Galante Named Deputy Assistant Secretary for Multifamily Housing

President Obama yesterday appointed Carol Galante, president of California-based BRIDGE Housing Corp. as deputy assistant secretary for multifamily housing programs at the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Galante will be responsible for HUD's financing support for the development and preservation of privately owned rental housing - a portfolio of more than $58 billion - and will be "integral to several new initiatives that promote sustainable development," according to a HUD news release.

"Having previously served in the position Carol will step into, I am extremely confident that her proven track record in multifamily housing is exactly what HUD needs to move that division forward," said HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan. "She is one of the nation's most innovative affordable housing leaders and will be a tremendous asset during our nation's housing crisis, especially as HUD moves forward an aggressive policy agenda."

BRIDGE is the largest nonprofit developer of affordable apartments and homes in California, specializing in the development of family and senior affordable apartments, rental and ownership housing, as well as an array of revitalization, transit-oriented, urban infill, and mixed-use/mixed-income developments, according to the release.

Donovan has been saying in recent weeks that HUD will begin to integrate housing, transit, and energy efficiency initiatives into its programs. Ron Sims, the administration's nominee for HUD deputy secretary, is to head a new Office of Sustainability within the department to focus on using various programs to create sustainable communities.

"President Obama and Secretary Donovan share a compelling vision for positive change in our nation's metropolitan areas, and I'm looking forward to bringing some of the ideas garnered from my work in California, including transit development and green building programs, to today's national challenges," Galante said.

Galante joined BRIDGE as vice president in 1987 and was named president in 1996. Prior to that, she was the executive director of Eden Housing Inc., where she developed affordable homes and formed a property management subsidiary.

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