By: Larry English
Special to The Times

The selection of a new CEO of the Shreveport Downtown Development Authority is as equally important as the selection of the city’s next mayor. As a result, the DDA Board should undertake a national search to hire the best person to lead the organization.

But talent is rare, and it costs. Local leaders should ensure DDA has the resources to pay a competitive salary to attract the best candidates. And once that individual is hired, he or she will need the resources to build a competent team.

What makes this hire so significant is the $8 billion in unencumbered infrastructure funding Louisiana is scheduled to receive from the federal government. This is money that can be pursued to clean up Cross Bayou for redevelopment, hard bank our two riverfronts and reimagine downtown streets into green pedestrian plazas where citizens can walk, sit, and dine.

However, this once-in-a-generation funding will only be directed to shovel-ready projects that create economic development. That means hiring a CEO with a track record of working with developers to create large-scale public-private partnerships.

Additionally, the next CEO has to have a plan to help downtown property owners repurpose their vacant storefronts and towers. This, in return, will not only help existing downtown businesses grow but attract new ones.

This is not the time to turn inward for the next DDA CEO. Moreover, local candidates who are afraid to compete in a national search, are probably not qualified for the job.

Over the last 30 years, Shreveport, like a lot of cities, has been devastated by globalization and the concentration of financial, cultural, and intellectual capital in coastal cities. Post-pandemic, even global cities such as New York, San Francisco and Washington DC are being forced to reimagine their once vibrant downtowns, as work from home is now a permanent reality of the American workforce.

But our downtown has assets that few cities can employ in their redevelopment. Shreveport’s downtown sits on two river fronts. The Red River is home to two casinos that can now expand into land-based gaming. Cross Bayou is a blank riverscape whose potential is limited only by our imagination. Added to this mix is a world-class food scene that rivals any in the country.

The word most associated with Shreveport’s downtown is potential. But potential has come to mean do nothing. But life is about timing. State Senator Sam Jenkins said it best about the selection of a new leader for DDA: “We have to get this right.”