Vicky Mejia

Regional Manager

Vicky Mejia is a Regional Manager at JSCo. Vicky started at JSCo in April 2023 but has been in Affordable Housing Management for 17 years. For the last seven years she previously worked for HumanGood, where she started as an assistant and was promoted to manager and then regional. Ms. Mejia has worked with various HUD programs, the Tax Credit Accreditation program, and several LA City programs. She has worked with a wide range of demographics, from seniors to individuals with mental health issues. Vicky is a new mom that has deep and profound respect for all the moms out there. She has a 2-year old and a 1-year old and a loving husband, partner, and best friend that she can’t imagine doing life without.

Jack Gardner

Chairman of the Board

Jack D. Gardner has been actively involved in the financing, development and management of affordable housing since 1985 and has served as CEO of The John Stewart Company since 2001. He oversees all property acquisition, development, property management, consulting and marketing activities undertaken by the firm, which currently manages over 33,000 units of affordable, mixed income and market-rate multifamily housing throughout California and has three new housing developments under construction.

Jack Gardner

(see above)

Noah G. Schwartz

Chief Operating Officer and President of Operations, JSCo Board Member

Noah Schwartz joined the John Stewart Company in 2013 and served as the Chief Operating Officer for ten years before taking on the additional role as President of Operations. Mr. Schwartz brought more than 15 years of leadership experience in the non-profit and quasi-government sector when he joined the company and has a strong record leading organizations serving low-income communities.  He served as the Executive Director of the Monticello Area Community Action Agency, the Executive Director of the Charlottesville Redevelopment and Housing Authority and the President/CEO of Community Services of Arizona.

Donna Lambe

Regional Director

Donna Lambe began her career in property management/Real Estate in the early 1980’s working as an Administrative Assistant with a small company. She obtained a salesperson RE license in 1983 and eventually moved into a Regional Manager position with two companies before joining JSCo in 2003. During her many years of being in the property management industry, Ms. Lambe has overseen HUD, RDA, TCAC, Tenant HOA’s, and PSH sites. She is currently a Regional Director of the LA Office, overseeing 6 regional managers with an overall portfolio of 4,000 units. Donna is a Certified Credit Compliance Professional (CCCP).

Anthony Ramirez

Regional Director

Tony Ramirez joined the John Stewart Company in 2015, initially as an On-Site Property Manager, being promoted to Regional Manager in 2019, and Regional Director in 2022. Mr. Ramirez started his career in the Real Estate and Property Management industry in 2003, initially as a State of CA licensed Real Estate Salesperson. During his career he has overseen the management of Homeowner’s Associations (HOA’s), Market Rate, Affordable, and Permanent Supportive Housing Communities.

Mr. Ramirez earned a Specialist in Housing Credit Management (SHCM) from NAHMA in 2020, and currently oversees five Regional Managers for JSCo, whose combined portfolio totals approximately 4,000 units.

Jack Gardner & Noah Schwartz

(see above)

Moderated by Regional Director Jacquelyn Guerrero.

Players: Jack Gardner, Noah Schwartz, Dan Levine, Margaret Miller, Steve McElroy, Donna Lambe, Anthony Ramirez, Ricardo Pacheco 

Jacquelyn Guerrero

Regional Director

Jacquelyn Guerrero has been with JSCo for almost 6 years. She joined the SoCal region as a PM and shortly thereafter transitioned in the regional manager role due to her previous experience as an RM. She oversees a very diverse portfolio in the Inland Empire consisting of HUD, TCAC, MHSA and PSH. Her experience in the affordable housing industry of almost 20 years has given her the confidence and ability to work beside her sites and face all its challenges head on. She looks forward to many more years and growth with John Stewart Company

Dan Levine

President of Construction and Maintenance Services, JSCo Board Member

Dan Levine joined The John Stewart Company in 1997 as Director of Construction Administration, after nearly 25 years of practice as a registered architect. Mr. Levine brings with him comprehensive expertise in the housing and construction industries and a long history of successful professional consulting to The John Stewart Company. As Principal of Daniel Levine Architecture in Novato, CA and formerly as Associate and Vice President of Thomas Sehulster Architect in San Francisco, CA, Mr. Levine has designed, directed and managed a broad range of building alteration, remodeling, retrofit, and expansion work, as well as numerous space planning, retail planning, and interior design projects. Among other recent projects, Mr. Levine served as Project Architect for the renovations of Shelter Hill Apartments in Mill Valley, CA and Mote Alban Apartments in San Jose, CA as well as Construction Administrator for the renovation of Land Park Woods Apartments in Sacramento, CA and Del Norte Place Apartments and Retail Marketplace in El Cerrito, CA.

Margaret Miller

President of Development and DEI Committee Co-Chair, JSCo Board Member

Margaret Miller joined the John Stewart company in 2004 as a Project Manager and now serves as JSCo’s President of Development. In this capacity, she supervises the firm’s Project and Asset Managers and oversees the full range of corporate activities related to developing affordable and mixed-income multifamily housing, including identifying and acquiring properties, business development, project design, obtaining entitlements and environmental approvals, financial structuring, loan packaging, construction oversight and regulatory compliance. She also co-leads JSCo’s expanding Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI) efforts.

