2022 Board Nominees
Michael Coleman – Michael, a native of Allentown, has made Philadelphia his home since graduating from college and law school at Penn (except for two years after law school, working at the SEC in D.C.). Michael’s had two careers: practicing law for 19 years, including 11 years as a partner at Pepper Hamilton, and then starting and managing a legal search, recruiting and placement firm for 26 years. Since late 2020, Michael and his wife, Ellen, have lived on Rittenhouse Square. Michael’s non-career interests have focused on: expanding the City’s visibility as a vibrant, well-regarded arts and culture community (he was a founder of Philadelphia Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts (PVLA) and a long time Board member of Philadelphia Theatre Company); and mentoring, career counseling, and helping students from underserved communities. He is an active member of CCRA’s Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (JEDI) Committee.
Kate Federico (incumbent) - Born and raised in Rittenhouse Square neighborhood, Kate Federico has been a licensed Realtor in the Philadelphia, Center City area since 2001. She has been on the CCRA Board for 15 + years co-chairing the Association's Annual Rittenhouse / Fitler Square House Tour with her Mother, Kathleen, and most recently participated on the Events Committee for the very successful 75th Year Celebration Gala. Volunteering in the community is rewarding and fulfilling for her and she loves meeting and serving her neighbors. 
Gilbert Feinberg (incumbent)- Gil has studied, lived and worked in Center City since 1970 and now resides in the Rittenhouse Square area with his wife, Nadeen Van Tuyle. Gil is a sole practitioner attorney specializing in estate planning and settlement. Gil is current board member and past president of Gretna Music and now serves on the board of Singing City.
Bill Goldstein (incumbent)- Bill Goldstein is a life-long Philadelphia resident, having grown up in West Oak Lane, across the street from the original Ben & Irv’s Delicatessen. He graduated from Central (215 class), Penn (College ’64, Law 67) and will be married (to Joan) 55 years in May. Bill has lived full-time in the Murano since 2013.
Richard Huffman (incumbent) - Richard FAIA is a retired architect partner at Wallace Roberts and Todd. He and his wife, Susan have lived and raised a family for 50 years in Center City. His other board assignments include CPDC, Friends Select School, AIA and Urban Land Institute.
Bill West - For the last several years I have served as co-chair of CCRA's streets committee, which focuses on helping to make our streets safe, useful, and pleasant for everyone. Other committees are engaged in complementary activities - such as the effort to revitalize our neighborhood tree canopy and the push to find better ways to collect our trash. Altogether these initiatives amount to an attempt to reimagine our streets - what do we use them for, and how do we use them? I have come to believe that I can be more useful in this overall effort if I become a member of the board, in addition to my duties on the streets committee. Board of Directors 2021-2022 Officers: Richard Gross, President Rick Gross: President (incumbent Executive Vice Pres.) - Rick and his wife, Roberta, moved to Rittenhouse Square ten years ago, enchanted by the neighborhood and the city. Rick is Senior Manager of his company, BW Realty Advisors LLC, which finances large public/private projects throughout the country; Rick chaired the Stakeholder groups for both The Harper (Pearl Property’s project on 19th and Chestnut) and The Laurel (Southern Land’s project on Walnut Street at Rittenhouse Square) and has been active in developing and negotiating Community Benefits Agreements with the developers of all other major projects proposed for Center City West over the past several years. Roberta is active in the local arts community. Rick won a Tony in 2013 for co-producing the revival of Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? on Broadway. Rick hopes to contribute, as President of CCRA, towards the reopening of Center City and the restoration of the vibrant community we so much enjoyed before the pandemic. Richard Speizman, Executive Vice President and Treasurer After 35+ years away from “home,” Rick returned to Philadelphia in 2019. His wife, Faith Horowitz, was kind enough to join him. This move was enabled by Rick’s retirement as a partner at a “Big Four” accounting and consulting firm, based in its Washington, D.C. office, and the sale of Faith’s engineering firm. At his firm, Rick had national responsibility for the practice that provided tax services