North Delaware State of the Market

Michael S. Purzycki, Wilmington’s 57th Mayor, is currently serving his second, four-year term as the City’s Chief Executive. The Mayor was initially elected to office in November of 2016. He was re-elected in November of 2020 to a second term. His time as Mayor is driven by his desire to see the City run at a high level of efficiency, to increase the level of shared prosperity among its citizens, and to confront the problems too many cities experience throughout the country. Mike Purzycki was born in Newark, New Jersey in 1945. He graduated Seton Hall Prep in 1963 and earned a football scholarship to the University of Delaware, where he played for four years and set every Blue Hen receiving record. After graduating with a degree in history, he signed a contract with the NewYork Giants football team for the 1967-1968 season when an injury sidelined his professional football career. The mayor worked with IBM in Data Processing sales, as a stockbroker, and then in real estate sales and development while attending Delaware Law School at night. He was admitted to the Delaware bar and served as attorney for the Delaware State Senate and then practiced law for over a decade. He first ran for public office in 1982 and was elected to New Castle County Council where he served for nine years as Chairman of the County’s Council’s Finance Committee and wrote the legislation that created the state’s first ethics law. In 1996, Mike Purzycki was tapped to head the Riverfront Development Corporation, and was tasked with the challenging job of resurrecting the blighted, industrial wasteland along the Christina River. He and his team did what many said would be impossible—they reinvented and reinvigorated the former World War ll shipyard into an economic, cultural, and social hub of the City which included over one billion dollars of public and private investment, including the Chase Center, The Peterson Wildlife Refuge, two miles of Riverwalk, hundreds of apartments, restaurants, hotels, and other amenities. Mike also served for ten years as Chairman of the Wilmington Hope Commission during which he oversaw the 2014 opening of the Achievement Center, a ten thousand-square-foot building housing a groundbreaking program that helps formerly incarcerated men successfully transition from prison back into the community. During his tenure as Mayor, the City has seen almost $1 billion of private investment injected into the local economy. Thousands of apartments, hotels, and new nightlife and dining destinations have breathed new life into the downtown and riverfront. Wilmington has invested $14 million in its neighborhood parks and public spaces. Twenty-six miles of City streets have been paved and repaired. There has been no tax increase for four years while the City’s cash position has been improved. During this same period, Moody’s removed a negative outlook from the City’s previous bond rating to improve the City’s borrowing power. Mike married the former Bette Richitelli in 1984. They live in the Highlands with their teenage son, Gage. Their adult children—Adriane, her husband Andrew and granddaughter Pascal live in Hockessin, while Mick, his wife Ally, and granddaughter Yoyo live in Maryland.

Scott brings over 30 years of real estate planning, acquisition, development, financing, leasing and property management to the real estate industry. During that time, he has been actively engaged in driving economic development in Wilmington, in partnership with city and state government and community decision-makers. In his role as Partner at McConnell Johnson Real Estate, he has led property acquisition and financing for many transactions throughout the Mid-Atlantic, including 1201 Market and 1313 Market in Wilmington, Delaware. Overseeing all core asset management activities, Scott has worked successfully with commercial banks and CMBS lenders such as Starwood Capital and PNC, to secure initial financing and refinancing. He manages a team of over 20 engineers and administrative professionals with a focus on tenant service, resulting in a 95% renewal rate in key assets, with particular success in serving the unique needs of law firms, collectively occupying over 350,000 sf. Scott works closely with equity partners to strategically position key assets for continued success in the future Scott has completed more than 1,000,000 sf of tenant improvement projects, as well as leading efforts to secure sustainable utility grants and loans that have resulted in a 50% reduction in energy usage. He led efforts to secure robust fiber network access to 1201 Market, enabling powerful connectivity not only for tenants but for the entire Region. He holds a degree in Landscape Architecture from Utah State University, and attended the MBA program at Northeastern University and is a licensed broker in the state of Delaware. He serves on the boards of The Kalmar Nyckel Foundation and Exceptional Care for Children.