Steve McElroy

Senior Vice President

Steve McElroy has been with the John Stewart Company since 1983 and has over 30 years of experience in housing management. He has extensive experience working with HUD, CHFA, HCD, RHCP, and Low-Income Housing Tax Credit properties and is particularly adept at working with non-profit and board-directed properties. Mr. McElroy has assisted properties in securing and implementing rehab financing in excess of $3M and has provided coordinating for properties with multiple regulatory agreements and funding sources.
For 14 years, Mr. McElroy operated JSCo’s Sacramento corporate office, where he was responsible for over 40 properties and 3,000 housing units. Mr. McElroy transitioned to the position of Vice President of the San Francisco Property Management Division in January 2014. He has extensive experience helping JSCo’s management clients with property acquisitions, rental and feasibility market studies, physical property improvements, Tax Credit startups, and HUD conversions.

Donna Lambe & Anthony Ramirez

(see above)

Ricardo Pacheco

Assistant Vice President of Compliance

Ricardo Pacheco joined The John Stewart Company in 2002 as Property Supervisor. In this capacity he was responsible for the management, marketing, lease up and operations of affordable multifamily communities throughout the Bay Area.  Mr. Pacheco possesses in-depth knowledge of regulatory compliance, low-income housing tax credits, section 8, HOPE VI, Public Housing Management and an all-embracing marketing experience of both affordable and luxury communities.

Rachael A. Tanner

Co-Founder, Venture with Purpose

Rachael A. Tanner is committed to developing strong systems and strong leaders that support institutions and organizations. Before co-founding Venture with Purpose in 2022, Rachael served local governments throughout California, including the cities of Long Beach, San Francisco, and Palo Alto. In the late 2000’s, Rachael served as Executive Director of Interfaith Strategy for Advocacy and Action in the Community (ISAAC), a community-based organization in Kalamazoo, Michigan. She earned her Bachelor’s Degree from the University of Michigan and Master’s Degree in City Planning from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Rachael lives in San Francisco. In her free time, she serves as the President of the San Francisco Planning Commission and officiates weddings through her business Officially Hitched.

Tu Donguines

General Manager and DEI Committee Co-Chair

Tu started her career here at JSCo almost 15 years ago as a Leasing Agent at a market rate multi-family site in Richmond, CA. Tu later became both an APM and PM of that property before it sold and because she wanted to stay within the company, she transferred to Valencia Gardens, a Hope VI multi-family site with a senior component, consisting of programs such as HUD/TAX Credit/Project Based Section 8 in San Francisco. From there Tu went to work at the SF Corporate office as a Regional Manager where a large part of her portfolio was in the Bay View Hunters Point area (formally public housing sites in SF undergoing a RAD conversion and an acquisition rehab). Currently, Tu is the General Manager for the Presidio Residences which is a 1274-unit/market rate property in the Presidio.

Sandy Bowles

Regional Manager

Sandy began her journey with JSCo in January 2014. She started as an assistant property manager with the LAFH portfolio and eventually was promoted to Property Manager. During her time as property manager, Ms. Bowles has worked with HACLA properties, ACOF, Skid Row Housing, and ELAC. She was recently promoted to Regional Manager in June and is currently overseeing eight LINC properties, and a new lease up for META housing. Ms. Bowles has received two CRISP AWARDS in her time here at JSCo and is thankful for the learning and guidance that she has received from her mentors. She is also blessed to have the opportunity to pay it forward by mentoring the great team of people she gets to work with as Regional Manager at her buildings.

Welner Ayala

Regional Manager

Welner started working in JSCO in 2016 as a Property Manager. On January of 2022 he became a Rover Manager assisting in compliance, lease ups and trainings. On March of 2023 Mr. Ayala became an Interim Regional Manager and officially because a Regional Manager on July of 2023. Mr. Ayala has been working in property management for 15 years and has managed several different types of housing including special needs, PSH, HIV and transitional housing. He has a PomChow named Jack.

Description: Recognizing this year’s group of Regional and Corporate Employee of the Year winners. Presented by Maya Powis, Tracy Esposito, Jennifer Wood, and Jack Gardner.

See above for Bios.

Ivette Vela

Senior Construction Project Manager

Ivette Vela joined the John Stewart Company Construction Services Group in 2006, bringing with her over 10 years of experience in architecture and construction management of varied construction types and occupancies, including single and multi-family building alteration and renovation projects.  At JSCO, Ivette has managed JSCo CMS construction projects in the Los Angeles and San Diego areas, including coordination of the JSCo rehab and repair crew employed for the projects. Ivette is also the lead Safety and Maintenance coordinator and REAC preparation coordinator for the JSCo Southern California region.  Ms. Vela has been a board member of San Diego’s Southeastern Planning and Projects Committee and has a Bachelor of Science in Architecture.

