Black Female Developer Driving Impact on Chicago’s South Side

Brittini Flatley aims to redesign the blueprint for residential reentry with the Halim A. Flowers Center
Brittini Flatley, photo provided by Compass
Brittini Flatley, photo provided by Compass

 Black Female Developer Driving Impact on Chicago’s South Side 

Brittini Flatley aims to redesign the blueprint for residential reentry with the Halim A. Flowers Center

Making a true impact is difficult for any individual, and it is especially difficult for young black females working in development, but that isn’t stopping Brittini Flatley from pursuing her goal of providing a new blueprint for what residential reentry centers should look like. Using her career in real estate development as a springboard, Flatley is hoping to corroborate a new alternative system developed in Colorado under the Second Chance Center, Inc. that will dramatically reduce the recidivism rate by providing a multi-use center to help recently incarcerated individuals readjust to life outside of prison. The development, planned for the south side of Chicago, will be called the Halim A. Flowers Center.

According to the Bureau of Justice Statistic, about 66% of prisoners released across 24 states in 2008 were arrested within 3 years, and 82% were arrested within 10 years. Flatley feels that those numbers are unacceptable and wants to push that number down near 20% in Illinois with her new development.

“This is my home, and when I see a problem in my community, I want to fix it,” said Brittini Flatley. “Our goal is to draw attention to this issue and make an actual impact. We have a broken system, and yet, not enough people are stepping up to do the work required to change that. I am hoping to redesign the entire system and create a blueprint that can be used across the country to drive change and help people, especially minorities and underserved communities, get back on their feet once they are released from prison.”

Flatley is nearing the end of her initial fundraising phase and hopes to break ground this year on the new development on Chicago’s South Side. So far, Flatley is hoping to secure a $5M grant from the City of Chicago to kickstart the development project. Flatley is focused on building a sustainable and innovative multi-use village, which will focus on being a haven for personal growth and development for recently incarcerated individuals.

The Halim A. Flowers Center will be developed by G Carter Group International, Flatley’s real estate development group she founded in 2021. G Carter Group International is one of the only emerging minority-led woman-led real estate development firms in Chicagoland. The Center will provide a safe, structured, and supportive environment, as well as employment counseling, job placement, financial management assistance, and other programs and services.

“Brittini has figured out how to create a blueprint to catalyze neighborhoods nationally by providing basic housing stability and resources in a village-like setting for those who have been historically left without resources to truly thrive in America,” said Khalil Halim, Executive Director, Second Chance Center, Inc.

Flatley was born and raised in Chicago. Her familiar roots are long tied to the city and real estate. Flatley’s great-grandfather was one of the first black men in the southern United States to hold a real estate license in the early 1970s. Flatley started her career in real estate in the mid-2000s at a family-owned home building company. She then went on to join a large SFR firm, sitting in acquisitions and property management. During the pandemic, Flatley decided to pursue her own real estate career, obtaining licenses in Texas & Illinois in 2021. She currently serves as the National Director of Development for Second Chance Center, Inc. Flatley is a member of the National Association of Real Estate Brokers (NAREB), a member of the National Association of Realtors (NAR), holding the prestigious Graduate Realtor Institute (GRI), PSA and SFR designations. She is a member of the Austin Board of Realtors and the Chicago Association of Realtors.

About Compass
Founded in 2012, Compass is a leading technology-enabled residential real estate brokerage, providing an end-to-end platform that empowers its residential real estate agents to deliver exceptional service to seller and buyer clients. The platform includes an integrated suite of cloud-based software for customer relationship management, marketing, client service, brokerage services and other critical functionality, all custom-built for the real estate industry. Compass agents utilize the platform to grow their business, save time and manage their business more effectively. For more information on how Compass empowers real estate agents, one of the largest groups of small business owners in the country, please visit www.Compass.com.

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