Belinda Schwartz has chaired Herrick’s Real Estate Department since 2014, is a member of the firm’s Executive Committee since 2017 and is a 30+ year veteran of New York City’s commercial real estate market. She is a leader and mentor for 50+ attorneys and urban planners (23 of which are women) and one of the only women in the country to chair a major commercial real estate practice.

One of the industry’s most creative real estate dealmakers, Belinda’s clients value her ability to find common ground in negotiations and achieve a desirable outcome as swiftly as possible. Her clients include prominent developers, owners, funds, investors and family-owned real estate businesses, whom she advises in complex debt and equity transactions including real estate restructurings and workouts; fund formation; property acquisitions and sales; joint ventures; development deals; construction matters; ground leases and commercial leases.

Belinda frequently advises clients in single asset and portfolio transactions involving residential, hospitality, office and retail properties across the U.S. She has also advised on several of New York City’s largest development projects, including Brooklyn Bridge Park’s Empire Stores complex, Downtown Brooklyn’s 1.8 million square-foot City Point project, and one of the largest land swaps in Manhattan history, a deal which won REBNY’s coveted Most Ingenious Deal of the Year Award. Recently, Belinda has been leading her clients through the impact of COVID-19 on their real estate transactions, development projects, workouts and restructurings, loans and leases as a critical addition to her clients' business team.

Belinda has consistently been ranked one of New York City’s leading real estate lawyers by Chambers USA, Super Lawyers, City & State and Real Estate Forum, which has twice named her a “woman of influence.” Belinda was named one of National Law Journal's Trailblazers in Real Estate/Construction Law in 2020. In 2019, Belinda was named one of Real Estate Weekly's, Real Estate Dealmakers, and in 2018, one of Real Estate Weekly’s Leading Ladies of Real Estate. In 2017, Belinda was named one of Crain’s New York Business’ top 100 women lawyers and for the past number of years she has been named one of Bisnow’s New York power women.

Ian Bruce Eichner, a seasoned developer of urban mixed-use properties, has a proven

track record in real estate spanning more than three decades. His vast portfolio of

projects in New York, Miami and Las Vegas include City Spire, One Broadway Place, The

Manhattan Club, The Kingsley, Royale, American, and Boulevard as well as Montague

Street built in Brooklyn Heights. Outside of New York he has developed the Continuum,

a 2-tower gated condominium community in South Beach, and the Cosmopolitan, a

3,000 room resort and casino on the Las Vegas strip. His latest project 45 East 22nd

Street, recently completed, is the tallest and, considered by many, the most iconic

building in the Flatiron District. Transforming the downtown skyline, the tower consists

of a glass silhouette of 65 stories which rises 777 feet into the sky. The striking exterior,

crafted by the global architectural firm of Kohn Peterson Fox, wraps around timeless

interiors created by the Martin Brudzinski Design Studio. The building contains 82

apartments and approximately 230,000 sale-able square feet with the following five

floors of amenities including:

 Landscaped garden and fifth floor terrace designed by Oehme Van Sweden

 Fitness center

 Children’s playroom

 Indoor basketball court

 Golf simulator

 Drawing room with separate billiards and cards rooms

 Upper Club on the 54th floor with bar, private dining room and catering kitchen

 Automated private residential parking garage

His newest project 960 Franklin Avenue, Brooklyn is a proposed 1.3 million square feet

development consisting of 1600 residential housing units including a proposed 50/50

split between market rate, work-force and low-income apartments.

Mr. Eichner’s acute business sense has produced a series of visionary real estate

developments that have been characterized by a creative mix of distinctive purpose-

built properties. Each of these properties illustrates his extensive real estate expertise

and ability to take situations which others may find unachievable and off-putting, and

design and execute solutions which realize value for the developer. Mr. Eichner’s

notable development achievements that were the first in their class include:

1. First high-rise built in Brooklyn Heights since landmarks height

legislation was passed in 1965 (Montague Street, 1998)

2. First urban timeshare in New York, with a new concept of being able

to book stays one day at a time (The Manhattan Club, 1996)

3. First and only beachfront gated community in South Beach (The

Continuum, 2003-2008)

4. First development on the Las Vegas strip to employ an urban

development model, maximizing a small (8.5 acre) site to its full square

footage potential of 6 ½ million square feet. (The Cosmopolitan)

Mr. Eichner’s career in real estate follows almost a decade in the criminal

justice system, including terms as an Assistant District Attorney and program

development chief of a New York State agency during Governor Nelson

Rockefeller’s tenure.

