Condoverse - Condo Sales & Development Event

Camilo Miguel founded Mast Capital in 2006 and serves as its Chief Executive Officer, focused on investment strategy and risk management. He has an extensive real estate, financial and political network, with expertise in investment structuring, complex debt and equity products, execution and development. Mr. Miguel has built the firm into a leading investor and developer of high-end residential, hospitality, office and retail projects, with a particular focus in high barriers-to-entry markets. Prior to founding Mast, he founded and served as President of Vertica Group, a land investment and repositioning company, where he oversaw all aspects of the businesses, including acquisitions, entitlements, operations and asset management. Before this, he co-founded Clear Title Group, a boutique real estate title insurance company focused on offering closing services to luxury condominium and home developers, buyers and sellers, which quickly grew into a distinguished market leader in its segment. Mr. Miguel graduated from the University of Miami with a Bachelor’s degree in Business Management.

Dayssi Olarte de Kanavos is the co-founder, President, and COO of Flag Luxury Group, a real estate development firm focused on luxury hotels, boutique hotels, and retail. Dayssi oversees all aspects of the firm’s initiatives, including site selection, finance, acquisitions, branding, management contracts, design, programming, zoning, construction, and asset management. Her renowned portfolio includes the 250-key Ritz-Carlton New York (named a “Best Hotel in New York” by Condé Nast Traveler), ICON Park (named among the “Best Things To Do in Orlando” by US News) and The Ritz-Carlton Residences, South Beach – a collection of “beach houses in the sky” setting a new standard of Miami luxury. Before joining Flag Luxury, Dayssi worked as a commercial real estate financial analyst and broker in New York. She earned a Bachelor of Science from Cornell University’s School of Hotel Administration, where she has served on the Board and as a guest lecturer in its 45th Dean’s Distinguished Lecture Series. Dayssi is a valued member of the President's Council of Cornell Women and the Trustee Council of the University. She holds a Master’s in Real Estate Development and Finance from NYU. Dayssi is also the co-founder of Women’s Power Series, a nonprofit empowering women entrepreneurs through accessible networking events. She is the founder of The Friends of New Yorkers for Children, which supports children in foster care through education, mentoring, and career initiatives. She serves on the board of Save Venice, the largest private nonprofit dedicated to preserving the art and architecture of Venice. Dayssi has been honored with multiple industry accolades, including CRE Women in Real Estate, the Casita Maria Medal of Honor, and the Maryhaven Philanthropist of the Year, and has been inducted into Hospitality Design’s Platinum Circle for their lifetime achievement award. Website: flagluxury.com

Nitin Motwani has served as the Managing Partner of Miami Worldcenter Associates since 2006. In this role, he has overseen the development of a $4 billion mixed-use real estate project located in the heart of downtown Miami, Florida. Encompassing 27 acres of retail, residential, office and hotel uses, Miami Worldcenter is the largest urban development project underway in Miami and among the largest in the U.S. Mr. Motwani is responsible for every facet of the project, including land acquisition, zoning and entitlements, financing (public and private), joint ventures and development. Mr. Motwani is currently overseeing $1.2 billion of development at Miami Worldcenter and has secured over $500 million of debt in the past twelve months. In 2009, Mr. Motwani was involved in the creation of Encore Capital Management (Encore), a private equity fund focused on opportunistic real estate investments and development. He now serves as Encore’s Managing Director, focusing on acquisitions, dispositions, development and fundraising. Encore is developing over 20,000 rental apartments, homes for sale, and residential lots with sell out revenue of approximately $4 billion. Encore assets under management are approximately $2 billion with committed equity in excess of $1 billion. Encore currently has investments in Miami, Orlando, Jacksonville, Tampa, Los Angeles, San Diego, Sacramento, San Francisco, Portland, Jersey City, and Phoenix. Earlier in his career, Mr. Motwani was the President of Merrimac Ventures where he oversaw the acquisition, entitlement, asset management and disposition of hotel, office, retail and residential assets throughout the country. Prior to joining Merrimac Ventures, Mr. Motwani was an equity derivatives trader at Goldman Sachs in New York. An active member of the greater South Florida business community, Mr. Motwani serves as a member of the board of the Miami Downtown Development Authority where he is the chair of both the economic development and marketing committees. He also serves as Board Chair of the University of Miami’s Master of Real Estate Development (MRED) program. He has also recently been named as Co-Chair for One Community One Goal, Miami Dade County’s long term strategic plan for economic development. Nationally, he is a member of both the Urban Land Institute (ULI) and International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC). He is also a member of City Year’s Red Jacket Society and The Scleroderma Foundation. Mr. Motwani has been recognized as one of “Real Estate’s Rising Stars” by The Real Deal South Florida; one of South Florida’s “20 Emerging Leaders Under 40” by The Miami Herald; one of the country’s “Stars to Watch: Rising Leaders in Commercial Real Estate” by Commercial Property Executive Magazine; “Young Leader of the Year” by the Urban Land Institute; a “Top 40 Under 40” professional by the South Florida Business Journal; and a Power Leader in Commercial Real Estate by the South Florida Business Journal. Mr. Motwani earned a Bachelor’s degree in International Relations from Duke University and holds a Master of Science in Real Estate Development from Columbia University. He lives in Miami with his wife and three sons.

