REAL ESTATE PROJECT MANAGER

People United for Sustainable Housing (PUSH Buffalo) seeks a Real Estate Project Manager to join our Community Development team, working on affordable housing and related community development activities, centered primarily on the West Side of Buffalo, New York.

The Organization and its Programs

PUSH Buffalo was created in 2005 as a nonprofit membership organization that would combine community development and community organizing activities to address displacement and improve Buffalo’s West Side. Our mission today is: to mobilize residents to create strong neighborhoods with quality affordable housing; to expand local hiring opportunities; and to advance social, economic and environmental justice in Buffalo.

PUSH Buffalo created the Buffalo Neighborhood Stabilization Company (BNSC) in 2009 to develop affordable housing and to purchase and redevelop vacant land. Today, PUSH and BNSC undertake housing and land development, plus sustainability and new economy work, encompassing green housing construction, community-based renewable energy and weatherization projects, land acquisition and holding, and green job training and development.

PUSH Buffalo aims to hold developers, including our affiliates, accountable to our low-income community, through our board and membership, and through extensive outreach and community planning activities. We lead social and environment justice campaigns. We are working to move from an extractive economy to a regenerative economy, in accordance with the Just Transition framework. PUSH seeks to increase the percentage of affordable housing units on the West Side from 15 to 25%.

While our real estate development focuses on the West Side, our advocacy campaigns and work against displacement and for affordable housing, climate justice and green jobs bring us into larger coalitions, and extends our work across the city, regionally and nationally.

PUSH, with its affiliates, currently has a $4.5 million operating budget and a staff of approximately 40 people.

Affordable Housing and Community Development at PUSH

PUSH/BSNC has developed 100 units of rental housing on 27 sites (scattered sites that PUSH/BNSC purchased and assembled, plus a school re-use). We have used a wide range of public and private housing resources, including Low Income Housing Tax Credits, state, city, bank and philanthropic resources. PUSH/BSNC has several projects in pre-development, including 53 units of tax credit rentals and around 9 units in small properties targeted to first time homebuyers. Our projects have also included a workyard, a workforce training center, our office space, and a nursery/greenhouse.

PUSH has developed some of its projects independently, with consultant support, and some with Syracuse-based Housing Visions. PUSH manages some of its properties itself, and some through Housing Visions.

Project Manager

The Project Manager will participate in PUSH/BNSC’s efforts to create high-quality affordable and sustainable housing for low income households, and community development projects that advance economic justice. They will report to the Director of Community Development/BNSC Executive Director.

This position is highly collaborative. The Project Manager will work with external partners and consultants as well as with an interdepartmental team of project managers, planners and senior managers to grow and manage our existing housing portfolio. They will collaborate with the leaders of our organization on programs and policy activities.

We seek a creative, mission driven person to become our next Project Manager. They will work on a variety of projects that reflect the community’s vision for the West Side.

Key Duties and Responsibilities

• Assemble and manage project teams together with other project management staff
• In coordination with other staff and consultants, develop and manage project financing plans
• In coordination with other staff and consultants, develop and submit applications for grants, equity, and loans
• Coordinate closings for property acquisition, construction, and permanent financing
• Manage projects from predevelopment through construction completion, project lease up, and financial close out
• Ensure compliance with all project funding sources
• Actively participate in visioning and strategizing about neighborhood development goals and priorities, and engage in community planning processes
• Build strong relationships and, for specific projects, serve as a primary contact with government officials, local partners, and others who participate in the development process, as well as with other organizations that PUSH partners with and who inform PUSH’s work
• Provide regular reports to the Community Development Director and other internal and external stakeholders
• Identify and recruit experienced professionals to serve as technical assistance providers, partners and mentors
• Stay current with local, regional, state and federal affordable housing and neighborhood development policies and programs
• Set departmental goals together with other real estate team members and senior management team
• Perform other related duties as assigned.

Our Ideal Candidate

Our ideal candidate will have many of these experiences and qualifications:

• A background in real estate, affordable housing or community development, including at least one to two years of experience developing or funding affordable housing
• Demonstrated commitment to community-based development, and engaging in active community visioning for development
• Strong financial skills including comfort developing and monitoring budgets and using excel
• Knowledge of local, state and national funding sources used to develop affordable housing
• Demonstrated familiarity with regulatory and legal requirements for development in Buffalo or similar communities
• Bachelor’s degree in a related field preferred; additional work experience may be substituted for a degree
• Some familiarity with design or construction management preferred
• Comfort and experience explaining complex development requirements to others a plus
• Commitment to equitable development and working in a diverse multi-cultural community
• Familiarity with the Just Transition framework or a willingness to embrace this  framework
• Emotional intelligence
• Strong listening skills
• Ability to adapt to a dynamic and shifting work environment
• Ability to work independently and as a member of a team
• Strong written and verbal communication skills
• Ability to work with MS Office suite and other software
• Experience with horizontal and democratic management structures preferred, and
• Cultural competence and linguistic skills in English plus at least one of Spanish, French, or Arabic languages a plus.

The Selection Process

Please submit one PDF document containing a cover letter, detailing your interest and qualifications for this position, and an up-to-date resume to: http://annlsilverman.com. See www.pushbuffalo.org for more information about PUSH Buffalo and its programs.

PUSH Buffalo offers a competitive salary and a generous benefits package. Applications will be reviewed and acknowledged as they are received. We aim to fill this position early in 2021.