After 43 years in local government, including ten years of service as Assistant City Manager for Morgan Hill, Leslie Little retires at the end of 2020. 

Leslie joined the City of Morgan Hill as Assistant City Manager for Community Development in 2011 overseeing the areas of Planning, Housing, Building, Code Enforcement, Economic Development and RDA Successor Agency development activities.

Under her leadership, the City’s Housing Department achieved regional recognition for innovation on affordability, quality housing, and homeless programs. She has brought together public officials, government agencies, private sector leaders and nonprofit executives to collectively leverage new dollars in permanent housing and resources to create new affordable housing units and programs. Leslie has cultivated public-private partnerships, safe parking programs, homeless outreach worker deployment, efforts to reduce family homelessness and reduce chronic homelessness, permanent supportive housing, rapid rehousing, cold weather shelter, the biennial homeless count, a homeless registry, a robust network of community and faith-based organizations, encampment response, relocation efforts, development of new construction, coordination with county Social Services and Mental Health departments.

Leslie is also credited with the revitalization of Downtown, including the restoration of the Granada Theatre, the addition of multiple mixed-used housing projects and commercial retail developments, including a boutique hotel. Leslie’s thoughtful leadership, dedication, and commitment to public service have shaped Morgan Hill into the wonderful, more affordable, livable, and welcoming community it is today. In addition, Leslie created a robust community development division that put sustainability at the forefront of every project. She always put employees first and fostered their leadership potential. Throughout her career, she has championed racial equity by mentoring young minority professionals.

Leslie Little has spent her entire career in the public sector in Redevelopment/Economic Development in Southern California, Northern California, and Florida. In Southern California, she worked for Redevelopment Agencies in South Gate, Monterey Park, and Long Beach. In Florida, she served as the Economic Development Director of Leesburg and Senior Director for the Economic Development Commission of Mid-Florida in Orlando. In Northern California, Leslie spent six years with the San Jose Redevelopment Agency within Industrial Development and subsequently as Director of Downtown Development, seven years as the Development Services and Economic Development Director for the City of Alameda and Alameda Naval Air Station Base Re-use Authority.

Leslie has also remained active on State Boards and committees, most recently she served as a Board Member of the California Redevelopment Association (CRA) and a member of the League of California Cities Housing, Community and Economic Development Policy Board.

“Leslie will be sorely missed by all of us in Morgan Hill. But her love, respect and dedication to public service will live on in her projects and programs and the people she mentored. We are grateful for her contributions to our community and we wish her a happy next chapter in her very well-deserved retirement” said Christina Turner, City Manager for Morgan Hill.  

Leslie will now have time to spend time with her husband Nick Little, her daughter Elyse Little Morris, her son-in-law Tony Morris and her new grandchild, Aziel (Azzy) James Morris.