The Central City Association, which represents downtown property owners and businesses, has expanded its governing board to 15 members and adjusted the association’s advocacy priorities to include more of a focus on housing and homelessness, the nonprofit announced last week.
The board, which has had eight members, is chaired by Martha Saucedo, an executive with AEG.
“Expanding the board brings a greater diversity of voices by including a downtown resident and leaders in the broader community,” Jessica Lall, who took over the association’s chief executive post late last year, said in a statement. “We thank our board members for their dedication and service as we build on DTLA’s success with a new vision and agenda to create an environment where businesses, residents, nonprofit organizations and institutions can thrive.”
The seven new members are:
• Carl Cade, asset manager for Tribune Real Estate Holdings;
• Javier Cano, general manager of the JW Marriott Los Angeles hotel at L.A. Live;
• Garrett Gin, senior vice president of global marketing, Bank of America;
• Noel Hyun, associate at Liner law firm and a downtown resident;
• Edgar Khalatian, partner with law firm Mayer Brown;
• Hilary Norton, executive director, FAST (Fixing Angelenos Stuck in Traffic); and
• Lupita Sanchez Cornejo, director of external affairs for AT&T.
They join Saucedo; Tom Gilmore, chairman of real estate developer Gilmore Associates; Rob Jernigan, regional managing principal at architecture firm Gensler; Bert Dezzutti, executive vice president for the U.S. western region at Brookfield Property Partners; Kendra Doyel, vice president of PR and government affairs at Ralphs Grocery Co.; Thomas Sayles, senior vice president of university relations at USC; David E. Wright, chief executive of petroleum consulting company DEWright Inc.; and Steven Nissen, senior vice president of legal and government affairs at NBCUniversal.
The board also announced that CCA’s advocacy priorities now include a more intense focus on housing and quality-of-life issues, as well as solutions to reduce homelessness.
The association has more than 450 members, including major companies and organizations. It has a budget of about $3 million, according to CCA’s 2015 tax filing.
“These priorities for CCA’s advocacy reflect our new leadership and vision for building a community in downtown and bolstering the region’s economy,” Gilmore, the association’s vice chairman, said in a statement. “Advancing our advocacy agenda will strengthen DTLA and the region by creating housing at all income levels and the high-quality jobs we need for sustained growth.”
