Photo courtesy of MassDevelopment
A prominent face in the Greater Boston real estate world is taking on a new job at the state’s biggest quasi-public economic development agency.
MassDevelopment said Wednesday that it’s named former longtime Jefferson Apartment Group executive Sandi Wolchansky Silk as its new executive vice president of real estate. The role oversees planning and predevelopment, development, asset management and engineering work and will see Silk help steer the agency’s larger strategies.
Among the agency’s many roles, it helps finance or arrange financing for economic development projects, including commercial real estate developments, including 409 projects, alone, in its last fiscal year.
“As the state’s land bank, MassDevelopment offers a range of resources and expertise to help communities unlock the potential of key sites and advance housing and job creation,” MassDevelopment President and CEO Navjeet Bal said in a statement. “We are thrilled to bring experienced real estate leader Sandi Wolchansky Silk on board to guide this work and maximize our impact across Massachusetts.”
While Silk was a development partner, vice president and senior vice president at Jefferson Apartment Group in Newton for over a decade, she joins MassDevelopment from New York City-based mixed-income developer MURAL Real Estate Partners. There, she oversaw projects in New York City, New Haven, Connecticut and Atlanta for just under a year.
Silk also chaired the ULI Boston/New England District Council from 2022 to 2025 and still sits on the committee, plus is vice chair for the town of Brookline’s Economic Development Advisory Board.
“Joining MassDevelopment is an exciting opportunity to leverage my experience as a developer working in Gateway Cities and other communities across Massachusetts,” Silk said in a statement. “Throughout my career, I have partnered closely with municipalities, state agencies, and community stakeholders to advance catalytic projects through strong public-private collaboration. Bringing that perspective to MassDevelopment will help strengthen the agency’s ability to deliver programs and projects that drive meaningful, lasting economic vitality throughout the Commonwealth.”
