HUD New England, the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, MassDevelopment, MassHousing and the Builders of Color Coalition hosted the Developers of Color Summit at the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston on Wednesday, Oct. 25.
Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll gives the keynote address. PHOTO: Sai Boddupalli
The full-day summit, with a theme of “Shifting the Paradigm through Equity and Access,” drew more than 150 developers of color and included panels covering real estate finance and development-specific information and featuring speakers from federal, state and local housing development organizations, private and quasi-government lenders, and philanthropic and nonprofit organizations.
HUD New England Regional Administrator Juana B. Matias gave welcome remarks, and Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll delivered the keynote address.
Developers and real estate practitioners shared personal perspectives and stories of overcoming challenges in a “day in the life” panel moderated by Chrystal Kornegay, CEO of MassHousing.
Other panel discussion topics included facilitating access to capital and cultivating inclusion, moderated by Marie Morisset, principal at Boston Communities; nonprofit resources in residential and commercial development, moderated by Shirronda Almeida, director of the Mel King Institute at MACDC; and private financing resources for residential and commercial development, moderated by Darryl Settles, president and managing partner of Catalyst Ventures Development.
The event closed with a networking mixer at Estella’s in downtown Boston hosted by the Federal Home Loan Bank of Boston and the Builders of Color Coalition.