to nonprofit clients. Rick was well prepared for his return to Philadelphia, having remained an avid fan of the city’s sports teams and keeping well informed of developments in the area. While Rick is particularly fascinated by the built environment, he is interested in all things Philadelphia. He looks forward to contributing to CCRA and helping to make Center City a better place to live and work for all. Michele Ettinger, Vice President and Chair of the Membership CommitteeMichele, a retired Dental Hygienist and her husband Joel moved to Rittenhouse Square almost 3 years ago. Within a few months of joining CCRA, she joined the Board and assumed the role of Membership Chair, orchestrating its exciting growth with a myriad of new initiatives and an emphasis on relationship building. Michele has been a prominent community leader for almost 3 decades; serving as President of Jewish Family and Children’s Service of SNJ and as VP of The Jewish Federation of SNJ. Michele and Joel are the proud parents and grandparents of 3 little boys under the age of 5. Richard Vaughn, Vice President and Chair of the Communications Committee Bio coming soon Charles Robin, Vice President and Chair of the Remapping Committee Charles has been a Center City Realtor since 1990. He currently manages a third-generation real estate company, Robin Apartments, that has been on the same corner – 20th & Chestnut St. – since 1937. Charles and his wife of 25 years, Miae, have two beautiful children who are attending Temple University. Charles has been an active member of CCRA since 1992, serving as Vice President, Secretary, and Treasurer. He is currently co-chairing the Remapping Taskforce and has previously served on Finance and House Tour committees, among others. Charles also served in the past as CCRA’s Ninth Police District Advisory Council Representative. David Rose, Vice President and Chair of the Clean, Safe, and Green Taskforce - Clean Division David have served as PDAC rep, Streets Chair, and spearheaded the LED Street lights grant Taskforce. He has served on the Executive Committee, and CCRA's Liquor, Education, Garden, High Rise Membership, and Government Relations Committees. He ran the 19th St Congestion Taskforce, was a member of the remapping Committee. He also served on the Major Development Taskforce for: IPIC, 1901 Chestnut, The Harper, The Laurel, Harper 2, CVS, Freeman's, One Riverside, Morgan Lewis, Culinary Institute, and 1919 Market St. Facilitator of the Stakeholder Groups for Harper, Laurel, Harper 2, and CVS assemblages. Susan Kahn, Secretary Susan came to Philadelphia many years ago to attend Penn Law School. Until recently, she practiced law and was the academic director for a high school mentorship program at Penn Law. During the pandemic, she became an ISA Certified Arborist. Susan currently leads the CCRA Green committee and the neighborhood PHS Tree Tender group and serves on the board of the Friends of Schuylkill River Park. Nathaniel Parks, Assistant Secretary Nathaniel Parks is an entrepreneur who, throughout his career, has focused on utilizing technology to help progressive candidates and organizations. He lives on Rodman Street with his wife Sallie, their daughter Celia, son Wes and dog Wrigley. Matthew Fontana, Assistant Treasurer Matt Fontana is a labor and employment attorney with the law firm of Faegre Drinker Biddle and Reath. Matthew has lived in Center City West for nearly 10 years and has been a CCRA Board Member since 2016. As a CCRA Board Member, Matthew has focused his service on addressing quality-of-life issues impacting our community. Directors: Judith Axler ● Elena Cappella ● Jim Duffin ● Kate Federico ● Gil Feinberg ● Jared Gluskin ● Lawrence Goldberg ● William Goldstein ● Barbara Halpern ● Richard Huffman ● Susan Kahn ● Wayne Macfadden ● Douglas Mellor ● Harvey Ostroff ● Nan Robinson ● Gina Shapiro ● Richard Vaughn ● Benjamin Weinraub ● Irena Wight ● Ben Zuckerman Past Presidents (from most recent) Maggie Mund ● Matthew Fontana ● Wade Albert ● Charles Goodwin ● Jeffrey Braff ● Louis Coffey ● Kristen Davidson ● Lenore Millhollen ● Stephen Huntington ● William J.D. Jordan ● Samuel Weinberg ● Eugene Dichter ● George Brodie ● Lolly LaGreca ● Pamela Thistle ● Vivian Seltzer ● Adam Schneider |
Leo Levinson - Leo Levinson loves Center City Philadelphia, and especially our district. He and his wife enjoy spending 12 months a year living here, as they are not shore people nor snowbirds. Leo also works in our district – he owns GroupLevinson Public Relations, one of the highest rated branding and PR firms in Philadelphia. Leo is already active in CCRA as our magazine’s roving food writer.