Stephen Cheung is the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation (LAEDC) and its subsidiary, the World Trade Center Los Angeles (WTCLA).  As CEO of the LAEDC, Mr. Cheung brings together the capabilities of LAEDC’s mission-delivery department areas, including the Institute for Applied Economics (Research), Business Assistance, Industry Cluster Development, Workforce Development, World Trade Center Los Angeles (International), Strategic Relations, Communications & Marketing, and Public Policy, into a single team that delivers the LAEDC’s critically important, public-benefit mission – Reinventing our economy to collaboratively advance growth and prosperity for all.

In 2023, Cheung was elevated to President and CEO after serving as Chief Operating Office and Executive Vice President of LAEDC, and continues in his concurrent role as President of World Trade Center Los Angeles, a title he has held since coming to the organization in 2014.  Prior to that, Cheung was the Secretary General and Managing Director of International Trade and Foreign Affairs for Los Angeles Mayors Eric Garcetti and Antonio Villaraigosa, and was responsible for managing policies and programs related to the Port of Los Angeles, Los Angeles World Airports, International Affairs,  Global Trade and Clean Technology. In these roles, he was the lead organizer for the Mayors’ previous international trade missions to Mexico, China, Korea, Japan, Colombia, Chile and Brazil.  Furthermore, Cheung implemented the city’s strategic plan to make Los Angeles a global capital of clean technology by building the infrastructure to support research, development and manufacturing with key partners.

Concurrently, Cheung was the Director of International Trade for the Port of Los Angeles – the busiest container port in North America, and was responsible for developing programs to increase trade through the Port of Los Angeles, and facilitate goods movement through the Southern California region.

Cheung currently sits on the Board of Advisors of UCLA’s Luskin School of Public Affairs, UCLA Extension, Coro Southern California and Sister Cities of Los Angeles, while also serving on the Los Angeles County Workforce Development Board.

Nella McOsker is the President & CEO of Central City Association (CCA), the premier advocacy organization focused on enhancing the vibrancy of Downtown Los Angeles and increasing opportunity in the region. CCA represents the interests of over 300 businesses, trade associations and nonprofit organizations in L.A. County.

McOsker previously served as CCA’s Vice President of Strategic Relations, skillfully managing the organization's operations, membership acquisition and retention, revenue and development strategies with particular acumen through the COVID-19 pandemic. During this time, McOsker also grew and diversified CCA’s membership while promoting DTLA’s pandemic-impacted industries and designed new strategies to expand the organization’s engagement and influence across the Los Angeles region.

McOsker has more than a decade of experience leading strategy, coalition-building and communications in a range of industries. She executed major client initiatives in tourism, retail, healthcare, technology, public safety development and more during her time at public affairs firms Strategies 360 and High Lantern Group. She was a founding leader of the Strategies 360 Los Angeles office, building out the team and driving business development. Her successful projects range from statewide ballot propositions, corporate communications campaigns, crisis management and strategic planning. As a consultant, McOsker led the strategic visioning of CCA’s advocacy priorities and expanded CCA’s influence to include residents, visitors and tourists.

McOsker brings significant expertise in business, civic and political affairs in Los Angeles. In 2022, she played a pivotal leadership role to successfully elect Tim McOsker to LA City Council. She serves on The Association of Catholic Student Councils Board and was an integral board member of former Metro Charter Elementary School in Downtown Los Angeles.

She graduated Cum Laude from University of Notre Dame with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Interdisciplinary Minor in Politics, Philosophy and Economics. McOsker is an alumna of the Coro Fellowship in Public Affairs and Teach For America. MsOsker serves as an At-Large Board Member for FilmLA.

Samantha Millman is the President of the Los Angeles City Planning Commission, the central forum for members of the public to voice their opinions on the real estate development projects under consideration in their city.

As the Downtown Los Angeles Alliance's Executive Director, Nicholas ‘Nick’ Griffin spearheads the organization’s efforts to

attract new businesses, retailers, investors and residents to what has grown to become

one of the nation’s most dynamic urban centers. Hailed the “next great American City,”

by GQ Magazine, Downtown LA has experienced unprecedented growth over the past

16-years, in large part due to the efforts of the DTLA Alliance's economic development team.

Prior to the DTLA Alliance, Nick spent more than 25 years in business development in the real

estate, media/entertainment and technology industries. For the previous 10 years, Nick

was a leading commercial leasing and sales broker in New York City, where he was

responsible for more than $100M in transactions. Prior to his rise in real estate, Nick

spent a decade as a marketing and sales executive in the creative media and

technology industries. Nick is a graduate of UCLA and holds an MBA from Ohio State

University.

Mr. McQueen is President of Tribune Real Estate Holdings, LLC, (“TREH”), the real estate subsidiary of Tribune Media (NYSE: TRCO). TREH is the ownership entity for Tribune Media’s 7.3 million square feet of owned real estate and is charged with maximizing the long term value of these assets. This portfolio includes large urban-infill redevelopment sites in locations such as Los Angeles, Chicago, Costa Mesa, and Florida where TREH is in the process of implementing various levels of entitlement, adaptive reuse, joint-venture structuring, and overall value creation. The Company also oversees Tribune Media’s diverse corporate real estate obligations as well as real estate aspects of the company’s M+A activity.

