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Organizational History
GENS has a long and diverse history in housing development, community economic development and neighborhood revitalization. Incorporated in 1978 as Elmwood Neighborhood Housing Services, initially we focused on providing rehabilitation loans and technical assistance to homeowners to assist them in improving their homes. Through its revolving loan fund, GENS made $984,000 in loans to improve 218 units of housing. During the mid-1980s, GENS operated a purchase-rehabilitation resale program that completed 42 units with a total value of $2.1 million. Also during the mid-1980s a small business loan fund was established and expanded become the first micro-business training and lending program in the state, concentrating on the five poorest neighborhoods on the city’s Southside. From 1992 to 1997 the program made $270,000 in loans averaging $1,600 and trained 402 prospective home-based entrepreneurs who created 106 businesses and 125 jobs.
GENS started the SouthSide Broad Street program in 1995 with support from the National Trust Main Street program to revitalize Broad Street, and until 2001 GENS was the fiscal agent for the program. The project has leveraged more than $8.8 million in new investment in the form of building construction and renovation, public improvements and related investments.
GENS programming in lead abatement began in 1985 when one of the children of a board member was lead poisoned while the family was renovating their historic home. This led to a special lead education program in Elmwood and, working with 50 community groups in the state, a two-year effort that culminated in the passage of the Rhode Island Lead Protection Act.
In 2000, GENS completed the $850,000 renovation of an abandoned historic residential and commercial building on Broad Street that has served as our headquarters as well as the state’s first lead hazard center.
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Development Staff
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Cynthia Langlykke, Executive Director
cynthial@greaterelmwood.org
Cynthia is a planner /architect with a professional architecture degree from Cornell University and a master’s degree in Urban and Regional Planning, Concentration in Economic Development and Development Finance from UNC Chapel Hill. She has designed and managed the development of one-to-four and multi-family housing projects, light commercial projects, institutional projects, historic preservation and adaptive reuse projects. Having worked in management positions in the public, non-profit and private sectors, she is building the Greater Elmwood team to balance the multitude of neighborhood and city interests to implement improvements for the community.
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Michael Lozano, Director of Real Estate Development
mlozano@greaterelmwood.org
Mike has a professional architecture degree from Cornell University and a master’s degree in Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning from Tufts University. He has a wide range of management experience in residential architectural design, municipal zoning studies, and noise mitigation and planning projects for airports across the country. Since joining GENS, he has successfully managed construction completion and sale of five affordable historic multifamily homes to first time homebuyers on Adelaide Avenue, and the construction, sale, and rent-up of houses on Whitmarsh Street and Mitchell Street. He is currently managing the major revitalization of Parkis Avenue/North Elmwood, and planning projects on Elmwood Avenue and Updike Street in North Elmwood.
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Community Building
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Ronnie Young, Director of Community Building
ryoung@greaterelmwood.org
Ronnie
graduated Classical High School in 1999, and from Roger Williams University in May, 2006 with a degree in Criminal Justice and Public Administration. He is currently a member of RI Young Professionals, Treasurer of the Rhode Island Black Political Action Committee, Vice President of The Black Craftsman of Rhode Island, and a member of the Providence School Board (expires last day in 2008). GENS' Community Building program was accepted into the NeighborWorks National Community Building and Organizing Initiative in 2007.
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Financial Management
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Sylvia Bernal,
Business Manager
sbernal@greaterelmwood.org
Prior to joining GENS, Sylvia was the owner and president of several businesses including a property development company. She has been an active leader in the community, volunteering at the Rhode Island Free Clinic and serving on several non-profit organizations that serve the needs of the Latino community. Sylvia handles the accounting and financial management, and the day to day operations of the office.
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Board of Directors
| NAME |
OFFICE |
AFFILIATION |
| Maryclaire Knight |
President |
Family Services Consultant |
| Stephanie Ogidan Preston |
Vice-President |
MIT Graduate School of Business |
| Aarin B. Clemons |
Secretary |
Musical Program Director |
| Ivette Felix |
Treasurer |
Dominican-American Association |
| Jose Castillo |
Director |
Resident |
| Doris de los Santos |
Director |
Housing Resources Commission |
| James Farrell |
Director |
Signature Properties |
| Holly Harriel |
Director |
RI Department of Transportation |
| Acelia (Ada) Terrero |
Director |
Ada's Creations |
| Jose Suriel |
Director |
Sovereign Bank |
| Chiv Heng |
Director |
Providence Plan |
| George Stamatakos |
Director |
Providence Police Department |
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