We Build Hope

At Abode Communities, our mission is to open new doors in people’s lives through creative and responsible design, development and operation of service-enhanced affordable housing.

Since 1968, when we were founded as the Los Angeles Community Design Center, Abode Communities has found success through the strength of our fully integrated, multidisciplinary approach. Every project receives the benefit of the experience and cooperation of our core groups: Development, Architecture, Housing Services and Resident Services.

Abode Communities’ specific strength is building sustainable, multi-family affordable housing to address the needs of Southern California's large workforce, low-income families, seniors and individuals with special needs. Currently, we own 34 properties throughout our region that are home to more than 4,000 residents.

Beyond bricks and mortar, Abode Communities is committed to the individual success of each of our residents. We build child care centers, community centers and computer labs into our facilities, and provide an enriching Resident Services Program.

Our work encourages participation and leadership in our communities, enhances children’s academic achievement and self-esteem, and helps adults to become confident and educated contributors to their community.

MISSION

Our mission is to open new doors in people's lives through creative and responsible design, development, and operation of service-enhanced affordable housing.

VALUES

Who we are: People
We value our employees as well as their skills and dedication and strive to promote creativity, professional growth and responsibility in a productive and sustainable work environment.

Who we serve: Families
We value our residents and learn from their diversity and shared experiences to enhance the design, development and operation of communities that promote personal growth, family stability, and community pride.

What we do: Housing
We value quality and leadership in the design and development of affordable housing that incorporates environmental sustainability, cost efficiency, durability and livability and will advocate for such standards within our industry.

What we achieve: Great Neighborhoods
We value projects that transform and revitalize neighborhoods and will be a catalyst for progressive and positive physical, social and economic change.

Robin Hughes
President and Chief Executive Officer

Robin Hughes is president and chief executive officer of Abode Communities. She has been actively involved in affordable housing and community development for over 25 years and in her 15 years as leader of Abode Communities, Hughes has transformed the organization into a top 50 affordable housing developer nationwide and the premier provider of affordable housing in Southern California.

Under Hughes’ guidance, Abode Communities has developed 25 properties; created new affordable homes for over 4,000 California residents; provided a social safety net through Beyond Homes, a substantive resident services program; and led the industry by developing three LEED® for Homes Platinum residential developments.

Prior to joining Abode Communities, held positions in the private and public sectors including The Richmond Group of Companies, Citibank, the Community Development Commission of the County of Los Angeles, and the Office of the Mayor of the City of Los Angeles.

As a leader in the affordable housing industry, Hughes is a member and past Chairperson of the Affordable Housing Advisory Council of the Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco and is a member of the JPMorgan Chase Community Advisory Board for Los Angeles, the Board of Directors for Housing Partnership Network and the Board of Governors for the California Housing Consortium. She served a four-year term as Planning Commissioner for the City of Los Angeles and sat on the Board of Directors for organizations such as Southern California Association of Nonprofit Housing, Low Income Investment Fund, Esperanza Community Housing Corporation and Mercy Housing California.

In November 2008, Hughes was recognized as Huffington Post’s “Person of the Day” and in 2011, she was featured on the cover of National Real Estate Investor Magazine as “Champion of Affordable Housing.”

Hughes received her Masters and Bachelor of Arts in Public Administration from the University of Southern California, and received a certificate from Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government’s Executive Program, Achieving Excellence in Community Development. She is considered a leader in the new construction and community revitalization of residential developments, particularly as it relates to affordable housing, planning, land use and sustainable design.

Rick Saperstein
Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

Rick Saperstein is executive vice president and chief financial officer, responsible for the oversight and direction of Abode Communities’ finance, accounting and asset management. In this capacity, he is heavily involved in the oversight and management of the organization’s existing portfolio, ensuring the achievement of financial performance goals and regulatory compliance, financial and tax reporting, and budgeting.

Saperstein has more than 20 years of experience including organizational finance and accounting management, internal and external financial reporting, budgeting and forecasting, cash flow reporting and department management.

