PROPOSED ANNUAL PLAN - Key Persons

Job Titles:

• Director
• Director / Communications and Public Affairs
• Public Information Officer / Communications and Public Affairs Unit

Elisa Vásquez has had oversight of the agency's Communications and Public Affairs Unit since 2007. Ms. Vásquez has over 25 years of public service experience, having served in various capacities within the organization as well as with other government and non-profit service providers, including the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California and Los Angeles Universal Preschool. Ms. Vásquez' responsibilities include oversight of marketing, media coordination, public information, and legislative analysis. As the agency's Public Information Officer, Ms. Vásquez and her team have oversight of the agency's website content, social media pages, and marketing material. She also coordinates responses to all requests received pursuant to the California Public Records Act as well as all media communications, which includes responding to inquiries, writing media advisories and releases, and scheduling print or on-camera interviews. Serving as the primary point of contact with all elected officials, at the Federal, State, and local levels, Ms. Vásquez and her team work with County legislative staff and legislative advocates in Sacramento and Washington, D.C., to develop recommendations and draft legislative correspondence including position papers, promote key legislative and strategic messages, and assist with policy development. Additionally, Ms. Vásquez serves on the Quality and Productivity Commission's Productivity Manager's Network. The Productivity Managers' Network is comprised of employee representatives from each County Department who have been designated as Quality and Productivity Managers by their department heads. Ms. Vásquez served as the Network's Productivity and Quality Awards Co-Chair for many years and was the recipient of the 2016 Productivity Manager of Year Award. Ms. Vásquez holds a Master of Science degree in Public Administration from California State University Los Angeles, and a Bachelor's degree from Loyola Marymount University.

Job Titles:

• Risk Analyst

Job Titles:

• Chief of Operations
• Member of the Executive Team
• Chief of Operations for the Los Angeles County Development Authority

Kathy Thomas serves as Chief of Operations for the Los Angeles County Development Authority (LACDA) since July 1, 2018. Ms. Thomas possesses extensive experience in the agency's core functions, and couples that with her knowledge of varying operational models having worked in multiple counties. These skills enhance ability to provide high level organizational assessment and analysis.

Job Titles:

• Director
• Director / Community Development Division

Linda has been with the LACDA since 1989 and has over 30 years of experience administering Federal programs to include the Los Angeles Urban County Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and the Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG) programs. She has also been involved with past recovery programs including Homeless Prevention, Rapid Rehousing, Neighborhood Stabilization, and CDBG-Recovery. Most recently, Linda has been involved with several Federal relief programs aimed at mitigating the impacts of COVID-19 to include actively leading and deploying rent relief programs to families in need throughout the County. During her tenure, Linda has built strong collaborative relationships with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Board of Supervisors offices, County Departments, Participating Cities, Community-Based Organizations, and colleagues within LACDA. In January 2020, Linda was promoted to Acting Director of the Community Development Division. Linda has demonstrated a solid understanding of Federal programs and has proven leadership experience. Linda received her Bachelor of Arts in Political Science at the University of California, Riverside, and Master in Public Administration degree from the California State University, Long Beach. Linda currently serves as a Board Member of the National Association for County Community and Economic Development, which is an affiliate of the National Association of Counties.

Job Titles:

• Director
• Director / Housing Investment and Finance Division

Ms. Katano brings more than 40 years of public sector experience at City, County, and State levels, including with Caltrans, the Cities of Baldwin Park, Costa Mesa, Glendale, and of course her time at the LACDA. She initially started at the agency in 1990, with the Engineering Services Unit, before discovering her passion in and for affordable housing. Ms. Katano has worked on a number of key initiatives for the agency, including the development and enhancement of the Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA), providing guidance on the development of special needs and affordable housing policies and funding, facilitating the development of County-owned sites, and the development and implementation of the No Place Like Home (NPLH) program. Drawing on her broad spectrum of public sector experience in both public works and affordable housing, Lynn engages actively on behalf of the County in both policy and technical issues. Ms. Katano provides a wealth of knowledge to the agency, having established strong public-private partnerships with housing developers and public agencies in the region. In September 2017, Lynn was recognized by the Southern California Association of Nonprofit Housing as Staff Member of the Year for her contributions to develop affordable housing in the County. She earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from California State University, Los Angeles.

