Leadership

To lead the St. Elizabeths East development and its complementary goals to generate jobs, provide education and training for expanded employment opportunities, and diversify the City’s financial base, Mayor Muriel Bowser named The Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development (DMPED) to head the development effort. The project is executed by the staff within DMPED.

St. Elizabeths East Team

St. Elizabeths East Executive Director, Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development, Government of the District of Columbia

Latrena M. Owens is the Executive Director of the District of Columbia’s St. Elizabeths East Campus Redevelopment project. Ms. Owens previously served as Chief of Staff for the District’s Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) and the Interim Chief of Staff for the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development (DMPED). Ms. Owens is also the former Chief of Staff at the Department of General Services where she oversaw personnel management, communications, resource allocations, performance management, and logistics for the agency.

As the Project Manager at DMPED, Ms. Owens managed the $17 million Neighborhood Investment Fun and a construction portfolio in excess of $3 billion. She worked closely with District leadership, federal partners, and community stakeholders to negotiate, develop, and implement key projects including the Center Leg Freeway Project (I-395); the reconfiguration of Riggs Road and South Dakota Avenue; and more than 150 grant-funded projects in accordance with the Neighborhood Investment Act of 2004.

Ms. Owens also previously worked at the Department of Employment Services, where she managed the workforce development component of the St. Elizabeths West Campus and Marriott Marquis projects. Her career in DC Government began as a Capital City Fellow working at the District Department of Transportation and DMPED.

In addition to her roles at these agencies, Ms. Owens has also served as the Director of Student Success for the Division of Workforce Development and Lifelong Learning at the University of District of Columbia Community College. In that role, she supervised numerous student success initiatives, including student retention, transition, and engagement services. Before serving as the Director of Student Success, Ms. Owens served as the Division’s Deputy Director of the Center for Workforce Strategies where she oversaw several career training programs for District residents and ensured compliance with federal and local grant funded programs.

Ms. Owens holds a Master’s Degree in Adult Education from Virginia Commonwealth University and an Executive Certificate in Public Leadership from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government. In 2024, Ms. Owens was named the 21st Cafritz Awards Winner.