Eldin L. Villafane
President

Mr. Villafane heads the Public Affairs division of the Goldstein Hall Law Firm, serving as the lead consultant providing government & community relations and strategic communications strategies to many clients in the real estate, non-profit and for-profit industries.

He is a longtime practitioner in strategic communications, specifically in the areas of reputation and crisis management, carrying over 15 years of experience in the government and private sector, managing media and public affairs strategies for elected officials, community groups, and business leaders.

Previously, Mr. Villafane was a Partner at Butler Associates, LLC, a public relations firm headquartered in Manhattan. At the firm, Mr. Villafane developed new strategies for marketing the agency's services, helping to increase new business by 226%, and positioned the agency to be featured in O’Dwyer’s 2008 Report as America’s 2nd fastest growing agency among ranking of independent PR firms.

Before joining Butler, Mr. Villafane held the post of Senior Adviser and Communications Director to Borough President Adolfo Carrion Jr., who was recently tapped by President Obama to direct the White House Office of Urban Affairs. Villafane embarked on an ambitious project to bring businesses back to the Bronx. 
 
Mr. Villafane established public relations strategies to help direct media attention toward small businesses and other neighborhood attractions rarely covered in the Bronx and  supported new projects that spurred economic development for the community.  He also helped conceive the Borough President’s community benefits agenda by forming the Bronx At Work, an aggressive campaign to attract companies from across the region, provided they were able to offer contracts to local businesses and make jobs available to the over 1.4 million residents living in the County of the Bronx.  His team’s success was noted by Crain’s New York Business: "the creative marketing strategies were important in boosting the borough's confidence".

Prior to his post at the Borough President’s office, Villafane was deputy press secretary for New York City Council Speaker Gifford Miller, where he crafted message and media relations strategies on public policy issues related to housing and economic development.
 
With a wealth of experience, his expertise is sought by industry leaders, nonprofit organizations and universities. Villafane has lectured about public policy and communications at various public and private institutions, and is a contributing writer to many major news publications.

Mr. Villafane holds a law degree from St. John's University School of Law. Portfolio