Ralph Herzka is the chairman and CEO of Meridian Capital Group. Since co-founding the commercial real estate advisory firm in 1991, Mr. Herzka has remained the guiding force behind the company’s evolution from a small Brooklyn-based commercial mortgage brokerage to a national leader in real estate capital markets, having personally arranged over $100 billion in financing. Additionally, Mr. Herzka has led Meridian’s recent expansion into New York City investment sales and retail leasing in 2015 and 2018, respectively.

Mr. Herzka demonstrates an exceptional ability to foster multi-generational relationships with real estate owners and investors and forms critical alliances with lenders to achieve success across the asset spectrum. He is a member of the Real Estate Board of New York, the Mortgage Bankers Association, the Commercial Real Estate Finance Council, and the International Council of Shopping Centers.

In addition to his professional leadership, Mr. Herzka is a dedicated philanthropist, raising millions of dollars for various organizations over his career. Most notably, he is a passionate participant of Bike4Chai, an annual 180-mile cycling fundraiser for children fighting pediatric illnesses and disabilities.

Mr. Herzka is a lifelong resident of Brooklyn, NY. He and his wife are proud parents and grandparents.

Michael A. Tortorici is one of the Founding Members of Ariel Property Advisors. Serving the company as Executive Vice President in the Investment Sales Group, Mr. Tortorici is responsible for originating and executing the sale of commercial real estate transactions throughout the five boroughs.

Since beginning his career in commercial real estate in 2004, Mr. Tortorici has participated in the sale of over 600 transactions worth more than $2 billion in gross consideration.

Mr. Tortorici has represented many institutional and non-profit clients, including The Catholic Archdiocese of New York, The Watchtower, L+M Partners and Two Trees. He serves as a regular source for various publications, such as The New York Times, The Commercial Observer, The Real Deal, Real Estate Weekly and the New York Daily News.

The Commercial Observer named Mr. Tortorici one of Commercial Observer’s 30 Under 30, which recognizes emerging commercial real estate professionals, and the Real Estate Forum has identified him as one of Tomorrow’s Leaders: New York, as well as naming him and his partners Top NY Brokers in 2013 and 2014.

Mr. Tortorici is involved in various non-profit initiatives, including The Inner City Scholarship Fund and The Futures in Education Program, both of which support educational measures for K-12 students throughout New York City.

He is an active member of industry organizations such as the Real Estate Board of New York (REBNY) and Bronx-Manhattan North Association of Realtors (BMAR).

Prior to forming Ariel Property Advisors, Mr. Tortorici spent seven years at Massey Knakal Realty Services, now Cushman & Wakefield. Mr. Tortorici graduated with honors from New York University’s Stern School of Business, where he earned a B.S. in economics and management.

Originally from Franklin Square, New York, he currently resides in Brooklyn. He can be reached at 212.544.9500 ext. 13 or via email at mtortorici@arielpa.com.

Yosef Katz is currently the Managing Director of GFI Realty Services, LLC. Mr. Katz began his career in investment real estate sales when he joined the firm in 2006. He currently oversees an investment sales team of over 30 salespeople as well as supervises a team of junior brokers.

Mr. Katz is known in the industry for his intimate market knowledge and ability to close problematic deals. Over his career, he has negotiated over $1.5B in real estate transactions including $350MM in debt sales. Since 2006, Mr. Katz has cultivated relationships with the largest property owners in NYC and has successfully advised his clients on property valuations, pricing, financing and repositioning of assets. He specializes in trading multi-family assets in Manhattan and the surrounding boroughs with a particular focus on Brooklyn and Queens.

