Two champions of affordable housing and community development in the Boston area will receive the 2016 Affordable Housing Vision Award for their service, commitment, imagination, and valuable contributions to the field.
Maurice Barry, Chief of the Asset Resolution Branch at the U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development Multifamily Boston Satellite Office, and Fred Copeman, Esq., Principal and National Director of Tax Credit Investment Services at CohnReznick LLP, will be honored during the NH&RA Fall Developers Forum on November 1, at The Langham, Boston.
“This year’s honorees have played pivotal behind-the-scenes roles in the stewardship and expansion of affordable housing opportunities for low-income families around the country,” said NH&RA Executive Director Thom Amdur.
Maurice Barry is being recognized for his leadership implementing many of HUD’s most important multifamily preservation initiatives in New England, including Section 236 decoupling, Mark to Market transactions, and Section 202 refinancing. “He has been the ‘go-to-guy’ in Boston when it comes to complicated preservation issues,” said Amdur.
A trusted advisor and educator to numerous affordable housing tax credit investors, and a leader within NH&RA where he has served on the Board of Directors for many years, Fred Copeman will be honored for his work to expand the overall investor base for the Low Income Housing Tax Credit. “Fred’s role cannot be understated, and through the development of his investor due diligence practice, he has helped assure the program’s longstanding financial success,” said Amdur.
As Vision Award honorees, Barry and Copeman join an esteemed alumna of previous recipients including the late Mayor Tom Menino, former Congressman Barney Frank, Jack Manning of Boston Capital, and Lisa Alberghini of the Boston Archdiocese Planning Office for Urban Affairs.
