104-24 Exhibits-Economic Development Counsultant - 2024.pdf

CRAIG L. SAWYER Craig L. Sawyer serves as Principal and Managing Partner at Equitable Development Consultants, LLP., a community economic development consultancy firm, established in 2002, and Principal and Managing Partner at Poiema Development Group, a mission-focused, boutique real estate development company. Within his network of companies and partnerships, Craig focuses on creating value in community initiated, residential and commercial redevelopment projects where he advises, assists, and serves to transform concepts, goals, and plans into financially viable strategies and projects, and his knowledge of real estate development and public financing sources are realized. His primary focus within the development process is managing and overseeing the planning and due diligence process and negotiating and structuring the deal and finance structure. With more than 25 years of real estate and economic development experience through his various employment, professional consulting, and development roles, his efforts have helped to secure well over $250 million in capital for multiple residential, mixed- use, commercial, and industrial development projects and related initiatives which contributed to the recruitment, retention or creation of new business and employment opportunities. In addition, Craig was instrumental in creating and establishing the State of New Jersey’s regional training institute on real estate and redevelopment – the New Jersey Redevelopment Authority’s Redevelopment Training Institute (RTI), and since program inception in 2006, the institute has trained over 2,000 elected officials, governmental staff, for-profit and non-profit developers, attorneys and other development professionals on real estate and redevelopment related matters. For more than 17 years, he served as the RTI Lead Trainer responsible for the identification and development of training curriculum agendas and customized municipal training sessions on redevelopment, zoning, public incentives, real estate development, financing tools, and other relevant matters. Craig currently mentors and trains aspiring young real estate developers in real estate development under the auspices of Equitable Sustainable Redevelopment (ESR) Training Academy. In

evant matters. Craig currently mentors and trains aspiring young real estate developers in real estate development under the auspices of Equitable Sustainable Redevelopment (ESR) Training Academy. In addition, he developed and taught for several years a 12-week, youth entrepreneurship training program to college- bound, inner-city young men and women of color for the New York City Chapter of the 100 Black Men of America. He is also a member of civic and community organizations where he served on the board of the Housing and Community Development Network of New Jersey and served as past board chair of HANDS Inc. in the city of Orange, NJ. Craig attended Rider College for his Bachelor of Science (BS) degree in Business Administration and Rutgers University’s Graduate School of Management for his MBA degree in Finance. He holds several professional certifications and licenses from national and state recognized institutions, including NDC’s Economic Development Finance Professional (EDFP) Certification and a New Jersey real estate license since 1986. 24