Prior to joining Abode Communities, he served as Director of Accounting for Forest City Enterprise, Inc., a NYSE-listed real estate company with a large portfolio of mixed-income and mixed-use workforce developments. He also served as chief financial officer, controller and certified public accountant for various small and medium size companies, with a concentration within the real estate industry. Saperstein received a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from California State University, Northridge and is a Certified Public Accountant.

Holly Benson
Vice President, Housing Development

Holly Benson is vice president of housing development responsible for the financial packaging and development of Abode Communities’ affordable housing projects. She is instrumental in the identification of funding sources, negotiation of investment terms, the selection and management of development contracts, the syndication of low-income housing tax credits, and ultimately, the training and supervision of the project management staff. Benson is particularly skilled at consulting with local community groups and governmental entities to educate and inform neighboring communities about the composition and structure of affordable housing programs and benefits to communities at large.

Benson has nearly 12 years of affordable housing experience and has overseen the development of more than 700 affordable housing units and secured an estimated $150 million in loans, grants and equity from both private and public sources.

Prior to joining Abode Communities, she served as a housing developer at Mercy Housing California responsible for all facets of project management, as well as investigating opportunities for future affordable housing sites. With County of Orange Housing and Community Development Department, Benson was responsible for underwriting and recommending loans to affordable housing developers, as well as shaping the County’s community policies. Benson received a Bachelor of Arts in Communication Studies from the University of California, Los Angeles.

James Dixon, AIA, LEED AP
Vice President, Architecture

James Dixon is vice president of architecture responsible for the executive oversight of Abode Communities architectural design and production projects. As such, his primary roles are to ensure high-quality architectural design meets budget and schedule goals; mentor and manage Abode Communities’ architectural and design staff; and engage and manage client relations.

With over 26 years of experience in architectural planning, design and management of multifamily residential developments, Dixon is knowledgeable in all aspects of project development from conceptual design through construction administration. He has completed more than 4,000 housing units encompassing new and renovated affordable housing, market-rate residential, hotels, mixed-use centers, assisted-living facilities and community centers.

Prior to joining Abode Communities, Dixon was vice president for Los Angeles-based Nadel Architects. He is Chair of American Institute of Architects, Los Angeles Chapter’s Building Performance & Regulations Committee and is a committee member of Urban Land Institute’s Transit-Oriented Development Marketplace Committee. Dixon received a Bachelor of Architecture from the University of Southern California, and is a Registered Architect in the State of California (CA 16900) and a LEED® Accredited Professional through the U.S. Green Building Council.

Kasey Archey
Vice President, Property Management & Resident Services

Kasey Archey is vice president of property management and resident services, providing executive oversight of the management and operation of Abode Communities’ portfolio. She is particularly skilled at implementing policy and procedures, as well as fostering a team environment amongst corporate staff, site staff and residents.

With over 20 years of property management experience, Archey is knowledgeable in developing and maintaining operation and capital improvement budgets; monitoring financial variance, vacancy and delinquency reports; processing all approval, legal and eviction actions; responding to Fair Housing concerns; preparing contracts; and supervising, hiring and training property management staff.

Archey worked for firms such as Goldrich & Kest and Levine Management Company. She holds the professional designations of National Affordable Housing Professional Executive (NAHP-e), Fair Housing Coordinator (FHC) and Certified Occupancy Specialist (COS) from the National Affordable Housing Management Association (NAHMA).

Abode Community Housing

Abode Community Housing is the nonprofit, community housing development organization (CHDO) affiliate of Abode Communities.

Incorporated in May 1996, Abode Community Housing was established to help further Abode Communities’ mission to develop affordable housing for low-income residents in the greater Los Angeles area, and to carry out other socially beneficial projects that support community and economic development in disadvantaged communities.

Community Housing currently owns seven affordable housing developments serving very low- and low-income families.

Board of Directors

Figueroa Corridor Land Company

The Figueroa Corridor Community Land Trust and Figueroa Corridor Land Company are complementary tools and crucial elements of a broad-based community economic development strategy to combat the collision course between slum housing, gentrification, and displacement of low-income residents in the Figueroa Corridor of South Los Angeles.

