The Downtown Development District is designated and authorized by the Louisiana Legislature as a special taxing district. The District was created by Act No. 573 of the 1975 Regular Session of the Louisiana Legislature to halt property deterioration in the central business district.
Why: Because the central business district is very important to the overall welfare of the city of Shreveport.
The area was designated a special taxing district to stop the deterioration of property values. The enabling legislation also designated the Downtown Development Authority as the entity to focus on the revitalization of the area. The property taxes are imposed on downtown properties only, not city-wide.
The DDA is governed by a 7-member Board of Directors. The directors are nominated from names submitted to the Mayor by the following entities:
- Downtown Shreveport Unlimited
- Shreveport Bossier African American Chamber of Commerce
- Downtown Shreveport Development Corporation
- State Senators Whose Senatorial Districts are defined by R.S. 24:35.1(A)(37) as District 37 (note: this is being amended in the current legislative session since District 37 is no longer designated in Shreveport) and by R.S. 24:35.1(A)(39) as District 39 and by the state representative whose representative district is defined by R.S. 24:35.5(A)(4) as District 4.
- Shreveport City Council
Criteria to serve on the DDA Board of Directors designates that the nominee “shall reside in the district or have their personal principal place of business or office in the district or own property in the district.”
The Mission Statement of the DDA: “To actively pursue, support, facilitate, and welcome initiatives that aid and encourage private development, and promote and coordinate public development within the Downtown Development District of Shreveport.”
The DDA submits its annual budget and program of work to the City Council on an annual basis. Through contracts with the City of Shreveport, the DDS streetscape crew provides cleaning and maintenance of downtown sidewalks. The DDA also has a contract with the City to provide ongoing management of the on-street parking program in downtown.
Visit the DDA website at https://www.downtownshreveport.com to learn more about the DDA.
