Charles Sims

Biography: Charles Sims is the Director of Real Estate Development at True Ground Housing Partners, formally: the Arlington Partnership for Affordable Housing (APAH), where he plays a pivotal role in managing True Ground’s development portfolio and advancing the organization’s regional footprint. Joining True Ground in April 2019, Charles now co-leads the real estate development team, overseeing key projects, mentoring project managers, and evaluating properties for future development. Charles’s contributions include leading True Ground’s first Maryland development, Snowden’s Ridge, an 87-unit affordable housing redevelopment in Silver Spring. He also spearheaded the Ballston Station project, transforming an older facility of the Central United Methodist Church into 144 units of affordable housing atop a newly developed church and daycare, creating an integrated community hub adjacent to the Ballston Metro. Additionally, he directed the transformative Marbella Campus Redevelopment, redeveloping a 134-unit garden-style affordable community into 621 units across three phases, blending preservation with new construction. Before joining True Ground, Charles honed his skills as a Senior Construction Project Manager for Office Depot Office Max in Boca Raton, FL, and New Urban Development in Miami, FL. In these roles, he managed multifamily, industrial, and retail developments in both high-density urban and suburban settings across the Southeastern U.S. Charles holds a Master of Science in International Real Estate from Florida International University and a B.A. in History from Florida A&M University. He is a committed member of the Urban Land Institute, actively involved in ULI NEXT, and Pathways to Inclusion, and is a board member of the Columbia Pike Partnership.