Combined Experience
A complete record of projects developed, managed, and delivered by Kacy Keys and Charles Wise — across Praxis Development Group and their prior careers.
Project History
Praxis Development Group — Current Portfolio
A six-story mixed-use building at 5365 Crenshaw Blvd featuring five residential levels (Type III-A) over a Type I-A podium — delivering 48 for-rent units including 10 Very Low-Income units and over 2,100 SF of ground-floor commercial space. Developed in JV with longtime property owners, Clark on 54th is a model of equitable development and legacy ownership preservation in the Crenshaw corridor. The project leverages AB 1287 density bonus provisions to maximize affordability and community impact. Black-owned, woman-led, and community-rooted.
A large-scale ground-up podium development bringing 450+ mixed-income residential units to Lincoln Heights, directly across from the Los Angeles Historic State Park. The project is being delivered on behalf of the Riboli family, who have owned the property for generations — exemplifying Praxis's model of partnering with legacy landowners to unlock long-held land value. Praxis is stewarding entitlements and capital formation for this landmark multifamily project, representing the firm's capacity to execute complex, institutional-scale development in the urban core. The project reflects Praxis's commitment to addressing the city's critical housing shortage at meaningful scale.
A 4-story, 40,500 SF institutional campus development for one of Los Angeles' most prominent faith-based organizations. The project encompasses office, chapel, banquet hall, classroom, and community spaces — delivered on time and on budget. Praxis served as fee developer and principal development executive, managing the full development process from design through construction completion. Charles led construction management on-site throughout the build.
Seritage Growth Properties — 2016–2021
A landmark adaptive reuse of the historic Sears Santa Monica building into a transformative urban destination. The four-story project delivers a dramatic market hall concept on the basement and first floors, with creative office on the 2nd and 3rd floors. The 4th floor and roof are entirely new additions featuring a dramatic skylight/atrium concept extended through the floor plate. Kacy led all aspects from concept through entitlement — including Landmarks Commission and Coastal Commission approvals. Charles managed underwriting, JV negotiations, construction management, tenant negotiations, and entitlement for use changes.
Adaptive reuse of an existing Sears anchor at the UTC mall in San Diego into a 313,000 SF mixed-use destination featuring retail, creative office, and fitness uses. Kacy led all project aspects for Seritage Growth Properties — concept, entitlement, budget, pro forma, design, construction, capital raise, and lease-up. Charles managed development underwriting, JV negotiations, construction management, lease negotiations, and tenant improvement delivery.
Kacy served as Project Executive for the redevelopment of a 14-acre former Sears site in Redmond, Washington into a vibrant mixed-use community. The master plan encompasses 500 residential units, 266,000 SF of office, and 210 hotel rooms across four parcels with outdoor community park areas and integrated retail. Kacy oversaw all aspects — concept development, entitlement, JV partnership negotiations for each development phase, and budget and pro forma forecasting.
Charles served as Project Lead for Seritage Growth Properties across 8 Sears and K-Mart conversions throughout the Western United States — repositioning former retail anchors into productive, multi-tenanted commercial destinations. Each project involved concept design, marketing, leasing strategy, tenant negotiations, design development, construction management, and grand opening delivery of all tenant spaces.
JH Snyder Company — 2012–2016
One of the most significant multifamily developments in Los Angeles — a 7-story parking podium supporting two residential towers of 22 and 27 stories, delivering 464 apartment units and 32,000 SF of retail along Wilshire Blvd. Kacy served as Project Executive and was involved in all aspects from entitlement through delivery, including capital raise and financing. Charles managed construction from groundbreaking through Certificate of Occupancy, overseeing a $150M construction budget and coordinating all trades. Delivered on time and on budget.
A 250,000 SF creative office campus in Hollywood delivering world-class workspace for entertainment and media tenants. Kacy served as Project Lead for JH Snyder Co., completing the entitlement and building permit process, and was involved in design development, capital raise, and financing. Charles managed the construction from groundbreaking through Certificate of Occupancy. Delivered on time in 24 months.
A boutique 110,000 SF Class-A office building at the intersection of Hollywood's entertainment and tech corridors. Kacy sourced the deal, negotiated the acquisition and Development Agreement with the former Community Redevelopment Agency and City of Los Angeles, and was involved in all aspects of entitlement, financing, capital raise, real estate transactional work, and building permit. Charles managed construction from start through Certificate of Occupancy. Delivered on time in 24 months.
A 180,000 SF office building in North Hollywood anchoring the NoHo Arts District. Kacy served as Project Lead on all aspects — entitlement, negotiations with the former Community Redevelopment Agency for a Disposition and Development Agreement (DDA) and tax increment financing, and full project execution. A complex public-private partnership delivering significant Class-A office space to North Hollywood.
A 330,000 SF office and retail campus in El Segundo delivering major employment space in the South Bay. Kacy led subdivision, entitlement, and full build-out of the retail component, and was involved in all Cap-X planning and capital project execution for this major commercial development.
Affordable Housing & Community Development
A mixed-income community development delivering 160 affordable rental units and 140 for-sale townhomes in Ontario. Kacy led negotiations with the Community Redevelopment Agency to structure the public-private financing, entitlements, and project approvals — reflecting a long-standing commitment to affordable housing production and community-serving development in Southern California.
Two complementary mixed-use developments in the North Hollywood Arts District — NoHo Lofts and NoHo Commons — delivering 278 loft-style apartments, 14 live/work units, and 60,000 SF of street-level retail. A catalyst project in the transformation of North Hollywood into a vibrant creative and arts corridor. Kacy led all aspects of development from entitlement through delivery.
Additional projects from Kacy's decade-long tenure as Head of Development and General Counsel at JH Snyder Co., spanning affordable housing, mixed-use residential, entertainment, and office development across Los Angeles.
Kacy Keys — Mayor's Office & Early Career · 1998–2004
While serving at the Mayor's Office of Economic Development, Kacy drafted and spearheaded the City of Los Angeles's Adaptive Reuse Ordinance — the foundational legislation that transformed downtown LA by enabling the conversion of vacant and underutilized historic commercial buildings into multifamily housing. The ordinance became a national model for urban adaptive reuse policy and directly catalyzed the residential revival of downtown Los Angeles.
From this same role, Kacy was involved in the development agreements and entitlements for several landmark civic projects across the city:
Regulatory &
Entitlement Credentials
The Praxis team brings practical, deal-tested knowledge of California housing law and the Los Angeles entitlement process — built through years of navigating real projects from acquisition to certificate of occupancy.
AB 1287
Density bonus for additional affordable units above baseline requirements.
AB 1763
Unlimited density and FAR for 100% affordable projects near transit.
CHIP / MIIP
City of LA programs for qualifying affordable and mixed-income projects.
LADBS Navigation
Established relationships and process fluency across LA's permitting system.
WBE Certified
Women Business Enterprise — qualifying for set-aside programs and mission capital.
NOAH Preservation
Naturally Occurring Affordable Housing repositioning with LAHD compliance expertise.
Bring Praxis to
Your Next Opportunity
Whether you have capital to deploy or a site in need of a development partner — we're ready to move quickly on well-structured opportunities.