Southland economist Jack Kyser to retire

Jack Kyser, the ever-quotable dean of Southern California economists, is retiring from the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corp. after decades of postulating about the many diverse sectors that make up the California economy.

Although he’s leaving during one of the worst economic downturns the region has ever seen, Kyser, 76, says he is optimistic about the future of Southern California.

“Los Angeles’ best days are still ahead of it — if we manage the economy effectively,” said Kyser, founding economist at the LAEDC, which was created to attract and retain jobs in the region.

In an interview Monday, Kyser predicted that the tourism sector, as well as international trade and technology, would lead the region’s economy out of the economic slump. New construction will begin in earnest in 2012, he said, adding to Los Angeles’ growth. But, he said, local officials need to work with Sacramento to do more for the businesses that are here already.

“We don’t realize what we have, and a lot of other states and metro areas do,” he said. “They come and raid California.”

With the exception of a forecasting stint in Omaha for Union Pacific Railroad, Kyser has spent his career focusing on the workings of the Southern California economy. He worked for United California Bank and spent eight years as an economist with the Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce. Kyser began with the LAEDC in 1991, when it had no economics research department. Today the department has five full-time staff members. The LAEDC named its research center after Kyser, whom it recently started calling a “founding economist,” in 2008.

Good natured, patient and always willing to return a phone call, Kyser quickly became a source for journalists seeking to understand the local economy. One of his greatest gifts was his ability to explain economics in language that regular folks could comprehend.

“He had a great deal of knowledge and insight, and a common man’s ability to articulate in simple and understandable terms some of the complexity of our economy,” said Bill Allen, chief executive of the LAEDC.

Part of that can be attributed to his background. Born in Huntington Park and a longtime resident of working-class Downey, Kyser holds an MBA but no economics degree. Still, his street-level knowledge of the local economy is unsurpassed. Kyser is known for getting out in the community, attending industry luncheons, walking factory floors, pumping politicians for information and strolling through shopping centers during the holiday season to count the number of bags on shoppers’ arms.

“Jack Kyser was the go-to guy. If you wanted an economic picture of the region, especially for business writers, he was the guru,” said Daniel Yi, a former reporter with the Los Angeles Times who is now a communications specialist at the Port of Long Beach.

Kyser has been quoted or referenced in more than 1,300 Los Angeles Times articles since 1985, postulating about unemployment, logistics, construction, video games, aerospace, Hollywood, pornography and even wax museums. He’s appeared in publications from as far away as Russia and the Philippines. He fields about 1,000 media calls a year, Allen said.

Kyser broke his left kneecap in April 2007 and his right leg a few months later, but says his retirement is not related to health reasons. His last formal responsibility with the LAEDC will be to present the region’s economic forecast July 21, and he says he’ll still be available for the occasional journalist call.

“I’m looking forward to being able to sleep in late,” he said. “But I will be watching what’s going on in the local economy.”

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Times staff writer Roger Vincent contributed to this report.