Andrew M. Friedman has 39 years of experience in housing, community development and homelessness. He was the director of Housing and Neighborhood Preservation for the City of Virginia Beach from 1993 to 2021, having worked there for an additional 8 years before becoming director. In 2021 he founded Progressive Housing Solutions LLC. to provide consulting services.

At Virginia Beach, Andrew led the expansion of the department from approximately 28 people to over 100; from a several million dollar annual budget to over $33 million. He expanded services and obtained additional funding so that the department now provides comprehensive housing and neighborhood improvement services including Code Enforcement, homeowner rehabilitation financing, multiple rental housing assistance programs including a 2,200+ unit housing choice voucher program; housing development financing; and comprehensive homeless services and prevention programs.

Among his accomplishments were:

• Completion of the revitalization of 10 historically African-American neighborhoods including housing reconstruction and rehabilitation and infrastructure improvements;

• The creation of the Housing Resource Center, and $25 million one-stop-shop facility that provides emergency shelter for both single persons and families; permanent supportive housing; coordinated entry for the City’s continuum of care system; prevention programs, and health care.

• Expansion of the city’s Code Enforcement program to provide city-wide, multi-issue, pro-active enforcement to help ensure all residents have decent and safe housing and enjoy well-maintained neighborhoods.

• Support for the creation or rehabilitation of over 3,000 affordable housing units by for-and non-profit developers through the provision of direct funding, project-based vouchers, and City Council actions.

Jay Grant joined Progressive Housing Solutions in 2025 and brings a wealth of housing and community development experience and ability to the company. Jay was the Executive Director of LISC Hampton Roads from 2022 to 2025. In that role he initiated programs to support housing, mixed use development, small business assistance, and workforce training and development. Before that he worked at the Virginia Dept. of Housing and Community Development in three different positions, including Deputy Director of Community Development, and Director of Outreach, Planning and Compliance. He also served as a US Department of HUD as a Community Planning and Development representative, overseeing millions of dollars in HUD entitlement programs and supporting jurisdictions to complete complex, multi-jurisdictional projects.