Paul Baron is senior vice-president, operations, at Minto Apartment REIT. (Courtesy Minto)

There is a new head of operations at Minto Apartment REIT (MI-UN-T), following the departure of chief operations officer George Van Noten to pursue other opportunities. Paul Baron is assuming the role under the title of senior vice-president, operations.

Baron joined Minto Properties Inc. (MPI) in 2008 and was appointed vice-president, asset management in November 2014. He assumed the same role at the REIT upon its IPO in July 2018, responsible for asset management of a portion of the REIT’s real estate assets.

At MPI, he also focused on repurposing and repositioning mixed-use developments.

Prior to joining MPI, Baron was an analyst with RBC Dexia. He holds a bachelor of commerce from Carleton University, an MBA from Queen’s University and is a CFA.

“George Van Noten has been a key member of the Minto team since 2006. On behalf of the REIT’s board of trustees and management team, I thank him for his significant contributions and wish him the best in his future endeavours,” said Minto REIT CEO Michael Waters in the announcement.

“Paul Baron is a highly skilled and experienced executive who has done tremendous work in his current asset management role.

“He knows our properties as well as anyone and is the ideal candidate to assume George’s duties. I congratulate Paul and am confident that he will do an outstanding job in his new role.”

Ballon named global chair of ULI

Peter Ballon, global head of real estate for CPP Investments, has been appointed the new global chair of the Urban Land Institute (ULI). Ballon will serve on a voluntary basis for a two-year term and will provide member leadership as the institute focuses on three new global mission priorities: decarbonization, education and housing.

“I am honoured to follow in the path of many leaders in the real estate industry and serve as ULI’s global chair,” said Ballon in the announcement.

“ULI is a member-driven organization and I see my role very much as a steward of the Institute. I will focus my efforts on delivering our mission and shaping our programs in the way that our members want to see them implemented.”

Richman joins Avison Young board

Avison Young has announced Larry D. Richman, former chair, U.S. region, for CIBC Bank USA, and former president and CEO of The PrivateBank, has joined its board of directors.

Richman spent 40 years in banking – much of it with LaSalle Bank in Chicago, where he rose to president and CEO of LaSalle Bank N.A., and president of LaSalle Bank Midwest. He joined The PrivateBank in November 2007 to drive its strategic transformation, growing from $4 billion in assets in 2007 to more than $20 billion in 2017.

He joined CIBC following its June 2017 acquisition of The PrivateBank, where he served as president and CEO. He retired from CIBC in March.

Richman is on the Dean’s Advisory Council at Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business, where he earned his MBA. He is a past trustee of Bradley University in Peoria, Ill., where he earned his bachelor’s degree.

He also holds an advanced certificate from Stanford University in credit and financial management and is a lifetime advisory board member at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management.

Lim new CFO at Firm Capital MIC

Firm Capital Mortgage Investment Corp. (FC-T) has hired Ryan M. Lim to be its new chief financial officer effective Aug. 16.

For the past four years, Lim has been the CFO of Rapport Credit Union, where he was involved in financial, operations and risk management. Previous to his role at Rapport, Ryan was a manager of finance at TD Bank Financial Group and at Ernst & Young LLP, where he was a manager in the Financial Services Assurance Group. Lim is a CPA, CA.

Anda becomes head of acquisitions at Boardwalk

Richard Anda has joined Boardwalk as head of acquisitions.

Anda has over 30 years of experience in the apartment and real estate sector and was previously vice-president of business development with Northview Apartment REIT. Prior to that, he was vice president of operations at Northern Property REIT.

3 independent trustees names to A+ REIT board

Private Pension Partners Inc., the asset manager of Calgary-based Apartment Plus REIT (A+ REIT), has appointed Robert Louie, Bruce Jack and Priti Mehta-Shah as independent trustees. They join management representatives CEO Don White and COO Karl Loepp on the board. Louie will serve as board chair.

Louie is the former chief of the Westbank First Nation in Kelowna. He chairs the First Nations Lands Advisory Board and is also the chairman / director of Peace Hills Trust. He is a founding shareholder and a director of Decisive Dividend Corporation, and a director with Ecora Engineering. An owner of several businesses, Louie is a former lawyer and the recipient of many awards including being named an Officer of the Order of Canada.

Jack is a member of the Institute of Corporate Directors, Manitoba Chapter, and a CPA and FCA. He is a director of Wawanesa Mutual Insurance Company and several private corporations and served as a trustee of Artis REIT. Jack was an audit partner with Deloitte LLP for 30 years.

Mehta-Shah is president of Mehta Capital Partners. Prior to starting Mehta, she was a partner at BDO Canada LLP. Mehta-Shaw is a member of the Institute of Corporate Directors and was awarded fellowship status in 2018. She is also on the boards of Assiniboine Credit Union, Red River Mutual and the RBC Convention Center.

Van Pelt takes executive role at Empire

Empire Communities has hired Kim Van Pelt as its chief human capital officer. With a career spanning over 20 years in the hospitality industry working for a Fortune 500 firm, Van Pelt has held progressive HR leadership roles, responsible for 120 hotels with 28,000 employees in 11 countries.

Van Pelt graduated with a B.A. in sociology from the University of Western Ontario and holds numerous certifications in human resources from Humber College, Gallup Organization and Development Dimensions International.

Robertson takes helm of BILD Calgary

James Robertson is the new board chair at BILD Calgary Region. The president and CEO of the University of Calgary Properties Group, Robertson is taking over from outgoing chair Brett Friesen of Hopewell Residential.