With deep experience in real estate, economic development and sustainability initiatives, Quiroga will build on LISC’s 40 years of work in Boston to expand community investment strategies and drive gains in underserved neighborhoods.
BOSTON, December 14, 2023—The Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) has tapped a local community development leader as the new executive director of LISC Greater Boston, a community investment organization that has delivered more than $440 million to fuel economic opportunity and revitalize communities throughout the city and region.
Gustavo Quiroga takes the helm of the nonprofit this week, after more than 15 years of leadership across private and public sectors leading community-focused real estate, economic development, and sustainability initiatives.
Quiroga comes to LISC after a decade of work at Graffito, a real estate advisory firm in Boston focused on urban master planning and small business retail leasing for neighborhood-scale development projects in diverse communities. As director of neighborhood strategy and development, he led Graffito’s strategic advisory services with private developers and major universities. Quiroga worked closely with local stakeholders and municipal leaders to help clients plan and execute thoughtful mixed-use development projects that amplified surrounding communities and created equitable opportunities for small business owners to thrive.
In addition to his private-sector real estate experience, Quiroga also has a background in non-profit community development and sustainability work. He worked at Allston Brighton Community Development Corporation, managing energy-efficiency retrofits for 500 units of affordable housing, while also conducting community organizing efforts to connect nearly 600 households to the city’s residential energy-efficiency program. Earlier, Quiroga helped found and lead a green building material startup and, before that, coordinated small business and public renewable energy programs in both New York and Massachusetts.
“Gustavo has a unique mix of public, private and nonprofit skills that directly align with the challenges facing residents and communities,” said Michael Pugh, LISC CEO. “He will lead our efforts to invest in a strong infrastructure of opportunity in Boston, including our focus on affordable housing, economic development, health, safety and jobs. We are thrilled to have him on board,” he added.
In addition to his real estate development expertise, Quiroga also has a long history of work in local public policy and politics. He has played a leadership role in two Boston mayoral campaigns, including serving as transition director for former Acting Mayor Kim Janey in 2021. In that role Quiroga helped bridge the hand off from one administration to the next by coordinating cabinet briefings, advising Janey on hiring of senior leadership, and overseeing the work of a 150-person transition committee that drafted policy recommendations for the new mayor.
“I am thrilled to be joining LISC having spent my career working to build strong and equitable communities throughout Greater Boston,” Quiroga said. “To tackle our most pressing and persistent housing, small business, and sustainability challenges we must leverage all the investment and program tools at our disposal. LISC offers the chance to combine national resources and reach with local stakeholder relationships across Massachusetts to meet the moment and invest in proven and equitable strategies that help families gain stable housing, small business owners build wealth, and communities invest in climate resiliency,” he said.
In addition to his professional accomplishments, Quiroga volunteers his time on the board of the Boston Main Streets Foundation and is a member of the WBUR Community Advisory Board. He was a mayoral appointee to the City of Boston 2020 Census Compete Count Committee and sat on the economic development subcommittee of Maura Healey’s gubernatorial transition. Quiroga has also served as a strategic advisor to The Climate Beacon Project and its Climate Beacon Conference.
Quiroga earned a B.A. in international studies from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and an MBA from Boston University. He can be reached beginning December 18th at gquiroga@lisc.org.
About LISC
LISC is one of the country’s largest community development organizations, helping forge vibrant, resilient communities across America. We work with residents and partners to close systemic gaps in health, wealth and opportunity and advance racial equity so that people and places can thrive. Since our founding in 1979, LISC has invested $29.7 billion to create more than 489,000 affordable homes and apartments, develop 81.4 million square feet of retail, community and educational space and help tens of thousands of people find employment and improve their finances. LISC has operated a program in Greater Boston for more than 40 years, investing more than $440 million to revitalize communities and support quality housing, businesses and jobs. For more, visit www.lisc.org.