Rob Cochran has served as the ULI Charlotte Chair from July, 2016 until June, 2018.  His leadership has brought great successes to the District Council, as well as elevating the organization to new levels.  At the May ULI Charlotte Leadership Luncheon, hosted by Wells Fargo, Rob reflected on some of the activities and success over the past couple of years.

In early 2016, as incoming chair, Rob gathered the past chairs, governors, trustees, Advisory Board, and Committee Chairs to discuss key initiatives for the next two years.  He wanted to look at things differently, as Charlotte was truly evolving.  He invited Brian Collier of the Foundation for the Carolinas to share the special task force report on economic mobility in our region.  It was an impactful reminder that ULI has a responsibility, through land use and the built environment, to create a great community.  Over the next two years, volunteers and members of ULI focused on:

• Introducing the Pathways program at Ranson Middle School – going into the classroom with 7^th graders to help them understand how they can impact the community, as well as encourage them to consider the many professions in land use.  This program launched in the Spring of 2018 and is expected to continue and grow.
• Being a part of the affordable housing conversation – ULI Charlotte has created a committee to gather, educate and provide information to help the community meet the goals.  We have delivered a ULI Terwilliger study on affordable housing, members served on the Evergreen Team to develop ideas on how to address the growing need in our community, and is now looking at ways to continue our impact.
• Educating our members through quality of programs with CoffeeTalks, Emerging Trends, Meeting Rewinds, Young Leader Mobile Workshops, WLI programming and more.
• Facilitating regional conversations through the growth of the Carolinas’ Meeting (more than 700 people attended in 2018).
• Hosting smaller group conversations to encourage and develop closer relationships, through the new Capital Markets Council, Reginal Initiative Councils, and the Young Leaders Emerging Leaders Forum.
• Providing expertise in the community through the Technical Assistance Programs (TAPs).
• Introducing UrbanPlan for Public Officials, a development RFQ simulation for public officials, providing insight into the marketing, financial and land use decisions.
• Raising more than $264,000 in 2018 to support the multitude of programs and initiatives of ULI Charlotte.

Rob is a great leader for our District Council and has helped the organization navigate growth and excellence.  On behalf of leadership and members of ULI Charlotte, Rob was presented with token of our appreciation for “Taking us to the Next Level.”  Rob will continue serving on the Management and Governance Committee as the Governance Committee Chair and Chair of Mission Advancement, guiding us into our future years.  On behalf of the leadership of ULI Charlotte, we would like to thank Rob for his service and commitment to ULI.

Rob was proceeded as chair by the following individuals, providing a great organization to continue to grow:  Peter A. Pappas (Chair 1999-2001); Art Fields (Chair 2001-2002); Lat W. Purser (Chair 2002-2004); Mike Burnett (Chair 2004-2006); Skeet Harris (Chair 2006-2008); Allen Prichard (Chair 2008-2010); Charles Teal (Chair 2010-2012); Tracy Dodson (Chair 2012-2014); and Ron Kimble (Chair 2014-2016), who is now officially rolling off the Governance Committee and Advisory Board.

All great leaders surround themselves with other great leaders, helping elevate the organization.  We would like to recognize several individuals that have served on the Advisory Board and are rolling off at the end of June:

• • Brooke Iosue, Humpreys and Partners, Membership Chair
  • Jeff Harris, Lennar, Sponsorship Chair
  • Jennifer Stanton, Real Estate Advisory Services, Program Committee Chair
  • Also, earlier this year Jim Prosser retired from the Centralina Council of Governments, but we are fortunate to now have Ron Smith on our Advisory Board

Thank you for your service to ULI Charlotte.  We hope you find a way to stay involved.

Rob reminded us of ULI’s mission is for us to be leaders in land use.  We are the ones convening and creating conversations.  Guests at the luncheon were presented with a Bluetooth speaker as way of remind ourselves about the value of sharing our stories and expertise with our peers and community, and how important everyone’s voice in building a great community.