While most folks take one look at Hollywood and see a world of silver screens and shattered dreams, Kathleen Rawson sees hope and the responsibility of any good guest, \u201cto leave this neighborhood better than I found it.\u201d Rawson has spent decades thinking about what makes a public space feel alive and genuinely shared by the communities that comprise it. From Santa Monica\u2019s Third Street Promenade to the evolving chaos and potential of Hollywood Boulevard, she\u2019s built a career out of asking a deceptively simple question: how do you make a city feel like it actually belongs to the people walking through it?<\/p>\n
In our interview, Rawson moves easily between the practical and the personal \u2013 street safety and Pride celebrations, economic development and chosen family, public policy and pop-up Ferris wheels. She talks about building spaces where queer community isn\u2019t an afterthought but an essential part of their design, and about the long, imperfect work of centralizing visibility and belonging. In her telling, urban transformation is personal, political, and constantly in motion.<\/p>\n
Can you share with our readers what first drew you to placemaking and public-space management? What lessons from those early experiences still guide your leadership today?<\/strong><\/p>\n I first became involved in civic leadership in Santa Monica through the Convention and Visitors Bureau, which worked to represent both the hospitality community and the city. That was my first real exposure to civic work.<\/p>\n For me, it was always important to represent a destination, not just a company. I came from the hotel industry, and nearly 30 years ago, I took on the role of leading Downtown Santa Monica. I\u2019m now in my 30th year of this work. At the time, the thinking was that Santa Monica and the Third Street Promenade had already been built, and the main job was simply marketing them. But it quickly became clear that it was much more complex than that.<\/p>\n I became deeply committed to making public spaces accessible to everyone, regardless of who they are or where they are in life. I wanted people to experience a sense of shared community and common good in those spaces, whether they were shopping, eating, going to a movie, walking their dog, or meeting neighbors.<\/p>\n That idea of public space has been my focus for three decades, first in Santa Monica and now in Hollywood. Hollywood brings even more challenges and opportunities. There\u2019s a lot to do, but the possibilities are significant, and we\u2019re focused on making the neighborhood better.<\/p>\n You\u2019re currently leading the Hollywood Partnership. What experiences there most directly inform how you serve the LGBTQ community?<\/strong><\/p>\n Before leaving Santa Monica, we created the city\u2019s first public Pride celebration. It didn\u2019t exist before, and we designed it to be family-focused and inclusive. West Hollywood had long been the center of Pride, and while it\u2019s a powerful and joyful event, we saw an opportunity for something more broadly accessible in Santa Monica.<\/p>\n When I came to Hollywood in 2022, LA Pride was returning there, where it originally began. I wasn\u2019t deeply involved in the internal politics, but I immediately saw an opportunity to expand beyond the parade itself.<\/p>\n At the time, Christopher Street West was producing concerts at Los Angeles State Historic Park, but I believed there should also be a free, public space where everyone could participate. That became Pride Village.<\/p>\n It was built as an open gathering space after the parade, with artisans, local businesses, community groups, entertainment, and activities for all ages. We even added a Ferris wheel, along with stages, performances, and a wide range of programming. We raised funds, built it with strong City Council support, and launched it successfully.<\/p>\n After a couple of years, Christopher Street West took over Pride Village, which I\u2019m glad about. We still support parts of it, but they now largely run it.<\/p>\n What I\u2019m most proud of is that it created a truly open Pride experience in Hollywood. Last year, it drew people from 97 ZIP codes and about 147,000 attendees, with an average stay of three and a half hours. People came, stayed, engaged with the community, supported local businesses, and that sense of shared space is the real success.<\/p>\n As a queer woman, a mother, and a leader, how have your identities shaped the way you navigate a landscape that is often misogynistic, patriarchal, and unequal?<\/strong><\/p>\n This is a great question. We have to work harder. We have to be more articulate. We have to be prepared at all times. We have to be family people and professionals simultaneously, and it\u2019s not always easy to keep your footing on both sides of that divide. Men definitely have it easier.<\/p>\n Maybe the next generation will be different. Even our son, who recently turned 22, is keenly aware that life is easier for him than it is for his mothers or his sister. That awareness is something we worked hard to instill, and I think it\u2019s part of how meaningful change happens.