The Delray Beach Downtown Development Authority (DDA) were deeply saddened to learn about the passing of Roy Simon, a cherished member of the Delray Beach community. Roy M. Simon, age 93, a longtime architect and founder of the Delray Beach DDA, passed away on August 14, 2024. Simon is also the father of the current Executive Director of the DDA, Laura Simon.
Simon was born in Delray Beach and grew up in Downtown Del-ray, where he attended Delray Beach Elementary School and Delray Beach High School – both of which are now part of Old School Square. He was the grandson and son of Delray Beach pio-neers who first settled in Downtown Delray Beach in 1912. Simon, one of Delray Beach’s oldest working architects, established his firm in Delray Beach in 1959, providing architectural services in build-ing design, preparation of construction documents, interior design, historic preservation, and more. One of his most notable projects was the recently demolished Atlantic Plaza near Veterans Park, open from 1987 to 2023. He also designed Pompey Park, the original Ur-ban Outfitters building, and many of the churches in Delray Beach, such as Trinity Lutheran and St. Vincent’s Catholic Church.
In 1971, Simon founded the Delray Beach DDA to grow, strengthen, and enhance the economic vitality of Downtown Delray Beach. His mission was to create parking for visitors and employees in Downtown Delray. He spearheaded the creation of the in-lieu parking program and assembled and helped the DDA acquire most of the public parking lots in Downtown Delray Beach. Then, in 1987, Simon was part of a “task force” created to save the buildings that had once housed Delray Beach Elementary and High School but had since been abandoned by the Palm Beach County School District. Simon, along with Frances Bourque and Ken Simback, envisioned turning the property into a people-oriented activity center for the arts and culture – one that would revitalize downtown Delray forever – and they called it Old School Square. The task force then officially created the Old School Square Foundation.
Simon was an active member of many boards for Delray Beach and Palm Beach County, including the Code Enforcement Board, Community Appearance Board, Planning and Zoning Board, and Zoning Board of Adjustments. He served as Vice President and two-time President of the Delray Beach Chamber of Commerce, was a former Trustee and Board Member of the Old School Square Historic Preservation Project, and twice served as the Delray Beach DDA Chairman. Simon, a charter board member and 42-year Delray Beach Historical Society board member, also served as a trustee since 1977. As a member of the Rotary Club, he earned the “Service Above Self” award.
Simon resided in the Delray Beach Lake Ida neighborhood for more than 65 years and dedicated his life to the growth and vitality of his beloved city. You could find him eating lunch almost every day at his favorite restaurant, the Green Owl, and he always honked as he drove past the DDA offices in Downtown Delray on his way home from work. His widow, Beth, who was by his side since 1961, passed away in 2023.
“My father’s passion and commitment to his hometown and, most of all, the DDA is incredible. There was not a day that went by where he did not ask how Downtown Delray and the DDA were doing, along with sharing what we SHOULD be doing to help downtown prosper,” said his daughter Laura Simon, who started with the DDA in 2010 after her father’s encouragement. “It is and has been truly an honor and privilege to serve in his footsteps for my hometown.”
