EBALDC Hosts Career Fair at Dewey Academy near East 12th Street Affordable Housing Project
On a sunny spring morning recently, representatives from Pyatok: architecture + urban design, Construction Industry Workforce Initiative (CIWI), Sandis, J.H. Fitzmaurice Inc., The Unity Council, East Bay Asian Local Development Corporation (EBALDC), Greenbelt Alliance, JETT Landscape Architecture, Josehart Construction Management, and Notton Staffing fielded questions and shared information about their work with students at Dewey Academy, located next to the East 12th Street Affordable Housing Project.
Omar Rivera, Ass’t Project Manager, EBALDC and Audrey Chau-Cuevo, Associate Project Manager, The Unity Council
The planning process for the East 12th Street project included a series of engagement events with community members and stakeholders. During a meeting with the faculty and staff at Dewey Academy, EBALDC’s Liz Probst, Director of Real Estate Development, and Omar Rivera, Assistant Project Manager, learned that Dewey students were interested in learning about the construction industry and decided to organize a career fair.
Victor Flores, Resilience Manager, Greenbelt Alliance (East Bay)
The project team volunteered to participate and educate students on the various industries in affordable housing development with the goal of exposing students to a broader range of career possibilities. EBALDC has partnered with Greenbelt Alliance and CIWI to offer two paid internships to students attending Dewey. Says Omar: “Affordable housing is itself a win for the community, and EBALDC is thrilled to showcase how our developments can benefit local community members even during construction. We’re excited about the many benefits our East 12th Street project stands to offer the Eastlake/Merritt community, including students at Dewey Academy.”
Monte Wilson, Program Director, CIWI
Those tabling at the career fair are partners in the development, design, and construction of the East 12th Street project–the first phase of a two-phase affordable housing development plan, which will provide 91 units of affordable housing for very-low and low-income residents, including 23 units of permanent supportive housing for homeless individuals and families. Approximately 40 students participated in the career fair where they learned about careers, summer jobs, and internships in the architecture, construction, engineering, project management, fundraising, early childhood education, real estate development, among other roles.