As a litigation shareholder in Greenberg Traurig’s Miami office, Robert S. Galbo focuses his practice on class actions and complex commercial and real estate litigation matters in federal and state courts. He has represented clients in putative class action lawsuits involving a broad array of products and has litigated claims related to breach of warranties, deceptive and unfair trade practices, negligence, and alleged product failures. His experience in the real estate sector includes advising commercial and residential developers and landlords in disputes involving purchase and sale agreements, rescission, leasing, and tenant issues. He also represents clients in a wide range of complex disputes involving commercial transactions, breaches of contract, business torts, and fraud. Additionally, he provides defense counsel and consulting in claims brought under disability rights laws, including Titles II and III of the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Fair Housing Act, and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.

Hadrien Laporte is the Founder and CEO of SmartPixel, a global proptech company redefining how real estate is marketed, experienced, and sold through interactive 3D platforms and digital twins. With over 15 years of experience working alongside leading developers, brokers, and institutional partners, Hadrien has helped deliver immersive sales and visualization solutions for projects ranging from high-rise residential towers to master-planned cities. SmartPixel’s technology is deployed across North America, Europe, Asia and the Middle East, powering flagship showrooms, touchscreen experiences, LED walls, and web-based platforms. Known for his hands-on leadership and cross-disciplinary approach, Hadrien operates at the intersection of strategy, product, and technology, bridging creative storytelling with data-driven sales performance. His work focuses on making complex real-estate assets easier to understand, faster to sell, and more engaging for global audiences. Hadrien regularly speaks at international conferences and industry events on proptech innovation, immersive sales experiences, digital twins, and the future of real-estate marketing.

Sue Hawkes served as the Senior Vice President for the Codman Company in Boston for 13 years before joining The Collaborative Companies as Partner and Managing Director in 1997, acquiring TCC and Velocity Marketing in 2008. The Collaborative Companies was acquired by Realogy/NRT in 2016. Ms. Hawkes is a recognized leader in the new construction industry and consults throughout the country. Active in the building industry, she served on the National Association of Home Builders Executive Committee (NAHB), as Chairman of the New England Builders Conference, and as Trustee of both the Institute of Residential Marketing (MIRM) and the National Sales and Marketing Council, the latter of which she has chaired. Ms. Hawkes has also served as President of the Builders Association of Greater Boston. TCC has been involved in culminating over $14 billion in residential sales transactions and represents most of the region’s premier developers including: Samuels & Associates, National Development, New England Development, The Davis Companies, The Related Companies, Federal Realty, Boston Properties, Lendlease, Nordbloom, Corcoran Co and WS Development, Hines, Fallon Companies, Fortis Companies, among others. Her extensive construction background and diverse marketing expertise has made her insight invaluable to ground up developments, both urban and suburban mixed use. TCC has established itself as Greater Boston’s foremost leader in market research, design development and project positioning for Master Planned Communities under Ms. Hawkes’ tutelage. Ms. Hawkes was awarded the NAHB “Bill Molster Award” for industry excellence, the highest honor awarded by the NAHB. She was honored by her alma mater, St. Lawrence University, as recipient of the Alumnae Leadership Award as well as Bisnow's 2023 Women Of The Year recipient and Builders Association Hall Of Fame. She currently serves on the Board of Directors for both Cushing Academy and the Alfond Youth Center in Waterville, ME.

