Mar 02, 2018

Central Washington University

Former Boeing CEO Ray Conner was appointed to a six-year term on Central Washington University's board of trustees. Conner is a 1979 graduate of the school. He worked at Boeing for 40 years, starting as a mechanic, before retiring in December. CWU plans to expand its aviation program with 10 new Piper Archer aircraft.

Woodland Park Zoo

In Seattle, Woodland Park Zoo hired Peter Zahler as vice president of conservation initiatives. Zahler was director of training and capacity building at Wildlife Conservation Society, the nonprofit that operates the Bronx Zoo and other zoos in New York. He has more than 30 years of experience in conservation leadership.

Symetra Financial

Jacqueline M. Veneziani on April 1 will become senior vice president, general counsel and secretary at Symetra Financial in Bellevue, where she will oversee the Law and Compliance departments. Veneziani has been with the company for 20 years and will succeed David Goldstein, who is retiring after more than six years as general counsel.

Papa Murphy's

Vancouver-based take-and-bake pizza chain Papa Murphy's appointed Laura Szeliga chief marketing officer. Szeliga was senior vice president and general manager for Provide Commerce's ProFlowers brand. She also worked at Timex, Dean Foods, Kraft Foods and Gillette.

Mar 01, 2018

Keiretsu Forum

McDonald

Brianna McDonald is now president of Keiretsu Forum's Northwest region. McDonald has been a leader and angel investor with the Seattle chapter of Keiretsu Forum since its formation in 2005. San Francisco-based Keiretsu, a community of early stage investors, has more than 50 chapters around the world.

Hinds-Bock

Middleby Corp. bought Hinds-Bock, a Bothell-based company that develops equipment for industrial baking, food processing and other specialty areas. Middleby is a manufacturer of commercial cooking equipment headquartered in Elgin, Illinois.

Andersen Tax

Brandon Nett joined Andersen Tax in Seattle as commercial managing director. Nett has experience in mergers and acquisitions, as well as taxes affecting technology, health care and mining. He was a tax partner at Grant Thornton in Seattle.

Orion Industries

Auburn-based Orion Industries received its eighth consecutive Boeing Performance Excellence Award for suppliers. Orion uses its aerospace manufacturing division to teach job skills to people who face barriers to employment.

$170M refi deal for 901 Fifth

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Holliday Fenoglio Fowler announced a $170 million refinancing of 901 Fifth Ave. on behalf of owners Investcorp International Realty, Inc. and Schnitzer West. They purchased 901 Fifth in 2016 for $223 million, and recently spent $7 million to upgrade the lobby and other areas. The 41-story, 540,600-square-foot high-rise was built in 1973. HFF says it is almost fully leased, and tenants include State Farm Mutual, SVB Financial Group, AllState Insurance and Pitchbook. The HFF team was led by Michael Gigliotti and Michael Tepedino in New York, and locally based Tom Wilson. The loan came from HSBC.

Ryan heads eXp Realty University

Residential broker eXp Realty has hired Kimberly Ryan as executive director of eXp Realty University in Bellingham. She was with a brokerage in Scottsdale. Ryan will develop coaching, consulting and mentor programs for eXp Realty agents worldwide. Publicly traded eXp World Holdings has over 8,000 agents in 47 U.S. states and two Canadian provinces.

$20M loan for Kent apartments

Following last month's $28 million sale of the 177-unit Village at Lake Meridian in Kent, CBRE announced that it has secured a $19.78 million loan for the new owner, The Jacobson Co. of Los Angeles. CBRE's Brian Eisendrath and Brandon Smith arranged the 10-year fixed rate, 5-year interest-only loan. The funding source was not specified. David Young and Corey Marx of JLL brokered the deal last month. The 1980 complex was sold by TruAmerica Multifamily.