21st Century ROAD to Housing Act Panel Discussion
Hosted By
Speakers
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Congressman Joe Courtney Representative, 2nd District
United States House of Representatives
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Seila Mosquera-Bruno Commissioner
Connecticut Department of Housing
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Jim Perras CEO
Homebuilders & Remodelers Association of Connecticut
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Chelsea Ross Executive Director
Partnership for Strong Communities
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Susy Hurlburt CEO
Eastern Connecticut Association of Realtors
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Maryam Elahi President & CEO
Community Foundation of Eastern Connecticut
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Beth Sabilia Director
Center for Housing Opportunity Eastern Connecticut
Congressman Joe Courtney
Congressman Joe Courtney was elected in 2006 to represent the Second Congressional District of Connecticut in the House of Representatives. He serves on the House Armed Services Committee and the House Committee on Education and the Workforce.
Congressman Courtney is the Ranking Member of the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Seapower and Projection Forces. From 2018-2022, Courtney served as Chairman of the Subcommittee. According to a review by House Historians Office, Courtney was the first known member from Connecticut to lead a naval oversight panel in the House of Representatives since 1873, when Stephen W. Kellogg of Waterbury served as Chair of the Committee on Expenditures in the Navy Department in the 42nd Congress (1871-1873). Prior to that, Samuel Ingham, a two-term Congressman with connections to Hebron, Jewett City (Griswold) and Essex, served as chair of the Committee on Navy Affairs in the 25th Congress (1837-1839).
In addition, he co-chairs the bipartisan Congressional Shipbuilding Caucus along with Rep. Rob Wittman of Virginia. As a member of the House Education and Workforce Committee, he serves on the Health, Employment, Labor and Pensions subcommittee, as well as the Higher Education and Workforce Training subcommittee.
Seila Mosquera-Bruno
Seila Mosquera-Bruno was appointed the Commissioner of Housing for the State of Connecticut by Governor Ned Lamont in 2019 and re-appointed for his second term in 2023. She is the Board Chair for the Connecticut Housing Finance Authority, Vice-Chair of the Connecticut Municipal Finance Authority, and Board Member of the Capital Region Development Authority. As Commissioner, Seila leads the state agency responsible for all affordable housing matters including development, preservation, acquisitions, homeownership, emergency shelter and homelessness support services. The Department of Housing administers $200 million for homelessness support and more than $800 million for development and preservation of affordable housing. Under Seila’s tenure, the agency has completed more than 15,000 housing units, with over 6,400 currently under construction.
Jim Perras
Jim Perras is the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Lobbyist of the Home Builders & Remodelers Association of Connecticut (HBRA of CT), the statewide trade association representing Connecticut’s residential construction, remodeling and development industry.
Since joining HBRA of CT in 2018, Jim has been a leading advocate for policies that address Connecticut’s housing challenges and expand opportunities for housing production. He represents the residential construction industry before the Connecticut General Assembly and state agencies on issues including housing affordability and supply, land use and zoning, building codes, environmental and public health regulations, workforce development, and the regulatory costs affecting residential construction.
Jim brings decades of experience in Connecticut government and public policy. Prior to joining HBRA of CT, he served as a Senior Advisor to the President Pro Tempore of the Connecticut State Senate, worked in government relations with the law firm Wilson Elser, and served as a government relations liaison for two Connecticut state agencies.
Jim earned a B.A. in Political Science from the University of Connecticut and a J.D. from Western New England College, now Western New England University.
Susy Hurlburt
Susy Hurlbert is the CEO for the Eastern Connecticut Association of REALTORS®.
Maryam Elahi
Maryam Elahi is President and CEO of the Community Foundation of Eastern Connecticut. Prior to joining the Foundation in 2013 and for more than 25 years, she served in positions of leadership in the international human rights community as an advocate, teacher, and grant-maker.
Maryam was the director of the International Women’s Program at the Open Society Foundations in NYC from 2007 until 2013. She had previously been the founding director of the Human Rights Program at Trinity College in Hartford, establishing the first undergraduate college Human Rights Program in the United States. She taught courses on international human rights law at Trinity College, as well as at the Oxford University Summer International Human Rights Program. She served as the Advocacy Director on the Middle East, North Africa, and Europe for Amnesty International in Washington, DC from 1990 to 1997. Over the years, she has led human rights missions to dozens of countries around the world. Maryam is a graduate of the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University, Boston College Law School, and Williams College. Maryam is a member of the Massachusetts Bar.
Chelsea Ross
Chelsea joined the Partnership in 2020. Her journey within the Partnership has seen her assume various roles, from Director of Special Projects to Deputy Director, and subsequently, as Interim Executive Director. In 2023, Chelsea was appointed as the Executive Director, where she now oversees all aspects of the Partnership’s work and operations. Her priority is to support collective approaches to shared visions for change, developed by amplifying diverse and underrepresented voices and perspectives across sectors and communities.
Chelsea brings 15+ years of experience in the housing and homelessness sector, previously as Associate Director for the Corporation for Supportive Housing (CSH). She oversaw and strengthened the management and operations of CSH New England, and directed responsive technical assistance and systems change implementation to housing and service providers, policy makers, and communities throughout the region. Chelsea has spent the bulk of her career working in housing, including serving as Manager of Planning and Development for the Connecticut Coalition to End Homelessness (CCEH). She has served in additional roles in policy, marketing, fund development, volunteer coordination and in direct service as a community case manager providing client centered case management to adults experiencing severe persistent mental illness. Chelsea has centered her career in organizations that seek to stabilize at-risk individuals and families through housing.
Beth Sabilia
Beth Sabilia is the Director of the Center for Housing Opportunity Eastern Connecticut. Beth is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts and Suffolk University Law School. She was in the private practice of law for more than 26 years, all in New London.
Beth most recently served as a Selectwoman for the Town of Waterford, a two-term member of the Waterford Representative Town Meeting), and served as a member of the town’s Board of Finance. Beth acted for two terms as the Mayor of the City of New London and a six-term member of the City Council, where she chaired the Economic Development Committee for more than four years. She was the liaison to the Redevelopment Commission and the Planning & Zoning Commission. Beth also served on the New London Board of Education, acting as its Vice-President and President, and a former Commissioner of the New London Housing Authority.
Hosted in partnership with
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Community Foundation of Eastern Connecticut
Community Foundation of Eastern CT brings people together to work towards a healthy, thriving, sustainable Eastern Connecticut with greater equity for all. They achieve this by collaborating with partners to put philanthropy into action to address the needs, rights and interests of our community.