Job Titles:

• Director of Finance
• Director / Finance and Budget Division

Matthew Fortini currently serves as the Director of Finance and Budget. Mr. Fortini previously served as Director of Administrative Services for the agency. Mr. Fortini has over 28 years of public service experience having served in a variety of capacities with numerous agencies. Prior to joining the LACDA, Mr. Fortini was Assistant Division Manager for the City of Orlando, Parks Division. He also served as the Administrative Services Director for the City of Casselberry, Florida. An experienced Manager, Mr. Fortini brings to the LACDA experience in Public Administration including managing Human Resources, Information Technology, Risk Management, Marketing, Purchasing, Facilities Management, and Parks and Recreation. His broad background and keen understanding of the operational needs of the organization provide the tools necessary to assess needs expeditiously and implement rapid solutions. Throughout his career, Mr. Fortini has been recognized as an excellent operations manager capable of finding efficiencies and developing staff to their fullest potential. Mr. Fortini believes that public agencies should offer the highest level of customer service, and provide expertly managed services to all of its customers to maximize the efficiencies of the agency. He is also a strong proponent of operating his units in an efficient and effective manner commonly found within the private sector. Mr. Fortini holds a Bachelor's degree in Parks and Recreation Management from Penn State University.

Job Titles:

• Acting Director

Medina Johnson-Jennings serves as the Acting Director for the Housing Assistance Division as of 2022. Medina came to the LACDA in May 2019. She previously served as Deputy Director of the HCV Program and ADA/504 Program Coordinator for the District of Columbia Housing Authority. As the Deputy Director, Medina was responsible for managing the day-to-day operations of 12,000 HCV, VASH, PBV, Moderate Rehabilitation and Rent Reform program vouchers. Prior she served as Director for the Housing Authority of the City of Fort Lauderdale and held the positions with Nan McKay & Associates as Supervisor, Assistant Program Manager, Program Manager at the Miami-Date Public Housing and Community Development (PHCD), and Chicago Housing Authority. Medina received a Bachelor of Arts degree with a concentration in Legal Studies and a Master of Arts degree in Public Administration from Roosevelt University.

Job Titles:

• Director
• Director / Administrative Services Division
• Risk Manager, at

Rebecca Yee currently serves as the Director for the Administrative Services Division, overseeing the internal services units for the LACDA. Ms. Yee brings over 36 years of public service experience, working her way up within the agency. During her extensive career, she has worked in the Housing Assistance Division and Administrative Services Division.

Job Titles:

• Chief
• Chief of Programs

Tracie Mann currently serves as the Chief of Programs since 2022. Her objective is to fulfill our vision of going beyond Building Better Lives and Better Neighborhoods. Tracie has more than 30 years of public service. She began her career as a case manager and has held various positions of increasing responsibility, including as a public housing property manager. In 2010, she was hired as the first manager at LACDA to oversee operations at the Antelope Valley office and transitioned to manage the Housing Choice Voucher and Special Needs Programs in the Alhambra headquarters office. Most recently, Tracie served as the Director of the Housing Assistance Division (HAD) since 2019. As the HAD Director, Tracie was responsible for leading more than 200 full-time employees and administering an annual budget in excess of $400 million. Under Tracie's leadership, HAD received the largest annual allocation of VASH vouchers in the nation and most recently HAD was also awarded one of the largest allocations of Emergency Housing Vouchers in the nation made available through the American Rescue Plan. Moreover, Tracie played an integral role in developing, implementing, and leading several County emergency rent relief efforts that deployed over $135 million to residential tenants and property owners, representing one of the largest deployments of rent relief nationally under CARES. Tracie has also proven to be an effective leader and partner in the County's Homeless Initiative. She is well respected within the housing industry and has demonstrated an ability to build bridges within the County to align resources and work collaboratively to tackle difficult and complex social issues. Throughout her tenure at LACDA, Tracie has embodied the values and vision of the organization and has successfully led her teams to serve our vulnerable clients with compassion and professionalism. Tracie holds a Bachelor of Arts and a Master of Arts in Public Administration from California State University San Bernardino. She is also an active member of Women Leaders - The Global Association of Women Leaders and Executives.