Richard Blackwell named Public Executive of the Year

Richard Blackwell, executive director of the Oconee Economic Alliance in South Carolina, was named a winner of the Novogradac Journal of Tax Credits 2016 Community Development Individual Achievement Awards. The awards recognize individuals who have demonstrated substantial assistance in the advancement of new markets tax credit (NMTC) policy and legislative priorities that have had benefitted the field of community development. Winners of the Community Development Individual Awards will be honored June 2 at theNovogradac New Markets Tax Credit Conference in Washington.

Blackwell won in the Public Executive of the Year category for his Oconee County workforce development initiatives. One of Blackwell’s programs is a youth apprenticeship partnership with the local school district that aims to give students the skills and experience needed to become a part of the workforce. Blackwell also championed the county’s ACT Work Ready Communities (WRC) certification, which measures the quality of a county’s workforce and signals to investors that the community is ready for business.

“Congratulations to the honorees of this year’s Community Development Individual Achievement Awards,” said Nicolo Pinoli, conference chairman and partner in Novogradac & Company LLP’s Portland, Ore., office. “Community development is a team effort, and we are honored to recognize leaders who inspire others to action through legislation, through policy initiatives and, most importantly, by example.”

Descriptions of the Novogradac 2016 Community Development Individual Achievement Awards winners can be found atwww.novoco.com/awards/community_development/individual.php. In addition, the Novogradac Journal of Tax Credits conducts several awards programs that recognize excellence in affordable housing, community development, historic preservation and renewable energy. Nominations for each program are open year-round and more information can be found at www.novoco.com/awards/index.php.

About Novogradac & Company LLP

Novogradac began operations in 1989 and has since grown to more than 500 employees and partners with offices in San Francisco, Walnut Creek and Long Beach, Calif.; Dover, Columbus and Cleveland, Ohio; St. Louis; Boston; New York; Chicago; Austin, Texas; Portland, Ore.; Naples, Fla., Raleigh, N.C.; Iselin, N.J.; and the greater metropolitan areas of Philadelphia; Washington, D.C.; Atlanta; Detroit; Kansas City, Mo.; and Seattle.

Specialty practice areas include tax, audit and consulting services for tax-credit-assisted affordable housing, community revitalization, rehabilitation of historic properties and renewable energy. Other areas of expertise include business valuation, preparation and analysis of market studies and appraisals of multifamily housing investments and renewable energy tax credits.

For more information about the Novogradac Community Development Individual Achievement Awards, please contact Jennifer Young at (415) 356-8041 or by email at [email protected].

Oconee Economic Alliance

The Oconee Economic Alliance is a public-private nonprofit effort to accelerate job creation and capital investment, increase per capita income, diversify the local tax base and generate awareness of Oconee County, South Carolina as a business location. To learn more, please visit www.InvestOconeeSC.com.