Christina Pagkalinawan

Assistant Director

Ms. Pagkalinawan joined The John Stewart Company in 2013 and is now an Assistant Director of Property Management. Ms. Pagkalinawan has over 15 years of experience in manufactured and affordable housing.  First focusing on HUD compliance and moved to PSH (Permanent Supportive Housing) in 2019.

Currently Ms. Pagkalinawan is an Assistant Regional Director with three direct reports, plus oversees all PSH training and development in the South Bay Region.  She leased up the first two 100% PSH projects in San Jose.   In addition to assisting other regional managers in their PSH lease-ups, Ms. Pagkalinawan is also responsible for PSH Training and development, including implementing a “PSH Quick Reference” binder used by all PSH properties in the South Bay Region. She was asked to partner with PATH Services and Eden Housing in a training track at the 2022 AHMA annual Conference on Trauma Informed Eviction Prevention and effective Management and Services Partnerships.

Ms. Pagkalinawan completed her associate degree in Small Business Management and has completed her TSC, COS, EIV and MOR certifications with high scores.

Hector R. Alvarez

MSPsy/CTM

Mr. Alvarez is a security expert who specializes in workplace violence prevention and is recognized by the Association of Threat Assessment Professionals as a Certified Threat Manager™. He is also a certified instructor in Mental Health First Aid by the National Council for Behavioral Health. He holds a BS in Criminal Justice and a MS in Forensic Psychology. He has built over 25 years of threat management, security, domestic terrorism and crisis management experience serving as a Security Director protecting one of our nation’s most sensitive critical infrastructures, to working as a city Police Officer and as a professional security consultant.

He understands the challenges individuals and organizations face when addressing the threats of violence because he has responded to them. He has helped organizations prevent, mitigate, respond and recover from multiple significant incidents of violence including several mass shootings, robberies, domestic violence spill-over, sabotage, poisonings, bomb threats and many other types of violence.

Rachael A. Tanner

Co-Founder, Venture with Purpose

Rachael A. Tanner is committed to developing strong systems and strong leaders that support institutions and organizations. Before co-founding Venture with Purpose in 2022, Rachael served local governments throughout California, including the cities of Long Beach, San Francisco, and Palo Alto. In the late 2000’s, Rachael served as Executive Director of Interfaith Strategy for Advocacy and Action in the Community (ISAAC), a community-based organization in Kalamazoo, Michigan. She earned her Bachelor’s Degree from the University of Michigan and Master’s in City Planning from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Rachael lives in San Francisco. In her free time, she serves as the President of the San Francisco Planning Commission and officiates weddings through her business Officially Hitched.

Henrietta Rice

Retired (Formerly Senior Regional Manager)

Henrietta Rice has been in the property management field since 1987.  She began her career at the site level working in occupancy and as a property administrator.  She has experience with HUD, Tax Credit and conventional properties. Ms. Rice joined The John Stewart Company in February 2004, and currently supervises the operations of approximately 600 HUD and Tax Credit units. Prior to joining The John Stewart Company, Henrietta worked as a Regional Manager for a property management company in Long Beach, CA. She received Quadel’s Assisted Housing Manager (AHM) and AHMA’s Registered Apartment Manager (RAM) Certifications.

Dawn Bacigalupi

Director of Training

Dawn Bacigalupi has been with JSCo for over 16 years. She began in HR and then started up the JSCo Training Department. Previously, Dawn worked in HR and Training in the tech industry after earning her bachelor’s degree and PHR (Professional in Human Resources).  She also earned a teaching credential and served as a public-school teacher (7th grade and loved it).  She studies human behavior for fun, and her role model is Mr. Rogers.

Ed Sisson

Senior Regional Manager

Ed Sisson joined The John Stewart Company as a Regional Manager in December of 2006.  Currently, as a Senior Regional Manager, Mr. Sisson supervises 8 properties for Resources for Community Development.  These properties are located in Oakland, Berkeley, Pittsburg, and Walnut Creek. He has experience working with both TCAC and HUD properties.  Before joining The John Stewart Company, Mr. Sisson worked for the East Bay Asian Local Development Corporation, a non-profit low-income housing provider in Oakland, beginning as a site manger working his way up to the position of property supervisor.

Alicia Miranda

Property Manager

Alicia joined JSCo as a data entry temp. Her next assignment was assisting in a property lease-up; and soon after became the Assistant Manager. Alicia currently manages a demanding special needs community serving chronically and formerly homeless individuals with severe and persistent mental health disabilities. Alicia is known for her efficiency and organization. She has been instrumental in training and mentoring other site staff.

Ricardo Pacheco

Assistant Vice President of Compliance

Ricardo Pacheco joined The John Stewart Company in 2002 as Property Supervisor. In this capacity he was responsible for the management, marketing, lease up and operations of affordable multifamily communities throughout the Bay Area.  Mr. Pacheco possesses in-depth knowledge of regulatory compliance, low-income housing tax credits, section 8, HOPE VI, Public Housing Management and an all-embracing marketing experience of both affordable and luxury communities.