Damian Gancman oversees the operations of Cityview and its investments while supporting the strategic growth of its finance, acquisition, asset management and property management functions. An 18-year veteran of the firm, Damian is also a partner at Cityview and a member of its investment committee. As CFO, he helped build out Cityview’s best-in-class finance department, including the implementation of strategic process, accounting, reporting and technology improvements that enhance the investor experience.

In addition to his role at Cityview, Damian is a guest lecturer for the University of Southern California’s Master of Real Estate Development program and is a key contributor to the Cityview Leadership Academy. Damian earned a master’s degree in real estate development from the University of Southern California and a dual bachelor’s degree in business administration and psychology from the University of California, Berkeley.

Mr. Malamut serves as the Senior Vice President of Development at G.H. Palmer Associates and oversees the entitlement and development activities for the company. He has extensive experience in all aspects of real estate development, including mixed-use podium style multifamily, mid-rise, high-rise, urban infill, condominium, commercial (office, industrial and retail) and master-planned community housing.

Brian Toqe is responsible for executing strategies in asset management, operations, design, construction, and overall investment performance. Brian has more than 10 years of experience in value-added repositioning and core/lease-up operations, as well as prior experience in both land and commercial acquisitions. In recent years, he has been directly responsible for all aspects of asset management for nation-wide assets with total valuation exceeding $7B.

Brian is a certified CPA, having started his career in the real estate groups at Ernst & Young and Arthur Andersen. He holds a post-graduate certificate in finance from the University of San Francisco and an undergraduate degree from The Master’s University, a liberal arts college in Santa Clarita, where he majored in both finance and management.

Brian grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area and has lived in Los Angeles for the majority of his adult life. He loves all outdoor activities including running, cycling, surfing, and skiing. Most of all, he loves traveling with his family—especially road trips throughout California.

With more than 28 years of professional experience, Kyle has been with OJB Landscape Architecture since 1998 and was instrumental in launching OJB’s west coast office in 2002. Kyle guides the design and development of a wide and diverse range of private and prominent public projects from Master Panning through Construction Administration. Kyle’s portfolio includes Metropolis in downtown LA, Sunset & Highland residential tower in Hollywood, the renovation of Hollywood & Highland into Ovation Hollywood, and multiple workplace and public realm improvements at The Campus at Playa Vista (A.K.A Silicon Beach). Kyle also leads numerous life science, mixed-use, public park, and higher education endeavors around the country. Kyle firmly believes in the importance of integrating outdoor environments into all aspects of life and the impacts quality outdoor space has on the value of a property and to the wellbeing of its users. Kyle received his Bachelor of Landscape Architecture from Iowa State University and attended the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) in Melbourne Australia.

Kyle is responsible for deal sourcing, capitalization, and execution of Lowe's heavy value add and development activities in the Los Angeles region. In his career, Kyle has closed over $1 billion in transaction volume, including two ground-up office development projects in Los Angeles. Kyle is a Board Member of the Westside Urban Forum and a member of ULI. Previously, he worked in acquisitions at Tryperion Partners, a real estate investment firm, and in urban development at RCLCO, a real estate consulting firm. Kyle attended Claremont McKenna College, where he received a B.A. in Economics

Douglas serves as Vice President of Leasing for Lincoln Property Company’s Los Angeles market and has been with the company for over 11 years. He provides a variety of advisory services to his clients, focusing primarily of representing institutional landlords with their leasing and marketing efforts, both as JV partners with Lincoln as well as providing third-party services. Douglas currently oversees approximately 6 million sq. ft. of office inventory and approximately 2.5 million sq. ft. of industrial. He has worked with ownerships such as Angelo, Gordon & Co.; ASB Capital Management; Alcion Ventures; Rockwood Capital; Clarion Partners; Goldman Sachs; Morgan Stanley; Cerberus Capital Management; TRS of Illinois & Oregon, Deka, and Rialto Capital. His knowledge and expertise span the entire Greater Los Angeles office and industrial basin, with heavy concentrations on the Westside, WLA, South Bay, Tri-Cities, and Downtown Los Angeles submarkets.

Prior to joining Lincoln in 2011, Douglas worked at variety of brokerage firms such as Lee & Associates and Jones Lang LaSalle and got his start learning the business from his father at West America Construction Corporation

Acclaimed Hospitality Leader Stephane Lacroix has been appointed General Manager at upcoming

Downtown LA Proper.

