CAHEC, a community investment organization based in Raleigh, NC, and Columbia, SC, presented its 2026 awards at the annual CAHEC Partners Conference Awards Luncheon on June 9 in downtown Raleigh. The awards honor individuals and organizations whose dedication and leadership have made a meaningful impact on affordable housing and community development.
The Development of the Year award was given to Valley River Apartments, a 56-unit affordable housing community for families in Murphy, North Carolina, completed in 2025. The development was led 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. The project marked a significant milestone for Cherokee County as its first Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) award in a decade and the first new-construction LIHTC development in 26 years, addressing critically needed affordable housing in Western North Carolina.
Piok Chier, a high school freshman living at Partridge Pointe Apartments in Louisville, KY, received the Resident Spotlight Award. Piok has become an integral part of resident programming through CAHEC's partnership with the local YMCA, helping coordinate events, encouraging participation, and engaging in activities himself. His leadership extends beyond his community, as 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.
The Outstanding Community Impact award was presented to the North Florida School of Special Education (NFSSE) in Jacksonville, FL. In 2019, CAHEC New Markets provided $10.25 million of NMTC allocation to expand and enhance its campus. NFSSE serves approximately 248 students and more than 100 post-graduates with intellectual and developmental differences, achieving a 56.2% job placement rate among vocational training participants. The organization's initiatives include a therapeutic equestrian center, social enterprises like Berry Good Farms, and a reverse inclusion model that integrates individuals with and without disabilities.
First Bank, headquartered in Southern Pines, North Carolina, was named Investor of the Year. Over 15 years, the bank has invested more than $34 million across nine CAHEC-sponsored funds and has also served as a construction lender on several CAHEC-syndicated developments. First Bank has grown from approximately $1 billion to over $12 billion in assets and now operates more than 100 branch locations throughout the Carolinas.
Steve Rosenblatt received the Lifetime Achievement Award for his career dedicated to affordable housing education and compliance. Starting in the mid-1970s, he managed a Rural Development housing portfolio and later founded Spectrum Seminars in 1986, establishing the Rural Development STAR designation. He developed the C3P Section 42 training program and founded Spectrum Compliance in 1991, which now employs nearly 40 professionals. Rosenblatt has trained tens of thousands of housing professionals and contributed to numerous North Carolina Housing Finance Agency and CAHEC-sponsored events.
CAHEC's product areas include investing in low-income housing tax credits, historic tax credits, new markets tax credits, and renewable energy credits, as well as providing loan programs, wellness and education initiatives, affordable housing development, and property management services. For more information, visit CAHEC's website.
