District & Economic Development
Memphis Medical District Collaborative —
Vice President, Real Estate, Planning and Placemaking (2019–2024)
Turning institutional intent into neighborhood investment in a 2.6 square mile urban core anchored by world-renowned institutions including St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Regional One, University of Tennessee Health Sciences Center, and Methodist LeBonheur. Though rich in institutional density, the anchors' campuses had fissured from the neighborhoods in which they reside. The Memphis Medical District Collaborative was formed in 2016 to stitch together campus and community.
Joining as Director of Real Estate in 2019 — promoted to Vice President in 2021 — the work required aligning hospital CEOs, city officials, philanthropic funders, and private developers around a shared investment thesis, then building the capital mechanisms and policy tools to execute it.
Led the development of an integrated design toolkit to catalyze equitable growth in the Memphis Medical District. A portfolio of public realm and placemaking initiatives strengthened district identity and public safety simultaneously. The result: $500M+ in catalyzed district investment.
Designed and tailored specifically for the Memphis Medical District, they represent a model for cities everywhere looking to create the mechanisms that effectuate equitable growth.
MMDC Form Book: A pattern book, produced in partnership with the Office of Jonathan Tate (OJT), of by-right, vernacular designs to accelerate housing production by removing design uncertainty and streamlining regulatory approval.
MMDC Financing Tools: To support projects at every stage of development: pre-development grant capital for feasibility and renderings; a $1M program-related investment fund deployed as a revolving loan fund to support early-stage projects; and a partnership with a CDFI and regional banking partners on a $30M capital debt fund to fund construction.
MMDC Real Estate Impact Assessment Tool: A tool to gauge how proposed developments align with MMDC's core outcomes — equity, prosperity, and vibrancy — functioning as an open-source guide that helps developers align their thinking through an equitable lens throughout the District.