Staff

We're committed to improving the lives of low-income residents, and we love working with mission-driven organizations on socially motivated projects. Applying expertise in all aspects of housing and community development, we look forward to supporting the success of your next project.

Robin Boyce was appointed as HDC’s Executive Director in January 2005. Previous to her appointment, Robin worked for five years as HDC’s Finance Director, overseeing HDC’s financial and human resources systems, as well as providing senior level project management to clients. Robin has more than 25 years of experience in affordable housing management, finance, project management, and asset management. Robin has overseen or directly developed thousands of units of affordable rental housing and served on numerous policy committees. Robin initiated HDC’s work on asset management and has presented asset management trainings across the Northwestern United States and at national conferences. Prior to her work with HDC, Robin managed the City of Portland’s rental housing programs at the Portland Development Commission, was a carpenter for five years, a construction manager, and spent several years as a private consultant. Robin attended Reed College and received her bachelor’s degree in Community Services and Public Affairs from the University of Oregon. In 2010, Robin completed the NeighborWorks TM Achieving Excellence in Community Development program in association with Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government.

Housing Development Program

Philip Dochow oversees the work of the Housing Development Program at the Housing Development Center. He has over 25 years experience in housing, including owning and managing a construction firm and fifteen years of affordable housing development. Prior to coming to HDC in April of 2007, Philip was employed by Mission Housing Development Corporation, a community-based nonprofit developer located in San Francisco. During his tenure with at Mission Housing, Philip produced 500 units of affordable housing for seniors, families and homeless single adults, as well as mixed use developments in the Mission District of San Francisco. Philip also served as the Interim Executive Director at Mission Housing for 18 months, managing a staff of 23 and overseeing an organizational budget of approximately $1.4 million. Philip’s role at HDC includes leading a team of seven development staff, in additional to providing senior level project management services, with a focus on feasibility and financing. Philip leads HDC’s work on LIHTC Year 15 exits and brings experience with a wide range of financing sources for affordable housing, including LIHTC, publicly-issued bonds, New Market Tax Credits, and other state, local and federal programs. Philip received a bachelor’s degree from Oregon State University in 1986.

Brian Sweeney is a licensed architect in both Oregon and Washington, and currently works as a Senior Project Manager and supervisor of the construction management staff at the Housing Development Center. Brian is a LEEDTM Accredited Professional with 20 years experience administering construction contracts for owners, both as a project architect and as a developer and construction manager for multi-family housing projects. This work includes seven years as a senior architect for Environmental Works, a nonprofit community design center that is concerned with the design and construction of social service projects such as homeless shelters, childcare centers, and multifamily housing for disadvantaged and challenged populations. Brian founded and led his own architectural firm for six years before joining Low Income Housing Institute (LIHI), a nonprofit affordable housing developer in Seattle. As LIHI’s Director of Development, Brian oversaw the development of over 400 units of affordable housing for residents of western Washington. Several of these projects received regional and national recognition, including the Denny Park Apartments, which was recognized nationally for its innovative sustainable design features. Brian has regularly presented at trainings and architectural programs in Oregon and Washington. Brian holds a Masters in Architecture from the University of Washington, and received his certificate in Land Use Law from the professional studies Program at the University of Washington.

Craig Kelley has more than fifteen years of experience in construction and affordable housing development, including more than a decade at the Housing Development Center. Prior to HDC, Craig owned a residential design/build company and spent four years as a construction manager with a northeast Portland community development organization. As a Senior Project Manager at HDC, Craig works primarily in construction management and is HDC’s point person on green building practices. Craig’s leadership in green building and construction best practices helps HDC incorporate environmentally sustainable practices and long term sustainability measures into all of HDC’s projects. Craig takes an active role in HDC policy work related to both sustainability and construction best practices, influencing the Oregon’s affordable housing industry. While at HDC, Craig has provided direct project management to develop or preserve more than 435 units of affordable housing, working with clients to address complex construction issues such as brownfield redevelopment, scattered site developments, resolving exterior building envelope issues, rehabilitation of occupied properties, and development of very tight construction sites. His work has helped bring significant national and local recognition to our client’s projects. Craig has a bachelor’s degree in architecture from the University of Virginia, and is a LEED™ Accredited Professional and Certified Sustainable Building Advisor.

