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SALT LAKE CITY – The head of the parent company of Zions Bank, a former Utah Senate president and the director of one of the state’s premier policy institutes are among the nominees set to join the Utah Housing Corporation’s board of trustees. Those nominees include Harris Simmons, chairman and CEO of Zions Bancorporation; Wayne Niederhauser, former Utah Senate president who recently led the state’s Office of Homeless Services; and Natalie Gochnour, associate dean of the David Eccles School of Business at the University of Utah, who also runs the Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute. Utah Housing Corporation is an independent state entity designed to help create affordable housing opportunities. Its recently-revamped governing board includes six public trustees, appointed by the governor, who have experience in housing, finance, banking or real estate development. The other three nominees for the board are Clark Ivory, CEO of Ivory Homes; Dannielle Larkin, a St. George city councilmember who owns a commercial contracting business; and Dan Lofgren, founder of Cowboy Partners, a real estate development firm. Gov. Spencer Cox made the nominations last month. The Utah Senate Retirement and Independent Entities Confirmation Committee voted unanimously on Monday to advance all six nominees to the full Senate, which is scheduled to hold a confirmation vote next week.Niederhauser, who has worked as a developer for decades in addition to his time in government, told the confirmation committee that affordable housing “will never naturally happen.” “Utah Housing Corporation is a key in that cog of creating affordable and deeply affordable housing,” he said. Simmons, who has held various roles in Zions Bancorporation for more than 40 years, told lawmakers he hopes to work to increase the availability of affordable housing in Utah through partnerships and other existing opportunities. “What I hope to bring is just experience and being able to think creatively about how Utah Housing Corporation might be able to be better used to facilitate private investment, without taking on undue risk but operating in such a way as to optimize the amount of private sector lending that can take place,” Simmons said. Sen. Karen Kwan, D-Murray, praised the “caliber” of all six nominees, who will serve either two-year or four-year terms if confirmed by the full Senate. Utah has experienced an affordable housing crisis in recent years with skyrocketing home prices and soaring rents. Utah Housing Corporation administers several resources related to affordable housing including a first-time homebuyer program, a housing tax credit for multifamily development and a homeownership program for low-income Utahns, according to its website.
