Gladys is the founder and Chief Executive Officer of the UrbaniZa Group of companies. She is responsible for the management and coordination of all business related activities in real estate, construction, planning and design. 

Gladys has over 20 years experience in urban real estate ventures in both New York and Miami. After graduating from Cornell with a Masters in Architecture and Urban Design, she focused her career on becoming an architect/developer. During the 1980s, Gladys's activities in New York ranged from real estate property management for The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, to acquiring investment properties for real estate syndicate DGB Property Corporation. After obtaining a General Securities Series 7 license, she represented investments for Integrated Resources, Phoenix Capital Group and Bear, Stearns and Company. In 1991, she returned to her hometown Miami and founded UrbaniZa Inc., a real estate firm specializing in the design, development and financing of urban projects.

For nearly two decades, the company has provided professional services in affordable housing finance and project development. Gladys not only remodels distressed properties, but also repositions them in the marketplace. One of the company's success stories includes the historic landmark Coral Rock Village.  She was featured on HGTV in 2006, and in several publications with the property. Gladys is an award-winning architect and historic preservation developer. 

In 2009, Special Asset Support Services was founded to provide services to the "special asset" category of non-performing loans, foreclosures and REOs (Real Estate Owned) held by financial institutions. Today the company is an approved Dade County developer for the Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP). 

Gladys was a visiting lecturer at Cornell University from 1994-97. She also founded the Cornell-in-Miami Internship Program, and continues to sponsor summer internships. Gladys serves on various Cornell Alumni boards, as well as several publicly appointed local boards and commissions. Her interview for the 20th Anniversary of the President's Council of Cornell Women (PCCW) can be found at www.cornell.edu/video search Gladys Diaz.

Email: gladmag@urbaniza.us