Monday, December 20, Davon Barbour began his role as leader of the Downtown Development District in New Orleans. In November, the DDD Board of Commissioners voted to appoint Davon Barbour as the permanent president & CEO of the DDD, where he will continue the progress Downtown has experienced over the last decade and lead the efforts to revitalize the historic Canal Street corridor.
“The Board worked closely with a national executive search firm, Winners Partners, to recruit and review candidates for the position,” said DDD Board of Commissioners Chair Gregory Curtis. “After careful consideration of 102 candidates, we are confident that Davon, with his experience in economic development will be the best leader of the DDD to ensure that Downtown New Orleans continues and builds on the progress made over the recent years.”
Davon Barbour is a passionate urban advocate, possessing more than twenty years of progressive leadership in inclusive economic and community development. His areas of expertise include, public/private partnerships, business attraction, retail revitalization, and community development. He has worked for private sector, public sector, and non-profit organizations revitalizing urban communities across the nation including international tourism destinations such as Miami, Orlando and Los Angeles.
In his most recent position, Davon served as the Vice President of Advocacy & Economic Development for The Hollywood Partnership, which manages the Hollywood Entertainment District and is home of the world-famous Walk of Fame. Prior to that role, he led the Community & Economic Development Division of the Los Angeles County Development Authority where he oversaw the county’s redevelopment initiatives, revolving loan portfolio, construction administration, and the nation’s largest urban county district Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program. He played a lead role in developing and administering more than $150M in COVID-19 economic recovery programs.
In his role as Senior Vice President of Economic Development for the Downtown Partnership of Baltimore, Davon led the organization to win an Award of Excellence in economic development from the International Downtown Association (IDA) for its TechConnect business attraction program. Davon considers his proudest professional achievement to date, the development of a master plan and urban renewal legislation for an ambitious $2 billion mixed-use redevelopment project that includes up to two million square feet of life sciences and technology space, new mixed-income housing, park space and local employment opportunities to revitalize neighborhoods that encompass the world-renowned Johns Hopkins Hospital in his hometown of Baltimore, MD.
Davon has both created and administered retail attraction and retention programs for multiple cities. His strategic recommendations led to the creation of The Commissary in Downtown Rochester, New York. The social entrepreneurship facility is the first kitchen incubator and only shared kitchen permitted in the region with the mission of creating and cultivating local homegrown new food business concepts. As Director of the City of Hollywood’s Community & Economic Development Department, he led the city to win three (3) consecutive annual awards from the National Community Development Association.
Davon has served in numerous volunteer leadership roles throughout his career. He is extensively engaged in the Innovative Commerce Serving Communities (ICSC) where he is the Western Division P3 Public Chair, past Eastern Division P3 Public Sector Chair, and a former faculty member of its University of Shopping Centers. Most Recently, he was elected to the Board of Trustees of ICSC. The Board provides critical input in helping ICSC achieve their goal of serving their members with excellence while advocating and communicating the social, civic and economic role played by the Marketplaces Industry in our communities
Davon is also a past Vice Chair and Membership Committee Chair of IDA. He has served on advisory panels and/or authored works for ICSC, IDA, and the Urban Land Institute. Davon is a former part-time professional West African dancer/instructor and arts advocate. When not working, he enjoys dancing, foreign films, vinyl record collecting and speaking French.