Tackling the Challenge of Producing Deeply Affordable Housing

Kalisha Webster, Moderator
Senior Housing Advocate, Housing Choices

Kalisha is the Senior Housing Advocate at Housing Choices, an organization serving people with developmental and other disabilities wanting to live independently in their communities. Kalisha trains and organizes self-advocates to educate local elected officials, city and county housing staff, and housing developers about opportunities to plan for and include people with developmental and other disabilities in their local housing plans. Her advocacy has focused on getting cities to adopt more inclusive housing policies as part of their Housing Elements as well as advocating to affordable housing developers to include preferences in a certain number of units in their projects for people with developmental disabilities who would benefit from on-site supportive services.

Prior to taking on her role as Housing Advocate, Kalisha was a Housing Coordinator at Housing Choices, working directly with individuals and families with children with developmental disabilities to help them find and maintain housing in San Mateo County. She uses her experience working as a Housing Coordinator to guide her advocacy. Kalisha earned a B.A. in Social Work with a minor in Human Rights from San Jose State University and has worked in a variety of educational and social service organizations in her career.

Gail Gilman
Chief Strategy Officer, All Home

With over 25 years of non-profit experience, Gail Gilman joins All Home as the former CEO of Community Housing Partnership. Gail joined Community Housing Partnership in 2002 and became the CEO in 2010. During her time there, Gail spearheaded the local and national conversation on shifting success measurements and outcomes in supportive housing and created a housing ladder, thus moving towards a housing equity framework. Gail deeply knows that population-specific outcomes must be part of any housing interventions for people experiencing homelessness.

Gail holds a Master’s of Non-Profit Administration from the University of San Francisco. She has been extensively involved in regional and national public policy efforts, including most recently as Political Director for San Francisco’s 2019 $600M housing bond, as well as co-chairing numerous ballot initiatives ranging from housing bonds to revenue measures for homelessness. Gail has served on several housing and homeless task forces, and presently serves on California’s Homeless Coordinating and Financing Council (appointed by the Governor) and is a City & County of San Francisco Port Commissioner (appointed by the Mayor). Gail enjoys the outdoors, the Napa Valley, and is a foodie. Gail has lived in San Francisco for over 25 years and the past 18 years in North Beach. 

Rose Cade
Deputy Director, San Mateo County Department of Housing

Rose Cade joined the San Mateo County Department of Housing in 2015 initially as a Housing and Community Development (HCD) Specialist III and subsequently an HCD Supervisor. She currently serves as Deputy Director for the Department helping to oversee both County Housing and Community Development (HCD) and the Housing Authority of the County of San Mateo (HACSM). As Deputy Director, Rose works closely with senior managers and supervisors to administer programs including HUD-funded rental assistance programs, CDBG, HOME, ESG as well as state and local funded programs including Measure K, the Affordable Housing Fund and more recently State of California Homekey Program, Housing for Healthy California, No Place Like Home, Mental Health Services Act (MHSA), Local Housing Trust Fund (LHTF) and Permanent Local Housing Allocation (PLHA). 

Rose has an MBA from the University of Alaska, Fairbanks, and has worked in the field of affordable housing in many capacities for 30 years.

Mark Stivers
Director of Legislative and Regulatory Advocacy, California Housing Partnership

Mark Stivers is the Director of Advocacy for the California Housing Partnership. He most recently served as the acting Deputy Director for the Division of Financial Assistance at the California Department of Housing and Community Development and the Executive Director of the California Tax Credit Allocation Committee. Prior to his tenure at TCAC, Mark served 16 years as the primary housing consultant to the California Senate.

Robin Zimbler
Founder, Freebird Development Company

Robin established Freebird Development Company in 2018 as a woman-owned business focused on developing inclusive mixed-income communities.  Freebird served as Developer/Owner’s Representative on a 700-unit acquisition/rehabilitation project in San Jose, and has four new construction projects in its development pipeline in Santa Clara, Sonoma, and San Mateo counties.

Prior to starting Freebird, Robin spent 3 years as Senior Vice President for Related California, where she was responsible for the coordination of all aspects of development and financing for Related’s affordable residential developments in the Bay Area.  Previously, Robin was Development Director at L+M Development Partners, a full-service development firm known for developing quality affordable, mixed-income and market rate housing, where she oversaw the development of large scale, mixed-income residential developments: Faubourg Lafitte in New Orleans, Navy Green in Brooklyn, and Candlestick Heights in San Francisco, along with the ReFresh Project in New Orleans.  

Over her 10 years at Related and L+M, Robin oversaw the development of over 2,000 units of housing totaling over $1 billion in investment.  

She began her career working in the public sector as Director of Multifamily Initiatives for the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development, and Director of Strategic Planning, Policy, and Programs for Baltimore Housing.

Robin holds a Master’s Degree in City and Regional Planning from the University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill and a Bachelor’s Degree from Washington University in St. Louis.