Jackson Hsieh, former president and CEO at Spirit Realty, will become president and CEO of Macerich on March 1, following the retirement of CEO Tom O’Hern and of president Edward Coppola.

Hsieh led Spirit’s $9.3 billion merger with Realty Income, which closed on Jan. 23. Prior to the REIT, Hsieh worked for more than 25 years in global lodging and real estate investment banking, including at Morgan Stanley. According to Morgan Stanley managing director and head of U.S. REITs and commercial real estate research Ronald Kamdem, Spirit investors held favorable views of Hsieh’s capital allocation decisions and his underwriting to mitigate tenant risk. His skills will help Macerich navigate $3.6 billion of debt maturing through 2026.

O’Hern will retire from Macerich after 30 years. He served as CFO from the company’s formation in 1993 and through its initial public offering in 1994 and became CEO in 2019. Before Macerich, he had been a CFO at several real estate development companies.

Coppola’s tenure with Macerich and its predecessor companies spans 46 years. A founding partner of the original Macerich Group from 1977, Coppola worked on the 1994 IPO and led several acquisitions for the company.