Maria Gonzalez

As President for HACE, Maria Nixa Gonzalez heads HACE’s development team managing over $100M of commercial and housing development projects that have contributed to the stabilization and revitalization of the Fairhill and St. Hugh Neighborhoods. Since 1996, she has been responsible for raising development capital from a broad base of private and public foundations and governmental bodies. Mrs. Gonzalez’ most notable achievement is the creation of a supportive community for elders through the development of affordable rental housing and the construction of a Life Center that provides frail elders with social and health services so that they can remain living at home for as long as possible. Under her leadership HACE has developed its Housing Counseling Program to serve as a one-stop-shop for housing related services, which is certified by the US Department of Housing and Urban Development and the National Industry Standards for Homeownership Education and Counseling. Her approach to managing the Housing Counseling Program is to capitalize on the individual skills of each counselor by tapping into their individual talents to engage them in the operation of the program to provide quality housing counseling services in a fiscally responsible manner. Mrs. Gonzalez received her Bachelor’s degree with honors from St. Joseph’s University. She won the Ernest C. Olivares Leadership Award in 1999 from the Bank of America Leadership Academy, was named most Influential Latinos by Impacto Newspaper in 2013, 2014, and 2015 and was named by the Philadelphia Business Journal as a Woman to Watch in 2016. Mrs. Gonzalez was appointed by Mayor James Kenney to the Philadelphia Planning Commission, serves as Chair of the Community Trust Board for the American Street Empowerment Zone, is Chair of the Oversight Board of the Mayor’s Office of Community Empowerment and Opportunity, serves in the Philadelphia Housing Trust Fund and is Secretary of the Board of the Philadelphia Association of Community Development Corporations.