Working in tandem with the Land Trust is the Figueroa Corridor Land Company, housed within Abode Communities. The Land Company has been established as a vehicle for purchasing, holding and entitling Land Trust properties.

With grant and loan funds raised from local, state and national foundations and lending institutions, the Land Company will purchase as many properties as possible in the short-term to avert further price escalation and displacement of residents. Target properties will include dilapidated apartment buildings, vacant lots and underutilized residential, commercial and industrial properties.

Orange County Advisory Board of Directors

Click here to view bios

Abode Communities
701 East 3rd Street, Suite 400
Los Angeles, California 90013
213-629-2702
info@abodecommunities.org

Ken Krug, Chair Ken Krug is partner of real estate development in the law office of Paul Hastings Janofsky & Walker LLP. Krug specializes in the financing of multifamily housing, where he represents banks, other institutional lenders and investors in connection with originating and structuring construction and permanent loans. He is also responsible for the private placement and credit enhancement of tax exempt municipals bonds. Krug is a principal California lawyer for a major national syndicator of low-income housing tax credits, and has structured and negotiated the acquisition of more than 300 real estate developments that qualified for such credits, either through competitive allocation or tax exempt bond financing. He earned his Bachelor’s degree summa cum laude from Duke University in 1979, and has a doctorate from University of Chicago Law School in 1982.

Sandra Kulli, Vice Chair Sandra Kulli is principal of Kulli Marketing, a development consultant devoted to helping owners, builders, architects, planners and marketers learn the business and art of high concept and urban infill placemaking. She has collaborated with over 100 companies and 220 communities throughout the United States, Japan, New Zealand, England and Dubai, resulting in a sales volume in excess of $6 billion. As principal, she leads outside marketing resources in concert with builder/developer staff members to determine market DNA, provide long-term planning, build and facilitate teams, map development process, provide consumer workshops, enhance relationships, create and management demand, and preserve value. Her local clients include Boeing, Playa Vista, The Irvine Company, 5 Point Communities, Thomas Properties Group, The Ratkovich Company and Gateway Capital, to name a few. Kulli received her bachelor’s degree from Wellesley College and earned a master’s degree from Boston University.

Sarah Garland, Secretary Sarah Garland has served as Fannie Mae’s national director of multifamily affordable housing since 2005. She is responsible for the production and management of all multifamily affordable products such as tax-exempt bonds, low-income housing tax credit transactions and affordable housing preservation transactions, and is instrumental in providing the executive oversight and management in fostering and growing Fannie Mae’s affordable housing lender relationships. Prior to joining Fannie Mae, Garland was vice president of Wells Fargo Bank’s Community Lending Division in Los Angeles. Her responsibilities included oversight of community lending activities in Southern California, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas. Garland is considered an industry specialist in affordable housing finance, and has proved to be a resource for organizations and publications such as Southern California Association of Nonprofit Housing, Institute for Responsible Housing Preservation, Novogradac & Company and Affordable Housing Finance, among more. She holds a bachelor’s degree in political science and international relations from University of California, Los Angeles.

Fernando Villa, Treasurer Fernando Villa joined the law offices of Pircher, Nichols & Meeks in 2007 as a partner in the firm’s real estate department. Devoted to land use, environmental law, local government, entitlements and real estate dispute resolution, he represents clients on a variety of development projects including mixed-use, industrial, residential, retail, master-planned and commercial developments. With a concentration on Brownfield redevelopment projects, Villa combines his environmental, land use, real estate, public agency law and litigation expertise to entitle his clients’ developments while helping them manage environmental risks and any real-estate related disputes that might arise during the process. Villa received his doctorate from the University of California at Berkley, Boalt School of Law, and earned a bachelor’s degree from University of California, Los Angeles, graduating magna cum laude.

