By Ann K. Willaims
March 20 -- Ask any employee of the Bayside District Corporation and they'll tell you it's a great place to work. The two newest members to join the staff are no exception. This month The Lookout introduces Kathrin Larson and Kelly Boulware.
Sitting at the front desk, Kathrin Larson is the first person most people talk to when they call or visit the Bayside offices. It’s her job to field requests and questions and point people in the right direction.
In addition to keeping the front office organized and running smoothly, Larson plays a supportive role by working closely with other staff.
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“I really like the people who work here,” Larson says. “It’s such a supportive, fun place. I’m learning so much and getting such great experience.”
Larson also helps update the Bayside’s website and database, she drafts letters, press releases and helps edit this monthly newsletter. “Editing the Beat is definitely my favorite duty,” Larson says.
Quiet, careful yet self-assured, Larson has the right personality for the job.
“I’m pretty organized and I love meeting people and spending time on the Promenade,” she said. “Also, I’m a Santa Monica resident and I feel like I have a stake in this area.”
Life for the 25-year-old has been moving pretty quickly in recent years.
A native of Los Angeles, Larson graduated from Pennsylvania’s Lehigh University in 2005 with a degree in journalism. “Writing, for me, is the one thing that’s the most challenging and most enjoyable,” Larson says.
Soon after graduating, she took a job copy-editing and reporting at the Martinsville Bulletin, a small-town newspaper in Virginia. She returned to Los Angeles in 2007.
Larson then started working as an office assistant for the City of Santa Monica’s Planning and Community Development Department. The job was busy at times, she says, with multiple phone calls and requests coming in at once.
But the experience gave her a depth of knowledge and skill that comes in handy at Bayside. And, “Bayside works really closely with the City, so I get to stay connected to a lot of the people I worked with at the City,” Larson says.
But the biggest change in Larson's life took place late last year. In October, she married Erik Larson. The couple is expecting their first child in July.
“We just found out it’s a girl,” Larson says.
So how does she keep up with it all?
“It is overwhelming sometimes,” Larson says. “But I’m excited.”
Whether you’re a vendor, film producer, street performer, charity organizer or store manager, if you plan to do your thing Downtown, you’ll be talking to Kelly Boulware.
As Bayside’s events coordinator, Boulware helps make sure that all the special activities going on Downtown run smoothly.
“There are as many different kinds of events as there are producers,” Boulware says. “Anybody who is interested in our venue goes through us.”
That means directing event organizers to appropriate City agencies if permits are needed, helping groups with logistics and informing them about guidelines to keep the Promenade safe and enjoyable for everyone.
“We make sure that on the calendar there’s no big conflict, and we make sure to advise them on everything they need to know regarding event and filmings,” Boulware says.
In addition, Boulware is instrumental in getting the Bayside's in-house events up and running.
After a few months serving the district in an interim position, Boulware was promoted to Events Coordinator last October, just as Downtown was gearing up for its big Winterlit holiday promotion.
“In the beginning there was a pretty overwhelming workload leading into the holidays,” Boulware says, especially since he is relatively new at Bayside.
But the challenges were fun and exciting.
“Winterlit was a blast,” Boulware says. And the opening of ICE at Santa Monica was a special high point, he says.
“I felt a kind of team pride being part of Winterlit,” Boulware says. “It just puts a smile on my face.”
Boulware’s job also involves reaching out to businesses about various other issues, including appropriate ways to deal with panhandlers and helping police set up loss prevention meetings.
Soon to turn 40, the Washington native moved to Los Angeles six years ago and worked as director of retail operations for Provenzano Resources – the company that runs the retail cart program – before coming to the Bayside last spring.
It’s no secret that he likes his new job.
“This is one of the best environments and companies to work for,” Boulware says. “It was such a relief to be so welcomed and supported by everyone. There’s a real family atmosphere here.”
