CAHEC, a community investment organization based in Raleigh, NC, and Columbia, SC, presented its annual awards during the June 9 Partners Conference Awards Luncheon in downtown Raleigh, honoring five recipients for their dedication to affordable housing and community development. The awards celebrate achievements in development, resident leadership, community impact, investment, and lifetime service.
The Development of the Year award went to Valley River Apartments in Murphy, North Carolina. Completed in 2025, the 56-unit affordable housing community for families was developed by Western North Carolina Housing Partnership (WNCHP) in collaboration with FGM Development, LLC. Valley River represents CAHEC's seventh investment with WNCHP and its tenth with FGM Development or an affiliate. The development marked a significant milestone for Cherokee County, being its first Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) award in a decade and the first new-construction LIHTC development in 26 years. The project addresses critical housing needs in Western North Carolina.
Piok Chier, a freshman in high school living at Partridge Pointe Apartments in Louisville, Kentucky, received the Resident Spotlight Award. Piok has become a key figure in resident programming through CAHEC's partnership with the local YMCA, which brings weekly youth activities such as soccer camps and educational events to the property. His leadership extends beyond his community; he volunteers with the Chestnut Street Family YMCA Summer Camp, participates in the Men of Quality program, serves on the Black Achievers Teen Senate, and volunteers with Kentucky Refugee Ministries. His efforts have fostered engagement and positive outcomes among his peers.
The Outstanding Community Impact award was presented to the North Florida School of Special Education (NFSSE) in Jacksonville, Florida. In 2019, CAHEC New Markets provided $10.25 million in New Markets Tax Credit allocation to NFSSE to expand its campus. NFSSE serves approximately 248 students and more than 100 post-graduates with intellectual and developmental differences, offering innovative educational, vocational, and life-skills programming. The school has achieved a job placement rate of 56.2% among vocational training participants. Its social enterprise Berry Good Farms and a therapeutic equestrian center provide hands-on training. NFSSE's reverse inclusion model integrates individuals with and without disabilities, supported by a 1:6 teacher-to-student ratio and individualized planning.
First Bank, headquartered in Southern Pines, North Carolina, was named Investor of the Year. Over the past 15 years, the bank has invested more than $34 million across nine CAHEC-sponsored funds. During this period, First Bank grew from approximately $1 billion to over $12 billion in assets and now operates more than 100 branches. The bank has also served as a construction lender on several CAHEC-syndicated developments, demonstrating a sustained commitment to expanding affordable housing access throughout the Carolinas.
Steve Rosenblatt received the Lifetime Achievement Award for his decades of service in affordable housing. Beginning in the mid-1970s, he managed a Rural Development housing portfolio and later became a leading trainer. In 1986, he founded Spectrum Seminars and established the Rural Development STAR designation. He developed the C3P Section 42 training program, a benchmark in affordable housing education. In 1991, he founded Spectrum Compliance, which now employs nearly 40 professionals and is nationally recognized for tenant file reviews and compliance auditing. Rosenblatt has trained tens of thousands of housing professionals and contributed to numerous events hosted by the North Carolina Housing Finance Agency and CAHEC. His work has left a lasting impact on the industry nationwide.
