Please give a virtual round of applause for our 2020 Regional Housing Leaders' Awards recipients. Each month we will spotlight an organization or individual who is working to advance regional housing solutions through creative partnerships.

This month we are honoring Helen McIlvaine for leading the Office of Housing in developing creative solutions in land use and zoning, and supporting a dedicated source of revenue to address the growing housing needs in the city. From 2017 - 2019 Helen served as co-chair of the Washington Metropolitan Council of Governments' (COG) Housing Directors Advisory Committee with Polly Donaldson, Director of DCHCD. Together, they led the Committee's work of data analysis related to projections of job growth, housing supply and affordability as part of COG’s Regional Housing Initiative.

Helen has served as Alexandria’s Housing Director since 2015. In that capacity, she oversees implementation of the City’s Housing Master Plan, supports citywide policy, investment and planning initiatives to increase the preservation and production of affordable housing, and works with nonprofit and private developers, as well as the Alexandria Redevelopment and Housing Authority, to structure and finance developments that include affordable housing.

Helen was an integral member of the City and regional team that developed the winning proposal to secure Amazon's HQ2. As the Director of Housing, she has worked to enhance housing opportunities to ensure benefits for all Alexandrians as a result of the economic development related to the future location of the Virginia Tech Innovation Campus in Potomac Yard.