Kris Larson

Experience

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  City of Raleigh

  Mar 2007 - Feb 2009

  Senior Planner

  Conducted high-profile project management and economic development for center city area of Raleigh, North Carolina. Served as spokesperson for municipal efforts to revitalize Downtown Raleigh and collaborated closely with private sector developers and key development organizations in Downtown Raleigh. Noteworthy projects: Hillsborough Street Business Improvement District (BID) Formation - Managed the development of a BID for the university-anchored commercial business district directly west of Downtown Raleigh. Interim Downtown Framework (IDF) – Managed the development and adoption of an interim downtown framework to supplement the approved existing plans, policies, and guidelines until the new Comprehensive Plan was adopted in 2009. The IDF built upon the existing policy documents and conditions to guide development downtown as it relates to the designation of retail streets, public realm improvements, and parking structure design. Downtown Retail Capture Rate Analysis - Analyzed economic patterns to determine leakage of downtown consumer spending, both current and projected, and develop strategies to attract new consumers and retailers. Comprehensive Plan – Project manager for downtown element of the Comprehensive Plan Update process. Included the complete audit of approved planning documents and their corresponding policies & actions, facilitating the public input process, drafting the plan, and developing the future land use map. Noteworthy accomplishments: • Named the City of Raleigh’s 2007 Employee of the Year for Development Services Show less

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  Downtown Long Beach Alliance

  Feb 2009 - Jul 2012

  Vice President

  Led, managed, and collaborated on Downtown initiatives, issues, and programs related to economic development, advocacy, redevelopment, planning, governmental relations, marketing, public relations, and stakeholder engagement. Responsibilities included developing working relationships with Downtown stakeholders within the public, private, and non-profit sectors; facilitating collaborative problem-solving across those sectors; and providing the information and insight needed for strategic and effective decision-making. Served as spokesperson and writer-in-residence for the organization. Noteworthy projects: Retail Visioning Plan – Created a cohesive, collaborative, and market-based retail recruitment vision and strategy for Downtown Long Beach. As a community-driven effort, Retail Visioning provided insight to stakeholders about the realities of retail recruitment and shared success stories from comparable cities. Project participants worked collaboratively to develop a shared vision for the Downtown Long Beach retail environment and assist in creating an action-oriented strategy that includes a series of steps / metrics used to measure the results achieved while working towards achieving the vision. The process was designed to help align the expectations of the stakeholders with a realistic and attainable strategy that provided a description of the various roles and responsibilities of the actors involved Show less

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  Downtown Grand Rapids Inc.

  Aug 2012 - Dec 2017

  Chief Executive Officer

  Served at the pleasure of the DGRI Board to build and implement an annual budget of approximately $10M. Manage a staff of twelve professionals with disciplinary focus on urban planning, tax increment finance (TIF) districts, economic development incentive programs, mobility expansion initiatives, marketing, event production, community inclusion and general administration. Key spokesperson of the organization and the greater Downtown area. Noteworthy projects:Facilitated a four-organization merger between the Downtown Development Authority, the Downtown Alliance, the Downtown Improvement District, and the City of Grand Rapids’ Office of Special Events to form Downtown Grand Rapids Inc. Built and implemented new organizational structure, managed transitional challenges, repositioned entities into a true community-based organizational structure. Led development of GR Forward, the 10-year master plan amendment that sets forth the investment strategy for Downtown Grand Rapids and the Grand River restoration efforts. Managed renewals of TIF district and special assessment district. Selected by the Mayor of Grand Rapids as a 2016-2017 Fellow for the ULI / NLC Daniel Rose Fellowship. Show less

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  Downtown Raleigh Alliance

  Jan 2018 - Feb 2019

  Chief Executive Officer

  Worked for a 31-member Board of Directors comprised of public, private, non-profit, and philanthropic leaders, I led a team of 10 professionals that manage projects associated with advocacy, community engagement, public art, economic development, clean & safe, urban planning, and event production. The organization managed a $2M budget through special assessment, fund development, and specific contracts for services.Noteworthy projects:Led the creation of the first strategic plan in the organization’s history, setting the course for a focused understanding of the DRA’s role in advancing Downtown Raleigh for everyone. Managed through considerable inherited budgetary challenges in FY18, ending the year in a net positive position. Aligned organizational resources and programmatic focus around strategic plan implementation and building coalitions to advance larger advocacy initiatives. Show less

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  The Hollywood Partnership

  Feb 2019 - Oct 2021

  Chief Executive Officer

  Lead the second largest PBID in the Los Angeles region in world famous Hollywood, CA, with a focus on place management, place enhancement, stakeholder engagement, advocacy and economic development. Governed by a 20-member Board of Directors, the HP has an $8M annual budget and operates from 5-year strategic plan approved in September 2019. Noteworthy projects:In 2019, led the creation of Hollywood in Focus, the organization’s first strategic plan in its 22-year history. Successfully advocated against harmful land use restrictions. Recently completed the organization’s rebranding effort and launched the first hospitality ambassador program in the community’s history. Show less

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  Central Houston, Inc. (CHI)

  Oct 2021 - now

  President & CEO