Long Island City State of the Market

Jonathan Drescher is President of Plaxall Realty, a Long Island City, Queens-based family company. At Plaxall, he is responsible for the redevelopment of Anable Basin, a proposed mixed-use rezoning of the surrounding property encompassing 14.7 acres on the LIC waterfront. He was previously the Senior Vice President of Project Development at The Durst Organization, where he oversaw the development of ground-up commercial, residential, and mixed-use projects in New York City. Most recently he was the executive responsible for the development of Halletts Point in Astoria, Queens and VIA 57W in Manhattan. Earlier, Drescher was an Associate Principal at Arup, a design and building-consulting firm, where his notable experience includes project manager for the World Trade Center redevelopment and the new MTA Fulton Center; he was also a Director of Development for a Lockheed-Martin company focused on infrastructure development internationally. He graduated Cum Laude from Allegheny College in Meadville, PA with a Bachelor of Arts in Economics. Drescher continued his studies at the University of California – Los Angeles, where he earned a Masters of Architecture. Drescher serves on the State Board of the New York League of Conservation Voters, the Board of Visitors of the Allegheny College Economics Department, and Board of Governors for the New York Building Congress’ Building Foundation.

Matthew M. Baron is the President of Baron Property Group. Since 2005, Matthew has acquired and developed over $1.5 billion worth of property in NY and Los Angeles. Mr. Baron currently sits on the Board of Directors of the Long Island City BID, and is also a member of the Board of Directors of Doorkee, which is a company he helped found. Mr. Baron was also an Adjunct Lecturer at New York University’s School of Continuing and Professional Studies where he taught a course on Real Estate Development. Mr. Baron holds a BS in Finance from NYU Stern and an MBA from Columbia Business School.

A sought after voice in Queens real estate, Eric Benaim’s entry into real estate began in 2001, after a successful career as owner of a live event production and marketing firm. Initially concentrating on Manhattan luxury sales, Eric later recognized the untapped opportunity in his own beloved borough, and turned his focus exclusively to Long Island City. The result was the sale of 50 residences in 2006 alone. In the midst of 2008’s severe economic crisis, Eric instinctively decided the time was right to launch Modern Spaces, permanently changing the perception and value of real estate in LIC. In just 10 years, Eric’s insightful and personal approach resulted in the swift expansion of Modern Spaces, including opening additional offices in Astoria where 100 agents work, capturing a 70% market share in Long Island City. In 2019, Modern Spaces crossed the river to capture 10% of the burgeoning market share over the next three years, in Jersey City. He is responsible for successfully completing over $7B in sales and is currently responsible for overseeing over $4B in real estate, which translates to over 8000 units. Eric was the first person to be recognized as a 40 Under 40 Rising Star in both Queens and Brooklyn by Mayor Michael Bloomberg, and Brooklyn Borough President, Marty Markowitz, respectively. Eric has been the recipient of the 2018 Community Impact Award by the LIC Partnership, as well as the Community Hero award by the Long Island City YMCA. Eric is a member of REBNY, and serves on the Advisory Board of Mount Sinai Hospital, as well as the Board of Directors for the Long Island City Partnership. In 2016 the City and State Award honored him for Corporate Social Responsibility. Eric is consistently called upon to speak at a diverse array of events and is frequently featured, quoted, interviewed and profiled in prominent outlets including CNN, Fox Business, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, CRAIN’S, The Real Deal, CNBC, and NY1. Eric is an art collector and avid supporter of the arts. As the informal ‘Mayor of LIC,’ it is his passion for building a prosperous community that informs Modern Spaces ‘unparalleled perspective. He currently resides in Long Island City with his wife Stephanie and son Greyson.

Stribling & Associates, Ltd. is a premier residential real estate firm with over 300 agents throughout three locations in Manhattan and one in Brooklyn. As one of the most renowned brokerages in New York, Stribling uses its respected expertise in the current market to provide individualized services to both buyer and sellers. Stribling agents specialize in the sale of luxury townhouses and cooperative and condominium apartments. The company's philosophy is based on professional, personalized services coupled with exceptional knowledge of key residential market trends. Stribling Private Brokerage specializes in the discreet marketing of properties over $5 million and commands a prominent market share in that sector of Manhattan residential real estate. Through strategic partnerships with Miami's Cervera and international estate services firm Savills, Stribling's global reach extends to more than 700 offices worldwide.

Mr. Kurd is a Managing Director at Savanna where he is a member of the investment committee and is responsible for new investments, refinancings, dispositions and asset management. Mr. Kurd’s responsibilities include acquisition sourcing, underwriting and structuring. In addition, Mr. Kurd manages and oversees the financing, development, leasing and repositioning of Savanna properties. Prior to joining Savanna in 2010, Mr. Kurd worked as a financial analyst in the Commercial Real Estate Group at Deutsche Bank in New York. At Deutsche Bank, Mr. Kurd provided financing to public corporations, private equity groups and individuals owning or acquiring commercial real estate assets in all property types within the United States. Mr. Kurd received a Bachelor of Sciences in Economics with concentrations in Finance and Real Estate from the Wharton School of Finance at the University of Pennsylvania.

Evi Angelakis is the Founder of Golden Key Realty Group, a company she started a few years ago, with a focus on Multi-Family Properties, Shopping Centers, Office Buildings and Development Sites. Evi Angelakis has almost two decades of experience in new development, closely collaborating with developers in the planning, marketing, and sales of new residential buildings throughout the city. She is very familiar with all the phases of development as she served as the controller for a large construction company focusing on DEP, Port Authority, MTA and SCA projects. That experience, intertwined with her property management skills and 20 years of sales record, sets her aside from the competition. Evi Angelakis has established an excellent reputation as a creative thinker. Solving problems with patience and professionalism, makes her a valuable asset to her clients. Being an investor herself, she understands all the facets of buying wisely, building smart and flipping when appropriate. Having managed residential and commercial properties for the past 15 years, has given her a detailed knowledge of the pros and cons of owning and managing a building. She advises her clients continuously well beyond a transaction is completed as she has extensive knowledge of dealing with City’s and State’s agency like DHCR, HPD, DOB, DOF. Evi Angelakis is a member of the Real Estate Board of New York and ICSC. She is an expert on negotiating complicated deals and has proven to be very effective problem solver in the commercial market. No deal is ever big enough to satisfy her appetite for great challenges. It is through these challenges that she truly thrives.

Mr. Feehan is a Principal of Normandy and head of capital markets, responsible for overseeing Normandy’s debt and joint venture equity transactions. Prior to joining Normandy, he was employed by PricewaterhouseCoopers in New York, where he served as Senior Associate in the Real Estate Business Advisory Services Group. His experience encompasses acquisition due diligence, debt underwriting, low income housing, tax credit, acquisition underwriting, market analysis, and portfolio valuation. Mr. Feehan graduated from the University of Wisconsin‐ Madison with a Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance and Real Estate and Urban Land Economics, and earned a Master’s degree in Real Estate Finance from New York University.

Patricia Dunphy is a senior vice president at Rockrose Development, a real estate development and management firm in New York. Dunphy has been with the company since 1983. Over the last 40 years, Rockrose has acquired, built or repositioned 3.3 million square feet of office space, 1 million square feet of retail space, and more than 11,000 residential units in New York and Washington, D.C. with a total approximate value of over $6 billion. Dunphy has been involved in a number of major development projects for the firm, including bringing the first Whole Foods to Manhattan in 2001 at the Chelsea Mercantile.