A 2020 USGBC Leadership Award recipient, Geoff Morgan has over two decades of experience in overseeing all aspects of financing, development, construction, and operation of affordable housing projects, subdivision home building, commercial real estate development, agricultural land trusts, historic renovations, and military base reuse.  

A licensed general contractor and a LEED AP Homes credential holder, Geoff is the President and CEO of First Community Housing (FCH) — a nonprofit organization dedicated to developing affordable housing in San Jose and the greater Bay Area and previous LEED Homes Award winner for Outstanding Developer.

FCH has developed projects that incorporate increasingly healthy, sustainable features — all in an effort to serve low-income populations including individuals, families, senior citizens, and those with special needs like chronic and mental illness and developmental disabilities. After receiving its first LEED Gold certification in 2007, FCH now develops LEED Platinum and Gold Projects in a region with some of the highest inequality in the country. 

Since its inception in 1986, FCH has developed housing for over 1400 households, with another 800 units in the pipeline. They have also been a USGBC organizational member for over 18 years.

Today, Geoff oversees all operations — serving over 3,000 residents and ensuring that energy-saving, sustainable, green-building features create a healthy living environment, save money for tenants through lower energy bills, and minimize the impact of FCH’s developments on the natural environment. Because FCH is able to provide tenants with free annual transit passes (“Eco-Passes”) for transportation on all light rail and buses throughout the county, they save those individuals an average of $700 per year.    

It is fitting that the First Community Housing website reads in bold: “We care about the quality and durability of our buildings and the health of our residents.” His work has always been about that — about a person’s mental health. About their physical health. About their financial health. If anyone understands the profound connectivity between healthy people, in healthy places, equaling a healthy economy, it is Geoff.