Alicia Glen to launch development firm, MSquared

Former Deputy Mayor and Goldman Sachs alum Alicia Glen is about to launch her own development firm to build middle-income housing in smaller U.S. cities.

MSquared — which seemingly refers to the firm’s focus on mixed-use, mixed-income development — will launch next week, Bloomberg reports. The company aims to build housing for the ‘“missing middle,’ an increasingly cost-burdened group that includes essential workers, such as teachers, nurses, police officers, service and retail workers,”’ the firm announced Friday.

During her tenure with the de Blasio administration, Glen often emphasized the need to create housing for the middle class, not just the very low-income residents — housing advocates have criticized the administration for not focusing enough on those New Yorkers. Glen left her post in early 2019.

The company, using Glen’s own capital, will first focus on projects in Charlotte, Dallas and Boston. She hopes to raise $300 million later this year for projects in Denver, Colorado, and Austin, Texas.

Carolee Fink

Glen’s former chief of staff Carolee Fink and deputy chief of staff Caitlin Lewis are respectively joining the firm as principal and director of business development. John Cohen, her former senior advisor, will serve as director of real estate. [Bloomberg] — Kathryn Brenzel