ORLANDO-CNL is making some bold management moves. The boards of CNL Lifestyle Properties and CNL Properties Trust have named Tom Sittema CEO and Steve Mauldin as president and COO of the companies. Joe Johnson was named CFO.

The new appointment is a vote of confidence for Sittema, who already serves as CEO of CNL Financial Group. In 2009, he brought his 25 years of real estate investment experience to the firm, including tenures with Bank of America Merrill Lynch.

"Both of these REITs are in new, but different, stages of their lifecycles," Sittema tells GlobeSt.com. "For CNL Lifestyle Properties, our primary goal is to continue to maximize the value of the company's assets in preparation for a successful liquidation event that will return capital to shareholders. For CNL Properties Trust, our goal is to invest the capital that we are successful in raising in assets that will provide investors with current income as well as the potential for capital appreciation in the future."

Sittema succeeds Byron Carlock, who is departing CNL. He says Carlock was instrumental in growing the CNL Lifestyle Properties portfolio to over $3 billion in assets, as well as launching CNL Properties Trust. Carlock will remain as an advisor to CNL through the end of 2011.

"With CNL Lifestyle Properties having closed to new investors in April and CNL Properties Trust having just recently been declared effective with its first offering, the need to have an Orlando-based executive leading the companies became more important," Sittema says. "For personal and family reasons, Byron was unable to relocate." 

Mauldin, meanwhile, has more than 20 years of experience in real estate finance, investment and asset management. He most recently served as president and CEO of Crosland, a Charlotte, NC-based real estate development and asset management company.

"I am deeply impressed with the leadership team at the companies, as well as CNL Financial Group," Mauldin said in a statement. "I’m excited to have the opportunity to apply my expertise in capital markets and commercial real estate as we grow CNL Properties Trust and examine ways to maximize value for CNL Lifestyle Properties shareholders."