Cities across the country are sitting on vacant municipal buildings, while the teachers and essential workers who keep those same communities running can't afford to live nearby. Adaptive Commons turns one problem into the solution for the other: investing in the adaptive reuse of these forgotten spaces and turning them into high-quality, affordable homes that build real community and connection.

Derwin Sisnett, Founder & CEO, Adaptive Commons

Most people work in either education or real estate. Derwin has rebuilt entire communities using both, and he's doing it again with Adaptive Commons. Derwin tested his belief that communities can be transformed by reimagining their spaces in Memphis, as co-founder of Gestalt Community Schools, a network that anchored more than 40 acres of redevelopment and earned White House recognition. He carried that vision into Maslow Development, building mixed-use communities around high-quality schools, and now into Adaptive Commons, turning vacant civic buildings into housing and opportunity.