Reimagining Black Futures II

Crystal Middleton
Crystal Middleton is the Director of Planning and Zoning in Buffalo’s Mayor’s Office of Strategic Planning. A native of East Buffalo, she holds a B.A. from Virginia State University (HBCU) and an M.U.P. from SUNY Buffalo. Previously a General Planner for the Buffalo Urban Renewal Agency and a Senior Planner for the City of Buffalo, she now leads with a focus on equity and collaboration. Resources: City of Buffalo.

Dale White
Dale White (BAED '05) brings diverse experience in real estate development, asset management and urban planning to his current role as Managing Director of Acquisitions at BDP Impact Real Estate. Mr. White is responsible for directing all real estate acquisitions for a $500 million portfolio and pipeline focused on housing veterans experiencing homelessness in 16 large cities across the country.  Prior to BDP Impact, Mr. White worked at Jonathan Rose Companies where he was a Real Estate Development Manager and Lead Underwriter and Deployment Officer for The Rose Urban Green Fund (RUGF) CDE. White is also instructing a seminar on Affordable Housing in Policy Practice at UB.

Rishawn Sonubi
Rishawn Sonubi, AIA, NCARB (M.Arch and M.U.P. '03), is a partner at Young + Wright Architectural, where he has worked since 2006 as an associate and senior project manager. He previously served four years as Deputy Commissioner of Buildings and Energy Management for the City of Buffalo and began his career as an architectural designer at Robert Traynham Coles, Architect P.C.

Arthur Hall
Arthur Hall (MUP ’04, BAED ’02) is currently the President of Hallmark Planning & Development, LLC. In his previous role as the Senior Project Manager at Buffalo Urban Development Corporation (BUDC), he developed next-generation planning and economic development strategies for a 35-acre campus. Hall was also responsible for identifying new investment opportunities and strategically aligning sources of capital for the rehabilitation and restoration of industrial buildings. He organized stakeholder groups to identify public art and placemaking strategies for community development. Mr. Hall was responsible for facilitating the New York State Brownfield Opportunity Area (BOA) designation to develop a community-based, area-wide plan for brownfield remediation and redevelopment incentives. Mr. Hall created the Northland Business Network Series that allowed business owners to network and learned about resources to start, launch, and grow their businesses on the Northland Campus.