Board of Directors
The Board of Directors of the Cuyahoga County Land Reutilization Corporation is required to consist of the County Treasurer, the County Executive or their designee, a member of the County Council, two representatives of the City of Cleveland, and the remaining members selected by the County Executive, County Treasurer, and the County Council representative. Current board membership consists of:
Brad Sellers (Chair), Mayor, Warrensville Heights
Pernel Jones Jr. (Vice Chair), Council President, Cuyahoga County
Armond Budish, County Executive, Cuyahoga County
W. Christopher Murray II, Treasurer, Cuyahoga County
Jasmin Santana, Council Member, City of Cleveland
Nate Kelly, Managing Director, Cushman and Wakefield | Cresco Real Estate
Ed Rybka, Chief of Regional Development, City of Cleveland
Meghan F. George, Mayor, Lakewood
April Urban, Research Associate, Case Western Reserve University
Land Bank Staff
Executive Leadership
Gus Frangos, President and General Counsel (bio)gfrangos@cuyahogalandbank.org
(216) 698-8616
Ricardo León, Chief Operating Officer (bio)
rleon@cuyahogalandbank.org
(216) 698-8636
Robert Rink, Board Secretary (bio)
rrink@cuyahogalandbank.org
(216) 698-8754
Jacqui Knettel, Executive Assistant
jknettel@cuyahogalandbank.org
(216) 698-8772
Douglas Sawyer, Assistant General Counsel
dsawyer@cuyahogalandbank.org
(216) 698-3543
Kimberly Steigerwald, Acquisitions Manager
ksteigerwald@cuyahogalandbank.org
(216) 698-8802
Marcelina Śladewska, Special Projects Manager
msladewska@cuyahogalandbank.org
(216) 698-3022
Real Estate Development
Dennis L. Roberts, Director of Real Estate Development (bio)droberts@cuyahogalandbank.org
(216) 698-8653
Jennifer Vazquez-Norman, Programs Operations Manager
jvnorman@cuyahogalandbank.org
(216) 698-4608
Austin Bloom, Program Liaison
abloom@cuyahogalandbank.org
(216) 698-4107
Lashun Duckworth, Program Assistant
lduckworth@cuyahogalandbank.org
(216) 698-8843
Ron Byrd, Chief Housing Specialist
rbyrd@cuyahogalandbank.org
(216) 698-8926
Rich Shaffer, Housing Specialist
rshaffer@cuyahogalandbank.org
(216) 698-2195
Wesley Walker, Housing Specialist
wwalker@cuyahogalandbank.org
(216) 698-2820
Jason Knauer, Housing and Land Reuse Program Manager
jknauer@cuyahogalandbank.org
(216) 698-8336
Jeffrey Sugalski, Housing Development Project Manager
jsugalski@cuyahogalandbank.org
(216) 698-3013
Michelle Thomas, Housing Development Project Manager
mrthomas@cuyahogalandbank.org
(216) 698-2311
Kamla Lewis, Senior Housing Development Project Manager
klewis@cuyahogalandbank.org
(216) 698-2319
Community Stabilization
Kim Kimlin, Director of Community Stabilization (bio)kkimlin@cuyahogalandbank.org
(216) 698-8658
James Maher, Commercial Demolition Officer
jmaher@cuyahogalandbank.org
(216) 698-8791
Jennifer O'Konski, Acquisitions Assistant
jokonski@cuyahogalandbank.org
(216) 698-6691
Jane Larson, Senior Financial Analyst
jlarson@cuyahogalandbank.org
(216) 698-8729
Deidre Lightning-Whitted
dwhitted@cuyahogalandbank.org
(216) 698-2576
Steven Billington, Property Specialist (Programs and Funding)
sbillington@cuyahogalandbank.org
(216) 698-2472
Angela Dupay, Accounts Payable Assistant
adupay@cuyahogalandbank.org
(216) 698-2182
Caylen Payne, Demolition Inspector
cpayne@cuyahogalandbank.org
(216) 698-4278
Sarah Drab, Environmental Properties Specialist
sdrab@cuyahogalandbank.org
(216) 698-8938
IT and Research
Michael Schramm, Director of Information Technology and Research (bio)schramm@cuyahogalandbank.org
(216) 698-8777
Matthew Thomas, GIS and Research Specialist
mthomas@cuyahogalandbank.org
(216) 698-2816
Isaac Nicholas, Information Technology and Software Engineer
inicholas@cuyahogalandbank.org
(216) 698-6607
Finance
Ronald Pavlovich, Director of Finance (bio)rpavlovich@cuyahogalandbank.org
(216) 698-5801
Gina Finney Johnson, Accounts Payable Manager
gjohnson@cuyahogalandbank.org
(216) 698-8778
Joseph Barr, Staff Accountant
jbarr@cuyahogalandbank.org
(216) 698-8865
Administration and Compliance
Michelle Gomez, Office Assistantmgomez@cuyahogalandbank.org
(216) 698-2204
Sarah Norman, Document Support Staff
