Robert C. Rosenberg, President of the Rosenberg Housing Group (RHG), has many decades of experience in all phases of real estate, from development to large scale management, as New York City Housing Commissioner (1968-73) and as a policy maker, lawyer and academic. He is currently serving as Judicial Administrator for Development of the Chester Housing Authority in Chester, PA. Mr. Rosenberg also provides consulting services to the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development with respect to troubled projects.
Turned "Worst Performing" Public Housing Authority into "High Performer"
In 1994, Judge Norma L. Shapiro, of the federal district court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, named him Receiver of the Chester Housing Authority which had been long rated as America’s “worst performing” public housing authority. After Mr. Rosenberg lead the agency to “high performer” status and rebuilt four of the agency’s five sites, the Court changed the structure of his oversight, and, Mr. Rosenberg’s responsibilities, to allow him to concentrate on completing the last two of the three HOPE VI grants he won for the agency. The two HOPE VI grants include the financing and construction of a new 125,000 retail center, senior, family and homeownership units and a community cultural center.
Led Revitalization of HOPE VI Developments in Detroit
RHG is a partner in two large scale HOPE VI revitalization Mixed Finance developments in Detroit, where Mr. Rosenberg organized the teams that successfully responded to RFP’s for Gardenview Estates and Woodbridge Estates, both of which are presently under construction. The latter development already contains an array of unit types including condos, fee sample homes and LITC rentals.
Created Affordable and Luxury Housing for Tens of Thousands of New Yorkers
For over twenty years, before forming RHG in 1997, Mr. Rosenberg provided leadership and vision to the Starrett Corporation of New York, where he created Starrett at Spring Creek, a model-integrated community of 14,000 residents in East New York that attracted moderate and middle income families – a strategy that stimulated the revitalization of the entire community. Mr. Rosenberg created the master plan and oversaw construction of the 153-acre site, including over 6,000 new housing units, a modern community and athletic center, a total energy plan, an early learning center, a retail complex and a state of the art medical facility.
While at the Starrett Corportation, Mr. Rosenberg organized Grenadier Realty Corporation. Serving 23 years as President and then Chairman, he was responsible for over one million square feet of commercial space and over 30,000 rental and cooperative units ranging from luxury to affordable. Mr. Rosenberg oversaw the Starrett Corporation’s development projects, including the successful conversion of the McAlpin Hotel into luxury housing and the Manhattan Park Development on Roosevelt Island. In Brooklyn, Mr. Rosenberg provided the vision and leadership to convert 230 acres of landfill into Gateway Estates – a mixed-used project including a 640,000 square foot regional mall with its own interchange on the Belt Parkway (completed in 2002) and over 900 dwelling units.
Forged Policies Leading to Record New York City Housing Starts
At the request of Mayor John V. Lindsay, Mr. Rosenberg served the City of New York’s Department of Housing and Development for a five-year tenure (Assistant Administrator and then 1st Deputy Commissioner for Development) and developed the New York Rent Stabilization Act and the corresponding trade and industry associations which forged policies to ensure the Act’s success. Responsible for planning and constructing affordable housing, Mr. Rosenberg set new city records for housing starts, in part due to the 421-A tax abatement statute and regulations, which he authored.
Noted Lecturer, Professor, Author and Civic Leader
A recognized authority and industry leader, Mr. Rosenberg has lectured at Harvard University, the Beijing Institute of Design, the University of Nancy (France), Columbia University and New York University. He has addressed the National League of Cities, been published on the Op-Ed page of The New York Times and authored numerous articles in industry trade journals. Currently, Mr. Rosenberg is an adjunct professor in the Department of Urban Affairs and Planning at Hunter College, where for over nine years he has taught a graduate seminar in real estate development and economics.
Download Spring 2009 course syllabus.
Mr. Rosenberg is in demand as a symposium speaker. In 2005, in conjunction with the University of Pennsylvania's Institute for Urban Research, Mr. Rosenberg crafted Community Solutions - a series of executive level symposiums to initiate a pragmatic dialogue among leaders in government, quasi-government and non-profit institutions with the goal of helping leaders identify and examine strategies for success in this environment.
To learn more, download materials from this seminar.
Across the nation, professional and civic organizations have honored Mr. Rosenberg for his many professional and humanitarian accomplishments. In recognition of his leadership role in raising standards of multi-family urban housing throughout the nation, in 1995 New York City Technical College of CUNY conferred upon Mr. Rosenberg an Honorary Doctor of Laws degree. The New York State Lung Association honored Mr. Rosenberg for his work in creating smoke-free work places, and the National Housing Conference and New York Housing Conference jointly honored him for “A Career Dedicated to Securing Affordable and Decent Housing for All New Yorkers."
Rosenberg is a graduate of Columbia Law School and is admitted to practice in New York State and the federal courts (SDNY & EDNY). He is a member of the Affordable Housing Forum of the American Bar Association (ABA).
Rosenberg is a Trustee of the National Housing Conference, a Vice President of the Citizen’s Housing and Planning Council, and a former Chairman of the Brooklyn Philharmonic Orchestra. He is married to Fran Kaufman, a prominent jazz photographer. They have four sons and ten grandchildren.