Meeting/Event Information

Join NAIOP Upstate NY & WNY NYSCAR as we host Hope Knight, Acting Commissioner and President & CEO-designate of Empire State Development Corporation.

Hope Knight was named Acting Commissioner and President & CEO-designate of Empire State Development by New York Governor Kathy Hochul in October 2021.

Prior to her appointment, Ms. Knight served as President & CEO of Greater Jamaica Development Corporation, one of the nation’s first community development corporations. In that capacity she has advanced economic growth, community-building, and sustainable real estate development that has immeasurably revitalized and strengthened the Southeast Queens region. Additionally, from 2015 to 2021 she served as a Commissioner on the New York City Planning Commission.

Prior to leading Greater Jamaica Development Corporation, she was Chief Operating Officer of the Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone overseeing over $150 million in investments, leveraging over $1 billion in private capital, and working on projects such as the East River Plaza, Potamkin East Harlem and the Victoria Theater & Hotel.

She also served as Vice President at Morgan Stanley in the Institutional Equities Division, U.S. and as Vice President of Strategic Planning and E-Commerce, Morgan Stanley, Japan. Earlier in her career, Ms. Knight worked at Accenture and in New York City government. Ms. Knight holds a BA from Marymount Manhattan College and an MBA from the Graduate School of Business of the University of Chicago.