new opportunities for expansion. “The site is substantially larger and more public-facing. [It’s] in a retail area, as opposed to where we are now, which is out in an industrial area,” he told me. “I think we’ll get a lot more energy. We’ll be able to host a lot more events and expand our collection.”
The center was originally founded in 1999 by Dick Metz, Spencer Croul, and other founding partners who donated funding. It has been in its current location since 2005, where it hosts a spectacularly large collection of surfboards and surfing memorabilia. According to the SHACC website, its collection includes over 500,000 objects, images, and ephemera related to surf.
The SHACC intends to preserve the architectural integrity of the space, including the exposed truss ceiling and brick walls. Photo: SHACC
“SURFING HERITAGE is effectively the Smithsonian of Surf,” museum co-chair Mark Christy told Shop Eat Surf last year, following the announcement of a new board of directors. “Combining the balance of the world’s collections wouldn’t replicate half of what’s here. It’s the surfing equivalent of Lennon’s white piano, McCartney’s Höfner bass, and David Byrne’s ‘Stop Making Sense’ white suit along with their handwritten lyrics and demo tapes. Yet, most surfers, and the general public, don’t even know what is here right under their noses. That’s what we intend to change by opening a dynamic, high-profile and publicly accessible facility where the public can immerse themselves into the many facets of surfing through the scope of this collection.”
The move, along with the new board of directors, is part of an overall drive from the museum to expand. “It’s a pretty forward-thinking group that has been in the surf branding world for a while,” Alter said. “We’re excited to take this on and try to take it to the next level.”
