Boston, MA (June 12, 2018) -  Arthur Winn, the founder and principal of WinnCompanies, an award-winning national property development and management company, was honored today with the Neighborhood Visionary Award by the Greater Boston Real Estate Board (GBREB). The honor, presented at the GBREB Foundation annual scholarship breakfast, recognized Winn for his passionate commitment to housing and improving the quality of life for thousands of people in the Greater Boston area.

Winn, 78, started WinnCompanies in Boston in 1971 to specialize in the creation of quality affordable housing that would be welcomed as attractive community assets. The company has evolved into an award-winning, full service development and management company, ranking as the nation's sixth largest manager of multi-family housing in all income ranges, the largest manager of affordable housing, and the leader in the adaptive reuse of historic buildings for mixed-income housing.

We are here today to support a scholarship program that helps the very people we house young people from families who otherwise could not afford the college of their choice, Winn said at the GBREB event, which delivered college scholarships to 60 local students. The quality of our housing puts the families we serve in position to make good things happen and higher education is one of those good things.

Now in its fourth year, the GBREB Foundation program has awarded $1 million in 'last dollar' scholarships to help students' fill the gap between financial aid and the costs of college beyond tuition such as room and board, computers, books and supplies to graduating seniors in the area.

Arthur Winn's unwavering commitment to affordable housing is very special. His unique vision for the Mary Ellen McCormack Development in South Boston will transform that neighborhood, said Greg Vasil, CEO and president of GBREB. He also has a very deep and passionate commitment to the GBREB Foundation Scholarship Event because he fully understands that young people can change their lives through opportunities that only education can provide.

WinnCompanies shares the Foundation's mission. Since 2012, the company has awarded $302,000 in scholarships to nearly 300 residents of properties it manages across the United States, demonstrating the company's commitment to improving the communities and the lives of the people it serves.

Arthur is neighborhood and his company is neighborhood, said Deborah Backus, the executive director of the Castle Square Tenants Organization (CSTO), who joined with CSTO President Ann Moy to introduce Winn at the GBREB event. Tenants have been the majority owners of Castle Square Apartments, an award-winning, 500-unit mixed income property in Boston's South End, since entering into a redevelopment partnership with WinnCompanies thirty years ago.

A well-known philanthropist in the Boston community, Winn is an active supporter of dozens of civic and charitable organizations. In 2017, he was honored by the Combined Jewish Philanthropies with the Edwin N. Sidman Leadership Award for his professional and philanthropic efforts. In 2015, he received the Community Leadership Award from the Boston Chapter of the American Jewish Committee. His other awards for professional achievement and community service, include:

• The Excellence in Affordable Housing award from the Massachusetts Housing Investment Corporation, a leading private investor and lender specializing in financing affordable housing and community development;
• The Distinguished Service Award from the Real Estate Finance Association, a leading trade association for commercial real estate finance professionals;
• The Distinguished Community Service Award from the Anti-Defamation league of New England; and,
• The Corcoran Award for Excellence from the Board of Trustees of the St. Mary's Center for Women & Children, a non-profit organization in Boston.

Pictured: 2016 Honoree Chrystal Kornegay, Executive Director of MassHousing, 2018 Honoree Arthur Winn, Founder of WinnCompanies, 2016 Honoree Jack Spurr, President and CEO of A,W. Perry, Ann Moy, President of Castle Square Tenants Organization (CSTO), 2016 Committee Chair Larry Curtis, President and Managing Partner of WinnDevelopment, 2015 Committee Chair Mahmood Malihi, Executive Vice President of Leggat McCall Properties, Deborah Backus, Executive Director of CSTO and 2015 Honoree Robert Beal, President of Related Beal

Pictured: Arthur Winn accepts his Neighborhood Visionary Award from Greg Vasil, CEO of the GBREB

Pictured: Martin Walsh, Mayor of the City of Boston, accepts his award from Gaby King Morse, Executive Director of uAspire and Greg Vasil