Housing Leader Margaret Salazar Joins REACH Community Development as CEO
“My highest priority is to be collaborative, and bring forth human-centered, racial justice-oriented solutions that are based in best practice. I am also thrilled to be joining the incredibly talented staff at REACH and look forward to getting started.”
- Margaret Salazar
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Sept. 6, 2023
PORTLAND – Today the REACH Community Development (REACH) Board of Directors announced the appointment of Margaret Salazar as the organization’s new CEO. Salazar is a highly experienced housing executive who has been recognized nationally for her work leading housing policy, finance and innovation at the national, state and local level. Salazar comes to REACH from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) where she serves as the Northwest Regional Administrator. Before her role at HUD, Salazar served as the director of Oregon Housing and Community Services (OHCS). She is scheduled to begin her new role with REACH in late October 2023.
“On behalf of the REACH Community Development Board of Directors, we are extremely pleased that Margaret will be joining the organization as its new leader,” said Jill Lam, board chair of REACH. “Margaret is an experienced and respected regional housing policy leader who understands the immense opportunities and challenges with Oregon and Southwest Washington’s affordable housing landscape. She is a true visionary who will bring the tenacity, commitment and innovative spirit needed to ensure the organization can meet the moment we find ourselves in.”
Salazar first joined HUD in 2006, helping to finance the development of multifamily rental homes across Calif., Hawaii, and Nev. She later served as associate deputy assistant secretary for multifamily housing at HUD headquarters in Washington, D.C. where she financed the recapitalization of hundreds of properties while safeguarding affordability for thousands of vulnerable seniors and families.
In 2016, Salazar was appointed director of OHCS, the state’s housing finance agency, before rejoining HUD in January 2022. During her tenure at OHCS, the agency tripled its production of affordable rental housing, created more than 1,000 units of permanent supportive housing, deployed $500 million in emergency rental assistance, and passed legislation to expand racial equity in homelessness programs.
In her most recent role as HUD Northwest Regional Administrator, Salazar led more than 200 HUD staff to deploy billions of federal dollars to Public Housing Authorities, state and local governments, Tribes and homeless service providers across Wash., Ore., Idaho and Alaska. In this role, she leveraged federal funds to expand best practices for re-housing unsheltered individuals, assisting rural communities in boosting housing supply, and increasing homeownership opportunities for homebuyers of color.
“Right now, our region’s highest and most urgent priority is to create more affordable housing, keep people safely and stably housed, and move our unsheltered neighbors into permanent homes,” said Salazar. “REACH is doing all of that work—and more. I am confident that together we can have an even bigger impact on the region’s housing and homelessness issues. My highest priority is to be collaborative, and bring forth human-centered, racial justice-oriented solutions that are based in best practice. I am also thrilled to be joining the incredibly talented staff at REACH and look forward to getting started.”
Salazar is a graduate of Wesleyan University and earned her master’s degree in public policy from the University of California-Berkeley’s Goldman School of Public Policy. She has served on the Boards of Directors of the Low-Income Investment Fund, National Housing Trust, and National Council of State Housing Agencies. She also served on the HUD Agency Review Team for the Biden-Harris Presidential Transition.
Salazar joins REACH with deep roots in Oregon, having grown up in Hood River and Portland. She replaces Dan Valliere, who announced his transition in early 2023, after ten years of leadership.
A headshot of Salazar is available here for reporting purposes only (photo credit: Misha Cohen).
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About REACH Community Development
REACH’s mission is to create opportunities for all people to thrive by developing and promoting equitable access to quality, affordable homes, supportive services, and community. Since 1982, REACH has built innovative and affordable housing serving lower-income families and individuals in the Portland metropolitan region. More information about REACH and its programs is available at http://reachcdc.org.
