Redefining Development
Jul 21, 2024
Madam Architect
Anyeley Hallová's Approach to Wealth Creation, Social Equity and Catalytic Projects
As a real estate developer, how are you able to create equitable opportunities for those who have historically been blocked from homeownership opportunities?
Early on, I was interested in establishing and communicating my values. If that resonated with people, then I knew I could attract partners and funders. Adre's success began with winning PitchBlack in 2022, a platform for Black entrepreneurs to showcase their business ideas. I crafted a compelling five-minute pitch outlining how Adre could pave the way for wealth and financial stability for BIPOC communities and organizations through real estate. This resonated with the audience, leading to a $50,000 victory in the contest. This win was a testament to Adre's potential and the need to communicate how social equity fits into development. To do this, I created a diagram illustrating the lifecycle of a project.
Projects always begin with someone owning the land. They then proceed to someone developing it, a professional designing the structure that sits on it, a contractor who builds the structure, and finally, someone who purchases and uses that structure for their own purposes. With each of these phases, there is a parallel racist legacy in the US. Who is the developer? If you can't own land, you probably can't be a developer, right? Who designs the building? If you don't see people who look like you in those positions, it becomes challenging to be in those spaces.
There's a potential solution at each of these phases. At Adre, we have a company goal: at least 30% of construction dollars go to BIPOC and women-owned businesses. We measure every single dollar that comes into the project with the idea that at the end of it, we can understand the total and determine goals that increase ownership and shared economic development objectives while building with technologies with lower carbon emissions. Ultimately, it's about creating a system that ensures wealth creation, in all its forms, for people of color and their communities.
