Carl Guardino, one of Silicon Valley’s most distinguished business and community leaders, is the President and CEO of the Silicon Valley Leadership Group, a public policy trade association that represents nearly 400 of Silicon Valley’s most respected employers.

In February 2007, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger appointed Guardino to a four-year term on the California Transportation Commission and he has been reappointed twice by Governor Jerry Brown. In 2000, the San Jose Mercury News named Guardino one of the “Five Most Powerful” people in Silicon Valley, in a once-per-decade “Power Study.” He received similar recognition in 2010.

Guardino has been the chief executive of the Leadership Group since January 1997. He previously served as vice president of the organization between 1991 and 1995. He also held an executive position in governmental affairs with Hewlett-Packard and he spent six years on the staff of Central Valley Assemblyman Rusty Areias, the last three as his chief assistant.

Known throughout the region as a consensus builder, Guardino has championed a number of successful ballot measures, especially in the areas of transportation and housing.

His transportation leadership includes successful management of ballot Measures A & B in 1996 that funded 19 key road and rail improvements with $1.4 billion; and co-managed a 2000 traffic relief initiative that will generate some $7.5 billion in local funds to bring BART to Santa Clara County, improve CalTrain and other transit improvements. In 2008, Guardino managed the successful Measure B (BART) campaign which earned nearly 67 percent voter approval. It authorized a 1/8-cent sales tax for 30 years to fund a 16-mile Santa Clara County BART extension. Most recently, Guardino led a 3-year effort that culminated in “Measure B” on the November, 2016 ballot, which will generate an additional $6.5 billion in local funds for traffic relief improvements. Measure B passed with 71.74 percent of the vote.

As a housing advocate, he co-created the Housing Trust Silicon Valley, which has helped 25,000 people afford homes in high-cost Silicon Valley by raising more than $90 million in voluntary contributions. He also co-managed Prop. 46, the statewide Housing Bond, in 2002 and co-chaired Prop. 1-C, the November 2006 statewide Housing Bond.

Guardino is the founder and race director of the annual Thanksgiving Day Applied Materials “Silicon Valley Turkey Trot,” which had nearly 25,000 participants in 2016. Over the past 12 years, it has raised nearly $7 million for local charities. He is also the founder of the TiVo “Santa Run Silicon Valley” to benefit Christmas in the Park, and the Lam Research “Heart & Soles 5K” to place salad bars in Silicon Valley public schools. In addition, he hosts “The CEO Show,” a radio talk show featuring top Silicon Valley CEOs on KLIV AM 1590. Guardino also is on the boards of California Stewardship Network and the California League of Conservation Voters.

Guardino was born and raised in San Jose and received his Bachelor of Arts degree in political science from San Jose State University, where he is a Distinguished Alumnus. He is a member of Junior Achievement’s “Silicon Valley Business Hall of Fame” and the recipient of the “Lifetime Achievement Award” from City Year, and was the second recipient of the “American Public Transit Association’s Business Executive of the Year.”

Carl is married to Leslee Guardino. In their spare time, they compete in marathons, triathlons and duathlons. They have two daughters, Jessica and Siena, and one son, Jake.

Mr. Eudy is a founder and Senior Executive officer of Essex Property Trust, Inc., the proven West Coast leader in multifamily investment. Mr. Eudy oversees all development activities, from the point of acquisition through construction and stabilization. He joined Essex's predecessor, Essex Property Corporation, in 1985 and initiated the development activities of the company. During his tenure the company has developed over 15,000 multi-family units and is recognized as an industry leader. The financial performance of its development portfolio, through good cycles and bad, demonstrates a proven, disciplined approach to multifamily development. The company has also received national recognition and awards for Architectural Excellence, more than any multifamily developer in the country. Prior to joining Essex, Mr. Eudy was a Vice President in the Commercial Real Estate Investment Group of Crocker National Bank from 1980 to 1985, and Home Federal Savings from 1977 to 1980. He received a Bachelor of Science degree in Finance from San Diego State University in 1977, and is a graduate of the University of Southern California's Management Leadership School. Mr. Eudy is a member of the Urban Land Institute, National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts and is a Board Member of the California Apartment Association.