<\/p>\n Our kids grew up in a household that was always ready for a protest. We joked that we were \u201cprotest-ready.\u201d We always had cardboard, paint, and supplies available because civic engagement was simply part of family life.<\/p>\n A lot of the answer comes down to engagement and involvement, both at work and at home. Our philosophy has always been infiltration. As long as you\u2019re at the table, you have a voice. One piece of advice I often share is that you don\u2019t have to earn a seat at the table. You already have one. All you have to do is sit down. Once you\u2019re there, your words matter. Use them with kindness and integrity. Respect follows from that.<\/p>\n There will always be people who disrespect you. I encounter that every day, and I\u2019m sure you do too. Everybody does. But we\u2019re better than that, so we don\u2019t sink to that level.<\/p>\n You mentioned raising a son who is very aware of his privilege. How do you build that awareness without creating defensiveness? A lot of people see any acknowledgment of privilege as an accusation because it forces them to recognize that certain advantages may come at others\u2019 expense. How did you have those conversations with your son, and what can our readers learn from that?<\/strong><\/p>\n That\u2019s a good question. The simplest answer is that we raised him that way. It wasn\u2019t a single conversation or a lightbulb moment. It was just part of how we lived. We live on the Westside of Los Angeles, and while we\u2019ve worked very hard, our son also grew up around significant wealth and privilege, which made those realities more visible to him. We focused on values and everyday choices, things like not sending a limo for six-year-olds to birthday parties.<\/p>\n I also remember the unrest in May 2020, when many businesses in downtown Santa Monica were looted. During that time, a board member, who had inherited property through family and had no children, told me, \u201cI\u2019m not privileged, I\u2019ve earned everything I have.\u201d It really stayed with me.<\/p>\n I think a lot of it comes down to reflection rather than defensiveness. You\u2019re unlikely to convince someone who rejects the idea of privilege that they have it, so I focus on where progress is actually possible. That applies in politics, too. I work with elected officials across the spectrum, whether or not I agree with them. Once they\u2019re in office, you either spend all your time fighting or you look for common ground and get things done.<\/p>\n I don\u2019t necessarily believe in \u201cmeeting people where they are,\u201d but I do believe in finding shared ground and building from there. Both of our children are politically aware, and because my work is so local, I try to emphasize that real impact comes from your own neighborhood, focusing on progress and community where you are.<\/p>\n How do public spaces like Hollywood Boulevard help foster a sense of belonging, particularly for queer people who may have been pushed out of traditional family structures?<\/strong><\/p>\n That\u2019s a two-part question. First, it\u2019s about creating a safe and welcoming environment for everyone\u2014whether someone is visiting, working, or running a business, the neighborhood should feel clean, safe, and hospitable. We run a 24\/7 dispatch center, and last year we handled more than 420,000 interactions that didn\u2019t require police or fire response. If someone is experiencing a mental health crisis, for example, they see trained ambassadors, not law enforcement, who are there to help.<\/p>\n There are moments that stay with you, like a young person sitting outside the LGBTQ Center after hours, in crisis. Our team stayed with them until medical professionals arrived and accompanied them through the process. In another case, a runaway teenager asked for help getting home, and our ambassadors were able to assist her directly. That\u2019s a big part of the work: providing a safety net and connecting people to services like My Friend\u2019s Place, which supports many young LGBTQ people who\u2019ve left unsafe home environments.<\/p>\n We also do ongoing outreach: checking in on people, offering water, and trying to connect them with support. Those kinds of interactions happen hundreds of thousands of times a year and are focused on quality-of-life needs that fall outside traditional police response. Our homeless population has declined 49 percent year over year, which is encouraging, though many of the most complex cases remain. The goal is simple: make Hollywood more hospitable and supportive for everyone, including the LGBTQ community.<\/p>\n You mentioned homelessness being down 49 percent. How does that work? What role does the Hollywood Partnership play in addressing homelessness, which remains such a major issue in Los Angeles and throughout California?