Board of Directors

Doug Guthrie was appointed the President and CEO of the Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles (HACLA) in April 2012. In this capacity he oversees one of the largest housing authorities in the country responsible for the nearly 10,000 public and assisted housing units and management of 58,000 Section 8 vouchers with total annual revenues of $1 billion. Prior to this position he held the position of General Manager of the Los Angeles Housing Department (LAHD). This was an office of 600 employees with responsibilities for managing the City’s primary affordable housing development programs which address priorities for affordable housing, housing preservation, transit oriented development, and permanent and supportive housing for the homeless; systematic code enforcement of LA’s rental housing stock of nearly 760,000 housing units, and oversight of the rent stabilization program that manages rent adjustments on 620,000 rental housing units. Mr. Guthrie has a BA Degree in Sociology and a Masters Degree in Public Administration(specializing in Urban Studies) from Kent State University in Kent, Ohio. Mr. Guthrie was appointed to the L.A. LOMOD Board of Directors in 2017.

Delfino De La Cruz Jr. is a Business Agent, Organizer and Auditor for Laborers’ International Union of North America Local 300. Delfino administers local union agreements and ensures contracts comply with the terms of local collective bargaining agreements to avoid workers’ rights violations. Delfino has been a member in good standing since 1996. Delfino received a state vocational teaching credential in 2004 and served as Assistant Supervisor and Instructor at Laborers Training School of Azusa California from 2004 to 2013, during which time he was 1 of 14 out of over 250 instructors to receive recognition as a Certified Instructor. Delfino looks forward to serving on the Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles Commission and using his work experience, knowledge and skillset to assist underserved communities and connect residents to great careers throughout the City of Los Angeles.

In 2015, Wells Lawson joined the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LA Metro) as Senior Director of Joint Development. He was promoted to Deputy Executive Officer in 2021, where he oversees strategic planning effort to grow Metro’s housing portfolio to 10,000 units by 2031.

Lawson leads a team of 10 professionals with projects representing more than 2,700 units in various phases of planning, negotiation and construction. He has accomplished several things in his career, including the launch of Metro Housing Lab as a proving ground for housing innovation on Metro property. Lawson graduated from the University of California, Berkeley with a Masters in City Planning and currently holds memberships with Urban Land Institute, American Planning Association, and Westside Urban Forum.