Jessica Lappin

Jessica Lappin is president of the Alliance for Downtown New York, one of the largest business improvement districts in the country. Since taking the helm in 2014, Jessica has helped the Alliance keep Manhattan below Chambers Street clean, safe and vibrant. She has steered initiatives both big and small, from daily public safety patrols and sanitation services, to piloting first-of-its-kind composting programs and facilitating local homeless outreach services. The Alliance also publishes quarterly research reports, helps local small businesses succeed and hosts neighborhood food festivals, arts events, film screenings and park cleanups. As a champion of the neighborhood in Albany and beyond, Jessica has pushed for tax incentives to strengthen the local economy and helped secure nearly $100 million in resiliency funding for the neighborhood. 

Throughout her 25+ year career in public service, Jessica has built a reputation as a pragmatic and effective advocate for New Yorkers — earning praise from The New York Times for her “steely resolve, dedication, and energy.” She previously served two terms on the New York City Council representing the Fifth District, including the Upper East Side, East Midtown and Roosevelt Island. While in office, Jessica chaired the Council’s Land Use Subcommittee on Landmarks, Public Siting, and Maritime Uses, and played a key role in bringing the Cornell Tech campus to Roosevelt Island. She also helped create more than 20,000 public school seats, kept 100 senior centers open, expanded citywide recycling programs and led the development of four new waterfront parks. As Co-Chair of the Women’s Caucus, she authored a landmark bill protecting women’s health and reproductive rights.

Jessica serves on the boards of the International Downtown Association (IDA), the Battery, the NYC BID Association, the Javits Center, the Manhattan Chamber of Commerce, and the New York City Center theater. She also sits on the Executive Committee of NYC Tourism + Conventions as well as the Steering Committee of the Association for a Better New York (ABNY). In 2022, she was appointed by Governor Hochul to the “New” New York panel. Jessica also serves as president of the Alliance’s sister organization, the Downtown Lower Manhattan Association, founded in 1958 by David Rockefeller. A lifelong New Yorker and graduate of Stuyvesant High School, Jessica graduated Phi Beta Kappa and Magna Cum Laude from Georgetown University and currently lives in Manhattan with her family.