Records Custodian
snorman@cuyahogalandbank.org
(216) 698-2445
Biographies of Senior Staff
Gus Frangos, President and General Counsel
Gus Frangos was the primary drafter of Ohio’s House Bill 294 and S.B. 353 establishing enhanced-capacity County Land Banks, and expedited administrative tax foreclosure policy. Mr. Frangos graduated with honors from Cleveland Marshall College of Law in 1982 whereupon he served as an associate attorney at the law firm of Ulmer & Berne from 1982 to 1986 concentrating in business law and litigation.
From 1986 to 1993, Mr. Frangos served as the 13th Ward Cleveland City Councilman where he sponsored and passed an array of community development legislation.
In 1993, Mr. Frangos was appointed as a Magistrate Judge in the Cleveland Municipal Court where he served with distinction. While at the Court, he established and administered the Small Claims Court’s current Small Claims Mediation Program.
In September 2004, Mr. Frangos was retained by the Cuyahoga County Treasurer to craft legislation to help expedite the tax foreclosure process, specifically on vacant and abandoned properties. These efforts resulted in the passage of H.B. 293, H.B. 294. He was also the primary drafter of the recently passed S.B. 353 which established the first of its kind “Land Reutilization Corporation.” H.B. 293 provides real estate tax assistance to seniors through a link deposit program; H.B. 294 authorized expedited administrative tax foreclosures of abandoned land through the County Boards of Revision; and S.B. 353 enables the establishment of County Land Reutilization Corporations with enhanced capabilities for the reclamation of distressed properties.
Mr. Frangos is the President and General Counsel of the Cuyahoga County Land Reutilization Corporation, and his areas of legal concentration include land-related issues, Constitutional, commercial real estate, zoning, administrative and business transactional law.
Ricardo León, Chief Operating Officer
Ricardo León has most recently served as Executive Director of the Metro West Community Development Organization, where he led a multifaceted team of community development practitioners offering a suite of services to three Cleveland near-west neighborhoods; Stockyards, Clark-Fulton, and Brooklyn Centre. He earned a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Baldwin Wallace University and a Master of Science in Urban Studies with a concentration in Economic Development from the Maxine Goodman Levin College of Urban Affairs at Cleveland State University. Ricardo’s career has spanned the startup, corporate, and consulting industries prior to joining the nonprofit sector. He extends his leadership and community focus outside of the office through his participation on the MetroHealth Foundation Board of Directors, Fund for Our Economic Future Board of Directors, Front Steps Housing and Services Board of Directors, Neighborhood Family Practice Board of Directors, Hebrew Free Loan Association Board of Directors, CHN Housing Capital Advisory Board, and numerous other community focused committees.
Kim Kimlin, Director of Community Stabilization
Kim Kimlin currently serves as the Director of Community Stabilization for the Cuyahoga Land Bank. She brings twenty-nine years of community development experience. Previous she worked as Program Director for The Trust for Public Land, Executive Director of Neighborhood Capital Corporation, and Vice President of Finance for Neighborhood Progress, Inc. Ms. Kimlin has also delivered community development consulting services to CHN Housing Partners, Case Western Reserve University, The Cleveland Foundation, Enterprise Community Partners, The Northeast Ohio First Suburbs Consortium, and others. She earned an MBA from the University of Michigan and a B.A. in urban planning from Slippery Rock University. Ms. Kimlin has served on the Boards of Green Energy Ohio, Cleveland Neighborhood Progress, New Village Corporation, the Cleveland Green Building Coalition, and the Cleveland chapter of Commercial Real Estate Women.
