For more than four decades, real estate developer David Podmore has helped to shape British Columbia and now a financial award in his honour, the David Podmore Bursary in Commerce, will help to shape the careers of tomorrow’s business leaders.
Concert, co-founded by Podmore and Jack Poole in 1989, has announced a $50,000 endowment fund that will provide bursaries to students in the Bachelor of Commerce Program at the UBC Sauder School of Business who demonstrate financial need. The generous contribution will be matched by UBC’s Blue & Gold Campaign, which UBC President Santa J. Ono launched to help remove financial barriers for talented students.
Concert’s donation was made to celebrate Podmore’s remarkable career, which has included leadership roles with Expo ’86, the Vancouver Convention Centre expansion, the bid for the 2010 Olympic Winter Games and the BC Place roof replacement project. The UBC alumnus has also been active in countless community initiatives and has served on many Boards, including the BC Children’s Hospital Foundation, the Greater Vancouver Home Builders Association and the BC Progress Board. He is also a recipient of the Order of British Columbia, and the Queen Elizabeth Diamond Jubilee Medal.
Podmore stepped down as Concert’s CEO in 2017, but he remains the company’s Chair, as well as Chair & Chief Executive Officer of Concert Infrastructure — an independent long-term investor, developer and manager of public infrastructure.
“With the establishment of this bursary, Concert is pleased to honour and recognize David Podmore,” said Brian McCauley, Concert’s President & Chief Executive Officer. "Since Concert’s inception in 1989, Podmore has grown the company into one of Canada’s most respected real estate enterprises. However, his greatest legacy for future generations of British Columbians will be his tireless efforts to contribute to some of the province’s largest projects like BC Place, the Vancouver Convention Centre and BC Children’s Hospital to name a few."
Podmore says he is touched by the donation, which will help business students at his alma mater. “As a proud graduate of the University of British Columbia, I appreciate this meaningful gesture and am particularly gratified that funds will support students who require financial assistance to access quality post-secondary education,” he said.
Over the past two decades, Concert has made multiple donations to the University of British Columbia, including a $100,000 gift that established the Concert Properties Leaders’ Award — an honour granted to an outstanding undergraduate student entering fourth year in the Bachelor of Commerce Program’s Real Estate division. The award marked Concert’s 20th anniversary, and was established to recognize founding members and investors.
“Concert’s generosity has had a significant impact on UBC Sauder School of Business students — both financially and through the professional opportunities they continue to create and support,” says Robert Helsley, Dean of the UBC Sauder School of Business. “This endowment will continue David Podmore’s remarkable legacy and will make an enormous difference in the lives of tomorrow’s leaders who need a helping hand today.”