Councilmember David A. McGowan is serving his second term on the City Council, and previously served as Mayor. Prior to being elected to the City Council, he served on the City’s Finance Advisory Committee.  Mr. McGowan is the founder and President of the Palos Verdes Estates Foundation. He is or has been actively involved in numerous civic and/or professional organizations including the Los Angeles Parks Foundation (Founding Board Member, Treasurer), the Southern California Committee for Olympic Games (Board Member, Chief Financial Officer), and the Los Angeles Sports Council (Board Member). He was President of two homeowners' associations, Chapter President of Financial Executives Institute, and also served on the Board of two healthcare organizations.

Councilmember McGowan brings over 50 years of professional and executive expertise to our Council. He currently owns Lunada Bay Associates, LLC, a specialized consulting firm working with the legal community, corporations, and governmental entities.  McGowan is a retired Partner with the international accounting firm, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (PwC) where he directed teams that performed forensic investigations, and financial analysis in major complex disputes and litigation matters.  He is frequently requested to provide expert witness testimony in Federal, State, and Municipal Courts as well as before governmental bodies.  His expertise has been called upon to perform internal investigations, contract disputes, damage analytics, construction disputes, and pension matters involving both corporations and governmental entities.

Prior to joining PwC, he held executive positions with Medtronic Inc., Norwest Corporation (currently Wells Fargo) and First Bank System (currently U.S. Bank Corporation).  He began his career with Peat Marwick & Mitchell (currently KPMG).

Councilmember McGowan earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Denver and his master’s degree from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.  His professional certifications include retired Certified Public Accountant (CPA,) and Certificate of Management Accounting (CMA), and he is a retired Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE). 

Councilmember McGowan and his wife Lynn have been residents of PVE since 1995.  They are a diverse family with four grown sons and five grandchildren living in four different states.    

He’s a strong advocate for safety and security while being concerned about maintaining the quality of life in PVE.  His skills provide necessary financial integrity, acumen, transparency, and leadership.   

Email:  dmcgowan@pvestates.org