HUD Baltimore Field Office Director, Carol Payne, is shown with Senator Benjamin Cardin of Maryland at the Governor's Housing Conference.

Representing every division, HUD Baltimore field staff recently attended the 2012 Governor's Housing Conference. Held at a major downtown hotel, the conference was sponsored by the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) and was entitled "Restoring Communities Across Maryland: Creating Jobs...Expanding Housing Choice." Partnering with the housing department were the Home Builders Association of Maryland and the Maryland Affordable Housing Coalition.

According to Secretary of DHCD, Raymond Skinner, "the conference is an opportunity to convene with colleagues from every aspect of the housing and community development field to discuss how, working together, we can expand opportunities and enhance the quality of life for hardworking families in Maryland." Representatives from government, the housing industry, community organizations, housing advocates and nonprofit organizations attended the day-long event.

Teresa Stovall provides a conference participant with HUD information on fair housing, homeownership and rental housing.

The conference centered on four tracks: strengthening vibrant communities, homeownership, rental housing financing and advancing green initiatives through sustainable housing and communities. Baltimore Field Office Director, Carol Payne, moderated a panel on sustainable housing and communities that featured Salin Geevarghese, Senior Advisor, HUD's Office of Sustainable Housing and Communities; Michael B. Kelly, General Counsel, Baltimore Metropolitan Council, HUD's national sustainable communities grantee from Baltimore with the 5th largest grant in the country, and Tiffany L. Smith, Chief of Staff, Howard County Housing. Ms. Payne led a lively discussion of sustainability as related to housing and jobs, transportation resources, housing affordability, energy savings and safe, decent and affordable housing. The goal of the sustainability grants is to afford a sophisticated regional planning opportunity to "guide state, metropolitan and local investments in land use, transportation and housing in the state."

Mary Ann Henderson, HUD Multifamily Housing Director, was a member of the Rental Housing Financing panel moderated by Chickie Grayson, President and Chief Executive Officer of Enterprise Homes, Inc. Ms. Henderson appeared with Jeffrey K. Hettleman, partner with The Shelter Group and John Maneval, DHCD's Multifamily Deputy Director. The discussion centered on the latest trends and opportunities for getting deals to the closing table and beyond when proposing multifamily housing developments.

Staffing the Baltimore Field Office's booth were Teresa Stovall, Office of Field Policy and Management, and Vonzell Cummings, Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity. Available information included fair housing, foreclosure and other single family information, including the "LOCATOR," a Baltimore Office publication containing subsidized housing listings, homeless resource information and public housing authorities. Other HUD staff attending the conference were Bill Tamburrino, Director, Office of Public and Indian Housing; Amber Mohr, Attorney, Office of General Council; Ethel Locks, Office of Community Planning and Development; Tracye Barringtine, Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity, and J.C. Shay, Office of Field Policy and Management.