Maria Bustria-Glickman Maria Bustria-Glickman is Vice President of Business Development for U.S. Bancorp Community Development Corporation. She is responsible for managing new markets and historic tax credit origination activities throughout the Western region of the country. Since joining U.S. Bank, Bustria-Glickman has been involved with a variety of tax credit transactions that have included mixed-use, commercial, office, hospitality, retail and community facilities. She has over 11 years of combined finance, affordable housing and management consulting experience across private and non-profit sectors. Her professional interests are rooted in experiences that merge economic and financial gains with positive social and community impact. Bustria-Glickman received a master’s degree in Public Policy and Administration from the School of International & Public Affairs at Columbia University and bachelor’s degree in Finance and Accounting from Boston College.

Gail Lannoy Gail Lannoy is West Region Market Executive for Community Development Banking, where she is responsible for managing Bank of America’s community development programs in California, Nevada, Oregon, Washington, and Idaho. These programs include financing the construction and preservation of affordable and workforce housing, lending to charter schools and community-based organizations and investing in tax credits. Prior to joining Bank of America, Lannoy was vice president at First Interstate Bank of California (now Wells Fargo Bank). There she managed the bank’s Los Angeles real estate center and a portfolio of commercial and residential construction loans. Lannoy graduated from the University of Michigan with a bachelor of arts degree. She graduated from the University of Southern California with an MBA in Finance. Lannoy serves on the board of the Los Angeles Downtown Women’s Center and on its Governance Committee. She is past board chairperson for the California Community Reinvestment Corporation, a certified Community Development Financial Institution serving the California market and also serves on the board of the Los Angeles Urban League.

Antonio Manning Antonio Manning is regional manager for the west and southwest regions for JPMorgan Chase Global Philanthropy Group, where he is responsible for managing philanthropic and community relations. His previous experience includes service as first vice president and regional grants manager for Washington Mutual’s (now JPMorgan Chase) Community and External Affairs Division. In this capacity, he managed community relations and company corporate contributions in affordable housing, community development and educational reform initiatives in the State of California. Prior to joining WaMu, he served as the western regional director of the Fannie Mae Foundation for an 11-state region. Manning is a founding member of African-Americans in Philanthropy Southern California, the commissioner for the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority and an advisory board member of the Blazers Youth Service Organization. Manning attended the University of Southern California and is a native of Los Angeles.

Byron K. Reed Byron K. Reed is Senior Vice President and Director of Wells Fargo’s Los Angeles Metropolitan Region, Community Development Group. He has over 29 years of banking experience including working for institutions such as Bank of America, Bank One and JPMorgan Chase. His depth of experience includes retail banking, client trust services; consumer, small business and commercial lending, government relations, community development; global and corporate philanthropy; and most recently, consumer real estate. Reed serves on numerous boards, which include appointments to the UCLA School of Public Affairs Advisory Board, Los Angeles Police Foundation, the Pat Brown Institute, Chrysalis, Urban League of Los Angeles, Big Brothers and Sisters of Greater Los Angeles, and the United States Community Development Corporation. He has a bachelor’s degree in political science/public administration with a minor in business finance from the University of Oklahoma.

Valerie Shaw Valerie Shaw is currently serving her 15th year on the Los Angeles Board of Public Works, the city’s only full-time non-elected policy-making body. As Liaison Commissioner for the Bureau of Engineering, she is responsible for managing some of the City’s largest construction projects, as well as the South Los Angeles Initiative, a five-year strategic plan devoted to the revitalization of the South Los Angeles community and environs. Shaw’s experience on the board includes service as as board president from 2001 to 2005 and vice president from 1997-2001 and then again from 2007-2008. Shaw’s civil service began in 1987 as District Director and Deputy to former Los Angeles 6th District Council Member Ruth Galanter, where she remained until 1994. In 1995, she was appointmented to the Los Angeles Civil Service Commission in 1995. She received a bachelor's degree in sociology from California State University, Los Angeles and master’s degree in public administration from the University of Southern California. Presently, she serves as adjunct professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Southern California, guiding young minds about the workings of city hall politics and the structure of city government.

