H&R REIT (HR-UN-T) has appointed longtime Crombie REIT CEO Don Clow to H&R’s board of trustees, where he will also serve as independent lead trustee.

He fills a vacancy left by Ronald Rutman, who departs the board following a term as vice-chair and independent lead trustee. 

Clow recently retired from his roles as trustee, president and CEO of Crombie REIT. He previously served as a trustee of Granite REIT.

"Under Don's leadership, Crombie delivered consistent growth and superior unitholder returns, while achieving record occupancy levels and significantly strengthening the balance sheet," H&R executive chair Tom Hofstedter said in the announcement. "His experience and expertise encompass the entire real estate development cycle, from land assembly, acquisitions and divestments, development planning approval and capital structure. 

“We welcome Don as a trustee of H&R, where his guidance will be invaluable as we seek to accelerate the REIT's transformation strategy."

Clow's appointment is another milestone in a board renewal process that began in 2017; all six of the REIT's independent trustees have joined the board within the last three years.

Rutman had spent 27 years with H&R, including eight years as board chair and most recently as vice-chair.

Haasen stepping down as Madison Pacific CEO

Madison Pacific Properties (MPC-T) and Metro Vancouver Properties Corp. have announced the pending retirement of president and CEO Marvin Haasen, who is to be succeeded by Madison’s board chair, John DeLucchi.

The transition will occur on July 17, although DeLucchi will remain with the company through October to assist in the transition. Haasen is also leaving his board positions with both companies.

Haasen has led both firms for over a decade. During that time, Madison Pacific’s assets have grown from $299 million to $835 million, while Metro Vancouver Properties’ assets have grown from $245 million to $663 million.

DeLucchi brings significant experience to his new roles, including the past three years as president and CEO of Madison Venture Corporation, the company’s largest shareholder.

Previously, he spent over 35 years with PwC, including serving as the BC Region managing partner from 2009 to 2017 and as a member of PwC’s national board of directors from 2018 to 2020.

Ferreira new SVP at Anthem

Anthem Properties Group recently hired Michael Ferreira as a senior vice-president, to liaise with financial partners, assist in capital formation, and work with the development team on approvals and market analytics.

In his 30-plus years in the real estate development industry, Ferreira is best-known for starting and growing the real estate research and advisory company Urban Analytics (now Zonda Urban) across Western Canada, which he eventually sold and helped expand into Toronto and Ottawa.

As co-owner of Urban Analytics, he supplied industry stakeholders, including developers and builders, lenders and governments with insights and perspective on market conditions and trends, and on real estate development projects.

“We are delighted to have a person of Michael’s calibre join our senior leadership team, which also helps to fill the void left by Kevin Falcon’s departure in returning to provincial politics,” Anthem CEO Eric Carlson said in the announcement. “Michael’s knowledge, work ethic, and personal values, fit succinctly with our organization and we anticipate a high level of energy, engagement and results stemming from his involvement.”

Biderman to lead Peakhill’s U.S. credit arm

Peakhill Capital has expanded its credit footprint into the United States and added a new managing partner, Sandor Biderman, to lead its U.S. credit operations. 

Biderman brings over 30 years of experience in loan origination, credit and investment management. He will work alongside Harley Gold, managing partner of Peakhill Capital, and Jonah Belkin, managing partner of Peakhill Equity Partners.

Prior to joining Peakhill, Biderman spent 12 years at Walker & Dunlop, where he was the chief production officer, proprietary capital, leading the firm's multifamily balance sheet lending program and joint venture with Blackstone Mortgage Trust. 

Over his career, he has closed over $10 billion of commercial real estate loans, preferred equity, and mezzanine financings at firms spanning Walker & Dunlop, Wachovia Securities and Latitude Funding.  

Biderman will be responsible for continuing the company's U.S. expansion, with the goal of generating $300 million of high-yield credit investments over the next 12 months.

Comings, goings at Parvis Invest

Parvis Invest Inc. (PVIS-X) co-founder and COO Conan Graham has stepped down as part of a restructuring process. In addition, Scott Spence has been named head of growth and Zoe Seguev becomes director, operations and compliance.

Most recently, Spence was the global marketing director at Fundsquire in Toronto. Prior to that he held various other media and communications roles and was an equities and futures trader. 

Spence brings over 15 years of experience in developing and executing growth and marketing strategies, combining full-stack marketing with data-driven decision making to drive brand awareness and revenue growth.

Seguev comes to Parvis with experience in operations and controls management with businesses such as WeWork, Vivovii and most recently, Coinsquare, where she was senior business operations manager.

Vitug becomes director at StorageVault

StorageVault Canada Inc. (SVI-T) has appointed Mary Vitug as a director, joining Jay Lynne Fleming, Benjamin Harris, Iqbal Khan, Steven Scott and Alan Simpson.

Vitug has over 30 years of capital markets and financial services experience, including 24 years at Scotiabank where she was a managing director in both investment banking and equity capital markets. At Scotiabank, Vitug led numerous prominent IPOs, M&A, and equity financing transactions. 

Her expertise spans various industries, with a strategic focus on real estate, consumer and retail, industrial and financial services. For 20 years she was a member of Scotiabank’s equity liability committee, evaluating risk and managing capital for global financings.

Vitug is board chair of Women in Capital Markets and a recognized leader in equity, diversity and inclusion. She is also an independent member of the private capital investment committee for Nicola Wealth.

A CPA, Vitug holds a BA in economics from the University of Toronto and an MBA from the Rotman School of Management.

QPAREB names LaBarre as CEO

Guillaume LaBarre has been appointed CEO of the QPAREB. 

LaBarre had served as managing director for the Ordre des psychologues du Québec since 2018, and as managing director and secretary for the Ordre des agronomes du Québec.

Stefura promoted at Melcor

Naomi Stefura has been promoted to chief operating officer of Melcor Developments, in addition to her duties as chief financial officer. 

During her 14-year tenure with Melcor, Stefura has gained a deep understanding of the company's operating divisions and earned the respect of stakeholders including the board, employees, and partners, the firm said in its announcement.

Baker Real Estate names Dieu as COO

Baker Real Estate Inc. has brought Jean Marc Dieu onboard in the new role of chief operating officer.

Most recently, he oversaw digital initiatives and implementation at Scotiabank.  Prior to that, he was with Boston Consulting Group, specializing in financial services projects.