Griffin Martin promoted to managing director of NorthMarq’s Phoenix office

The Phoenix office of NorthMarq announced the promotion of Griffin Martin to managing director. In his new role, Martin will lead the office and manage the daily debt/equity operations of the Phoenix office along with managing director James DuMars to provide a complete range of financing to the entire Southwestern region and nation through its unmatched network of lending partners.

“James and I share similar core values including ‘taking care of the customer’ and ‘thinking long term.’ Consequently, I’m excited to partner with James as co-managing director of the Arizona office,” said Martin.

“Griffin has an unrelenting drive for achieving exceptional results and taking care of the customer. These exceptional traits coupled with his leadership skills make him an ideal fit to help me co-lead the Arizona office,” said DuMars.

Martin has been in the commercial real estate industry for more than 15 years. He joined NorthMarq in 2015 as a vice president and was promoted to the position of senior producer in 2018. Martin has cultivated a wealth of experience in NorthMarq’s direct agency lending platforms assisting clients with financing from both Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae. In addition to his multifamily finance experience, Griffin also helps clients access capital sources for manufactured housing, self-storage, office, retail and hospitality.

Martin also has extensive experience in arranging bridge financing and construction financing. He has worked closely with clients seeking to access permanent loans from NorthMarq’s wide array of life insurance companies.

Patty Villeneuve leads Arizona Chamber Executives as new board chair

Patty Villeneuve, Carefree Cave Creek Chamber of Commerce president and CEO, will lead other chamber executives as the new board chair for the Arizona Chamber Executives (ACE) board of directors. As board chair, Villeneuve will help equip other chamber executives around the state overcome challenges in business, social, political, economic and educational arenas.

ACE is a nonprofit organization assisting chamber executives throughout Arizona to become informed, effective leaders in their communities, providing an avenue for all chambers together on state, federal and local issues.

“I am honored to be chosen as the board chairwoman for ACE in 2020,” says Patty Villeneuve. “I hope to be a source of encouragement and support to all the chambers in our great state of Arizona.”

Villeneuve currently serves as president and CEO of the Carefree Cave Creek Chamber of Commerce where for nearly 10 years she has brought a blend of sales, marketing and small business know-how to positively impact the local business communities of Carefree and Cave Creek, Arizona.

Previously, Villeneuve worked in sales and marketing for top companies within the telecom, magazine publishing and outdoor advertising industries when she was recruited to lead the chamber of commerce in her hometown of Puyallup, Washington.

Villeneuve says her deep understanding of the blood, sweat and tears invested in a small business gives her a competitive edge to help small business owners as a chamber executive. She received first-hand knowledge of what it takes to be an entrepreneur working at her own family’s restaurant and co-owning an automotive repair store for 10 years.

Concord General Contracting announces leadership transition

Concord General Contracting, Inc. announced the completion of its leadership transition. The transition has been planned for more than 5 years and was implemented throughout 2019.

Effective January 1, 2020, Grenee Celuch has been named Chief Executive Officer, Jason Beaver continues as Chief Operating Officer and JV Nyman has become President of the company. Previous leaders including Dale Marr, John Nyman and Eric Peterson have stepped down from their day-to-day responsibilities, but will remain with the company as employees and shareholders.

“Concord has built an incredibly strong team that is the utmost professional. I am excited to move the company forward to grow our history of successful building,” said Grenee Celuch, CEO. “Concord is poised to continue building innovative projects for our clients as we move towards 50 years in Arizona.”

Celuch joined Concord in 2007 and was most recently Vice President, leading marketing and business development and the firm’s strategic initiatives. Beaver has been with Concord for almost 16 years and continues to serve as Chief Operating Officer. Nyman was Vice President, overseeing finance and administration before stepping into his new role as President. Nyman has been with Concord for 13 years.

“The new leadership team will continue to build on the already strong culture and mission of Concord, while creating new approaches and services for our clients and team,” said Dale Marr, former CEO. “It’s very exciting to think how they will transform Concord for the future.”

Rusing Lopez & Lizardi announces three moves

As of January 2020, Jonathan Saffer became the fifth equity partner at Rusing Lopez & Lizardi. For the last 18 years, Mr. Saffer’s practice has concentrated on all aspects of commercial litigation, finance and business law. He has extensive trial experience in both state and federal courts, advises banks and other lending institutions in all phases of commercial finance matters, and represents several local businesses.

He holds a bachelor’s degree in marketing from the University of Arizona and earned his law degree at the University of Arizona after playing professional baseball in the Montreal Expos organization. Mr. Saffer has been repeatedly recognized by The Best Lawyers in America®. “We are thrilled that Jon will be an integral part of the future of this firm,” said Founding Partner Pat Lopez.

RL&L is also proud to announce the promotion of Isaac Crum to Partner.  “Isaac’s partnership is well earned,” said Equity Partner Oscar Lizardi. “He is an extremely qualified attorney and a quality person who certainly makes our firm stronger.” Mr. Crum has over a decade of experience representing major corporations in commercial and intellectual property litigation around the country. His legal experience and technical background in computer engineering have been leveraged by many of the country’s largest companies across a wide range of technologies. Mr. Crum has been recognized as a “rising star” by the peer-reviewed Southwest Super Lawyers® for the past five years.

Sarah Letzkus has been promoted to an Of Counsel position in 2020. Ms. Letzkus’ practice is focused on commercial litigation, including breach of contract, commercial torts, and lender liability.  Ms. Letzkus has been a member of the Tucson Metro Chamber’s Emerging Leaders Council since 2018, which is a select group made up of young professionals proven to be top performers in their organizations.  She has been recognized for the past three years as a “rising star” by the peer-reviewed Southwest Super Lawyers®.

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