Long Island State of the Market

Donald Monti, President and CEO of Renaissance Downtowns, has over 35 years of diverse experience covering all aspects of the real estate spectrum having played a major role in the development, construction and management of 80+ development projects. Renaissance has become the branded leader in the holistic and comprehensive development of suburban downtowns with a focus on mixed-use and transit oriented development. The Company is Master Developer in numerous projects throughout the Northeast, with a total development value in excess of $12 Billion along with along with a pipeline of 10,000 plus residential units. Two of Mr. Monti’s Long Island based projects have been designated as a “Project of Regional Significance” by the Long Island Regional Planning Council, representing the transformative nature of Renaissance’s downtown redevelopment efforts. One of those projects is the $2 Billion+ dollar mixed-use TOD in Hempstead, NY which was recently awarded a $5 Million grant by the New York State Economic Development Council initiative, one of the largest awards provided to a single development effort. Hempstead represents a true game changer for Long Island and other mature suburbs by ushering in the ideals of large scale, mixed use, smart growth redevelopment that abide by Renaissance’s “Triple Bottom Line” approach to real estate development – social, environmental and economic responsibility. The Hempstead revitalization effort, as an example of innovative and forward thinking development methodologies, was featured with Don speaking on the topic as a case study at the United Nations World Energy and Water Forum in Dubai. Under Mr. Monti’s leadership, the Company has instituted the nation’s first grass roots, social media campaign for public outreach (“Crowdsourced Placemaking”) which allows community members to provide input to the planning process through web based and in-person initiatives. Utilizing the patent pending Crowdsourced Placemaking process in all of Renaissance’s projects, it has become a national example for broad based community outreach. Mr. Monti’s proactive approach to community engagement provides for a streamlined approval process by garnering public input and generating public support for the Company’s redevelopment efforts from the outset of the planning process. Mr. Monti has been quoted in numerous nationally respected media sources as an expert in downtown revitalization and been a keynote speaker / panelist at numerous national conferences, including the CNU Annual Congress, Railvolution, American Planning Association, California Downtown Association, Wharton Real Estate Summit at the NYSE, Private Equity Real Estate Annual Forum, and Vision Long Island amongst others. Mr. Monti is a member of the ULI, the APA, CNU and LOCUS along with several other leading organizations in the real estate industry. He has also been heavily involved in community affairs, including serving on the Board of Directors for the Don Monti Memorial Foundation and being honored as Man of the Year by the American Red Cross.

Jeff Dunne has 36 years of experience in the real estate investment banking business as an advisor and transactional agent for retail, office, apartments, industrial and new development projects. He leads a team of 15 people that focus on investment sales and equity raises to capitalize projects largely located within two hours of Manhattan. Jeff has closed in excess of $19 billion in over 300 investment transactions since 2007 and over $30 billion during his career.

Mr. Altman is an entrepreneur and real estate investor with experience in identifying, buying and selling real estate. As a founder and Managing Member of KABR, he is instrumental in fundraising, structuring JV partnerships, sourcing and acquiring real property and debt. To date, Adam has participated in transactions totaling approximately four million square feet of commercial properties, as well as thousands of residential units, hotels and new development land with over 3000 units of entitlements. Prior to joining KABR, he focused on acquisition, development, management and disposition of real estate for a multi-billion dollar healthcare company.

Lisa Knee is a Tax Partner with over 20 years of experience. Her expertise covers a range of real estate transactions and situations, including acquisitions, refinancing, like-kind exchanges, joint venture agreements, and structuring tax rehabilitation credits for a variety of clients, such as leading real estate owners, operators, investors, family offices, and developers, as well as hospitality companies, world-renowned restaurant groups, and financial service firms. She has also consulted with large boutique hotel groups on their acquisitions, dispositions, partner buy-outs, property renovations and rebuilds. As an advisor, Lisa assists high net worth individuals and family/owner-managed business clients with preserving and enhancing business and family net worth. She also provides business succession planning services for multigenerational families, including analyzing and updating estate plans, reviewing wills and trusts, and developing liquidity strategies. Lisa has worked on a variety of highly complex transactions for clients, including domestic and international tax structuring for portfolio companies, management companies, and individual owners. Her legal background has also made her adept in mitigating tax issues and providing expert litigation services involving partnership disputes. Lisa graduated from Boston University with a B.S. degree, with a concentration in Accounting. She received a J.D. cum laude from Brooklyn Law School where she was a research editor for the International Journal of Law; and a Master of Law degree in Taxation from New York University Law School. She is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) and New York State Society of Certified Public Accountants (NYSSCPA) as well as the New York State Bar Association (NYSBA), Nassau County Bar Association (NCBA), Commercial Real Estate Women New York (CREW New York) and Long Island Real Estate Group (LIREG). In addition, Lisa is frequently featured and quoted in various business publications, providing insight on tax and tax planning topics. She has also co-authored various articles for the Nassau Lawyer and moderated various real estate industry events. - See more at: http://www.eisneramper.com/professional-directory-Lisa-knee.aspx#sthash.l3zGABVG.dpuf

Joseph Rigazio is the CEO of Talisen Construction Corporation. Talisen is a commercial construction firm founded in the New York Metro marketplace in 2009. Focusing on the Healthcare and Education markets has brought Talisen success in the hospital, ambulatory centers, medical office buildings, charter schools, private universities, and special projects areas. Trained in both Electrical Engineering, Business Economics, and Construction Management, Joseph entered the professional world with a strong vision. After a 23-year-long career in technology, in which he managed Fortune 100 company relationships in sales management, ran marketing organizations, and ultimately, lead a major business unit at Texas Instruments, Joseph chose to utilize his expertise and leadership skills to start Talisen. Concentrating on growing a team bonded by a common vision, Talisen has become a trailblazer in the New York construction field. Focused investments on employees, processes, and the NY Metro subcontractor ecosystem, along with an innovative approach to project management, differentiates Talisen from the competition. Founded on the key tenants of safety and collaboration, Talisen has grown into a premier New York construction firm that truly partners with their clients to bring their vision to life.

