Originally published in Carroll Capital, the print publication of the Carroll School of Management at Boston College. .
As a freshman at Boston College, Ronette 鈥淩onnie鈥� Slamin 鈥�13 signed up for a summer service trip to Jamaica because she wanted to make more friends. There, she witnessed the connections between poverty, education, and housing. 鈥淚 was really taken aback by how poor the roads and housing were,鈥� she says, describing leaky tin roofs and roads marred by cavernous potholes. And because of where they lived, residents had no real options for quality education. Their housing impacted their trajectory in life.
It鈥檚 approximately 2,300 miles from those low-income neighborhoods of Jamaica to one of the wealthiest areas of Washington, DC. But for Slamin, that service trip provided the spark for a career that鈥檚 led to a mammoth undertaking: a $19 million deal to buy and rehab a mixed-income apartment building a few blocks from the Bezos and Obama residences.
Ronie Slamin '13
Slamin, who grew up in a low-income area of Delaware and went to boarding school in Maryland, arrived at Boston College with aspirations to become a sportscaster. But after returning from Jamaica, she registered for the Real Estate and Urban Action course taught by Joseph Corcoran 鈥�59, H 鈥�09, P 鈥�85, 鈥�86, 鈥�87, 鈥�98, and Neil McCullagh. Corcoran, who died in 2020, would later become the namesake of the Carroll School鈥檚 Joseph E. Corcoran Center for Real Estate and Urban Action, with McCullagh as executive director. During college (as an intern) and after graduation, Slamin also worked for听The American City Coalition (TACC), a Corcoran-funded nonprofit directed by McCullagh that focused on neighborhood revitalization. She became drawn to the vision of mixed-income housing, which Corcoran pioneered in Boston.
In 2020, after earning dual master鈥檚 degrees in urban planning and real estate development at MIT, Slamin and her husband, Robert Slamin, MCAS 鈥�12, relocated to Washington, DC. While pregnant with their first daughter, Slamin opted to start her own firm, Embolden Real Estate, with a mission to develop mixed-income housing. Although she鈥檇 enjoyed working in community development, she says, 鈥淚 realized I didn鈥檛 like being the middle person鈥擨 wanted to be the developer.鈥� Slamin began looking for an opportunity to launch a project.
By 2022, she鈥檇 identified a target: a six-story, 23-unit, rent-controlled building in Washington鈥檚 Kalorama district. The neighborhood features single-family homes typically selling for between $1 million and $10 million. The beige-brick building was up for sale, and tenants were concerned about the reputation of a developer who wanted to buy it. So the tenants organized and, utilizing a program that allows residents the right of first refusal, searched for a partner to buy it. When tenants met Slamin, they were sold. 鈥淪he really understood our predicament ... how residents loved it here, and why it was important,鈥� says former tenant association leader Ashley Warren. Slamin applied for grants, lined up financing, and in May 2023 closed on the building for $9.05 million. She renamed the property The Bobbi, after her daughter. (She has since had a second daughter.)
“I'm not into picking which marble goes into a luxury bathroom. My interest is in providing stable, affordable, high-quality housing.”
Before beginning a $10 million rehab later this year, Slamin must relocate all residents to temporary homes and pay all associated costs. Then her contractors will do a gut renovation, restoring historic features and adding new elevators, solar panels, a green-energy upgrade, and new amenities including a library and fitness room. Although Slamin loves the building, when she discusses the project, she talks mostly about the benefits of living in a great neighborhood. 鈥淚t鈥檚 safe, it鈥檚 near great schools, and it鈥檚 near affluent individuals so people can grow their networks,鈥� she says.
When construction is complete at the start of 2026, existing rent-controlled residents can move back in. When units turn over, they鈥檒l be offered to families earning less than $130,000 a year, at rents ranging from $1,000 to $3,500鈥攈alf the cost of comparable market-priced apartments in Kalorama. More than architecture or construction, it鈥檚 this aspect鈥攖he impact on residents鈥攖hat makes Slamin excited about development. 鈥淚鈥檓 not into picking which marble goes into a luxury bathroom,鈥� she says. 鈥淢y interest is in providing stable, affordable, high-quality housing.鈥�
