Virginia Housing Names Interim CEO as Dewey Moves Toward Retirement
With longtime leader Susan Dewey retiring at the end of the year, Virginia Housing has appointed Janet Wiglesworth as the housing finance agency’s interim CEO, effective Jan. 1, 2024.
Wiglesworth is chief operations officer, overseeing Virginia Housing’s ongoing operations, including human resources, information technology, communications, and executive services. She began her career at Virginia Housing in 1998 as the business systems manager and has also served as managing director of information technology and managing director of homeownership before being named COO in 2018. Wiglesworth is an active member of the National Council of State Housing Agencies and has also served on the boards of the Virginia Mortgage Lenders Association Virginia Credit Union.
Dewey, who has served as CEO of Virginia Housing since 1999, will work closely with the organization’s board and leadership team to ensure a smooth transition until her departure Dec. 31. The board is conducting a nationwide search for a permanent successor to Dewey and expects to announce her successor early next year.
Conifer Names General Counsel
Lillian Plata has been promoted to general counsel at Conifer Realty, a national leader in the investment, development, and management of affordable housing.
Plata joined the company in 2022 as deputy general counsel, providing legal services in connection with the development, ownership, and management of the company’s affordable housing portfolio, low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC) syndications, debt financing, and property and portfolio acquisitions.
In her expanded role, Plata will be responsible for leading Conifer’s legal function as the company pursues its long-term growth strategy and works toward its goal of expanding access to high-quality affordable housing.
Prior to joining Conifer, Plata served as a co-founding member of Nee Plata Law in Roseland, New Jersey.
NeighborWorks Capital Announces Chief Consulting Officer
Nancy Wagner-Hislip has joined the NeighborWorks Capital team to lead NeighborWorks Capital Consulting. This new business line within NeighborWorks Capital supports members of NeighborWorks America and other nonprofits in expanding their overall impact and their focus on racial and economic justice by connecting them with national consulting talent to supplement their existing resources.
Wagner-Hislip brings to this role more than 30 years of community development experience, including a long tenure at Reinvestment Fund, where she most recently served as its chief investment officer. She managed a $700 million loan and investment portfolio and drove annual originations in excess of $200 million. In this role, she was responsible for all aspects of the lending business, including business planning, new business development, loan origination, asset management, lending enterprise risk management, and capitalization.
Dakota Partners Appoints VP of Corporate Finance
Bill Anderson has joined Dakota Partners as vice president of corporate finance and accounting.
He will take ownership of Dakota’s finance and accounting department, leading a team of corporate accountants.
Most recently, Anderson served as deputy fiscal director at the Cambridge Housing Authority (CHA) in Massachusetts. At CHA, he led a team handling all finance, accounting, and reporting matters for the agency’s LIHTC projects that rehabilitated over 1,600 former public housing units in Cambridge. Prior to CHA, Anderson spent 20 years in various finance roles in the investment services business across Bank of America and State Street Corp.
Dakota Partners develops affordable, workforce, and market-rate housing communities across New England, New York, and the Mid-Atlantic.
OCCH Adds to Team
Jeff Beam and Mary Ann Lang have joined the executive leadership team of Ohio Capital Corporation for Housing, an affordable housing tax credit syndicator.
Beam will serve as executive vice president of development, succeeding OCCH’s Brian Langmeyer, who is retiring in early 2024 after more than 20 years with the organization. Beam has over 20 years of affordable housing experience, having most recently worked for The Community Builders as a regional vice president of development.
Lang will serve as executive vice president of capital markets. She brings nearly 20 years of raising capital and managing investor relationships. She spent much of her career on the syndication team at CREA, growing from an analyst to managing director during her tenure. Lang also led business development at KeyBank, where she used her experience to grow the bank’s equity platform.
