ULSTER STRONG HOUSING SUMMIT - Sept 26, 5-8pm
Can New Housing Be Built in Ulster?
Please join us for a panel discussion of local leading experts on housing development in Ulster County.
This summit of local experts will discuss the issues surrounding new housing construction in Ulster County, and offer ideas to alleviate the current crises.
While some new local initiatives have been launched, little progress has been made on the construction of housing for middle and working classes, including multi-family housing.
We will discuss the challenges of planning board approvals, creating public support for projects, and construction at the local level, and investigate why and for how long demand for new housing will remain strong.
PANELISTS
Susan Wright - President / CEO, MGI
Mike Oats - President & CEO, Hudson Valley Economic Development Corp
JJ McCormick - Partner & Director of Construction, D&A Companies
Dennis Doyle - Director, Ulster County Planning Department
Bill Calderara - President & CEO, Ulster Savings Bank
MODERATOR
Adam Bosch, President and CEO, Hudson Valley Pattern for Progress
(PANELIST AND MODERATOR BIOS BELOW)
Panel discussion will be followed by Q&A and networking mixer.
TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 26th, 5PM
LOCATION: Senate Garage
4 North Front Street Kingston, NY 12401
This event is free, and Hosted by Ulster Strong.
PRE-REGISTRATION REQUIRED
REGISTER FOR SUMMIT
Susan Wright
Susan Wright is a native of Marlboro, NY and is the President and CEO of MGI Construction + Consulting, a General Contracting / Construction Management firm with main offices in the Hudson Valley and NYC . Her career in real estate finance, development, marketing, and sales commenced more than 35 years ago whilst she held various Executive Management positions for the most prestigious firms in New York City. Ms. Wright brought her cumulative years in the industry to MGI in 2006, allowing her to combine her knowledge of building, business, finance, and technology with all facets of value-based, solution-focused completion of construction projects. Since that time, Susan’s vision and keen direction of construction and project management strategies aided in achieving highly successful results for MGI’s clients. In 2009, her leadership ability led her to assume the helm at the firm and has since proudly obtained the distinguished Women‘s Business Enterprise National Council Certification (WBENC), as well as certifications by the PANYNJ and NYC . She remains a strong advocate for Diversity and Inclusion in the workplace and beyond.
Ms. Wright holds a BS degree in Public Administration from Russell Sage College and has taken additional MBA and Real Estate courses at Union College, New York University, as well as Dartmouth College. She supports numerous philanthropic organizations and is a member of ULI, PWC, and AAUW, and has completed her LEED credentials. Ms.Wright currently sits on the Board of Advisors for The Women's Institute at Russell Sage College, as well as the Boards of Ulster Strong and HVEDC
James (JJ) McCormick
James McCormick is Director of Construction at D&A Companies, a real estate development shop specializing in design-forward projects. He helps his team optimize the development strategy, with the project’s build in mind, and ensures D&A can execute projects as intended, without compromising crucial design features.
James attended Cornell University, where he earned both a Master of Engineering in Project Management and a B.S. in Civil Engineering. James also earned a concentration in architecture from the Cornell School of Architecture, Art, and Planning.
James has led several high-profile project teams in New York City including The Graduate Hotel at Cornell Tech, 50 West, and The Viceroy Hotel. A Board Member of McLaren Engineering Group, James also sits on the advisory council of the Civil Engineering School at Cornell, and is an advisor to StructionSite, a construction site imaging and progress tracking software.
A believer in success through planning, James invests his time in D&A’s projects long before they break ground.
Michael Oates
Mr. Oates is the current President and CEO of Hudson Valley Economic Development Corporation, the leading economic development organization for the Hudson Valley, New York region. He is also a former Managing Partner for Bellefield Development Partners LLC, the developer of Bellefield at Historic Hyde Park in Dutchess County. Bellefield is a $500 million culinary campus located directly across the street from The Culinary Institute of America. Prior to joining Bellefield, Mr. Oates was the former CEO of Hudson River Ventures, a small business investment fund focused on Food & Beverage, Tourism, Hospitality, 3D Printing and Innovative Technology with investment projects located in the Hudson Valley. He also served as Vice President with Empire State Development.
Adam Bosch
Before joining Pattern for Progress, Bosch worked for 10 years as the director of public and intergovernmental affairs for the New York City water supply system, the largest municipal water supply in the United States. In that role, he managed the city’s outreach, press, education and other public-facing programs related to the reservoir system. He also supervised the outreach for billions of dollars in capital projects to improve the city’s dams, aqueducts and other infrastructure.
Before his work in civil service, Bosch was a longtime journalist in the Hudson Valley. He worked as a reporter and editor at the Times Herald-Record, The New York Times and other newspapers and magazines. His work earned five awards from the Associated Press for investigative reporting, depth coverage, and breaking news coverage. He taught investigative reporting at SUNY New Paltz for 10 years.
Bosch was born and raised in Newburgh. He earned his bachelor’s degree from SUNY New Paltz and his master’s degree from Columbia University in the City of New York. He currently lives in Ulster County with his wife, Jennifer, and their 10-year-old son, Tristan.
William Calderara
William “Bill” Calderara is an accomplished bank executive with over 30 years of experience in leadership, strategic planning, business development, operations, risk management, finance, and lending.
He is currently President and CEO of Ulster Savings Bank, a $1.3 billion Mutual Bank serving the Hudson Valley for over 171 years. Ulster Savings has been recognized in 2018, 2019, 2022, and 2023 with several Extraordinary Banking awards, which are awarded to the top 1% of banks in America. They were also named one of the “Best Banks to Work For” by American Banker in 2019, a “Community Champion” by Banker Northeast Magazine in 2022 and received the Independent Community Banker’s Community Service Awards in 2021 and 2022. Ulster Savings is a 5-star rated bank from Bauer, an independent bank rating agency. This is the highest rating a bank can receive for financial performance, safety, and soundness.
Currently, he serves as a board member of the New York State Bankers Association, Bardavon/UPAC, Ulster Community College Foundation, The Center for Financial Training, Rip Van Winkle Council of the Boy Scouts of America, and the Hudson Valley Economic Development Corporation. He serves as Treasurer for Pattern for Progress of the Hudson Valley, Treasurer of the Ulster County Italian American Foundation, and is a member of the Kingston Rotary Club.
He is a multiple Rotary Paul Harris Fellow, a United Way Leadership Giving Society Member, a Lifetime Member of the National Eagle Scout Association--having earned the Eagle Scout Rank in 1978-- and teaches at the Graduate School of Banking at the University of Colorado Boulder. He previously served on the New York State Department of Banking Advisory Board and Fannie Mae’s Advisory Council.
Mr. Calderara has received numerous awards and recognitions, most recently he was inducted into the SUNY New Paltz School of Business Hall of Fame as the 2019 Business Person of the Year and received the National Eagle Scout Association’s Outstanding Eagle Scout Award, also in 2019. In his spare time, Bill is also a professional ski instructor having earned PSIA Level 2.
He and his wife, Patti, reside in Kingston and have three adult children and four grandkids.
Dennis M. Doyle
Dennis brings over 40 years of experience from various aspects of the planning field including strategic and scenario planning, understanding of regulatory environment, technical knowledge of the environmental sciences, site design, and demographics. He has assisted municipalities, developers, and neighborhoods on issues associated with community and economic development as well as natural resource preservation. Mr. Doyle currently sits on several local boards including Cornell Cooperative Extension, Mid-Hudson ARC, Ulster County Housing Development Corporation, and was past president of RUPCO. He was born and raised in Ulster County.