The executive director of Mountainlands Community Housing Trust has resigned after six months on the job, the organization said Tuesday.
The message from the organization’s board of trustees was concise: “Effective October 10, 2023, the board of trustees of Mountainlands Community Housing Trust has accepted the resignation of David Levine as executive director of the organization. We thank David for his six months of service, and we are confident about the future of Mountainlands.”
The organization said past Executive Director Scott Loomis will return temporarily as interim executive director while the board conducts a search for the next executive director.
Board President Bob Richer declined to talk about why Levine resigned, and Levine declined to comment Tuesday.
The nearly 30-year-old organization dedicated to providing affordable housing had faced headwinds related to building difficulties that have lingered since the height of the COVID pandemic and complaints from clients in recent months.
In September some residents of Mountainlands Community Housing Trust’s Heber subdivision stood up to express their displeasure and frustration with the nonprofit corporation dedicated to providing affordable housing.
They reported incorrect paint colors, questionable work, disregarded timelines, a lack of communication and a concern about whether Heber City should continue working with MCHT given their personal experiences.
Levine at the time offered an explanation for a lapse in communication.
Levine, who took the position as director in March, said promises and verbal agreements had been made with buyers but not recorded, leading to what eventually became misunderstandings between MCHT and the residents of Parkview Place. Additionally, he said, the COVID-19 pandemic made the projects’ original timelines unfeasible.
“As with so many other contractors and home builders, there were material shortages, labor shortages and massive cost overruns on construction,” Levine said then. “We ran into that on these homes. When you say that they’re three years overdue, a lot of that had to do with the fact that we were doing this through COVID.”