Attainable Housing Sprint Participant Spotlight: Chris Fiori
Capital Strategy Team
With a background in real estate advisory and investment, Chris Fiori has a passion for working with mission-based organizations to unlock value and create affordable housing through land transactions and impact investments. He heard about the Monterey Attainable Housing Forum through his work with a faith-based group in the area and decided to attend. There, he connected with a cohort of passionate and innovative professionals to brainstorm a new capital strategy that he felt compelled to support post-Forum via Regenerative California’s 90-day Implementation Sprint.
A Bay Area native, Chris’ firm, Heartland LLC, is based in Seattle and serves clients across the country, including California’s central coast. Through this experience, Chris brings a broad perspective about attainable housing and how it can be piloted in Monterey County. To him, “attainable housing” occupies the critical middle ground between heavily subsidized affordable housing and fully market-rate development. “The most impactful examples I have been involved in tie housing to other societal benefits,” he shares. Supporting essential workers to live near their jobs, opening access to high-opportunity neighborhoods, and decreasing commutes that support both families and the environment.
In his line of work, Chris has experienced many challenges but one that stands out to him is the immense patience it takes to move a project from conception to delivery. “It can sometimes take three to four years, sometimes longer, to see any incremental progress,” he shares. “The time lag is difficult to reconcile with the evaluative timeframes common to financial investors and political decision-makers.”
Yet, this long-term view is something that motivates him. Through the Implementation Sprint, Chris is able to collaborate with a team to “create a new approach, be it through design, financing structure, or regulatory framework, that gains traction and can positively impact development far beyond the initial project.” In real estate development, Chris has seen good ideas and concepts spread quickly. He’s hopeful that a spark from the Sprint could serve as a blueprint for more attainable housing communities far beyond Monterey County.