Katia Kamangar leads all new community development activities for SummerHill Homes and SummerHill Apartment Communities in Northern California.

Ms. Kamangar joined SummerHill in 2005. She oversees all duties related to new community development, including initial land planning, due diligence, architecture and design, budgeting and forecasting, and securing all necessary entitlement approvals through the commencement of construction and sales.

Ms. Kamangar also leads the company’s Green Task Force that evaluates new technologies and construction practices aimed at increasing the sustainability of the homes SummerHill constructs. For ten years prior to joining SummerHill, she was with Greenbriar Homes Communities Inc. as Senior Development Manager and Director of Development. Previously, she was Construction Project Manager for Mobil Oil Corporation. From 1998 to 2001, Ms. Kamangar served on the City of Los Altos Planning Commission. From 2001 to 2005, she was a Board Member for the BIA Bay Area. Ms. Kamangar holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Civil Engineering from U.C. Berkeley and a Masters Degree in Business Administration from Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business.

Don has 25 years of real estate development experience in both the private and public sectors with a broad range of responsibilities, such as representing the U.S. real estate development interests of Grosvenor, an international property group, and project management for the City of San Francisco. He brings a unique combination of political savvy, interpersonal skills, and understanding of real estate investment fundamentals to each project he works on. As a well-respected community leader and business partner, Don’s passion for transformative urban place-making pairs with his expertise in rental/for-sale residential, retail and hospitality, making him an exceptional choice for any team who strives for innovative solutions and progressive thinking.

Rob Zirkle is the founding principal of brick. Under his guidance the brick team brings a rigorous, value driven design process to a wide variety of project types in architecture, interiors and urban design. Rob leads the firm’s initiatives in design, client satisfaction, new project acquisition and company culture. Channeling Rob’s entrepreneurial approach, brick has grown into a thriving 25 person team with $450m of current projects under construction ranging from commercial office, life science, housing and higher education.

Dean Lewis is a licensed structural and civil engineer and Senior Project Manager at DCI Engineers. He is a crucial member of DCI’s San Francisco office, which within a 5 year timespan has amassed a portfolio of more than 5,000 units of multi-family housing in various stages of design and construction - including the Miro Towers Project in downtown San Jose. Dean prides his career on the teachings of his grandfather who is an architect, and his father who is a general contractor. Dean’s experience spans a wide variety of prefabrication and modular construction methods. His earliest work involved prefabricated steel projects in Africa, Indonesia and South America. Later during his time in Seattle, he worked on more traditional light frame wood projects, and was able to experience the construction and design of the Bullitt Center. At the time, the Bullitt Center was the largest modern mass timber project and also the first office building to pass the living building challenge. Since calling the Bay Area home, Dean continues to serve as a leader and educator in the Mass Timber community, as well as continue to spearhead a mix of projects that employ cutting-edge prefabrication and modular technologies in order to help his clients meet the demanding challenges facing our industry today.

Paula C. Kirlin is a partner in Holland & Knight's San Francisco office and is a member of the firm's West Coast Land Use and Environment Practice Group. She practices in the areas of land use, environment, government and public law, and sustainable development. Ms. Kirlin routinely advises clients on all aspects of the local land use entitlement process in California, including due diligence, permitting and compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). In particular, she focuses on complex urban, mixed-use and transit-oriented development projects. Examples of projects for which Ms. Kirlin has provided land use diligence/entitlements and CEQA counsel include:

- multiple high-profile, mixed-use developments on the San Francisco Bay waterfront

- urban multifamily, mixed-use developments, including affordable housing, in San Francisco, Oakland, San Jose and throughout the Bay Area

- major commercial/office projects throughout the Bay Area and Silicon Valley

- Silicon Valley tech/research and development (R&D) headquarters

- industrial, R&D and mixed-use industrial and residential projects

- rural recreational facilities

Ms. Kirlin also has experience advising regional and local government bodies on planning and development, public-private partnerships, intergovernmental relations and agreements, the establishment and management of tax increment finance districts, and a wide range of regulatory, policy and enforcement matters.

