Greg Smith Named Vice Chair; Board Elects Three New Members

By Matthew Green, CAMICB Associate Executive Director

CAMICB is delighted to announce its 2022 Board of Commissioners welcoming Sandy Denton, CMCA, LSM, PCAM, to the role of Chair and Greg Smith, CMCA, AMS, PCAM to serve as Vice Chair. Denton has been a commissioner on the CAMICB Board since 2017. She has previously served CAMICB as a member of the CAMICB Exam Development Committee and Continuing Education Review Committee.

“Sandy brings a tremendous amount of experience and passion to the role of Chair,” said outgoing Board Chair, Drew Mulhare, CMCA, LSM, PCAM. “She is deeply committed to our profession, has a profound understanding of all facets of our business and has been integral to raising awareness of the CMCA credential.” Denton is a former President of the Board of Trustees of Community Associations Institute (CAI) and a past chair of the Foundation for Community Association Research (FCAR). She currently serves as a member of CAI’s Large Scale Committee, the CAI Government and Public Affairs Committee and is a faculty member for CAI.

“I’m honored and excited to serve as Chair of the Board of Commissioners,” said Sandy Denton. “Chief among our priorities this year is completing a job analysis to examine the current state of community association management – the responsibilities of a professional manager and the knowledge and skills required to fulfill those responsibilities. The process we use is rigorous, systematic and in strict compliance with best practices in the credentialing industry, serving as the cornerstone of the exam development process.”

Added Mulhare, “Greg, too, brings a wealth of industry experience to the Board. In particular, his understanding of – and deep interest in – the international community association management landscape.”

“I look forward to learning from, and working alongside, this talented Board of Commissioners,” said Greg Smith. “In this role, I’m eager to apply my experiences from various positions in community association management, my perspectives as a practitioner in California, as well as an employee of one of the largest management firms in North America.”

Sandy Denton is currently the General Manager for the Sienna Plantation Associations in Missouri City, Texas. Sienna is a 10,000-acre mixed-use community, with more than 10,000 current units (residential and commercial) and another 4,000 to be built over the next 10-12 years. Prior to joining Sienna in 2005, Denton was the Executive Director for First Colony Community Association (FCCA) in Sugar Land, Texas, a large master planned community consisting of over 10,000 acres and approximately 12,500 units (residential and commercial). Denton was with FCCA for over 15 years.  

Greg Smith has nearly 20 years of community management experience and has served in several positions including portfolio manager, vice president, and president. Smith has been a valued member of Associa, the industry’s largest community management company, since 2010. He currently serves as Director of Leadership Development where he is responsible for the training and development of Associa’s branch leaders, community managers, and board members across North America. Smith is a former CAI President and a current faculty member and has spoken at numerous CAI Annual Conferences and Chapter events.

Three new members of the Board of Commissioners, each elected to a three-year term, begin their term this month:

Kate Bushey, Esq. is a partner at Kaman and Cusimano, LLC where she oversees a full-time community association practice group. Bushey has attended and presided over hundreds of associations’ annual and special meetings. In addition, Bushey actively lobbies Ohio State legislators regarding pending community association bills and serves on the Board of the CAI Northern Ohio Chapter. She is also a member of the CAI Government and Public Affairs Committee as well as the Complaint Committee of the CMCA Professional Conduct Enforcement Committee.

Noelle Hicks, Esq. is an Associate at Roberts Markel Weinberg Butler Hailey (RMWBH) PC and practices in the firm’s Real Estate Section as a member of the Community Association team, based in the firm’s Houston office. Hicks assists single-family residential, townhome, condominium, and some commercial associations with various aspects of property owners’ association law including the collection of delinquent assessments, complex deed restriction enforcement issues, developing and interpreting governing documents, and drafting and reviewing contracts. In addition, she works with her association clients on various issues such as ensuring compliance with state and federal laws, attending administrative hearings and board meetings on behalf of her clients.

Michael Traidman is Chairman of the Desert Cities HOA Council (DCHC), a group of 600 HOA board members in the Coachella Valley who meet monthly to discuss and share best practices for how to manage their HOAs. He has served in this role for more than a decade. In 2019, while Traidman was president of the CAI Coachella Valley Chapter, the DCHC became affiliated with the Homeowner Leaders Council of CAI where the two organizations worked in tandem on projects relating to the education of board members as a top priority.

Board of Commissioners

CAMICB is governed by a nine-member Board of Commissioners. Eight commissioners are community association managers or industry stakeholders. One public interest member represents the interests of the constituencies served by the community association management profession. In addition to Denton, Smith, Traidman, Hicks, and Bushey other CAMICB Board of Commissioners include:

Rob Felix, CMCA, PCAM, LSM, RS (Secretary/Treasurer); Michael Hurley; Lori Loch-Lee CMCA, AMS, PCAM; and, James Magid, CMCA, PCAM.