<\/strong><\/p>\n The Hollywood Partnership isn\u2019t a policy organization. We don\u2019t create homelessness policy. Our role is to provide services beyond what the city offers. The reduction in homelessness is largely due to Mayor Karen Bass\u2019s Inside Safe initiative and the work of Councilmember Hugo Soto-Mart\u00ednez. We support those efforts.<\/p>\n When an encampment is moved into housing through Inside Safe, our role is often cleanup and restoration. We remove debris, power-wash sidewalks, clear graffiti, and return public spaces to community use. One interesting aspect of Inside Safe is that once an area has been addressed, the city remains committed to keeping it clear. People know outreach workers will return, and in some cases, that helps connect additional individuals with housing.<\/p>\n I\u2019m also vice chair of Hollywood 4WRD, a coalition of businesses, nonprofits, and service providers focused on homelessness. Through that work, we collaborate closely with the city, county, and service organizations throughout Hollywood.<\/p>\n You\u2019re also working to bring historic vacant buildings back into use. Can you tell me about that?<\/strong><\/p>\n Hollywood Boulevard has many beautiful historic buildings from the 1920s, but a lot of them are currently vacant. There are several reasons for this. Some owners have held properties for generations, others face costly seismic retrofit requirements, and California\u2019s Proposition 13 keeps property taxes low, which reduces pressure to activate unused space.<\/p>\n We\u2019ve been working with Councilmember Soto-Mart\u00ednez on a proposed sign district to create better incentives. Instead of relying on penalties like a vacancy tax, the idea is to allow digital signage that can generate significant revenue for property owners, under strict conditions. Those conditions would require the signage to respect historic architecture, include public art, and dedicate a portion of revenue back to the community. Importantly, the ground floor must also be active with a real public-facing use: retail, cultural space, or something that contributes to street life.<\/p>\n If owners don\u2019t want to manage it themselves, they can lease the space to us for a nominal fee so we can activate it. The goal is to create a cycle where investment attracts more investment, and more vibrant streets help drive broader revitalization.<\/p>\n You\u2019re no stranger to organizing public events. How do you use these events to invite queer people back into the Los Angeles landscape and create a stronger sense of belonging?<\/strong><\/p>\n Events create vitality. We intentionally place them in areas that need energy rather than places that are already thriving. One example is the EDM concerts we now host on Hollywood Boulevard. They bring thousands of people into the neighborhood. Events like that create what we call social surveillance; people who might otherwise engage in disruptive behavior tend to move elsewhere when public spaces are active and well-used.<\/p>\n These events also support our nonprofit work. The organizers contribute funding that we reinvest directly into the neighborhood through projects like Pride Village, public improvements, and community programming.<\/p>\n Some people thought I was crazy when I proposed hosting a rave on Hollywood Boulevard. But I believed it was good economic development, and the results proved that. During our first major event, hotels across Hollywood were essentially sold out. That\u2019s a strong sign that an event is benefiting the local economy.<\/p>\n Last question. Looking ahead, what\u2019s your main goal for the Hollywood Partnership over the next few months and years?<\/strong><\/p>\n I want to leave this neighborhood better than I found it. Leadership is difficult, especially when you\u2019re trying to change systems that have existed for decades. Someone once told me, \u201cPeople hate two things: the way things are and change.\u201d There\u2019s a lot of truth in that.<\/p>\n My goal is to help Hollywood reclaim its vitality. The neighborhood still has incredible name recognition and cultural significance, but we haven\u2019t invested enough in its future. I\u2019d like to create an economic development corporation focused entirely on our two-square-mile district, attracting businesses, helping small operators succeed, improving storefronts, and making investment easier.<\/p>\n I also want to create more public spaces, including portions of Hollywood Boulevard that can function as plazas for community gatherings and events. We have very little park space in Hollywood. Not long ago, some of our parks had effectively been lost to unsafe conditions. Working with the council office, we\u2019ve helped reclaim those spaces so families and children can use them again.<\/p>\n Those are the structural changes I want to make. I have a few working years left, and my goal is to leave Hollywood stronger, healthier, and moving in the right direction.<\/p>\n Follow everything Hollywood Partnership<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t