Matthew Roland, AICP, currently serves as Assistant Dean for the Real Estate Development program and Clinical Assistant Professor at the University at Buffalo School of Architecture and Planning. He is also a Fellow with UB's Rudy Bruner Center for Urban Excellence. He has a Bachelor of Science in Urban Studies from Cornell University and a Master of Regional Planning with specializations in land use, real estate and economic development from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Matt has over 20 years of real estate and planning experience, working on in most municipalities in Western New York and in over 20 states. Over the course of his career he has worked through the entire life cycle of real estate projects - including project conception, site selection, financial analysis and modeling, contract negotiation, due diligence, land use approval, financing, construction, property management and asset management. Matt began his career focusing on public-private partnerships and subsequently he has been a member of teams working on projects spanning every possible use in the real estate field, including but not limited to: mixed-use, retail, hospitality, office, industrial, multi-family, senior living, military housing and affordable housing. At UB, his primary research and creative practice focus is on Buffalo's East Side, focusing on the Community-Based Real Estate Development Training Program as part of the East Side Avenues initiative. He also researches brownfields impacts on local communities and affordable housing. He is a member of the American Planning Association (APA) as well as a certified planner through the American Institute of Certified Planners (AICP). He is also a member of the Urban Land Institute, participating on the Executive Committee of the Western New York Chapter and acting as Chairperson of the UrbanPlan Committee. Matt is also a member of the Upstate New York Chapter of NAIOP (Commercial Real Estate Development Association), New York State Commercial Association of Realtors (NYSCAR) and New York State Association for Affordable Housing (NYSAFAH).