As Executive Vice President of The Core Companies, holding company to Core Homes, Core Affordable, Core Residential, and Core Builders, Chris is responsible for the full spectrum of Core’s development activities including acquisition, entitlement, financing and construction.

During his career, Chris has completed a broad range of complicated development projects. Examples range from a regional transit oriented master planned community that required an assembly of 25 acres with 6 property owners to small lot single-family urban infill projects. Chris’ strengths lie in his ability to work through complicated entitlements and complicated financing. Born in Montreal, Canada, Chris immigrated with his family to the Bay Area in 1978. He holds a Bachelors’ degree in Physics from the University of California, Los Angeles and a Master’s Degree in Business from the University of California, Berkeley.

As President of Northern California for City Ventures, Mr. Hendry leads the Northern California Division and oversees the land acquisition, entitlement, and development of mixed-use residential communities across the San Francisco Bay Area. In his tenure, he has originated over 30 new home communities in Northern California now at various stages of development and oversees a pipeline of 2,500+ homes. He has worked with over 20 different city governments around the Bay Area and has a knack for bringing stakeholders together to get projects approved in today’s challenging housing environment. Prior to City Ventures, Mr. Hendry worked in New York City in an acquisitions role for Madison Realty Capital, an institutionally-backed real estate private equity firm with over $4 billion in firm assets. Mr. Hendry began his career at Pacer Communities where he managed the entitlement and development of large-scale residential communities across Los Angeles, Orange County, and the Inland Empire. Mr. Hendry received a M.Sc. of Real Estate Development from Columbia University, an M.B.A. from University of San Francisco, and a B.A. from UCLA.

Dave Hopkins joined Sares Regis Group in 2007. With Todd Regonini, Dave provides the strategic direction for Sares Regis and Regis Homes’ development activities, primarily focused on infill residential within the inner Bay Area. Dave is a member of the firm’s Investment Committee.

Andrew Baker oversees Anton DevCo’s Bay Area market rate multifamily development platform from inception through asset stabilization. He is responsible for land acquisition, joint ventures, entitlements, development and construction. Prior to joining Anton, Andrew held the position of Vice President of Development at Essex Property Trust, where he delivered over 1,000 units and was part of a team that delivered over $1.2 billion in asset production over nearly a decade. Prior investment experience includes roles in capital markets and trading with financial institutions including Bank of America, Blackrock (previously BGI) and Wedbush Securities.

For over 30 years, Paul Zeger has been the definitive source of information for new construction sales and marketing in the Bay Area. His leadership in identifying and capitalizing on residential development opportunities is unparalleled. Paul’s client relationships include some of the most successful real estate development firms on the west coast – TMG Partners, Emerald Fund, Lennar Urban and Wilson Meany to name a few. Paul believes in making commitments to his clients, and building trust by delivering on his commitments. Paul earned a bachelor’s degree in Economics at Colgate University and a Masters in Business Administration from the Darden School at the University of Virginia.

Michael Dern, AIA is the Principal of Dern Architecture + Development, an architecture led design + build firm. His experience throughout the San Francisco Bay Area with mixed-use and urban infill developments, multi-stakeholder community-based projects, and commercial interiors provides a proactive, collaborative solution-oriented leadership to Michael’s clients. While primarily in architecture and design, the firm’s experience provides project management and construction management.

Michael has been part of the early residential high-rise developments including The 88 in downtown San Jose as an Associate at HKS Architects, and has helped architecture firms with the Waverly in Foster City and a hospitality project by Homewood Suites in north San Jose. Dern Architecture + Development as architect of record recently completed the Lyric for Laconia Development and helped Essex Property Trust through construction of the Agora in Walnut Creek.

Michael Dern is the 2018 President of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) Silicon Valley Chapter, and holds a Bachelors of Architecture with a minor in Construction Management from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo.