Alliance for Downtown New York Appoints Jessica Lappin as President
The Alliance for Downtown New York, the organization that manages the city’s largest Business Improvement District, announced today that former New York City Council Member Jessica Lappin has been named its next president. Ms. Lappin will also serve as the president of the Alliance’s sister organization, the Downtown Lower Manhattan Association.
"We are delighted that Jessica has joined us as the Alliance’s fourth president,” said Robert R. Douglass, Chairman of the Alliance for Downtown New York. “Jessica’s energy, policy acumen, skills as a persuasive advocate and track record of substantial accomplishments in public service will enable her to make important, lasting contributions to the future of Lower Manhattan.”
"I am thrilled to be joining the Downtown Alliance and eager to lead such an accomplished team. It is particularly exciting to be taking the helm at the Alliance at this point in the district's history,” said Ms. Lappin. "The transformation unfolding in Lower Manhattan is inspiring. Few places anywhere can boast of the constellation of game changing projects underway and nearing fruition. Lower Manhattan is an extraordinary place. Working on behalf of the area’s businesses, residents, workers and visitors will be an honor and a privilege. "
She begins her new position February 10. Ms. Lappin was selected after an extensive search process that was initiated following the death of the Alliance’s previous president, Elizabeth H. Berger.
As Council Member of Manhattan’s fifth district from 2006 to 2013, Ms. Lappin’s accomplishments are wide ranging and well-suited to her new position. While representing the East Side of Manhattan, she played a key role in bringing the Cornell-Technion Applied Science and Engineering Campus to Roosevelt Island and worked with a variety of stakeholders to mitigate negative impacts stemming from construction of the 2nd Avenue subway.
As the former Chair of the Council’s Land Use Subcommittee on Landmarks, Public Siting and Maritime Uses, she also made significant contributions in protecting the historic fabric of the city and leading the fight to create a greener New York – adding three new parks in Manhattan and opening up previously inaccessible waterfront to the public.
Prior to holding office, Ms. Lappin served as a senior advisor to Council Speaker Gifford Miller, who also represented the fifth district on the New York City Council. In 2011, she was selected to be a Rodel Fellow by the Aspen Institute, a renowned international think tank. The program is focused on transcending political partisanship to address overarching questions of leadership and governance. Alumni include Congresswomen Gabby Giffords and Debbie Wasserman Schultz.
Ms. Lappin is a native New Yorker who graduated from Georgetown University with high honors and Stuyvesant High School where she was in the first class to graduate from its Lower Manhattan location.