Maria Torres-Springer

Torres-Springer was born in Los Angeles, California, to parents from the Philippines: her father Manny from Pampanga and her mother Elsa from Batangas. She lived in the Philippines from ages nine to fourteen after her mother died.^[9] The family often struggled financially, relying on Section 8 vouchers and food stamps throughout her childhood.^[2]

Torres-Springer completed a bachelor's degree in ethics, politics, and economics at Yale University. She earned a master's in public policy from the Harvard Kennedy School.^[10][11]

Torres-Springer was a senior policy advisor in the office of the deputy mayor of New York City for economic development and rebuilding. She was the chief operating officer of Friends of the High Line. She worked as the executive vice president and chief of staff of the New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC).^[10]

Torres-Springer served as vice president for U.S. programs at the Ford Foundation from 2019 to 2021.^[12][13] In 2025 she returned to the foundation as a senior fellow.^[14]

While Bill de Blasio was the Mayor of New York City, Torres-Springer served as the commissioner of the New York City Department of Small Business Services before becoming the president and CEO of the NYCEDC in June 2015.^[10] De Blasio later appointed Torres-Springer to lead the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development.^[15] In those roles, she redeveloped the Spofford Juvenile Center into an arts center with affordable housing.^[16] Torres-Springer also oversaw the Far Rockaway, Queens neighborhood plan.^[10] In February 2019, she stepped down from the department of housing preservation in what real-estate magazine The Real Deal called part of "the latest in a wave of top officials leaving the de Blasio administration."^[17] During her time in the De Blasio administration, Torres-Springer worked under Deputy Mayor Alicia Glen.

In December 2021, New York City mayor-elect Eric Adams named her the incoming deputy mayor for economic and workforce development. Torres-Springer and Meera Joshi are the first Asian Americans to serve as deputy mayors of New York City. They assumed those positions effective January 1, 2022.^[2][11]

In December 2023, it was reported that Torres-Springer was influential in fast-tracking FDNY inspection of 50 Hudson Yards - owned by political donor Related Companies - ahead of several schools, apartments, and other buildings.^[18]

In October 2024, Torres-Springer was appointed First Deputy Mayor of New York City after the resignation of Sheena Wright.^[19] Torres-Springer announced that she would resign from the role on February 17, 2025, leaving office on March 14.^[20][7]

Torres-Springer resided in Brooklyn. She is married to Jamie Torres-Springer, President of Construction & Development at the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, and has two daughters.^[10][21][22]

• Filipinos in the New York metropolitan area