Midtown + Downtown

Kevin has been a City of Atlanta resident for over 25 years, working for much of that time to advance livability and economic opportunity in Atlanta. He was previously Executive Director of The Clean Air Campaign, a Georgia non-profit working in partnership with employers to implement programs to improve air quality and reduce traffic. Prior to that, Kevin was Vice President of Environmental Affairs with the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce, where he worked to implement water resource stewardship and land use initiatives. Kevin managed public-private initiatives that resulted in the creation of the Metropolitan North Georgia Water Planning District, and the Livable Communities Coalition, where leaders work collaboratively to advance smart growth in Atlanta. He serves on the Leadership Atlanta Board of Trustees, the Board of the Atlanta Convention & Visitors Bureau and is a member of the Rotary Club of Atlanta.

A.J. Robinson is President of Central Atlanta Progress (CAP) and the Atlanta Downtown Improvement District (ADID). CAP is a private business association started in 1941, and remains one of the most effective advocacy organizations in the city. Robinson manages the overall strategic functions of CAP and ADID, two groups committed to making the Atlanta community and specifically Downtown, more livable, vital and diverse. CAP has created and spun off a number of organizations such as Trees Atlanta, Research Atlanta, Centennial Olympic Park Area, Inc., the Midtown Alliance, the National Center for Civil and Human Rights and GeorgiaForward. In 1995, CAP created the Atlanta Downtown Improvement District and the Ambassador Force to address public safety, cleaning concerns, and capital projects. Today, the organizations’ key initiatives focus on economic development, planning, public safety, and overall marketing of Downtown Atlanta. CAP is funded through membership dues and grants from many of Atlanta's major corporations, as well as organizations and foundations committed to the development of Downtown and ADID is funded by downtown property owners. Over the past decade, A.J. has consistently been recognized as one of Georgia Trend’s 100 Most Influential Georgians, as well as one of the Atlanta Business Chronicle’s 100 Most Influential Atlantans'. Before joining CAP, Robinson was President of the multi-dimensional real estate company Portman Holdings, where he managed all aspects of the firm’s real estate development processes, including property and asset management of SunTrust Plaza, AmericasMart, Atlanta Decorative Arts Center, Westin Charlotte, Westin Warsaw and Shanghai Centre, to name a few. Prior to his 22-year career at Portman Holdings, Robinson participated in the U.S. Department of Commerce's historic creation of China's first business school under a protocol signed by President Jimmy Carter and the Chinese Department of Education. During that time, Robinson researched, wrote and taught case studies in Dalian, China, and traveled extensively throughout the Chinese cities. Robinson received his MBA in 1980 from Harvard School of Business, and he received his undergraduate degree from Emory University in 1977. He has traveled extensively in the U.S. and internationally, and his special interests include American history and sports. Robinson’s articles have been published in The Wall Street Journal, Asian Wall Street Journal, Harvard Business Review, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, The Atlanta Business Chronicle, and National Real Estate Investor. He currently serves on the Board of Directors of AmericasMart, The University Financing Foundation, Atlanta Convention and Visitor’s Bureau, the National Center for Civil and Human Rights, the College Football Hall of Fame, GeorgiaForward and the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta. A native of Knoxville, Tennessee, he is married to Dr. Nicole Ellerine, a pediatrician, and they reside in Atlanta. They have three children, Micaela, Ethan and Nathaniel.

Richard Aaronson is CEO and Founder of Atlantic Realty Partners. He is responsible for all of the firm’s operations throughout its two operating regions -- the Southeast based in Atlanta and the Midwest based in Chicago -- including development, construction, leasing, and property management. ARP is a private real estate development and management company headquartered in Atlanta. Through affiliated entities, it currently owns and manages over 3,000 apartments. It has developed mixed-use and residential projects with over 6,000 apartments and condos and an aggregate value of over $1.5 Billion since its inception. It is currently developing eight new multifamily communities in Atlanta (3), Chicago (1), Milwaukee (1), and South Florida (3) containing over 2500 apartments. Richard received his BS in Engineering from the University of Wisconsin and his MBA from Emory University. He is a past-president of both the Atlanta Apartment Association and the Georgia Apartment Association.

Scott L. Leventhal is the co-founder, President and Chief Executive Officer of Trillist. As a fourth generation developer, Mr. Leventhal has spent two decades in the real estate development business and has created an impressive portfolio of mixed-use and multifamily housing projects in the Southeastern U.S. In 2006 and only at the age of 28, Mr. Leventhal was recognized as one of “Atlanta’s Most Promising Young Stars” by the editors of Atlanta Business Chronicle in their annual “Up and Comers – 40 under 40” feature. Mr. Leventhal is an experienced real estate developer and overseen the development of a high-quality portfolio of residential and mixed-use projects. Mr. Leventhal formally managed Tivoli Properties, Inc. (“Tivoli”), which was one of the nation’s premier real estate investment and development companies. Under his leadership, Tivoli built innovative developments which forever changed the Atlanta landscape for residential condominium living. Within a few years of its formation, Tivoli created a portfolio of award-winning projects with a retail value of nearly $400 million. Because of its rapid acceleration and growth, Tivoli earned recognition as 24th of the top 100 real estate development companies according to Real Estate Forum Magazine’s November 2007 issue. Mr. Leventhal appears frequently as a guest speaker and lecturer on matters involving the real estate development business. In the spring of 2012, Mr. Leventhal appeared as a special, select witness before a U.S. Congressional Committee on the effect of bank failures in the real estate development industry and structured finance programs that involve public-private partnerships. Mr. Leventhal is also a member of Georgia State University’s Honorary Real Estate Board. He frequently lectures before students at Georgia State University’s Masters in Real Estate Development and Finance classes.

Dr. Eloisa Klementich is President and CEO of Invest Atlanta. Previously, Eloisa served as managing director of business development at Invest Atlanta. In this position, she worked to attract new businesses and create initiatives that promoted job growth in Atlanta. Before coming to Invest Atlanta, Eloisa served as special assistant for economic development at the U.S. Economic Development Administration in the Office of the Secretary. She served as California’s assistant deputy secretary for economic development and commerce and has held various roles with city governments, including the consultant for Mexico’s President Vicente Fox, working on best practices for addressing constituent issues and requests. Eloisa holds a bachelor’s degree from Pitzer College and a master’s degree in business administration from el Instituto Tecnologico de Monterrey. She holds two master’s degrees in urban planning and Latin American affairs from the University of California, Los Angeles. She received her doctorate degree in public administration from the University of LaVerne. Eloisa is also active in various business and civic organizations. She serves as a board member for the Latin American Civic Association, Access to Capital for Entrepreneurs, Atlanta Technical College, Atlanta Workforce Development Agency, LaunchPad 2x, Startup Atlanta, and Atlanta Emerging Markets, Inc. A graduate of the Leadership Atlanta Class of 2017, she is also involved with the Women’s Entrepreneurship Initiative, Georgia Economic Development Association, and International Economic Development Council.

Kirk Rich brings more than 30 years of commercial real estate experience to Avison Young, most recently as the principal and president of Rich Real Estate Services, a full-service real estate brokerage company that he founded in 2001. He specializes in third-party landlord representation and providing brokerage and consulting services for commercial and residential properties throughout the U.S. During his career, Rich has completed more than 3,000 commercial leasing, property acquisition and disposition transactions, and represented more than 12 msf of commercial space while assisting local, national and multinational firms. He was named 2015 Realtor of the Year by the Atlanta Commercial Board of Realtors. Rich began his real estate career in 1987 at The Griffin Company, where he rose to the position of Senior Vice-President of marketing services. He currently serves on the board of Invest Atlanta – the city’s economic development authority, and on the Georgia State University real estate honourary board. Rich is very active in the commercial real estate industry. He is a past-president of the Georgia chapter of the Certified Commercial Investment Member (CCIM) Institute as well as the Georgia chapter of the Society of Industrial and Office Realtors (SIOR). In addition, he currently serves on the Atlanta Commercial Board of Realtors, where he co-chaired the group’s Million Dollar Club in 2016; and is a past board member of Sunrise Bank of Georgia. In the community, Rich chairs the board of the Hambidge Center, which provides a residency program that empowers talented individuals to explore, develop, and express their creative voices. He also sits on the board of Morningside Lenox Park Association. In the past, he has held board and committee positions with Jerusalem House, the largest provider of housing in the U.S. for individuals and families dealing with HIV/AIDS; Actor’s Express Theatre; Dad’s Garage Theatre; 7 Stages Theatre; and the Woodruff Foundation. Rich is also a highly involved member of several other organizations, including the Atlanta Botanical Gardens, Piedmont Park Conservancy, Morningside Neighborhood Association, Lake Rabun Association and Peachtree Road United Methodist Church.

Kelly King is President and owner of Oakwood Development with responsibilities for implementing the overall company strategy of revitalizing urban areas based upon over a decade of asset management across all asset classes. Prior to Oakwood, Ms. King held a real estate sales license (Cassidy Turley, formerly Carter & Colliers International) and worked as Senior Asset Manager for Boston-based State Street Bank’s private equity group, The Tuckerman Group (now a division of Hunt Companies.) In addition to managing UBS investments in several states, she was appointed to State Street’s Carpathia Real Estate Advisers to oversee Citigroup Pension Plan investments in AEW, CarVal, GTIS Partners, Landmark and Hines I & II. Before State Street, Ms. King was a Senior Asset Manager at Yale's University Properties group and the Office of New Haven & State Affairs with oversight for the school’s real estate investments and community relations. Ms. King's career began as Manager of Real Estate for New York-based holding company Loews Corporation whose assets include CNA Insurance, Loews Hotels, etc. Ms. King has a BA in English Literature from Wellesley College and MMH in Real Estate from Cornell University's Hotel School.

As Chief Operating Officer for the City of Atlanta, Gordon directly manages and oversees all city operating departments and related agencies including Aviation Police Fire Corrections Parks Recreation and Cultural Affairs Planning and Community Development Public Works Watershed Management Human Resources Procurement Information Technology Sustainability and Enterprise Assets. Gordon brings over 15 years of management experience to the position.

There’s so much to say about Morris Kaplan. He’s definitely a man of high energy. Also one of engineering knowhow, family closeness, spiritual conviction, keen insights, operational acumen, land discoveries, constant integrity, vanguard achievements, widespread generosity, worldly travel, New Jersey roots and a Florida address. That’s the CliffsNotes bio. Here’s the longer one. It all started in 1976 when Morris graduated from Rutgers University with a degree in civil engineering. Educated, eager and motivated, he applied his energies to gaining hands-on experience. Morris’ roots began by learning construction from the ground up during 25 years in the field. Over the next two decades, his development expertise blossomed into all the various disciplines of real estate – closely following the career path of his revered father. It’s not surprising. Family is and always has been universally central to Morris. A dad of three and grandfather as well, he’s married to the wise and lovely Sandra Lisman Kaplan, who puts it this way: “My biggest and most important titles are Daughter, Wife, Mother, Grandmother, Sister, Aunt, and Friend. For me, my family is what always comes first.” Besides being occupied with the responsibilities listed above, Sandra makes it her business to support Morris and provide exceptional insight on issues that sometimes frustrate him. She has been a great sounding board for the whole Kaplan team. Her passion to see the firm’s projects succeed is evidenced by her participation in various aspects of communities that have been developed and ones currently on the drawing board. Behind every successful man is a great woman . . . that is Sandra. Morris is wholeheartedly thankful to have a great partner like her. Ranking second in devotion is the couple’s love of community. Giving back is instinctive, their service to Jewish organizations undeniable. He’s a past president of Young Israel of Bal Harbour, KSpace, Bris Avrohom and Monmouth Torah Links and is active in these and many more. On top of that, he’s built four synagogues, two in Florida and two in New Jersey. Sandra has also been actively involved for 35 years in Women’s International Zionist Organization (WIZO). With religion such a huge part of his life, integrity is a credo without boundaries for Morris. He’s resolute about doing the right thing. All the time. Regardless. In and outside of work. His track record is an eye-opener. Kaplan has developed 30,000 homes and 3 million square feet of non-residential projects over the last 46 years as a family company. Very focused on big dreams, Kaplan has a long-term goal of developing a billion dollars of real estate on a bi-annual basis. On the way to that target, he’s accomplishing some very daunting feats. From developing master-planned communities, working through environmentally challenging sites to build apartments, implementing new technologies like lightweight steel framing and modular constructions, building in urban or suburban markets, Morris has overseen projects that would have stymied most large and national developers. Operating ahead of the curve, Morris has instituted a slogan – The Impossible is Possible. Following his 1986 move to open up new markets in the Southeast, his 450 Piedmont development made headlines as the first private development in downtown Atlanta. Soon more and more Kaplan Residential developments were rising up in cities throughout Georgia, Florida, the Carolinas . . . and the groundbreaking announcements just keep on coming. All of this has come full circle in that Kaplan Residential recently broke ground in downtown Atlanta on a 17-story high-rise utilizing a lightweight steel framing technology, the first installation of its kind in the U.S. Like we said, Morris Kaplan is definitely a high-energy guy.

Ken Kraft is the founder of the Parker Hudson Real Estate practice group. Over the course of his 40+ year career he has worked on billions of dollars’ worth of real estate transactions and more than 25,000,000 square feet of leases, in deals at all levels of complexity. His experience, judgment and reputation ensure that his clients are in the optimum position to achieve their objectives. A former senior executive for Atlanta developer Taylor & Mathis and The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, Ken truly understands and is oriented to the business of commercial real estate. He represents owners, lenders, and developers in the purchase, sale, financing, and development of office, industrial, residential, and hotel real estate. In addition, Ken regularly represents clients in large national headquarters leases and leasing of retail locations throughout the United States. Ken is steadfastly committed to seeing his clients’ deals through to a successful conclusion. The breadth of his experience over the commercial real estate landscape enables Ken innately to understand not only the needs of his clients, but also those of his clients’ counterparties, and thereby devise solutions that work without compromising client goals. One client described Ken’s leadership and creativity succinctly: "He cuts through the clutter" – Chambers USA 2017.