Maria Torres-Springer is the NYC Deputy Mayor for Housing, Economic Development and Workforce, charged with spearheading the administration’s efforts to strengthen and diversify its economy, advance Mayor Adams’ moonshot goal of creating 500,000 new homes for New Yorkers over the next decade, preserve and improve the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA), bolster small business, connect New Yorkers to family-sustaining jobs, and expand access to arts and culture.
She previously was Vice President of US Programs at the Ford Foundation where she oversaw the foundation’s domestic grant making and made historic investments to support racial equity, workers’ rights, voting rights, and arts and culture across the country.
As commissioner of the NYC Department of Housing Preservation and Development, Maria focused on the production of housing for the city’s most vulnerable communities, while also launching several new programs to protect tenants’ rights. She led the implementation of Housing New York, a five-borough, 12-year plan to create or preserve 300,000 affordable homes; and she steered the financing of approximately 60,000 affordable homes.
Earlier, as president and CEO of New York City Economic Development Corporation, Maria led the implementation of the new citywide ferry service and made major investments in key sectors of the city’s economy. She also spearheaded several neighborhood revitalization plans. Prior to that, as commissioner of the NYC Department of Small Business Services, Maria prioritized efforts to raise wages and support women and immigrant-owned businesses and worked to prepare New Yorkers for 21st-century jobs.
Maria earned her bachelor's degree in ethics, politics, and economics from Yale University and a master’s in public policy from the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. She lives in Brooklyn with her husband and two daughters.