Russell Tepper serves as Mill Creek Residential’s Senior Managing Director for development activities in the Northeast region including New York, New Jersey, Connecticut and Pennsylvania. His duties include leading this regional division of Mill Creek for both ground-up and adaptive reuse developments, while furthering its objective to create tailored residential communities that cater to surrounding neighborhoods’ needs. Prior to joining Mill Creek in 2014, Mr. Tepper was Vice President of Development at Matrix Development Group, where he managed the company’s urban redevelopment portfolio, seeking out new acquisitions of residential and mixed-use properties throughout New Jersey and suburban Philadelphia. Throughout his career, he has been involved in the entitlement, development and construction of over 4,500 multifamily apartment homes and 5 million SF of commercial space. Mr. Tepper is licensed in the State of New Jersey and earned a Bachelors of Science in Business Administration with concentrations in finance and international business from the University of Delaware.

Matthew B. Whalen rejoined AvalonBay in 2003 and as Senior Vice President of Development he is responsible for leading the development and acquisition activity in both the Long Island and Connecticut real estate markets. He works out of the AvalonBay office in Melville, NY. Matt has over 20 years of experience in the real estate business and has worked in many different sectors, including multifamily, office, industrial, hospitality and single family. Matt began his career with Toll Brothers in New Jersey, and he has held vice president positions at Security Capital, Homestead Village, Crimson Partners and Cogent Communications. In 2006, Matt was elected to the Long Island Builders Institute’s (LIBI) Board of Directors. He was named LIBI’s president in 2009 and chairman in 2010. He has served on the Board of the Hofstra University’s Institute of Real Estate and on the Executive Board of both the Long Island Real Estate Group and the Real Estate Practitioners Institute. He was a member of the Long Island Association and served on their Next Generation Housing Committee. He has sat on the Board of Directors of the Community Development Corporation of Long Island and the Long Island Housing Partnership. He is currently on the Executive Committee for the New York State Builders Association. He was an active member of the Association for a Better Long Island, the Urban Land Institute, Action Long Island and the Long Island Junior Chamber of Commerce. In 2004, Matt was recognized by The Long Island Business News as one of Long Island’s 40 rising stars under the age of 40. In 2012, Matt participated in Habitat for Humanity’s Long Island Builders Blitz, which AvalonBay supported, in an effort that built a home in five days for a Long Island family. Matt is a 1988 graduate of Princeton University where he received a B.A. in History, and in 2012 he completed the AMDP program at Harvard University Graduate School of Design. Matt was the sole captain of the 1987 Princeton varsity football team and subsequently captained the United States Rugby team on two tours in 1998 and 1999. He currently serves on the Alumni Schools Committee for Princeton University for Nassau and Suffolk Counties. He is Vice President of the Princeton Football Association and a Board Member of the Ivy Football Association. admin

Mr. Simpson oversees Greystone’s real estate development team and projects. He is responsible for sourcing and structuring new acquisitions and joint ventures, while also managing the capitalization, entitlements, design, construction and sale & leasing of the properties. Additionally, Jeff sources debt and equity for opportunistic real estate transactions. Prior to joining Greystone, Jeff was an integral member of the Equity Office Properties team. He held a significant role in the repositioning of their iconic New York City office building portfolio. Prior to EOP, he oversaw over $100M of redevelopment projects in various sectors for Jones Lang LaSalle’s Project and Development Services team. Throughout his career, Jeff has held roles in real estate investment, construction, and engineering, and has managed the major redevelopment and repositioning of property in all sectors of commercial real estate. Jeff holds a B.S. in Engineering from the University of Delaware, as well as a M.S. in Real Estate Development and an Advanced Degree in Finance, both from NYU’s Schack Institute.

Jose is a senior managing director and co-office head in the New Jersey office of JLL Capital Markets, Americas. He joins JLL as part of the HFF acquisition and is a member of the firm’s leadership committee. Jose specializes in investment advisory throughout New Jersey, New York and Connecticut and also oversees the day-to-day operations of the firm’s New Jersey office. During the course of his more than 25-year commercial real estate career, he’s been involved in more than $62 billion of office, industrial, retail, multifamily and land sales. Jose started at HFF in March 2010. Before that, he was the executive director of Cushman & Wakefield’s New York area investment sales group where he spent more than 17 years. He began his real estate career as a real estate analyst at PaineWebber, UBS, Inc.

John specializes in serving clients in the real estate and construction industries. As a Partner with over twenty years of experience, John provides audit, tax, cost segregation services and management advisory services to owners, operators, developers, home builders and contractors. John’s work includes the planning and supervision of various audit engagements, as well as the review of various partnership, corporate and individual tax returns and the analysis of the purchase, sale and financing of real estate transactions. In addition to the above, John has developed a good understanding of International Financing Reporting Standards (IFRS) and their effect on the financial statements of real estate owners and developers. John also participates in several of the firm’s committees, including the Real Estate and Construction Practice Group, the Best Practice Group and the Cost Segregation Group. In addition to John’s CPA license, John is one of less than 100 professionals in the Tri-State area to hold the Certified Construction Industry Financial Professional (CCIFP) designation, attesting to his extensive experience and expertise in the construction industry. John is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, the New York State Society of CPAs, the Construction Financial Management Association and formerly served on the board of the Greater New York Construction User’s Council.