DMPED: Release June 9, 2008, Fenty Announces New Leaders for Key Economic Development Jobs

(Washington, DC) – Mayor Adrian M. Fenty announced Monday that Erik Moses, the city’s Department of Small and Local Business Development (DSLBD) Director, has been selected by the Board of the DC Sports and Entertainment Commission to serve as its chief executive officer. Its current CEO Greg O’Dell has been named CEO and General Manager of the Washington Convention Center Authority. Nicole Becton has been selected to replace Moses as the new interim director of DSLBD.

“These three executives have shown great leadership in their past roles in the District with the District government,” said Mayor Fenty. “These jobs are incredibly important to improving the economic health of our city. The Convention Center is at the heart of $5 billion hospitality industry. The Sports Commission is our link to Nationals Park, RFK Stadium and the DC Armory. Our Small and Local Business Development agency ensures that residents and local companies can take advantage of this incredible wave of economic prosperity the District has enjoyed during the past decade. I am confident that they have the talent and the business acumen to bring these very important organizations to the next level.”

Erik Moses, CEO of the Washington Sports and Entertainment Commission

Moses was most recently Director of the Department of Small and Local Business Development. Prior to his appointment as director, Moses served as the deputy director of the agency from March 2006 to January 2007. He was co-founder of Legacy Holdings LLC, a private investment partnership. Before that, he worked at AOL Time Warner. Mr. Moses received his B.A. in Political Science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and his JD from the Duke University School of Law.

Greg O’Dell, CEO and General Manager of the Washington Convention Center Authority

O’Dell was most recently CEO of the Washington Sports and Entertainment Commission where he led the successful construction of National’s Park. He previously worked for the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development where he oversaw the District’s major development projects. O’Dell also founded and co-owned Clemens Consulting Group and served as a senior manager at BearingPoint before joining the District government. He has a finance and government degree from Wofford College in Spartanburg, South Carolina.

Nicole Becton, Interim Director of the Department of Small and Local Business Development

Becton was the agency’s General Counsel/Director of Policy and Planning. Before joining DSLBD, Ms. Becton worked in private practice with the law firm Kaye Scholer LLP in the District of Columbia, where she focused on a variety of regulatory and litigation matters and on civil rights law. She received her BA in English from the University of Virginia and her law degree from the Duke University School of Law.