Vecino Announces Leadership Moves
The Vecino Group, a national real estate development company, has announced several key promotions across its organization.
Aaron Henry has been promoted to president, while continuing in his role as chief financial officer. In this expanded position, he will oversee the full scope of company operations, drive financial strategy, and ensure alignment across all departments in pursuit of the company’s mission and growth objectives.
Baxter Reecer has been promoted to chief operating officer, where he will lead operational objectives across the company, driving performance, integration, and efficiency.
Jordan Gibson has been promoted to senior vice president of organizational development, focusing on building and supporting the internal team, enhancing operational systems, and fostering a strong and values-driven company culture.
Kayla Camp has been promoted to director of finance, where she will oversee the financial components of Vecino’s developments. Her role includes responsibilities in development finance, underwriting, and financial reporting, with a focus on monitoring the financial position of properties from concept to completion
These leadership moves aim to strengthen the Springfield, Missouri-based company’s position as a mission-focused development firm, ensuring the company is well-positioned to continue delivering high-impact developments that address critical housing needs and create lasting community benefit.
Industry Veterans Join Merchants Capital
Andrew Weil and Justin Ginsberg have been named executive vice presidents of originations at Merchants Capital. They will bring their leadership and expertise to enhance the firm’s national multifamily and affordable housing debt and equity footprint.
They have worked together in the affordable housing industry for more than 30 years. At Centerline Capital Group, they led the affordable housing tax credit and debt platform. For the last 12 years, they served as co-heads of the affordable housing agency lending platform at Grandbridge, a subsidiary of Truist Bank.
Merchants Capital consistently ranks among the top agency lenders in the United States, holding licenses with Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and the Federal Housing Administration.
Cruz Cos. Announces Hires, New Headquarters
Cruz Cos., one of the country’s largest 100% Black-owned construction, development, and management enterprises, has announced an expansion of its leadership team with several new appointments.
Jodie Case has joined Cruz Management as vice president, asset management. She brings more than 25 years of experience in the property management industry, with a specialized focus on affordable housing and asset management. Case has held senior asset management roles at Boston’s Codman Square Neighborhood Development Corp. as well as with Forest City Realty Trust and AvalonBay Communities.
Terence T. Stretch has been named vice president of John B. Cruz Construction Co. During his career, he has managed nearly 40 projects with a total value in excess of $2 billion. His portfolio spans a range of projects, including historic renovations, justice facilities, hotels, casinos, high-rise apartments and condominiums, college dormitories, and schools. At Cruz, Stretch will play an integral part in realizing the organization’s substantial pipeline of upcoming projects.
Seitia Harris has joined the organization as compliance manager, bringing nearly 30 years of experience in compliance and property management. With prior roles overseeing multifamily properties with multilayered funding and collaborating with public agencies in Florida, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Wisconsin, she has worked to ensure properties stay in compliance with the Department of Housing and Urban Development, Internal Revenue Service, and relevant state agencies.
Cruz Cos. recently opened its new corporate headquarters within the firm’s Michael E. Haynes Building, an award-winning mixed-use apartment, office, and retail complex in Boston.
Travois Announces Promotions
Travois, a company focused on promoting housing and economic development for American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian communities, has announced the recent promotion of three team members.
Alexandria Murnan (Shawnee Tribe, Cherokee Nation) is the new vice president of affordable housing. As part of the executive team, she will play a key role in shaping and implementing the company’s vision for affordable housing. She will oversee the housing development, architecture, and asset management and compliance teams, working alongside Tribal nations to fund, build, and strengthen housing in Native communities.
Since 2015, Murnan has been essential to the company’s success and that of its clients. Most recently, she served as the director of housing development, where her team helped Tribally Designated Housing Entities (TDHEs) secure hundreds of millions of dollars in low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC) equity for the construction and rehabilitation of housing in their communities.
Trent Rogers replaces Murnan as director of housing development and leads a team of project managers committed to creating homes in Native communities. The team secures funding through the LIHTC program and gap funding through various grant opportunities.
Since joining Travois in 2016, Rogers has guided clients through the affordable housing development process as a project manager. He also frequently advocates for state housing policies that allow TDHE developments to compete fairly with other proposed projects. Under Rogers’ leadership, the housing development team has continued to grow with the recent addition of Shabrie Perico (Fort Sill Apache Tribe).
Bryan Schuler has been named chief strategy officer as Murnan prepared to assume his former role as vice president of affordable housing. Schuler has been with Travois since 2005 and has contributed significantly to its success and growth. Under Schuler’s leadership, the affordable housing team eclipsed $1 billion in LIHTC investor equity secured for its clients while expanding its line of services.
In his new role, Schuler will lead the company’s strategic vision for the future. His methodical approach ensures client needs are met without compromise, building strong trust among investor partners and increasing demand for developments supported by Travois.
As part of the company’s growth, Travois also announced Bo Schneider (Ft. Peck Assiniboine Tribe of Montana, Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska, Kickapoo Tribe in Kansas) as an associate asset manager for Travois New Markets.
Cannon Heyman & Weiss Names Partner
Anthony E. Bargnesi has been named a partner at the Buffalo and Albany, New York-based affordable housing and community development law firm of Cannon Heyman & Weiss (CHW).
He joined CHW in 2017 as a law clerk, became an attorney in 2018, and a senior attorney in 2022. He has broad experience in all aspects of financing federal and state LIHTC deals and federal and state historic tax credit deals, including exposure to Opportunity Zone and New Market Tax Credit financing.
CHW was founded in 2001 and has a team of more than 50 attorneys, paralegals, and administrative staff who work on affordable housing and community development transactions across New York state and throughout the country.
SDS Capital Announces Promotion
Laura Baron has been elevated to chief operating officer at SDS Capital Group, a platform of impact funds that focuses on creating affordable housing throughout the United States.
In her new role, she will expand her leadership to oversee companywide operations, ensuring the execution of SDS’s strategic initiatives and enhancing operational efficiency.
Recently the firm’s chief financial officer, Baron joined SDS as vice president and controller in 2009. As CFO, she oversaw all aspects of the company’s financial management, including project analysis, accounting, regulatory compliance, and investor transparency. She also developed SDS's proprietary operational infrastructure, which now effectively manages over $1.4 billion in assets through SDS-sponsored funds and SDS Advantage Services.
