Island Housing Trust reports

0
Richard Bluestein, who is a founding board member of Island Housing Trust, was honored at the annual meeting Saturday. Mr. Bluestein is shown here with Trust president Richard Leonard.

The Island Housing Trust (IHT) announced the appointment of seven new board members at its annual board meeting on March 17. The IHT directors include representatives from each of the six Island towns, the Dukes County Regional Housing authority, homeowners, and the community at large.

“Through this housing partnership, the Housing Trust is working to create a stronger, more vibrant and sustainable future for our island community,” the trust said in a press statement following the meeting.

Three new community at large representatives were appointed, including Bob Green who is chairman of Longfellow Real Estate Partners and trustee of The Keen Foundation in Boston and a resident of Chilmark; Keith McGuire, an architectural designer and principal of Keith McGuire Designs and a resident of Tisbury; and Michael West, a technology industry analyst and consultant with Saugatuck Technology and a resident of Tisbury. Dan Seidman, a registered investment advisor and a resident of Tisbury, is the new representative for the Dukes County Regional Housing Authority. Four new Housing Trust homeowners have also joined the board, including Paul Galligan, a carpenter and a resident of West Tisbury; Drew Kinsman, also a carpenter and a resident of West Tisbury; Bonnie Tilton, a guidance secretary at the Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School and a resident of West Tisbury; and Jen Powers, a resident of West Tisbury.

Several board members were reappointed, including Darran Reubens, an architect for Terrain Associates and a resident of Tisbury, representing the community at large; Paul Moreau, a paralegal and a resident of Edgartown, representing Edgartown; Wendy Swolinzky, small business owner and a resident of Aquinnah, representing homeowners; and Durwood Vanderhoop, tribal planner for the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah) and a resident of Aquinnah, representing Aquinnah.

Elected board officers include Richard Leonard, COO/EVP of the Martha’s Vineyard Savings Bank, president; Paul Moreau, treasurer; and Victoria Haeselbarth, a graduate student and resident of Edgartown, clerk.

Several departing board members were honored, including Richard Knabel and Janet Heath, as well as Richard Bluestein, who is a founding board member of the Housing Trust.

The Island Housing Trust’s 2011 Annual Report, detailing the progress in providing hope and opportunity to hundreds of Island families seeking a dignified solution to their affordable housing needs, can be downloaded from the Housing Trust’s website at www.ihtmv.org or by calling 508-693-1117.