18th Annual Spring Symposium

HAC’s 18th Annual Spring Symposium, presented by Suffolk, is taking place on Wednesday, May 29 from 2-4pm at the Center for Design + Architecture in downtown San Francisco. Then, join HAC for an Afterparty in Downtown San Francisco from 4:30pm – 7:30pm.

This year’s program will showcase housing experts from the public, private, and nonprofit sectors to discuss the challenges behind the homebuilding process and explore solutions to jumpstart housing production across our region and state.

Meet Our All Star Panel:

Erin Baldassari | Housing Affordability Reporter, KQED

Erin Baldassari is the editor of the housing affordability desk at KQED. She’s a former print journalist and most recently worked as the transportation reporter for the Mercury News and East Bay Times. There, she focused on how the Bay Area’s housing shortage has changed the way people move around the region. She also served on the East Bay Times’ 2017 Pulitzer Prize-winning team for coverage of the Ghost Ship Fire in Oakland.

Prior to that, Erin worked as a breaking news and general assignment reporter for a variety of outlets in the Bay Area and the greater Boston area.

Myrna Melgar | District 7 Supervisor, San Francisco Board of Supervisors

Myrna Melgar is a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors overseeing District 7 which includes West Portal, the Inner Sunset, and Twin Peaks. As Chair of the Land Use and Transportation Committee, Supervisor Melgar has championed common sense housing reform to make way for the next generation of San Franciscans. From passing a compliant Housing Element to crafting the Family Housing Opportunity Special Use District, Supervisor Melgar is leading the conversation on housing affordability, feasibility, and process in San Francisco.

Supervisor Melgar lives in San Franicsco’s Ingleside neighborhood where she enjoys biking with her husband and three daughters.

Jay Bradshaw | Nor Cal Carpenters Union, Executive Officer

Jay is the Executive Officer of the Nor Cal Carpenters Union, having been elected to a four year term in August of 2021. He represents 38,000 members from 22 Local Unions. As Executive Officer, Jay sets the union’s the political agenda, builds employer relations, oversees organizing efforts, negotiates collective bargaining agreements, and trains journeylevel and apprentice tradespeople.

Sarah Karlinsky | Research Director, UC Berkeley Terner Center

Sarah Karlinsky is the Research Director at the Terner Center where she leads the development of the center’s research agenda. Prior to joining the Terner Center, Sarah worked at SPUR, a leading Bay Area urban policy think tank, where she held numerous positions, including that of Deputy Director, Senior Advisor and Research Director. Sarah has published on a wide variety of topics including housing governance, middle-income housing, long-range planning for housing affordability, historic preservation and the intersection between disaster resilience and housing policy.

Cyrus Sanandaji, Founder and Managing Director, Presidio Bay

K. Cyrus Sanandaji serves as the Managing Principal and Founder of Presidio Bay Ventures. Since founding Presidio Bay in 2012, Cyrus has been actively involved in all aspects of the company’s operations, overseeing strategic planning, business development, fundraising, capital markets and team building. Most recently, Cyrus was responsible for the delivery of Springline, a 6.4-acre mixed-use development in Silicon Valley’s Menlo Park.

Presidio Bay’s pipeline includes ground-up office developments, advanced life science projects, and high-profile mixed-use developments.

Get your tickets here!

Our 18th Annual Spring Symposium is presented by: