George Armoyan has been appointed chair of financially troubled Slate Office REIT’s board.

He succeeds Sam Altman, who has stepped down both as chair and a trustee.

The moves come after Slate Office REIT has announced plans to manage its assets in-house after its external manager, Slate Asset Management, initiated the termination of its management agreement with the REIT.

As part of the transition, brothers Blair Welch and Brady Welch resigned from the REIT’s board, effective immediately. The Welches are the principals of SAM and Brady Welch serves as the company’s CEO.

“It has been a busy year for the REIT, and it has become clear that a successful turnaround requires a new strategic direction,” said Armoyan, a Nova Scotia-based entrepreneur with multiple commercial real estate holdings. “As Chair, I will be working closely with the board on the restructuring of the REIT and internalization of management.”

The REIT has also added Shant Poladian to its board. Poladian brings more than two decades of experience in real estate and capital markets, having served in leadership roles at Killam Apartment REIT and the REIT’s predecessor, FAM REIT. He is the managing director of Springhurst Capital and CEO of Junction Realty Partners, with expertise in developing mid-rise rental apartments in Toronto.

Poladian will play a key role in the REIT’s planned internalization of management.

“I look forward to working with George and the Board to re-imagine and execute a brighter future for the REIT,” Poladian said. “As an internally managed REIT, we expect that the REIT will be better aligned to drive value going forward.”

SAM has provided 180 days’ notice of the external management agreement’s termination, during which the company will work with the REIT to ensure a smooth transition of management services. Former chair Altman had stated that internalizing asset management will align better with unitholders and reduce costs for the REIT.

The latest moves are among several that have followed a battle among the REIT’s board members and an ongoing effort to protect the REIT against insolvency.

Blair and Brady Welch have accused trustee Armoyan of inappropriately bidding for the trust’s assets, the Globe and Mail reported previously. The accusations were made in a letter sent to other board members, according to the Globe.

Armoyan has denied the allegations in an e-mail to the Globe, contending that the REIT has badly underperformed its peers over the past decade while SAM has collected $132 million in management fees.

Armoyan told the Globe that SAM has overseen the destruction of hundreds of millions of dollars in unitholder value.

The REIT, which operates a portfolio of commercial real estate assets across North America and Europe, is facing mounting financial pressures due to its high debt levels. The majority of its tenants are government and high-credit-quality clients.

Photo: Slate Office REIT