Atlanta Housing Welcomes New Board Member

Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms appoints real estate expert to serve on AH Board of Commissioners

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Dec 06, 2019, 16:47 ET

ATLANTA, Dec. 6, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Commercial real estate expert Kirk Rich, newly appointed to the Atlanta Housing Board of Commissioners by Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, attended his first meeting Wednesday, Dec. 4.

"I am honored to serve on this board, and I want to do everything I can to make Atlanta Housing the best it can be," says Rich, who brings more than 35 years of commercial real estate experience to Atlanta Housing. "It will allow my experiences within the commercial real estate world, as well as my community service with housing agencies and arts organizations, to influence the creative approach to the many facets of Atlanta Housing," he continues. "These are exciting times for the city, and Atlanta Housing will be an integral part of serving the citizens to the highest degree possible."

Rich was president of Rich Real Estate Services, which he founded in 2001, and is currently a principal at Avison Young, specializing in third-party landlord representation and providing brokerage and consulting services for commercial and residential properties throughout the United States. He has completed more than 3,000 commercial leasing, property acquisition and disposition transactions, and represented more than 12 million square feet of commercial space while assisting local, national and multinational firms. Rich was named 2015 Realtor of the Year by the Atlanta Commercial Board of Realtors, and he has served on the board of Invest Atlanta and the city's economic development authority, and served as co-chair of the mayor's LGBTQ Advisory Council. Currently, he serves on the Georgia State University real estate honorary board.

A graduate of Pepperdine University, Rich has been past chair of the board of Hambidge, which provides a residency program that empowers talented individuals to explore, develop, and express their creative voices. He has also chaired the board of Jerusalem House, the largest provider of housing in the U.S. for individuals and families dealing with HIV/AIDS. Other organizations Rich has either chaired or served are Actor's Express Theatre, Dad's Garage Theatre and 7 Stages Theatre; and the Woodruff Foundation Real Estate Committee, Atlanta Commercial Board of Realtors, CCIM (Certified Commercial Investment Member), and SIOR (Society of Industrial and Office Realtors).

Rich is also a highly involved member of several community organizations, including the Atlanta Botanical Garden, Piedmont Park Conservancy, Morningside Neighborhood Association, Lake Rabun Association and Peachtree Road United Methodist Church.

"We are especially pleased to have someone with Kirk's real estate background on the Board of Commissioners of Atlanta Housing," said Dr. Christopher Edwards, chairman of the Board of Commissioners. "Kirk brings experience, know-how and creativity to the important task of addressing Atlanta's affordable housing crisis."

About Atlanta Housing
Led by President and CEO Eugene Jones, Jr., the Housing Authority of the City of Atlanta, Georgia (AH), is the largest housing authority in Georgia and one of the largest in the nation. AH provides and facilitates affordable housing resources for nearly 22,000 low-income households comprised of approximately 50,000 people.

These affordable housing resources include AH-owned residential communities, AH-sponsored mixed-income, mixed-finance residential communities, tenant-based vouchers, project based rental assistance, supportive housing arrangements and homeownership opportunities. AH's programs are funded and regulated by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development ("HUD").

Visit Atlanta Housing at http://www.atlantahousing.org or follow on Twitter at @housingatlanta.

SOURCE Atlanta Housing