Joshua Simon

About Joshua Simon

I focus on developing \"Community Hubs\". Community Hubs are mixed-use complexes that often include housing. They can also have arts and cultural spaces, educational uses, retail, social services, wellness services and many other uses the bring the neighborhood together. Such gathering spaces are even more important after the pandemic. Community Hubs are often rooted in local history, authentic culture and creativity. Sometimes referred to as \"Place Making\" or \"Place Keeping\" these are community focal points that anchor vibrant, diverse, mixed-income, healthy neighborhoods. Examples of Community Hubs that I have worked on in Oakland California include Swan\'s Market, The Native American Health Center\'s Seven Directions, Lion Creek Crossings, Lake Merritt BART Transit Village and Preservation Park. I have also assisted with financing for:Mission Economic Development Agency\'s Plaza Adelante (San Francisco), St. Anthony Foundation\'s Community Dining Room (San Francisco), Girls Inc of Alameda County\'s Simpson Center (Oakland), Berkeley/Albany YMCA\'s Youth Center (Berkeley) and many other community facilities financed with Historic and New Markets Tax Credits.My experience to date has included- Mixed-use development with affordable housing- Nonprofit centers with multiple organizations- New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) feasibility and structuring- Historic Tax Credit feasibility and structuring- Use of Program Related Investments (PRIs)- Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) motivated conventional financing- Development in \"air-rights\" above other uses- Senior housing with services- Age-Friendly Neighborhood planning- Asset Management for community facilities- Affordable artist\'s live/work studios and small theater spaces.

Experience

1. Senior Advisor

   Community Arts Stabilization Trust

   Nov 2020 — Present · San Francisco, CA, US

   CAST secures permanent space for community arts, culture organizations and low-income households engaged in small businesses rooted in culture, creativity and the arts.Mission: To create stable physical spaces for arts and cultural organizations to facilitate equitable urban transformation.CAST Is- Creating a new and inventive approach to asset development for cultural organizations- Contributing to neighborhood revitalization strategies with arts at the center of economic and community development- Demonstrating a new strategies for recycling financial resources and forging unprecedented public-private partnerships for culturally focused economic development- Mitigating space challenges for arts and cultural organizations in one of the nation\'s hottest real estate markets- Serving a mix of cultural organizations, artists and a community of people that is diverse by age, race, gender, economic status and cultural background CAST does this by- Acquiring properties to keep culture, creativity and the arts rooted in San Francisco bay area neighborhoods- Building the capacity of cultural organizations to lease or own property- Leveraging funding to achieve our goals

Education

• Massachusetts Institute of Technology

  Master of Science - Real Estate Development, Real Estate Development

  1989 — 1990

• University of California, Berkeley

  BA, Architecture

  1980 — 1982

Skills

• Project Management
• Construction
• Urban Planning
• Real Estate Economics
• Real Estate
• Real Estate Development
• Asset Management
• Budgets
• Community Development
• Public Policy
• Mixed-Use
• Affordable Housing
• Team Management
• Historic Preservation
• Strategic Planning
• Non-Profits
• Economic Development
• Redevelopment
• Leadership
• Program Management
• Tax Credits
• Entitlements
• Lihtc
• Project Planning
• Budgeting
• Disposition
• New Markets and Historic Tax Credit Finance Structuring
• Nonprofits