Robert Rink, Board Secretary
Robert Rink is an attorney and the co-author of the Ohio legislation authorizing the creation and operation of county land banks. He is a retired partner with the law firm of Calfee, Halter & Griswold LLP, who practiced in the areas of public law and public finance during his 20 year tenure with Calfee Halter. Over that time he served as legal counsel for cities, counties and the State of Ohio in connection with their issuance of general obligation bonds, revenue bonds, economic development bonds and federally guaranteed student loan bonds, as well as special counsel in connection with the levy of special assessments and the enactment of income tax ordinances and investment policy ordinances. He also authored state legislation authorizing county treasurers to negotiate the sale of delinquent real property tax liens. Prior to his admission to the Ohio bar in 1986, he served as the Chief Deputy County Auditor for the Cuyahoga County Auditor and as the Finance Director for the City of Cleveland Heights. He received a B.A. in Classical Languages from the University of Detroit in 1970, his J.D. from the Cleveland-Marshall College of Law in 1985 and the Appreciative Inquiry Certificate in Positive Business and Society Change from the Weatherhead School of Management at Case Western Reserve University in 2005.
Dennis Roberts, Director of Programs and Property Management
Dennis Roberts is an attorney and a real estate agent. As the Director of Programs and Property Management, Roberts heads the real estate development division at the nationally recognized Cuyahoga Land Bank. In that role, Roberts and team have facilitated the renovation and disposition of over 1,500 single family homes throughout Cuyahoga County generating more than 14 million in sales over the last 10 years. In addition, under Roberts' leadership, the Land Bank has built/sold several homes for the combined value of over $2 million dollars throughout the Greater Cleveland area. Not only is Roberts working to add new housing products to expanding real estate market segments, he is also keenly focused on helping more challenged neighborhoods prosper as well. Through the Land Bank’s committed leadership, the strategic infusion of capital to stimulate development, the Land Bank is poised to accelerate the real estate related transformation of many of Cuyahoga County's under resourced communities. Simply put, Roberts uses his unique blend of creative expertise, knowledge of the local real estate market and his thorough understanding of the acquisition, renovation and sale process, to help municipal government, non-profit organizations and citizens solve vexing real estate challenges.
Michael Schramm, Director of IT and Research
Michael Schramm, is the Director of Information Technology and Research at the Cuyahoga Land Bank as well as a Research Associate at the Center on Urban Poverty and Community Development in the Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland. At the Cuyahoga Land Bank, Michael is currently developing information tools to help the corporation use data to make strategic acquisition decisions as well as track property status from acquisition to demolition to disposition. Recognized as a national expert in property data systems, Michael is also extensively involved in the development and maintenance the neighborhood information system, NEO CANDO (Northeast Ohio Community and Neighborhood Data for Organizing). Michael's expertise on foreclosure, subprime mortgages, and other real property data has been extensively utilized by the Neighborhood Stabilization Team sponsored by Neighborhood Progress, Inc, the Cuyahoga County Foreclosure Prevention Program as well as the City of Cleveland and Cuyahoga County. He is also active in the local foreclosure and vacant property dialogue through VAPAC (Vacant and Abandoned Property Action Council) and has presented at numerous national meeting and conferences on these topics. Michael has B.S. degrees in Geography and Meteorology from Penn State University and a M.A. in Geography from Syracuse University.
Ronald Pavlovich, Director of Finance
Ronald Pavlovich, CPA, Director of Finance and Treasurer of the Corporation has been with the Cuyahoga Land Bank since June, 2017. Mr. Pavlovich has a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from The University of Akron and attained his Certified Public Accountant (CPA) license in 1991. Mr. Pavlovich had been in the for profit public accounting and private business arena for over 25 years, serving in such functions as CFO, Director of Outsourced CFO Services, and Sr. Manager of Accounting and Auditing Services. He has worked for such companies in the past as Cohen & Company, CBIZ and B-Dry System, Inc. Mr. Pavlovich was also a partner in a commercial and residential property reconstruction and restoration business for 7 years. He also served as Treasurer on the Board of South Street Ministries in Akron, OH for 5 years. Mr. Pavlovich, his wife and his four children live in Copley, Ohio.