Sarah Liguori joins Arizona Housing Fund Advisory Committee

Arizona Community Foundation’s Senior Director of Impact Investing, Sarah Liguori, has been named the newest member of the Arizona Housing Fund Advisory Committee. The committee is responsible for reviewing and approving grant applications from qualified nonprofits to bring more permanent supportive, low-income, and working-poor housing to Arizona.

Sarah Liguori

The Arizona Housing Fund (AZHF), was created in 2019 to address Arizona’s growing homelessness epidemic. To date, the Fund, which is housed at the Arizona Community Foundation, has raised over $1.4 million and awarded $850K in grants to four Arizona nonprofits for four unique projects that will provide more permanent, supportive, and affordable housing for hundreds of Arizonans in need.

“Sarah is an outstanding addition to our Advisory Committee and brings a wealth of knowledge and experience in fundraising, nonprofit management, and lawmaking,” says Arizona Housing Fund founder and Bank of America National OREO Executive, Howard Epstein.

Liguori joins Epstein; Arizona Community Foundation Chief Program and Community Engagement Officer, Lisa Urias; Meritage Homes Executive Chairman, Steven Hilton; Arizona Association of Realtors Of Counsel, Michelle Lind; Habitat Metro, LLC Owner/Partner, Tim Sprague; Trellis President and CEO, Michael Trailor; and Sheila Harris of Sheila D. Harris Consulting on the committee.

Prior to joining ACF, Liguori was a financial advisor and worked in commercial real estate development. She most recently finished a term serving in the Arizona House of Representatives, where she was the State Representative for Legislative District 28 (now LD 5). She was a member of the Commerce and Government Elections committees where she focused on issues including housing, water/environment, consumer finance protection, education/childcare, and equity. She has a long history of leadership roles and deep knowledge of fundraising and the nonprofit community. A Tucson native, Liguori earned her bachelor’s degree in Economics with a minor in Business Administration from the University of Arizona.

Coppersmith Brockelman attorney appointed to task force

Andy Gaona – head of Coppersmith Brockelman’s nationally recognized elections, political, and public law practice – was appointed to a Judicial Performance Review Task Force by Chief Justice Robert M. Brutinel of the Arizona Supreme Court.

Andy Gaona

Chief Justice Brutinel created the Task Force to develop recommendations to expand and improve the judicial performance review process, which currently evaluates the judicial performance of all judges and justices who stand for retention. Andy is one of only three practicing attorneys appointed to the Task Force, and will join current and retired judges and others in helping the Arizona Supreme Court with this important task.

Gaona, a partner who has played a critical role in the practice’s biggest cases over the past eight years, advises candidates, political action committees, party organizations, nonprofits, and government entities on issues of campaign finance compliance, ballot access, and election-related litigation. In addition, Gaona works closely with groups that sponsor ballot measures at both the state and local level. He has been recognized by Southwest Super Lawyers and The Best Lawyers in America©.  Additionally, he was honored in 2022 as an Arizona Capitol Times Leader of the Year in the Law category and as a member of the Phoenix Business Journal 40 Under 40.

“Andy has earned the respect of his peers and the courts alike as a champion of transparency in public processes, which makes him an ideal candidate to serve on the Supreme Court Task Force,” said Jill Chasson, chair of Coppersmith Brockelman’s governance committee. “With a passion for public policy and maintaining the integrity and excellence of Arizona’s judiciary, Andy brings a well-rounded perspective to the task force. His experience at the local, state, and federal levels, including his extensive experience litigating before the Arizona Supreme Court, will serve him well as he and his peers work to provide recommendations to improve the judicial performance review process.”

The Task Force plans to deliver its recommendations to the Supreme Court by Oct. 1, 2023.

Land Advisors Organization names Trey Davis Rookie of the Year

Land Advisors Organization recently named Pinal County land specialist Trey Davis as the firm’s Rookie of the Year for 2022. Davis, 24, helped to facilitate over $220 million in closings in fiscal year 2022, his first full year as an advisor with Land Advisors Organization’s Pinal County team.

Trey Davis

Davis joined the research team as an intern with Land Advisors Organization in May 2019. Since then, he graduated from Arizona State University and worked with various teams across the organization until joining Kirk McCarville as the firm’s second Pinal County specialist. Together, the team is deeply involved with the rapidly growing industrial market in Casa Grande and throughout Pinal County, Arizona.    

“We are very proud of Trey’s accomplishments as one of your newest advisors. He certainly earned the 2022 Rookie of the Year recognition,” said Greg Vogel, founder and CEO of Land Advisors Organization. “Trey showed incredible promise as an intern and has landed on the team where he is excelling. We’re grateful for the mentorship he receives working with Kirk and wanted to recognize his diligence, helping to establish Pinal County as a new economic hub in Arizona.” 

In recent years, Pinal County has become a highly attractive emerging market for the industrial, commercial and residential building sectors, showing strong economic and job growth. Major manufacturers, including Lucid Motors, Nikola, Kohler, Chang Chun Chemical, and Air Products, have announced coming to or expanding facilities in the area. And, with its proximity to the TSMC factory and Intel’s East Valley expansion, semiconductor supply chain companies, and the Tier 1 and Tier 2 electric vehicle manufacturer suppliers are following suit to have facilities in the area. Davis and McCarville have been key players in facilitating many of Pinal County’s most significant industrial deals in 2022.  

“Trey has been an incredible addition to our Pinal County team of advisors,” said Kirk McCarville, CCIM, managing advisor of Land Advisors Organization’s Casa Grande team. “His enthusiasm for the transformation and new opportunities that are coming to our community combined with his ability to understand the goals of buyers and sellers while applying his knowledge of the market have been instrumental in helping to facilitate closings. He’s a great partner to have!”  


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