2017 Annual Luncheon

CHPC hosted its 80th Anniversary Luncheon on Thursday, April 20, 2017 at the Marriott Grand Marquis in Times Square. Nearly 1,000 of New York Citys housing industry attended the event to catch up and congratulate this years honorees. It was a wonderful event graced with touching speeches and fun anecdotes.

This years Roger Starr Award for Public Service went to Carl Weisbrod, who recently stepped down from chairing the NYC City Planning Commission since 2013. Current Deputy Mayor for Housing and Economic Development Alicia Glen introduced Weisbrod before his acceptance speech.

The 2017 Ibo Balton Community Planner Award was given to Nicole Ferreira, Executive VP for Real Estate at NYCHA, in recognition of her commitment to the citys housing stock and helping the housing authority achieve its first conversion under the Rental Assistance Demonstration project. NYCHA Chair Shola Olatoye and CHPC Board member Robert Ezrapour introduced Ferreira.

The luncheon also featured remarks from Richard Ravitch, who served as CHPC President in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Ravitchs remarks were part of the theme of the event, which looked back on the impact CHPC has had throughout its eight-decade history. As part of that retrospective, CHPC Board members took to the stageto the popular music of various decadesto highlight the organizations involvement in the issues of the day. One such feature covered the 1970s, 80s, and 90s in New York.

This years Impact Award for Housing was given to Perry Notias, of Notias Construction, in recognition of his tireless efforts to improve the living conditions of New Yorkers. CHPC Chair Richard Roberts and Vice President Samantha Magistro introduced Notias.

Finally, our Impact Award for Community Investment went to Rafael Cestero, President and CEO of the Community Preservation Corporation, who was introduced by CHPC Board member Alan Wiener.

View the full 58TH Annual Luncheon program here.

THE 58TH ANNUAL LUNCHEON HONOREES

ROGER STARR AWARD FOR PUBLIC SERVICE

CARL WEISBROD

Senior Advisor, HR&A Advisors

Carl Weisbrod came to public service in NYC through an uncommon route: spending his days suing the City as a young Legal Services attorney on behalf of squatters and mothers and their children being evicted from welfare hotels. Finally Amy Betanzes, then the head of NYC’s Department of Relocation—invited Carl to come and work for the City and help to make things better for the people he cared about. It was 1970. The City’s population was declining, the poor were flooding into the worst housing stock just ahead of the urban renewal wrecking balls that would ultimately reshape so many of our neighborhoods.

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IBO BALTON COMMUNITY PLANNER AWARD

NICOLE FERREIRA

Executive Vice President for Real Estate, NYCHA

Nicole has put people and their
communities at the center of her work creating innovative and quality affordable housing projects in her various roles in NYC. She was first inspired to focus on affordable housing by CHPC Board Emily Youssouf, then President of NYC’s Housing Development Corporation. Starting first at NYCHA in 2011, Nicole
would leave to join the Workforce Housing Group, which acquires and turns around troubled rental housing in a variety of neighborhoods to ensure that they are preserved into the future.

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IMPACT FOR COMMUNITY INVESTMENT AWARD

RAFAEL CESTERO

President & CEO, Community Preservation Corporation

When a senior at Cornell University, the chance to spend a semester in NYC seemed to offer fun and an opportunity to
land a job on Wall Street, all attractive options to an upstate native. The reality of working at a bank all week would turn out to have a very different impact on Rafael when he was introduced to a half-day a week
requirement to help on a community service project in Queens. It became clear that his interests were sparked more by community issues and with the help of a sympathetic professor, he was able to redirect his internship to the Enterprise Foundation. There, Lisa Boyd and Bill Frey would nurture a lifelong commitment to housing and community development.

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IMPACT FOR HOUSING AWARD

PERRY NOTIAS

Owner and Founder, Notias Construction

Pericles Notias, Founder, Owner, and CEO
of Notias Construction, isn’t your average
builder/developer. A native New Yorker
with a passion for his Greek heritage and his family, Perry has built an amazing organization, grounded in the principles that he learned growing up: hard work, humility, compassion, and keeping your word.

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