CAROL GALANTE APPOINTED AS HUD DEPUTY ASSISTANT SECRETARY
Leader in affordable housing tapped to head multifamily housing programs

WASHINGTON - U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Shaun Donovan announced today that President Barack Obama has appointed Carol Galante as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Multifamily Housing Programs at HUD. Galante is currently the President of BRIDGE Housing Corporation, 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, and an array of revitalization, transit-oriented, urban infill, and mixed-use/mixed-income developments.

As Deputy Assistant Secretary, Galante will be responsible for HUD's financing support for the development and preservation of privately-owned rental housing (a current portfolio of over $58 billion) and will be integral to several new initiatives that promote sustainable development.

"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 Secretary 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. I am thrilled to have Carol on board and look forward to working with her to carry out HUD's mission to create affordable housing opportunities for all Americans."

Galante said, "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 joined BRIDGE as Vice President in 1987 and was named President in 1996. Prior to BRIDGE, she was the Executive Director of Eden Housing, Inc., where she developed affordable homes and formed a property management subsidiary. She has also worked for the cities of Santa Barbara, Richmond and Philadelphia.

Galante has received many honors including: Multifamily Executive magazine's 2008 Executive of the Year, California Homebuilding Foundation Hall of Fame 2008, Builder magazine's Top 50 Most Influential People in Home Building 2006, San Francisco Business Times 2003 Deal Maker of the Year, Most Influential Women in the Bay Area, and the 2002 U.C. Berkeley College of Environmental Design Distinguished Alumna Award. She is a licensed real estate broker and holds a B.A. from Ohio Wesleyan and a Master of City Planning from U.C. Berkeley.

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