Lucinda Starrett Lucinda Starrett is a partner in the Los Angeles law offices of Latham & Watkins, where she is a member and former chair of the office’s Environmental, Land and Resources Department. She co-chairs the Land Use Practice Group and the Climate Change Practice Group. Her practice includes approval for real estate development and infrastructure projects, advising on government contract issues, as well as related environmental and transactional matters. Her California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) practice focuses on administrative and pre-litigation counseling. Starrett served as the Chair of the Central City Association and was a founding board member of Genesis LA, a nonprofit devoted to economic development activities. Her community activities include service on the board of the Los Angeles Parks Foundation, which supports parks and recreation activities. She has been recognized as both a Leading Woman in Real Estate and as a Woman of Achievement by the Century City Chamber of Commerce, and named among the "Top 100 Lawyers in California” by the Daily Journal. Ms. Starrett graduated magna cum laude from Princeton University’s Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs in 1979 and graduated cum laude from the University of Pennsylvania Law School in 1984. She served as executive director of a University of Pennsylvania-Princeton study of philanthropy and was a Fulbright Scholar, studying women’s roles in politics in developing countries.

Ronne Thielen Ronne Thielen is the principal of Housing Resource Connection, assisting those working in the low-income housing tax credit arena. Prior to this latest venture, she was a Managing Director in the Affordable Housing Group of Centerline Capital Group where she managed the California office and was responsible for acquiring tax-credit and bond-financed properties throughout the United States. Thielen is the Immediate Past President and Chairman of the Board of the Affordable Housing Tax Credit Coalition, a Past Chairman and current board member of the National Housing & Rehabilitation Association and is on the board of the California Housing Consortium. She has extensive experience in multifamily housing finance and has specialized in the low-income housing tax credit program since its inception in 1986. Before her seventeen years at Centerline, she served as executive director of the California Tax Credit Allocation. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Cornell University.

We have no available positions at this time. Should you wish for us to keep your resume on file, please send to info@abodecommunities.org.

What we achieve: Great neighborhoods

We value projects that transform and revitalize neighborhoods and will be a catalyst for progressive and positive physical, social and economic change.

Neighborhood Impact

The communities in which we work have usually experienced tremendous disinvestment. As we focus on place-based changes through affordable housing and supportive resources, we have witnessed how investment in neighborhoods, is a catalyst for stronger communities.

Many of those struggling to make ends meet live in neighborhoods with lack of adequate housing and community resources, and are among the hardworking individuals many of us rely on each day – janitors, child care providers, bank tellers, nurses’ aides, security guards, retail clerks, truck drivers and teachers. The average incomes for these, and far too many other workers, are simply not enough to pay the rent on most apartment units in our urban areas. It is even more difficult for working parents to make ends meet, as the cost of child care is an additional, and expensive, burden.

Through comprehensive revitalization and placemaking, Abode Communities transforms entire neighborhoods and provides safe and stable homes for families. Building a better life and pursuing opportunity begins with having a place to live, and for more than four decades, Abode Communities has provided thousands of families with affordable homes.

November 27, 2010
Glassell Park Community Housing Featured in the Los Angeles Times

November 23, 2010
Robin Hughes, Abode Communities President, Chosen as Huffington Post's "Greatest Person of the Day"

October 27, 2010
Abode Communities Awarded $4 Million by U.S. Treasury

October 11, 2010
Ivy Terrace Opens in Van Nuys

July 30, 2010
California Construction Highlights Our LEED Platinum Certification

June 3, 2010
Five Developments Making Eco-Friendly Living Affordable

June 15, 2010
Casa Dominguez Hits Globe Street

April 10, 2010
The Los Angeles Times Features Our Newest Affordable Community, Casa Dominguez

March 10, 2010
Read about our newest affordable community, Casa Dominguez, on The Green Architecture and Building Report (GAB Report)

September 18, 2009
Tavis Smiley Interviews Holly Benson, Housing Director for Abode Communities

September 16, 2009
California Community Foundation Honors Abode Communities with Unsung Heroes Award

July 22, 2009
Robin Hughes, President of Abode Communities, Discusses State Budget Threat to Affordable Housing

July 1, 2009
New and traditional financing options help deliver much needed affordable homes

