Janet LaBar is leaving as CEO of the Charlotte Regional Business Alliance in the next month, the economic development group said Wednesday.
An interim CEO will be announced as the board seeks a full-time successor.
LaBar joined the group in 2019 after holding a similar post in Portland, Oregon, for five years and, previously, as chief performance officer at the Phoenix Economic Development Council.
“We thank Janet for her years of hard work at the CLT Alliance and her dedication to our region,” said Ali Summerville, an Ally Financial executive who chairs the group’s board executive committee. “I am confident the CLT Alliance will remain a strong regional organization that is focused on growing the economy, advocating for business, and convening diverse stakeholders, thanks to the support of hundreds of investors, partners, and a dedicated professional staff.”
LaBar said she was “proud of the work we’ve done together to elevate Charlotte as a region where businesses and talent can thrive.”
The Alliance was formed through a merger of the former Charlotte Chamber and Charlotte Regional Partnership, which promoted economic growth in about a dozen area counties in North and South Carolina.
The group had a net deficit of $1.38 million in 2022, after posting a positive return of $464,000 in 2021, according to the most recent tax filing. Revenue totaled $7.9 million in 2022, including about $5.9 million in membership fees.
The 2022 loss related to the end of COVID-related federal funding that helped organizations keep employees paid during the pandemic. The alliance and its affiliated foundation had a balanced budget in 2023, spokeswoman Tanya Mendis says.
LaBar received compensation of about $434,500 that year.
Danny Chavez, the organization’s chief business recruitment officer, left the Alliance in December and has not been replaced.
LaBar’s husband, James LaBar, is senior vice president of economic development at Charlotte Center City Partners, who promotes development in the Uptown and South End areas.