Amazon and Capital Impact Partners’ Housing Equity Accelerator Fellowship Returns With 13 D.C.-Area Real Estate Developers

MAY 1, 2024 (Arlington, VA) – Thirteen real estate developers from the Washington, D.C., area have been selected for the second cohort of the Housing Equity Accelerator Fellowship, a free two-year program created by Amazon and Capital Impact Partners.

The Housing Equity Accelerator Fellowship is designed to provide these developers with the resources they need to grow their businesses and bring more affordable housing to the region.

Participating developers receive:

• Real estate training with a focus on affordable housing production in the D.C. metropolitan area
• Small-group mentorship from other experienced real estate developers
• Pathways to potential capital for project expenses such as architectural and engineering costs; permitting, survey, and site-planning fees; market and feasibility studies; and contribution towards equity. These funds are often the most difficult and most expensive to raise for developers
• Access to a rich network of other real estate developers in the greater Washington D.C. area

The program is led by Capital Impact Partners, a mission-driven nonprofit headquartered in the D.C. area. Capital Impact Partners has worked with more than 300 real estate developers around the country on similar programs, including the first cohort of the Housing Equity Accelerator Fellowship, which launched in 2022 and featured 15 area developers. 

Funding for the second cohort of the Housing Equity Accelerator Fellowship is provided by the Amazon Housing Equity Fund.

Amazon has committed more than $3.6 billion through its Housing Equity Fund to preserve and create more than 35,000 affordable homes in three communities where it has a high concentration of employees — the Arlington, Virginia region; the Puget Sound region of Washington state; and Nashville, Tennessee. The Fund strives to create inclusive housing developments and preserve existing housing through below-market loans and grants to non-traditional and traditional housing partners, public agencies, and organizations supporting underserved communities.

“These 13 developers bring impressive experience within the real estate industry and a collective desire to make a difference through their work by providing affordable housing and other important projects that can help communities thrive,” said Ellis Carr, president and CEO of Capital Impact Partners and CDC Small Business Finance, both of which are part of the Momentus Capital branded family of organizations. 

“The graduates of the first Housing Equity Accelerator Fellowship are continuing to use the training and funding they received to create and retain affordable housing and mixed-use developments in the D.C. area,” said KellyAnn Kirkpatrick, Amazon’s Senior Product Manager, Housing Partnerships and Grants. “I’m excited by the additional opportunities that will come for — and be created by — this second class of developers.”

Current Participants & Recent Success Stories

The Housing Equity Accelerator Fellowship participants are experienced real estate developers who have reached a key point in their careers where additional training, mentorship, and potential access to funding can accelerate existing projects and help them to become more established in the field.This second cohort’s participants are:

• William Bethune II, Bethune Development LLC
• Nkosi Bradley, Partners for Equitable Community Growth
• Winona Francis, WRE Development
• Christopher Grant, Yoke Management Partners
• Fred Greene, FLGA
• Ikeogu Imo, Cubed Partners
• Kanyi Masembwa, Capital Real Estate Development LLC
• Robert McCray, Vantage Realty Capital
• Rob Richardson, IBF Development 
• Ali Semir, Mosaic Affordable Housing*
• Mehul Vora, Vora Ventures
• Jessica Washington, Pretty Girls Love Real Estate LLC
• Kendra Whitaker, MORE Inc.

(*We are deeply saddened by the loss of Ali Semir, who passed away in fall 2024. His spirit and impact will not be forgotten.)

“What keeps me going is being able to continue to provide people with true access to resources and opportunities that either I didn’t have at a young age or that I was only able to access because I moved out of my neighborhood,” said Winona Francis of WRE Development. “Achieving the American dream is not supposed to be determined by someone’s ZIP code, but today it is.”

“I’m building homes where I live. I’m a member of this community and I am trying to foster the values that I believe in,” said Mehul Vora of Vora Ventures. “My goal as a neighbor is to enhance the quality of life in our neighborhoods. For my family, for their family, and for the families to come.”

Participants from the first Housing Equity Accelerator Fellowship cohort have been working on several development projects. For example, Chris Agorsor is planning to convert a former office building in Downtown D.C. into 145 new apartments that will provide affordable housing for residents earning below 80% of the area median income, a designation guaranteed for several generations to come. And Ronette Slamin completed a deal to preserve and improve 23 affordable apartments in the Kalorama neighborhood.

“This wouldn’t have been possible without the Housing Equity Accelerator Fellowship and the financial support, mentorship and other resources we received,” said Ms. Slamin. “The grant capital allowed me to purchase the building and gain valuable project experience that will help me with future developments. I am also grateful for both my individual mentor and the program’s mentor, who gave me insight about being a developer, how to create a successful company and finance a feasible project, and to talk through the details of this project. Being able to work through issues and know I wasn’t alone in this process was amazing.”

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