FUSE Executive Fellow Hala Farid

Hala Farid

2021-2023 | City of Austin - Housing and Planning Department

HALA FARID’s career in community development, affordable housing, and philanthropy spans nearly 30 years in both the non-profit and private sectors. She most recently worked at Citi, where she spent 19 years as Director and then Senior Vice President of the Office of Inclusive Housing (OIH). In this role, she partnered with national housing advocacy nonprofits to design and support programs that addressed community needs and addressed Citi businesses and regulatory requirements. Through her work with the OIH, Hala addressed issues of affordability, gentrification, and displacement using a holistic strategy that included supporting shared equity, repurposing surplus publicly-owned properties as affordable housing, and creating small housing stability loans that allow low-to moderate-income families avoid foreclosure or eviction. Hala grew up in Washington D.C. and Queens, NY. She graduated with a B.A. in political science, economics and education from Queens College-City University of NY.

Project

Austin is launching a bold new public transit investment called “Project Connect” that will reduce traffic, accelerate travel, and decrease the cost of transportation throughout the city and its surrounding communities. Such efforts often increase the cost of real estate along transit corridors, which can have the unintended consequence of displacing residents and businesses that have been long standing fixtures within communities. FUSE will work with the Housing and Planning Department on dispersing $300M for anti-displacement efforts, with a focus on preventing Black and Hispanic residents from being priced out of their neighborhoods.