April 1, 2009
Abode Communities Named One of the Top 50 Affordable Housing Developers in the Nation

American Planning Association
Planning Implementation Award
Lohart Neighborhood
Revitalization Plan, 1999

Social Change and Diversity Award
New Dana Strand, 2008

California Council of the American Institute of Architects
Community Housing and Assistance Honor Award 1995, 1996

California Preservation Foundation
Design Award
Mary Andrews Clark Residence, 1995

Design Award
Young Apartments, 1996

California Redevelopment Association
Award for Excellence in Multi-family Housing
Las Brisas Community Housing, Phase I, 2006
Award for Excellence in Multi-family Housing
Grisham Community Housing, 2005
Award for Excellence in Multi-family Housing
Orange Grove Gardens, 2007

City of Los Angeles Cultural Affairs Commission Historic Preservation Award of Excellence Mary Andrews Clark Residence, 1996

City of Los Angeles Human Relations Commission
Certificate of Merit for Outstanding Volunteer Service, 1979

Department of Housing and Urban Development
Federal Housing Commissioner’s Special Recognition Award, 1994
Best Practices Award, Community Planning and Development
Lohart Neighborhood Revitalization Plan, 1999

Great Western Financial Corporation
Leslie N. Shaw, Sr. Memorial Award, 1988

Local Initiatives Support Corporation
Founder’s Award, 1989

Senior Housing Council of the Building Industry Association of Southern
California
SAGE Merit Award Winner - Project of the Year
Heritage Court Apartments, 2001

Los Angeles Business Council
Beautification Award for Remodeled Multi-family Residence
Hollywood El Centro, 1996
Beautification Award for Remodeled Multi-family Residence
Mary Andrews Clark Residence, 1995
Beautification Award for Historic Preservation
Young Apartments, 1996

Gold Nugget “Best in the West”
Award of Merit
Mary Andrews Clark Residence, 1995
City of Los Angeles Community Development Department
Award of Excellence in Community Development Block Grant Programs, 1997

Southern California Association of Non-Profit Housing
Project of the Year, Orange Grove Gardens, 2006
Project of the Year, Heritage Court Apartments, 2001
Developer of the Year, 1996
Project of the Year, Hollywood El Centro, 1995
Project of the Year, Young Apartments, 1995
Project of the Year, Orange Grove Gardens 2006
Project of the Year, Hart Village 2008

LEED Resident Manual

LEED Property Management Manual

Union Bank 2009 Green Housing Conference

ULI LA Housers - AIM Process 2011

USGBC GREEBUILD 2011 - Project-Specific Utility Allowance

SCANPH 2011 – Maximizing Cost Efficiencies

The Handoff: From Development to Operations

In these difficult times, your contributions mean so much more.

Beyond Homes, the Abode Communities resident services program, must now fill an even greater void for families who have experienced jobs loss, have limited access to support services, or may be on the verge of homelessness.

Your donation can support on-site services that make hop a reality for the families who call Abode Communities' developments "home."

Click: Donate Now

Call:
213-225-2730

Mail:
Abode Communities
701 East 3rd Street, Suite 400
Los Angeles, CA 90013

Your contribution is tax deductible as permitted by law; tax identification number 95-6377511. Please make checks payable to Abode Communities. Call 213-225-2730 with any questions.

Abode Communities thanks the many individuals and organizations whose support was vital in helping us help others in our community this year:

Anonymous
Accountemps
ADCO
Bank of America
Binney, Chase & Van Horne, Inc.
Broadway Federal Bank
California Community Foundation
Center for Creative Land Recycling
Citi Community Capital
Citi Foundation
Community Development Department of the City of Los Angeles
Community Redevelopment Agency of the City of Los Angeles
Enterprise Community Partners
Enterprise Green Communities
Gabriel's Carpets
Manufacturers Bank
Morley Builders
Reznick Group
Total Maintenance Group
Turner Construction
U.S. Treasury Department
Union Bank
Union Bank Foundation
US Bancorp Foundation
US Green Building Council
Wells Fargo Bank
Wells Fargo Foundation