CHERNO M. NJIE – President
Songhai Development Company, LLC
Cherno Njie formed Austin-based Songhai Development Company, LLC, a multi-family housing development and consulting firm, in 2001 after a decade of working for the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs (TDHCA), the second largest tax credit allocation program in the nation. Under his leadership, TDHCA put $1.2 billion of equity into the state’s affordable housing market, funded over 40 projects annually and produced more than 70,000 multi-family housing units for Texas residents in rural, urban and suburban communities.
Songhai Development specializes in leveraging public and private investments to develop affordable housing through the use of federal tax credits and private activity bonds. Mr. Njie uses his 20 years of multi-family housing finance and development experience to manage Songhai Development’s portfolio of properties and projects across the state of Texas.
Mr. Njie has extensive experience working with developers, investors, general contractors, lenders, and local municipalities. His ability to structure complex housing projects to enhance long-term financial viability of communities while maintaining compliance standards and cost schedules has made Songhai Development a go-to consulting firm for delivering quality, affordable housing. Mr. Njie oversees the entire development process, nimbly transitioning from owner to developer, which gives partners and clients access to a full spectrum of services from submission of tax credit applications, project design permitting, financing, construction, cost certification, contract negotiation, and management of general partnerships.
He is a national speaker on a variety of housing finance topics, such as tax credits, underwriting guidelines and compliance. Mr. Njie is a member of the Texas Affiliation of Affordable Housing Providers and a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin.
Mr. Njie also serves as president of Songhai Development’s sister company, CMB Construction, LLC.
Fatou Jagne – Vice President, and Development Manager
Songhai Development Company, LLC
Fatou Jagne is a dynamic professional at generating and building relationships, managing projects, demonstrating exceptional communication, and making critical decisions during challenging times. An engaging leader who can coach and develop cross-functional teams by fostering innovation and accountability in a results-oriented environment. With a decade of experience in the development and ongoing asset management of multifamily affordable housing, Ms. Jagne has become an adaptable and effective leader.
As Vice President and Development Manager, Ms. Jagne has been involved with all aspects of multifamily development, from land acquisition, project design, and the start of construction to completion. She has helped with the initial lease-up through stabilization, closing, and conversion for financing and refinancing of our existing properties. In May 2022, Ms. Jagne closed a $20M refinancing of a multifamily portfolio in Houston, Texas, with Greystone Funding Company, LLC.
Ms. Jagne also work closely with our CEO and development staff on the submission of low-income tax credit applications.
DOUGLAS E. HAYES – Multi-family Construction Manager
CMB Construction, LLC
Doug Hayes is a 15-year multi-family and commercial construction professional. Throughout his career, he has been involved with more than 2500 apartment units and more than two million square feet of built space in a variety of roles from laborer, project engineer, superintendent, estimator, project manager and operations manager. He has worked for top general contractors and owner developers/builders on design-build commercial, multi-family and mixed-use projects. Mr. Hayes has served as the manager of CMB Construction, LLC since 2010, managing all aspects of business operations, pre-construction planning, estimating, and project management for new developments. He also works as a member of the development team for CMB Construction’s sister company, Austin-based Songhai Development.
Mr. Hayes has successfully managed new construction and special projects ranging from $150,000 to $25 million, exceeding safety standards, meeting budgets and schedules consistently. During his tenure with CF Jordan Construction, LP, the Remington Project, was awarded the Annual Safety Award for the Multi-Family Division. While at Gables Residential, he was the project manager on the Westlake Project; a 1 star certified Austin Green Builder Program 175-unit $22 million garden-style development on 31 acres. The 18-month project was completed on schedule in nine phases and $350,000 under budget. In addition to his Multi-Family Developer / Builder experience, Mr. Hayes has worked for Commercial General Contractors serving clients such as Microsoft, Expedia.com, Prologis and other clients on critical infrastructure, tenant finish out and tilt-up warehouse projects. As manager of CMB Construction, Doug has implemented business operations standards, regulatory compliance standards, construction standards, field operations and safety programs. He has overseen the construction and delivery of 284 multi-family units at our Chelsea Senior Community and North Court Villas developments, two affordable tax credit projects located in Houston and Frisco Texas respectively.
Mr. Hayes received a Bachelor’s in Construction Science from Texas A&M University and is Green Advantage Certified by the U.S. Green Building Council.