An agency designed to streamline the financing for affordable housing throughout Los Angeles County will be headed by a former Orange County official whose name is not unknown to residents of Costa Mesa and Huntington Beach.
Lori Ann Farrell — who for two decades oversaw municipal finance and operations in Huntington Beach, Long Beach and, more recently, as Costa Mesa’s city manager, has been selected to lead the Los Angeles County Affordable Housing Solutions Agency (LACAHSA) as its chief executive.
Officials said Farrell’s experience handling multi-billion dollar budgets, directing large public agencies and securing hundreds of millions in investments made her a standout candidate to lead the regional agency, formed through legislation in 2023.
“As [we move] from vision to execution, it is critical that we have a leader with the experience, financial sophistication, and strategic vision to guide the agency through its next phase,” said Long Beach Mayor Rex Richard, who chairs the agency.
“The board made a strategic decision to bring in a proven leader who can help position LACAHSA as one of the most innovative and impactful housing agencies in the country, and Lori Ann is exactly that leader.”
Farrell is currently interim city manager for the city of Santa Rosa in Sonoma County, a position she began last November, after having left Costa Mesa amid some contention that May. She is expected to start in her new post with LACAHSA on July 6.
In an interview with The Pilot, Farrell said she’s been busy helping Santa Rosa officials close an anticipated 2026-27 budget gap to balance next fiscal year’s finances ahead of a June 30 deadline and recently informed city leaders of her new position.
“I committed six months to them and am happy to deliver on that and set them on a path where they have a balanced budget by the start of the fiscal year,” said Farrell, who prepared and monitored spending plans as a chief financial officer in Huntington Beach and Long Beach, where she still resides, and in the state of New York.
During her six years in Costa Mesa, she helped the city get through the COVID pandemic without drawing from its reserves, an account Farrell helped grow by $4 million above the established city council target of $55 million. She also oversaw the adoption of an affordable housing ordinance, eviction protections and a rental assistance program.
Santa Rosa officials on May 15 announced they’d appointed the city’s public works and transportation director, Jason Nutt, to fill in as interim city manager until a permanent leader is found.
Farrell said she wasn’t looking to change jobs, but was contacted by a recruiter for the LACAHSA leadership role. It was an offer too good to refuse.
“We have very few opportunities in life to make such a concentrated impact on an intractable societal issue,” she said. “This gave me the opportunity to work with a team that’s been created to deal with this one societal dilemma that’s been very difficult for most cities in the country to address, one that’s innovative, that’s exciting and seeks to break the mold.”
Established through state legislation in 2022, LACAHSA was designed to be a “one-stop shop for affordable housing financing,” the Los Angeles Times reported in April, after the agency signed off on $100 million in financing for 554 below-market units across 10 projects.
The agency, which is funded by the voter approved Measure A half-cent sales tax, aims to spur the development of low-income homes and cut costs from 5% to 10%, The Times reported.
Its chief executive position comes with a base salary range of $360,000 to $450,000.