NorthStar Healthcare Changes Sponsor, Names New Chairman and CFO
NorthStar Healthcare Income Inc. has changed its sponsor and appointed a new chairman of the board and chief financial officer.
DigitalBridge Group Inc. (NYSE: DBRG), the former sponsor of non-traded real estate investment trust, NorthStar Healthcare Income Inc., recently sold its wellness infrastructure business to an investment group comprised of Highgate and Aurora Health Network. The $3.2 billion sale included NorthStar Healthcare’s advisor, CNI NSHC Advisors.
DigitalBridge Group was formerly known as Colony Capital Inc. and rebranded in June 2021 to focus exclusively on the digital infrastructure sector.
NRF Holdco, the holding company for the wellness infrastructure business that owns a portfolio of medical office buildings, senior housing facilities, skilled nursing facilities and specialty hospitals, now owns NorthStar Healthcare’s advisor and is the REIT’s new sponsor. DigitalBridge employees who focused on the wellness infrastructure business became employees of NRF Holdco.
Separately, Richard Welch resigned as a director and chairman of the board, and T. Andrew Smith was appointed as non-executive chairman.
Smith is president and chief executive officer of Vigilant Health and has more than 30 years of experience in healthcare, mergers and acquisitions, real estate, capital markets transactions, and corporate finance. He previously served as CEO of Brookdale Senior Living, Inc. (NYSE), and earlier as its president, executive vice president, general counsel, and secretary. He is a board member of the Assisted Living Federation of America.
In addition, Neale Redington resigned as chief financial officer and treasurer of the REIT. Paul Varisano, chief financial officer of NRF Holdco, was appointed as the REIT’s new CFO and treasurer.
NorthStar Healthcare reported that neither resignation was the result of disagreements with the company.
Prior to the sponsor transaction, Varisano served as senior vice president of DigitalBridge and was responsible for oversight of finance and accounting for its wellness infrastructure business since June 2019. He previously served in a similar capacity for the firm’s hospitality business, and served as controller of NorthStar Asset Management Group, DigitalBridge’s predecessor.
Earlier in his career, Varisano served as director of financial accounting and reporting at Icon Capital, and before that, was an audit senior manager in the real estate and investment management practice of Deloitte & Touche LLP. He is a certified public accountant and holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Northeastern University.
NorthStar Healthcare Income was formed to acquire, originate and asset manage a portfolio of equity, debt and securities investments in healthcare real estate. The company launched in February 2013 and raised $1.7 billion, excluding $232.6 million through its distribution reinvestment plan. The REIT completed its follow-on offering in January 2016.
In December 2021, Northstar Healthcare sold 14 independent living, assisted living/memory, and continuing care retirement communities to subsidiaries of Welltower Inc. (NYSE: WELL), a traded REIT, for $580 million.
As of the third quarter of 2021, the REIT’s $2.56 billion property portfolio included 554 properties. The REIT’s assets totaled $1.82 billion, and its liabilities totaled $1.43 billion.