Daryn Murphy joined the Housing Development Center in June 2007 as a Project Manager, focusing primarily on finance. Daryn came to HDC from PNC Multifamily Capital, where he worked in various asset management capacities for five years. At PNC, Daryn first served as a Stabilization Manager, analyzing property operations and overseeing disbursement of equity and loan proceeds during construction, property leaseup and stabilization. In his most recent position at PNC, Daryn worked with tax credit project sponsors, developers and investors to develop, negotiate and implement strategies to turn around delayed or poor performing properties, including work on property disposition and portfolio reviews. Daryn’s housing and finance background also includes two years working as part of a lending team, working with homeless families at a nonprofit organization, and participation in policy research on publicly subsidized, privately owned mobile homes. At the Housing Development Center, Daryn leads project teams to complete feasibility work and project financing for multi-family affordable housing and mixed use developments. Daryn has experience in financing affordable housing in both Oregon and Washington, including use of state and local funding programs as well as federal HUD and LIHTC programs.

Susan Lind has worked in the affordable housing field for more than 20 years, bringing that experience to HDC as a Project Manager in November 2010. Prior to joining HDC, Susan worked as a project manager for both Catholic Charities and CASA of Oregon where she was responsible for managing all phases of housing development from project inception through occupancy. A large part of Susan’s work is working with a variety of funding sources including LIHTC, HOME, CDBG, state grants and tax credits, and USDA Rural Development. In turn, the affordable housing has benefited a variety of populations at the lowest income levels including persons with mental disabilities, homeless families and individuals, and farmworker families. Susan earned a Bachelors degree in Political Science from Oregon State University and a Masters degree in Public Affairs from the University of Oregon.

Leslie Schwarz is a Project Manager with extensive experience in the development of both homeownership and rental housing. Leslie joined HDC’s staff in 2000, with a background in federal construction contracting and experience as owner of her own construction company and consulting services business. Leslie has undertaken numerous special projects while at HDC, including coordinating a policy initiative to address lead-based paint issues, working with municipal jurisdictions from across the Portland metropolitan area. Leslie’s development and preservation projects have been varied, including development of land trust homeownership properties, the renovation of an educational farm in southeast Portland, new construction of multi-family properties, and preservation and rehabilitation of multi-family rental properties, including Historic Tax Credit financed renovation. Leslie provides both financing and construction management services, with experience in project feasibility analysis, predevelopment and construction financing, funding applications, project team coordination, construction management, and replacement reserve analysis. Leslie is a Certified Sustainable Building Advisor.

Lara Spangler is a licensed architect in California and Arizona, and is certified with the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards. She currently works as a Construction Project Manager at the Housing Development Center. Lara is a LEEDTM Accredited Professional with over 15 years’ experience working on residential projects of diverse sizes, types, and settings. As Senior Architect for KodamaDiseno Architects in San Francisco, Lara administered the construction contracts for HUD funded and insured housing projects. She also oversaw the design and construction documents for projects including multifamily housing, homeless shelters, senior housing, assisted living facilities, and special needs housing. Lara holds a Bachelor of Architecture from the University of Arizona.

Les brings to his position a broad background in construction, inspections and project development, with experience in for profit and nonprofit housing development. As a second generation contractor, Les has extensive experience in developing single-family subdivisions, bidding and construction supervision, as well as generating specifications with an emphasis on energy efficient techniques and design. Les was able to use this experience in his position as State Housing Director for Rural Opportunities, Inc., a large, multi-state nonprofit developer operating on the East Coast and the Midwest. Responsibilities included development of rental housing for farm worker families, affordable home ownership opportunities for income eligible buyers, and coordination of housing development efforts in a multi-state region. Les received his first certification as a home inspector in Indiana, and formed HouseCalls Inspection Services, which provided homebuyers with residential inspections prior to home purchases. In Florida, Les achieved certification as a Registered Wind Mitigation Surveyor, and provided structural inspections to assist homeowners in obtaining insurance discounts. Currently Les is an Oregon Certified Home Inspector.

Andy Shaw joined HDC in January, 2008. Andy is responsible for providing project management support to the Housing Development Director and Project Managers. In addition, Andy leads HDC’s relocation services. His previous work experiences include commercial real estate appraising and credit analysis as well as work in public relations. Andy interned with the D.C. Public Defender Service and Berkeley Homeless Action Center. Andy is enrolled in the Real Estate Development Graduate Certificate Program at Portland State University. His education includes graduate-level studies in banking and financial analysis, and participation in the University of Oregon Summer Architecture Academy. Andy graduated from the University of California, Berkeley with a B.A. in History and California State University Long Beach with a Masters of Public Administration.

