Robin Hughes
Robin Hughes found her calling working with community-based organizations to bring affordable housing and critical resources, such as health care, child care, and retail, to communities that suffered from disinvestment.
Robin Hughes, president and CEO of Abode Communities
She has been actively involved in community development and affordable housing for over 30 years in both the private and public sectors, including early stops at Citibank, The Richman Group of Companies, the Community Development Commission of the County of Los Angeles, and the Los Angeles Mayor’s Office. For the past two decades, she has served as president and CEO of Los Angeles–based Abode Communities, a nonprofit focused on the development of affordable housing, architecture, property management, and resident services.
Hughes and her organization are key players in making the high-cost Southern California market affordable to working and low-income families.
“The positive change that we have on the lives of people and throughout our communities is what keeps me motivated,” says Hughes. “Affordable housing plays a significant role in achieving social and economic progress, and creating this justice is extremely important to me.”
As head of Abode Communities, she has greatly grown both the corporate and portfolio sides. Approaching its 50th anniversary, the organization has developed nearly 45 properties with more than 2,700 homes for 8,000 low-income people, two-thirds of which were developed under her leadership. It also boasts approximately 150 employees with a corporate operating budget of just over $14 million.
Hughes has initiated many changes over the years, starting by bringing property management in-house and then creating a comprehensive resident services program. In addition, the nonprofit has expanded its geographic footprint outside of Los Angeles, working from Santa Barbara down to San Diego, and has made significant commitments to sustainability.
Over the years, the firm has continued to focus on the production of affordable housing but also has incorporated other types of housing into its portfolio, including units serving special-needs populations, such as the chronically homeless, survivors of domestic violence, transition-age youths, and school district employees.
“We’ve also added community facilities, such as early education centers and health-care centers, to take a more holistic approach to community development,” she says.
2017 is expected to be a big year for Abode Communities, with nearly 970 apartment homes under construction amongst new construction, acquisition-rehab, and repositioning of existing properties.
“It’s the highest production level we have had in my tenure,” says Hughes
Current projects include a $69 million transit-oriented affordable housing development with a federally qualified health center and community-serving retail in South Los Angeles; the rehab of American Gold Star Manor, 348 affordable homes for seniors and veterans in Long Beach; and the $71 million redevelopment of the fourth and final phase of a former public housing site featuring 176 affordable family homes in Wilmington in partnership with Mercy Housing California.
