In January, the Chamber hosted a Good Day Metro South luncheon at the Martin Institute at Stonehill College in Easton with guest speakers Secretary Edward Augustus, Massachusetts Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities (EOHLC); plus Chris Bond from Time’s Up LLC.
Brockton area real estate & property developers, along with elected and selected officials attended to hear from the Massachusetts Housing Secretary, Ed Augustus and what the Commonwealth has planned for the future of housing.
This event was sponsored by Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts and Stonehill College – celebrating 75 years. Photos courtesy of Ben Ross Photography, visit our flickr page to view more. Missed the event? Don’t worry, we recorded it for you – thanks BCA!
About the Speakers:
The Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities (EOHLC) was established in 2023 to create more homes and lower housing costs in every region. EOHLC also distributes funding to municipalities, oversees the state-aided public housing portfolio, and operates the state’s EA family shelter.
Edward (Ed) M. Augustus serves as the state’s first Housing Secretary in more than 30 years. Augustus, who helped to create thousands of new housing units at all income levels during his tenure in Worcester, leads Governor Healey’s new Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities since June 1, 2023.
“Ed Augustus is the leader Massachusetts needs to take the helm of our new Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities and drive an ambitious, collaborative strategy to increase housing production and lower costs across the state,” said Governor Maura Healey. “He left Worcester a stronger city than it was a decade ago, with booming economic development in the downtown and thousands of new housing units. Importantly, he is intimately familiar with local government and knows what it takes to collaborate with municipalities to move our state forward on our housing goals.”
“The establishment of a cabinet-level secretariat dedicated solely to housing will have a major impact on Massachusetts’ ability to address this crisis and lower costs across the state. Ed Augustus has the right experience, vision and drive to lead this important work,” said Lieutenant Governor Driscoll. “His motto is ‘How do we get to yes?’ which is an approach our entire administration is embracing. We’re committed to partnering with cities and towns to ensure they have the resources and support they need to give a hearty “Yes!” to housing development in their communities.”
“I’m honored that Governor Healey and Lieutenant Governor Driscoll have placed their faith in me to lead the new Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities. Massachusetts’ housing crisis impacts every single community in our state, but we know what the solution is – build more housing,” said Augustus. “This administration recognizes that there is no one-size-fits-all strategy to achieving this and that we must work closely with communities to deploy a diverse toolbox of options to meet their unique needs. That’s what this new secretariat will be committed to doing.”
Augustus served as City Manager of Worcester, functioning as the Chief Administrative and Executive Officer of the Gateway City of more than 200,000 people, from 2014-2022. During his tenure, he oversaw the commitment or distribution of $25.3 million in Community Development Block Group, HOME Investment Partnerships Program, and Worcester Lead Abatement and Healthy Homes Program funds to develop or preserve more than 2,000 affordable housing units throughout the City. Worcester is the city with the third largest subsidized housing inventory in the state. Augustus also dedicated $30 million of the ARPA funds coming into the city to housing, including $15 million for the Affordable Housing Trust Fund.
As City Manager, Augustus managed a $750 million budget, as well as the $90 million, 20-year Urban Revitalization Plan. Notably, he spearheaded the $240 million landmark redevelopment of Worcester’s Canal District, including leading the complex negotiation to relocate the Boston Red Sox AAA-affiliate (now the WooSox) to the city and construction of the multi-use Polar Park stadium, hotel, and housing development, as well as the Kelley Square intersection redesign.
Prior to joining the City of Worcester, Augustus served as Director of Government & Community Relations for the College of Holy Cross, State Senator for the 2nd Worcester District, Chief of Staff for Congressman Jim McGovern, and Chief of Staff to the Assistant Secretary for Intergovernmental and Interagency Affairs at the U.S. Department of Education under President Clinton’s Administration. He most recently served as Chancellor of Dean College. Read more.
Chris Bond is Manager of Time’s Up, LLC in Franklin, Massachusetts. He is a business broker with over 20 years of experience consulting with small business owners in industrial and services industries. Chris specializes in helping businesspeople fully understand market conditions which allows them to make intelligent decisions as they transition forward. His client list includes an impressive array of small companies you’ve never heard of.
Prior to forming Time’s Up in 2009, Chris was Partner with Next Level, Inc., a sales management consulting firm and an affiliate of Sandler Training. There he specialized in helping small business owners solve difficult sales challenges, in part through his co-founding of the globally influential Web tool SalesAccountability. It was this line of work that afforded Chris the unique insight into understanding an owner’s drive to grow the business or to ultimately move on to a new phase in life.
Chris earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Marketing from Stonehill College and lives with his wife in their rapidly emptying nest in Franklin. He is proud to have served on the board of directors for the Business Brokers Alliance of New England (BBANE) along with prior terms for United Regional Chamber of Commerce, the Exit Planning Exchange (XPX), and the Franklin Downtown Partnership. Chris loved his many years spent coaching youth sports and is a dedicated basketball player in an old-man’s league.
For more on Chris and his approach, please visit timesupllc.com or linkedin.com/in/chrisbond2.