Asset Management Program

Gail is Housing Development Center’s Director of Asset Management. Joining HDC's team in 2011, Gail brings 23 years of experience in the asset management of affordable housing at Capmark Affordable Equity, PNC Multifamily Capital, and The Boston Financial Group. In her previous position as Vice President at Capmark Affordable Equity, Gail oversaw the company’s portfolio of 500 properties and supervised a team of 12 staff. Gail was responsible for developing Capmark's policies for changes in management companies, performing audit reviews and property inspections and transferring general partners, including assessment of general partner capacity. While at these LIHTC investment companies, Gail oversaw the development of data base systems and improved reporting capabilities to investors, managers and other stakeholders to understand the performance of properties. In her role at PNC, Gail directed tax credit compliance efforts, evaluated investment performance and ongoing operational performance of PNC’s portfolio, and determined strategies for the portfolio, including dispositions and Year 15 exits. Prior to her work with investors, Gail worked for the Department of Communities and Development in Boston, MA and the AFL-CIO. Gail has a Bachelor of Arts in Urban Studies from Wellesley College and a Masters in City Planning from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Emily Schelling joined HDC’s staff in 2010 as an Asset Management Project Manager. She comes to HDC with a background in planning, policy, social work and housing development, and has worked with a variety of affordable housing organizations in the Portland area since 2000. Her diverse experiences at these organizations—direct client contact for a social service agency, asset management for a tax credit syndicator, affordable housing development in rural Oregon, strategic planning for government housing agencies—inform her understanding of asset management’s many nuances. Emily has a master’s degree in city planning from Rutgers University, where she received a Graduate Excellence Fellowship.

Kimberly Taylor joined Housing Development Center as an Asset Management Project Manager in August, 2010. She has worked in the affordable housing industry since 1999, with a focus on asset management and compliance. Kimberly was most recently employed as an Asset Manager and Senior Compliance Specialist with Homestead Capital, a Portland-based regional Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) syndicator. In this role, Kimberly oversaw the financial performance and compliance for a portfolio of 46 properties across the western U.S. Kimberly has led compliance and asset management trainings for developers, owners and property management firms in Oregon, Washington, Utah, and Colorado. Prior to Homestead Capital, Kimberly was a LIHTC Compliance Officer for Income Property Management Company in Portland. Kimberly is a member of Novogradac’s Journal of Tax Credits’ LIHTC Advisory Board and has a Housing Credit Certified Professional (HCCP) designation from the National Homebuilders Association. Kimberly has a Bachelor of Arts degree in journalism from the University of Georgia.

Operations and Special Projects

Deb Constans is a CPA who has spent most of her professional life working with nonprofits, both as an auditor and an accountant. Prior to joining HDC in December 2006, she spent ten years as the Fiscal Manager at Stand for Children and Peninsula Children’s Center. Deb is responsible for both the financial management and operations at HDC. Deb graduated from Lewis & Clark College in Portland, Oregon.

Carolyn started at the Housing Development Center in 1996 and spent 11 years as a project manager developing affordable housing projects for nonprofit clients. In her development work, Carolyn has accessed state, local, and federal funds and seen projects from inception through close of permanent financing. In 2008-2009, Carolyn worked as a project manager for NOAH, primarily focused on asset management including refinancing troubled assets. Carolyn returned to HDC in the fall of 2009 to work on special projects including an analysis of the City of Portland’s affordable housing portfolio, writing a Preservation Guide for the City of Seattle, and, most recently, overseeing the state’s Streamlining Initiative. Carolyn holds a Master’s degree in City Planning from the University of California at Berkeley as well as a Master’s in Fine Arts in Creative Writing from the Stonecoast program at the University of Southern Maine.

Camela Raymond is responsible for communicating information, ideas, and messages about Housing Development Center’s work. She first joined HDC in 1994, working as an office administrator and, later, as a project assistant. In 1997 she was hired by Sustainable Communities Northwest, an affordable housing nonprofit specializing in green building, as a project coordinator. In 2000 she made a shift to freelance writing, developing marketing and fundraising materials for nonprofit and public agencies and contributing articles to local and national publications. She founded the Organ, a not-for-profit arts and culture broadsheet, in 2002, serving as editor and publisher until 2004, when she joined the staff of Portland Monthly magazine. As associate editor, then senior editor, she oversaw arts and design coverage and wrote and edited feature articles on a wide range of topics. She returned to freelance communications writing and content development in 2008, working for clients ranging from boutique design firms to large private and nonprofit corporations. In early 2012 she rejoined HDC in the role of communications coordinator.

Andrew Ayres has an extensive background in computer software and customer service. He manages HDC’s technology and is the first point of contact for HDC’s clients, providing customer service and coordination. Andrew joined HDC’s staff in 2001.