Kayla Graven looks forward to broadening the
focus of her economic development expertise to all of Springfield.
Graven,
34, told Illinois Times that the
“opportunity to grow as a professional” attracted her to Springfield city
government after working since 2018 at Downtown Springfield Inc., where she has
been the nonprofit organization’s executive director the past two years.
Val
Yazell, director of the city’s Office of Planning and Economic Development,
said Nov. 20 that city officials are in “final conversations” with Graven to
join the city in the “next few weeks” as the office’s operations coordinator.
Graven
would earn about $75,000 per year, and her hiring wouldn’t require Springfield
City Council approval, Yazell said.
“All
of her experience in economic development … will be a real plus for us,” Yazell
said of Graven, whose responsibilities would include tax increment financing
and other economic incentives.
Yazell
said Graven is an ideal candidate to assist a 12-person office that has been
hampered by vacancies in recent years.
Graven’s
last day at DSI will be Nov. 24.
“I
have loved working for DSI, and it’s given me so much experience,” she said.
DSI
Board President Tony Schuering, an associate attorney at Brown, Hay &
Stephens, said in a news release: “We extend our sincere thanks to Kayla for
the time, energy and vision she has poured into DSI and downtown Springfield.
We wish her the best in her next chapter and look forward to continuing
building on the successes that DSI has had during Kayla’s tenure.”
Schuering
said a search to fill the executive director position will start soon.
Graven,
a Decatur native who grew up on her family’s farm near Warrensburg, earned a
bachelor’s degree in management and organizational leadership from Illinois
College in 2011. She worked for WSEC, the predecessor to WSIU-TV, as well as
Big Brothers and Big Sisters of Central Illinois, before being hired at DSI.
Graven
said she is proud of her accomplishments at DSI, where she previously served as
program coordinator and assistant director. She pointed to the success of the
Old Capitol Farmers Market – a program of DSI – in opening safely for curbside
distribution in April 2020 at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.
She
said she has assisted several small businesses – including The Wakery and
Whimsy Tea Company – as they began selling at the farmers market and became
successful enough to move into brick-and-mortar sites.
“DSI
has worked tirelessly to fulfill its mission of creating and supporting a
vibrant downtown through collaboration, creativity and leadership,” she said.
“Through projects like the Levitt-AMP Concert Series and the Isringhausen DRIVE
Grant, we have thrived to make downtown the crown jewel of Springfield.”
