Shelton Haynes
Shelton Haynes is the C.E.O. and President of the Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation, or R.I.O.C., the independent nonprofit organization responsible for the management, design, and development of Roosevelt Island in New York City.
- Investment
Roosevelt Island is the largest funded infrastructure project in New York City history. With a budget of hundreds of millions more spent on the island’s design, the city, and Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation owns the project and 20% by other investors. R.I.O.C.’s role is to manage these funds for the benefit of Roosevelt Island, including its residents and businesses.
- Experience
His experience includes developing and building affordable apartments, townships, schools, and public spaces, as well as sustainable energy projects in his native South Africa, before moving to New York City to become vice president of finance at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 2006.
New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg selected Haynes in July 2013 to serve as the Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation’s chief executive officer and president, tasked with managing the island’s redevelopment.
- Education
Haynes earned a Bachelor of Arts in geography from the University of the Western Cape in South Africa and an M.B.A. from Wits Business School at the University of Johannesburg in 1997. Haynes joined the board of trustees of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City.
- Impact on the community
He is currently focusing on some issues:
- Developing businesses that will provide jobs and economic support for the community.
- Improving the residential experience.
- Building new schools.
- Creating public spaces where families and children can exercise, play and grow.
- Expanding green technology incubators, gardens, and solar power with other private investors.
- Awards
Haynes was named one of the 100 most influential black business leaders by DiversityBusiness.com.Haynes was recognized by Equality Idaho in 2011 as a Top 40 business leader in Idaho. He was nominated for the Smithsonian American Ingenuity Award for his work on a new “energy-efficient school” project on Roosevelt Island, which won the Herbert C. Miller Award from Columbia University in 2012.
Shelton Haynes supports the project and sees it as an economic, social, and environmental success. He has the backing of commercial real estate developers, unions, government officials, and environmental groups to create a more sustainable economy on Roosevelt Island.