MidCity Appoints Stacy L. Spann as CEO

By June 8, 2021Uncategorized

Bethesda, MD, June 7, 2021 – MidCity announced today that Stacy L. Spann will join the firm as CEO. He succeeds John Wall who is continuing his 40-year association with the multifamily housing real estate firm by transitioning from CEO into a senior advisory capacity. Spann is joining MidCity from the Housing Opportunities Commission of Montgomery County, Maryland (HOC) where he has served as executive director since 2012.

“We are truly delighted that Stacy is joining MidCity. His acute understanding of the multifaceted development landscape, including structuring joint venture partnerships, will be an asset to our transformational redevelopment projects,” said Gene Ford, Jr., MidCity’s chairman. “MidCity will benefit from Stacy’s extensive experience in multifamily housing in the greater Washington/Baltimore region, and his successful efforts acquiring, developing, owning, leasing and operating affordable housing.”

Spann moves to MidCity after nearly 10 years at the helm of HOC, one of the premier public housing authorities in the country, as well as a vertically-integrated housing developer, housing finance agency, and one of the largest owners and operators of affordable housing in Montgomery County, Maryland. Under Spann’s leadership, the agency experienced a golden age of affordable housing finance and development, championing a fiscally sustainable mixed-income model that garnered the agency awards and accolades from organizations like the Urban Land Institute (ULI), the National Association of Local Housing Finance Agencies (NALHFA) and the National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials (NAHRO).

“Stacy’s vision and commitment to serving this agency and its customers over the last decade has been unparalleled,” said HOC Chair Roy Priest. “Though he will be missed, he has built an incredible team of individuals, critical partnerships, and a robust framework that will ensure HOC continues to meet the promise of its affordable housing mission well into the future.”

While at HOC, Spann was named a member of the Annie E. Casey Foundation’s prestigious Children and Family Fellowship Class 10. He is an adjunct professor of the Capstone Course Master’s Program in Real Estate at the University of Maryland at College Park in the School of Architecture, Planning & Preservation and a member of the Professional Development Faculty for NAHRO, where he teaches “Introduction to Mixed Finance for Public Housing Authorities,” a course he designed for housing authorities, nonprofits and local and federal governmental entities throughout the U.S. 

Prior to joining HOC, Spann was the executive director of Howard County Housing where he doubled the size of the housing unit portfolio and engineered the county’s first mixed-income developments. His background also includes serving as the assistant commissioner of development finance in Baltimore, Maryland.

Spann holds a Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration from Morehouse College and a Master of Public Administration in Advanced Management and Finance from Columbia University School of International and Public Affairs.

“MidCity is a mission-driven owner and developer with a team laser-focused on long-term investment in communities, which is critical to me,” said Spann. “The organization’s support of community, longstanding partnerships and alignment with diversity, equity, and inclusion prove that mission and margin are not mutually exclusive goals. I look forward to bringing my experience and success building community to MidCity.”

Spann succeeds John Wall who is transitioning into a senior advisor role after managing MidCity’s business and mission-driven activities as president and CEO over the past 17 years.  Wall also retains his seat on MidCity’s board of directors. During his time as CEO, Wall strategically repositioned and recapitalized the company, launched its current development activities, and acquired valuable interests in the owning entities controlled by MidCity. Wall served as co-chair and a director of the Washington Area Housing Partnership and as a director and treasurer of the Institute for Responsible Housing Preservation. He was appointed to former Maryland Governor Schaefer’s SPECTRUM Housing Task Force and has chaired affordable and employer assisted housing task forces for the Greater Washington Board of Trade. Wall also served as a director of the OpenDoor Housing Fund.

“John has been a force in the greater Washington and Baltimore affordable housing market, applying his skills and knowledge of the FHA-insured, HUD multifamily housing programs to shape inclusive communities where all residents—from the young to the elderly—can afford to live and thrive,” said Ford.