Boston real estate development veteran Marty Jones has been named the new president and CEO of MassDevelopment; she is the first female president and only the third in the agency’s history.
Jones, currently the president of Corcoran Jennison Co., will replace Robert L. Culver, who stepped down after a seven-year stint. Culver resigned in Decemeber, but it did not take effect until March 11.
Jones has spent decades leading real estate organizations, according to a statement. She has managed staff and project teams for new development projects; has directed asset management for multifamily portfolios; chaired a joint venture between Corcoran Jennison and Beacon Communities; and directed all aspects of the Westminster Co. – a 175-employee operation with 66 properties and 5,000 apartment units in North and South Carolina.
"Marty’s career in the private sector has focused on bringing projects with significant public benefits to life," said MassDevelopment Board Chair and Secretary of Housing and Economic Development Greg Bialecki. "She is the right person at the right time to lead an agency that plays a significant role in achieving our larger economic development goals of revitalizing communities and expanding opportunity throughout the commonwealth."
Jones also served in the Department of Housing and Urban Development in both the Washington, D.C., and Boston offices, according to a statement. She is a board member of NAIOP Massachusetts, advisory board member of the Women’s Institute for Housing and Economic Development and jury chair of the Urban Land Institute’s National Awards for Excellence.
"I am grateful to Secretary Bialecki and the MassDevelopment board for giving me the opportunity to serve the commonwealth in this challenging and worthwhile capacity," said Jones. "I will bring more than 30 years of real estate and government experience to bear in my new role, and I am especially excited to be joining MassDevelopment at a time when the administration has made developing a more coordinated and effective approach to economic development a priority."
Jones will be earning less than her predecessor, Culver, according to a statement. Her salary will be $215,000; Culver’s salary was $299,000. Bialecki indicated that compensation packages for senior executives at quasi-public authorities will be in keeping with the administration’s efforts to deliver cost-savings by adhering to the recommendations of the Crosby Report, which outlined a plan to address excessive salaries and benefits for executives at independent agencies.
Culver’s plans following MassDevelopment were not revealed. MassDevelopment told Banker & Tradesman, "Bob is now a private citizen. He is not with another public sector agency at this time."