Located in the heart of the Fashion District, DTLA Proper will boost 148 rooms & suites. The creative

vision of Kelly Wearstler seamlessly blends past and present with compelling design, vintage influence

and local art. Essentials include two destination restaurants led by James Beard Award-winning L.A. chef

Suzanne Goin and Caroline Styne (Lucques, a.o.c., Tavern); an intimate library-lounge, a city-view rooftop

pool and lounge-bar-restaurant. Especially Proper are two singular, one-of-a-kind suites fashioned from

the basketball court and indoor pool of the building’s sporting club past.

Stephane Lacroix joins Downtown LA Proper from the Forbes Travel Guide Five-star rated Waldorf Astoria

Beverly Hills where he was most recently Executive Assistant Manager overseeing all Food & Beverage

Operations as part of the Opening Team, launching the first West Coast property for the Waldorf Astoria

brand.

Lacroix was previously Executive Assistant Manager at Baccarat Hotel in New York City short after its launch in

2015, Director of Food & Beverage at The Beverly Hills Hotel & Hotel Bel-Air, both Dorchester Collection iconic

properties in Los Angeles.

After graduating from Tain L’Hermitage Hospitality School, Lacroix worked at the Hotel de Paris in Monte-

Carlo, the Ritz Hotel in Paris and then came to the US in 1994 to work with Chef Jean-Louis Palladin at the

Watergate Hotel in Washington, D.C.; He then opened the Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas with Chef Michael

Mina, spent 10 years at The Ritz-Carlton, San Francisco and came to New York City to run Gilt at The New

York Palace, a Two-Michelin star and Wine Spectator Grand Award venue.

Lacroix has contributed to multiple Food & Wine Events with Gourmet Magazine and appeared on the

Independent Lodging Congress panel at its fourth annual gathering of the industry’s leading hospitality

professionals in NYC.

Stephane lives in Highland Park with Estelle, his wife. During his free time, he enjoys CrossFit, Yoga and long

hikes on the beach with Jack their Australian Shepherd.

Justin is a Downtown Los Angeles (DTLA) market expert, with 11 years of experience in commercial real estate leasing and sales. As former Associate Director of Economic Development for the Downtown Center Business Improvement District and Central City Association and currently as Vice President of brokerage at KWP Real Estate, Justin’s passion for a better DTLA is exemplified in his deep knowledge of the area’s history, strong relationships with local stakeholders, and track record of transactional success.CAREER HISTORYDuring his five-year tenure at the DCBID, Justin successfully recruited hundreds of retailers, developers, hotels, office tenants and residents to DTLA, while playing an active role in laying the political groundwork for DTLA’s renaissance. Notable recruits whose presence led to the explosion of growth seen in DTLA today include: City Target, Bottega Louie, Urth Caffé, and The Ace Hotel.Justin joined KWP Real Estate in 2014 to spearhead its commercial brokerage platform in Downtown Los Angeles and is currently recognized as one of the area’s leading brokers. In that time, he and his partner, Lee Shapiro, have successfully completed over 590,000 square feet of retail, mixed-use, adaptive reuse, and creative office space transactions in DTLA. Given his boots-on-the-ground market expertise, Justin has also been engaged to represent numerous notable office tenants.In 2019 and 2020, the Los Angeles Business Journal named Justin one of L.A.’s 500 Most Influential People.

A well-known industry leader, Rick Coleman brings more than 25 years of design, project

management and construction experience to PCM. A licensed architect, his design background

coupled with his project management brings a unique ability to supervising the project

planning, assisting in jurisdictional approvals, budgeting, scheduling, and overseeing the

construction process. Prior to joining PCM more than 13 years ago, Rick served as CEO of his

own design and construction management firm, and he has served as vice president of design

with several major architectural firms.

Real estate attorney Joseph Dzida focuses on putting his clients first in every aspect of his work. He takes pride in his ability to advise on both legal matters as well as business-related issues and considerations in connection with his representation.

Joe's practice focuses on acquisitions and dispositions of commercial office, industrial, and retail properties, as well as leasing transactions, in which he represents landlords and tenants in both large and small scale office, retail, industrial, medical, shopping center, and mixed-use real estate projects across the country. Some of the clients Joe has assisted include a global real estate investment firm and an alternative asset management division of a global insurance company.

Adam K. Tischer joined Colliers in January 2011. He will serve as vice president based in Colliers’ DTLA office.

He specializes in representing large corporate investment and developer clients in the Downtown Los Angeles market, and has completed commercial real estate transactions totaling approximately $100 million.

Mr. Rubin is responsible for Carolwood’s overall investment strategy and negotiates transactions from contract to closing. Adam handles all financing activities, capital raising and investor reporting on behalf of the firm. Furthermore, he is CEO of L&R Group of Companies, a Los Angeles based real estate & parking conglomerate.

Mr. Shanfeld is responsible for seeking new investment opportunities through his extensive relationships with industry professionals and business owners. Andrew implements tailored repositioning strategies and oversees all aspects of asset management, including day to day operation and construction. Prior to founding Carolwood, Andrew worked in the acquisitions department at Decron Properties for two years. Mr. Shanfeld graduated from Harvard Westlake and later attended the University of Michigan, where he received a B.A. in Economics.