Bill is the founder, President, and Chief Executive Officer of the Innovation Space in addition to a member of its Board of Directors. In this role, Bill oversees all operations and is responsible for its overall performance. Prior to joining the Innovation Space, Bill worked for DuPont where he led global operations for science and engineering encompassing DuPont’s open innovation practice that included oversight for DuPont’s innovation centers and regional laboratories around the world. He also has served in a variety of research, marketing, business development, joint venture, and manufacturing leadership roles in DuPont. Bill is very active in cultivating and advancing science across sectors and has served on numerous private company, university, industrial, governmental, and scientific association advisory and management boards and committees.

Ariel is an experienced science and technology advocate with substantial expertise in government relations, regulatory affairs, and economic development. Ariel leads the Facility Logix’s Consulting Services Team. Prior to joining Facility Logix, Ariel led efforts in Delaware to secure state-funded support for the expansion of science-based companies in the state, connecting public and private sector efforts at the Delaware Prosperity Partnership. Ariel’s experience also includes serving as Regulatory Counsel for a medical regulatory consulting firm and as the Manager of Biotech and Regulatory Affairs for DuPont. Ariel is a member of the Delaware Bioscience Association and sits on its Board of Directors.

As Director of Innovation at Delaware Prosperity Partnership, Noah Olson focuses on the intersection of science, technology, and business. Noah invests his time touting Delaware’s value proposition to companies ranging from early-stage startups, to mature, large employers. Look to DPP and Olson in 2022 to continue to convene and lead the Science and Tech Advisory committee, advocating for and working to implement new investment opportunities for local companies, and continuing to build Delaware’s brand as a place for innovators large and small. Olson is a twice over Blue Hen, and lives with his wife Meg and two little ones in Pike Creek. A triathlete and distance runner, if he’s not playing with his kids and his dog Duke, you can find him training for a race, through White Clay Creek state park, or along the C&D canal.

Chris Buccini is Co-President of The Buccini/Pollin Group, Inc. (“BPG”), and founder and President of BPG Real Estate Services, LLC, the entity responsible for BPG’s office, residential, retail, and parking management and leasing efforts. Mr. Buccini is responsible for the ultimate performance of the company’s commercial, retail, parking and entertainment activities, leading its acquisitions, financing, leasing, operations, and disposition efforts. Since joining BPG in 1999, Mr. Buccini has grown the company to over $4 billion in assets, including ownership of six million square feet of office and retail space, 6,500 hotel rooms, 2,000 apartments and four live entertainment venues. In addition, Mr. Buccini co-founded and is co-owner of Major League Soccer’s Philadelphia Union. Mr. Buccini is the founder and current member of the Board of The Light Up The Queen Foundation; a member of the Board of Trustees of Wilmington Friends School; on the Board of Directors of the Brandywine Conservancy, United Way of Delaware, and Wilmington Renaissance Corporation; and a member of the Delaware Business Roundtable, City of Chester Institute for Economic Development, and Hagley Museum and Library Council of Advisors. Prior to The Buccini/Pollin Group, Mr. Buccini was the Director of Acquisitions and Senior Vice President of Barrow Street Capital, LLC, a New York City-based real estate private equity fund which is an affiliate of Greenhill and Company. Prior to joining Barrow Street, Mr. Buccini was a Vice President at Eastdil Realty, where he was involved in the disposition, financing and development of investment quality office, retail, industrial, lodging and multi-family projects. Mr. Buccini received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Princeton University.

Kurt Foreman was appointed President and CEO of Delaware Prosperity Partnership (DPP) in the spring of 2018. DPP is the public-private economic development organization created by Governor John Carney and the Legislature to take the lead in promoting the State of Delaware as a premier business location for companies considering new locations or expansions and to attract entrepreneurs and innovators eager to nurture and grow new ideas and ventures in a vibrant and supportive environment. DPP is a 501C3 nonprofit funded by the state and private-sector investors. Foreman's experience includes serving in various senior roles in economic development groups throughout the United States, including in Oklahoma, Louisiana, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and twice in the Washington, D.C., metro area. Foreman has served as a site selection consultant working directly with companies to help assess and choose where to locate or expand throughout the nation. He also worked as an executive recruiter with a leading global executive search firm supporting senior-level searches across many sectors. Foreman received his bachelor’s degree at Franklin & Marshall College in Lancaster, Pa., and his master’s degree from Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, N.C. And perhaps most importantly, he and his wife, Julie, have four grown children and three grandchildren.

Jamie Vari is an Executive Vice President and serves as the Agency Representation lead for JLL’s Wilmington, Delaware office. Jamie specializes in landlord and tenant representation services throughout Delaware and the Greater Philadelphia region. He plans and implements complex acquisitions, consolidations, dispositions, alternative-use and re-development strategies for corporate and institutional clients. During his tenure at JLL, Jamie has been an integral member in securing over $500 Million in tenant representation transactions and obtaining over 4,000,000+ square feet of agency assignments for his team’s clients. Additionally, Jamie works closely with his clients to develop strategy and innovative solutions for projects that include large mixed-use re-development sites, office & industrial acquisitions, repositioning assets, and medical office acquisitions. Other transactions include high end multi-family acquisitions, big box industrial leasing, land development consulting, and market moving long term office leases. Long standing local clients include: Delle Donne & Associates, The Commonwealth Group, & Harvey Hanna & Associates. Prior to Joining JLL, Jamie was a commercial real estate broker at Patterson-Woods & Associates LLC in Greenville, Delaware. Education Jamie received his bachelor of science in business administration concentrating in marketing from Goldey-Beacom College. He is a licensed salesperson in both Delaware and Pennsylvania. Mr. Vari is a member of the Commercial Industrial Realty Council (CIRC), Urban Land Institute (ULI), and The Committee of 100.

Joy A. Barrist offers a full range of commercial real estate law services involving the finance, acquisition, sale, lease and development of complex multimillion-dollar real estate projects throughout Delaware, Pennsylvania, around the country and internationally. She regularly represents banks and lending institutions, private equity firms, non-profit organizations, investors, developers, owners, landlords, and tenants. Joy consistently represents both lenders and borrowers in various types of commercial real estate financing transactions, including acquisition, development and construction lending. Her experience also includes CMBS and mezzanine debt transactions, as well as municipal bond transactions. She handles finance and other real estate matters for all asset classes including multifamily, hospitality, office, retail, industrial, mixed-use, medical and education. Joy represents financial institutions as lead lenders and participants in syndicated loan transactions. Her practice also includes the representation of lenders in workouts, financial restructuring, loan sales and the purchase of loan pool portfolios. Joy’s practice also includes representations with respect to other real estate and general business matters such as easements, lot purchase agreements, sale and purchase of business assets and ownership interests in business entities, the formation of Delaware entities and the rendering of legal opinions in finance and other commercial transactions. In addition to real estate finance, her experience extends to asset-based finance (including equipment, inventory and receivables financing), working capital lines of credit and various other complex commercial loan facilities. She is a frequent speaker on topics of commercial real estate and in particular, real estate finance and construction lending. The current edition of Chambers USA includes her in the top tier of Delaware real estate practitioners, highlighting positive client feedback: "She's a very fine attorney — a good technician and a good drafter." "Joy is top notch and her work is second to none." Joy is actively involved in a number of community organizations in and around Wilmington, Delaware, including I Am My Sister’s Keeper, The Teen Warehouse, Inc., Jumpstart Wilmington, REACH Riverside and the Kingswood Community Center. Joy is the vice practice group leader of the firm's Transactions and Corporate Counseling Group as well as chair of the firm's Women's Initiative