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Shola Olatoye Out as CEO of San Francisco Downtown Development Corporation After Just Over a Year
Shola Olatoye, the first CEO of the San Francisco Downtown Development Corporation, has abruptly left the nonprofit created to spearhead Mayor Daniel Lurie's downtown revitalization efforts. The organization gave no reason for her departure, which comes just over a year after she was hired.
Shola Olatoye, the inaugural chief executive of the San Francisco Downtown Development Corporation (DDC), has left the organization after little more than a year on the job, the nonprofit confirmed Monday. The DDC did not provide a reason for her abrupt departure.
Olatoye was hired as the DDC's first CEO to scale up the public benefit nonprofit, which Mayor Daniel Lurie has championed as a key vehicle for raising millions in philanthropic dollars from business leaders to clean up and revitalize downtown San Francisco. Her exit comes just over a year after she took the helm.
As recently as October 26, Olatoye gave no indication in an interview that she planned to leave the position.
TJ Wenzel, the organization's managing director of capital initiatives, will serve as interim CEO while the DDC searches for a full-time replacement. Rebecca Foster, founding CEO of the San Francisco Housing Accelerator Fund, will take over Olatoye's role as vice chair of the DDC's board.
Olatoye, a longtime housing executive, previously served as chief operating officer for Eden Housing before joining the DDC. Her departure leaves a leadership gap at an organization central to the mayor's downtown recovery strategy, which relies heavily on private-sector fundraising and coordination among business, civic, and government stakeholders.
The DDC did not respond to questions about the circumstances of Olatoye's exit or the timeline for naming a permanent CEO. The organization's board is expected to begin a search for a full-time replacement in the coming weeks.