Mr. Katz has closed significant pieces of business throughout NYC garnering features in top industry publications including The Real Deal, The Commercial Observer and The Wall Street Journal as well as numerous other outlets. He has also received numerous honors including being named one of Real Estate Forum’s Top New York Investment Brokers in 2012 as well as being recognized as Top Producer of the Year by GFI Realty Services in 2014 & 2016.

He contributes to numerous humanitarian and civic organizations including Friends of the Israel Defense Forces, The American Red Cross, Young Jewish Professionals (YJP), Real Estate Board of New York (REBNY), Community Housing Improvement Program (CHIP) and many others. Mr. Katz also sits on several boards including BYAM and Yeshiva Ateres Shimon.

Mr. Katz received his Bachelor of Science in Finance from Touro College with dreams of going to law school however, once he closed his first deal at GFI, he knew that this was the industry for him. Born in Montreal, Canada, he is one of 11 children to a rabbi and a homemaker. He currently resides in Queens, New York with his wife and their four children.

Notable Transactions

23-02 49th Avenue Queens, NY $195,000,000

Kips Bay 7 Building Package New York, NY $71,500,000

825 East 141st Street Bronx, NY $44,000,000

15001-11 88th Avenue Queens, NY $21,500,000

162-20 & 164-03 89th Avenue Queens, NY $14,000,000

1350 Stratford Avenue Bronx, NY $14,000,000

601-605 West 141st Street New York, NY $12,300,000

249 & 259 Bull Hill Lane Orange, CT $11,000,000

11 East 115th Street New York, NY $10,000,000

Chad Tredway is a Managing Director and the Head of the East Region (New York, Boston and DC) for Chase Commercial Term Lending (CTL) and is based in New York.

Chad leads a team of over 150 people and is responsible for loan originations, strategic direction and the financial performance of the business. Chad also serves as the Fannie Mae DUS CEO for JPMorgan Chase and is the primary liaison to Fannie Mae for multifamily originations nationally.

Chad is a columnist for the Commercial Observer and also publishes a quarterly thought leadership piece through JPMorgan Chase called “Chad’s Corner.” He was named by the Commercial Observer as one of the 50 most powerful people in real estate in 2013, 2014 and 2015, and in 2014, he was featured by the Commercial Observer as the top commercial mortgage broker or lender under 35.

Chad serves as a mentor for the Chase Fellowship Initiative and sits on the board of directors for ArtsConnection and the Valley Economic Development Center. He graduated from Loyola University in Chicago and began his career in investment banking as an analyst in the M&A Group of a multinational financial services firm before joining JPMorgan Chase in 2008.

Drew Fletcher is President of Greystone Capital Advisors where he oversees a team of professionals responsible for arranging creative debt and equity solutions for institutional and private commercial property owners and developers, and provides strategic advisory services for institutions, investors and borrowers. GCA also focuses on large loan mortgage origination across Greystone’s best-in-class Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, FHA, CMBS, Bridge, balance-sheet and special situation lending platforms.

Drew has over 24 years of commercial real estate experience. Prior to joining Greystone, Drew served as Chief Financial Officer of Edison Properties LLC, one of the largest private real estate owners in New York City, with a portfolio of urban self-storage, office, mixed-use, and multifamily assets, as well as substantial land holdings throughout the NY Metro Region.

Drew received a B.A. in Economics and Communications from Wake Forest University; an M.B.A. in Finance from New York University; and a Masters of Accountancy in Taxation from Rutgers University. He volunteers his time as a guest lecturer at the NYU Real Estate Institute and is a member of the Real Estate Board of New York and the Urban Land Institute. Drew also serves as a Member of the Board of Directors of Greystone Housing Impact Investors L.P. (NYSE: GHI), a publicly traded limited partnership that provides debt and equity financing to affordable and market-rate multifamily housing. Drew was named to the Commercial Observer’s 50 Most Powerful People in Commercial Real Estate Finance.