Transaction Structure Spotlight
Matt Meeker
Partner
Novogradac & Company LLP
Matt Meeker is a partner in the Dover, Ohio, office of Novogradac & Company LLP, where he specializes in federal and state new markets tax credits (NMTCs), renewable energy tax credits (RETCs) and historic rehabilitation tax credits (HTCs). Mr. Meeker has consulted on hundreds of tax credit transactions with cumulative development financing exceeding $10 billion. He provides transaction advisory services to real estate and renewable energy developers, community development entities, syndicators, lenders, consultants and investors on the structuring, financing and syndicating of federal and state NMTCs, RETCs, and HTCs. He also advises on accounting, tax, compliance and regulatory matters in addition to providing traditional audit and tax services. Mr. Meeker frequently speaks at industry conferences and seminars on topics related to the NMTC and RETC industries. He earned a bachelor’s degree in finance from Miami University of Ohio and is licensed in Ohio as a certified public accountant.
David Brenner
Partner
Husch Blackwell LLP
David Brenner is a member of Husch Blackwell’s financial services team, where he primarily represents housing authorities and developers with financing matters related to the development of affordable housing properties and the formation of various business entities. Mr. Brenner’s industry experience includes assisting various developers, lenders and investors in real estate finance projects, including negotiating and drafting joint ventures, partnership and limited liability company agreements; restructuring of troubled real estate partnerships and projects; and advising clients in transactions generating new markets tax credits (NMTCs) and other tax credits. Before joining Husch Blackwell LLP, Mr. Brenner was a tax consultant for accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers. Mr. Brenner earned his bachelor’s degree from Tulane University and his juris doctor from the University of Miami School of Law.
Sean Leonard
Partner
Holland & Knight LLP
Sean B. Leonard is a transactional attorney in Holland & Knight's Boston office, and a member of the firm's tax credit transactions practice. Mr. Leonard focuses his practice on the representation of major institutional investors and various other participants in tax-advantaged investing, community development and affordable housing. He has extensive experience as lead transaction counsel on a wide range of new markets tax credit (NMTC) and low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC) transactions. Mr. Leonard represents investors, community development entities (CDEs), developers and lenders in connection with NMTC transactions. His experience includes assisting clients in the structuring, negotiation and closing of a variety of NMTC transaction structures, including transactions involving federal and state historic tax credit (HTC) financing, investments involving multiple sources of equity and debt, and investments involving multiple investors and CDEs. He has represented clients in a wide array of NMTC projects, including the development and redevelopment of charter schools, various types of community facilities, transit systems, hotels, college and university facilities, telecommunication systems, solar facilities, supermarkets, and manufacturing and production facilities. Mr. Leonard is a frequent speaker at NMTC and LIHTC conferences and seminars, and has authored numerous articles on a variety of tax credits and other legal topics. He is a graduate of Springfield College and Suffolk University Law School.
Arthur J. Momjian
Partner
Duane Morris LLP
Arthur J. Momjian is chairman of the Duane Morris LLP’s affordable housing, community development and syndication practice group and focuses his practice in affordable housing and community development, syndication, finance and loan documentation. Mr. Momjian represents developers, investors, nonprofit organizations and syndicators nationally in affordable housing developments that use federal low-income housing tax credits (LIHTCs), federal historic rehabilitation tax credits (HTCs) and state LIHTCs. Mr. Momjian also represents investors, community development entities (CDEs) and developers nationally in projects developed with the federal New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) program. Mr. Momjian has represented investors and their CDEs, which have made NMTC loans for the development of a mixed-use project at an urban university; a commercial retail center in West Philadelphia and an auto center in Texas. He has also represented investors which have made QEIs in CDEs which have funded NMTC loans for a retail and office complex in Harlem, New York; a medical facility in Boston and a hotel complex in Boston. Mr. Momjian has represented an investor in NMTCs, which used a leveraged loan structure consisting of tax-exempt bond proceeds. He also represents regional and national banks in the construction and permanent financing of residential, commercial and industrial projects. Mr. Momjian has represented developers, lenders, syndicators and investors in connection with the development of senior, assisted living and special needs projects in several states, which use federal LIHTCs and state and federal subsidy programs. Admitted to practice in New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania, he is a member of the Real Property, Probate and Trust Law and the Corporation, Banking and Business Law sections of the American Bar Association. He is a member of the ABA Forum on Affordable Housing and has been a part of the faculty of its annual forum on Affordable Housing and Community Development Law. He has spoken several high-profile conferences. He also is a member of the New Jersey state, New York state and Pennsylvania bar associations. Mr. Momjian is a member of the board of directors of the People's Emergency Center, and chairman of the board of directors of the People's Emergency Center Community Development Corporation. In 2006, Mr. Momjian was named to serve on a steering committee formed by the Community Affairs Department of the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia and the Housing Alliance of Pennsylvania to develop recommendations to expand single and multifamily rental properties in Pennsylvania that serve low- and moderate-income markets. Mr. Momjian is a 1982 graduate of Temple University School of Law, a 1978 graduate of Rutgers School of Law, Newark, and a graduate of Columbia University.
Luis Rodriguez
Partner
Goldfarb & Lipman LLP
Luis Rodriguez is a partner in the firm practicing in the areas of affordable housing, economic development and tax exempt organizations. Mr. Rodriguez’s work encompasses real estate, new markets tax credits (NMTCs), low-income housing tax credits (LIHTCs), tax-exempt organizations and property tax assessment and exemption. He represents a wide variety of developers, nonprofit entities, housing authorities, municipalities and other public agencies in the development, financing, disposition, and management of low-income housing and economic development developments. Mr. Rodriguez has extensive experience with the NMTC program. Mr. Rodriguez has assisted clients financing a variety of NMTC projects including a live theater mixed-use development, a commercial office building for nonprofit organizations, and a community center. He also has extensive experience in the formation of nonprofit corporations, and other entities, and the Federal and State tax exemption application process. Mr. Rodriguez also advises many nonprofit tax exempt organizations on corporate governance and tax-related issues. Mr. Rodriguez organizes and conducts affordable housing, NMTC and nonprofit governance workshops for agencies and nonprofit groups.