Mr. Defortuna is President, CEO and Founder of Fortune International Group, a Miami-based full- service real estate firm recognized throughout South Florida, Latin America and Europe as a leader in high-end luxury real estate. He oversees all of the company’s activities across all of its business units. Mr. Defortuna is involved with the strategic decision making of the group, as well as the day-to-day operations of each of its divisions. He started the business in 1983, and quickly became a driving force in real estate. Through his company’s success and far reach into U.S., European and Latin American markets, Mr. Defortuna is widely recognized for having made a significant contribution to the internationalization of Miami and its reputation as a global business, trade and vacation hub. He currently serves as a member of the Mayor of Miami's International Council and also as Director of the Argentine-U.S. Chamber of Commerce, in Miami. Additionally, he is a member of several charitable organizations in Miami, such as Manos del Sur, Mt. Sinai Hospital and St. Stephen’s Episcopal School. Mr. Defortuna holds a Bachelors Degree in Electrical and Chemical Engineering from the National University of Argentina and a Masters in Business Administration from the University of Miami. Fully fluent English and Spanish, Mr. Defortuna is married to Ana Cristina and has five children.

Daniel Berman is a visionary entrepreneur originally from Venezuela who moved to the United States to pursue a bold dream—to build one of the most respected hospitality and real estate companies in the industry. In 2008, he founded AD1, which has since grown into a dynamic platform known for acquiring, developing, and managing high-performing hospitality assets. With a relentless focus on excellence, Daniel led AD1 through economic shifts and personal challenges, guided by strong values, work ethic, and a deep commitment to people. His leadership has fostered long-term relationships with employees, investors, and global hotel brands, while expanding into full-scale development and mixed-use projects. Daniel believes that success is most powerful when it’s shared—a principle that continues to shape his company culture and long-term vision to elevate the guest experience, empower teams, and create lasting value through world-class hospitality and transformative real estate.

Nick Pérez serves as the President of Condominium Development for Related Group (Related), one of the country’s leading real estate companies. In this critical leadership role, Nick oversees all development activity within the company's world-renown condominium group, with a portfolio worth over $15 billion. Additionally, Nick collaborates closely with Related’s executive suite - including CEO and Founder Jorge M. Perez and President Jon Paul Perez - to extend the firm’s 40+ years of industry dominance. Known for his growth focus, Related’s condominium group has thrived under Nick’s leadership, forging partnerships with distinguished brands, expanding into promising new markets and driving billions of dollars in sales. The division currently has more than 20 individual condo projects under active developments, with highlights including the St. Regis Residences Miami; Baccarat Residences, Miami; NoMad Residences, Wynwood; Residences at 6 Fisher, and many more. Nick also led the development of Related’s award-winning Coconut Grove headquarters, completed in 2021. Prior to joining Related in 2018, Nick spent eight years in the New York City real estate industry, working with some of the world’s most respected real estate companies. This included a four-year period with the Related Companies in Manhattan, where he focused on a wide spectrum of properties, including 261 Hudson and 15 Hudson Yards. Nick is deeply involved with Related’s sustainability efforts, playing a critical role in forging Related’s high- profile partnership with the Aspen Institute and facilitating the firm’s title sponsorship of the “Ideas” Summit. He is also involved in the Related’s Philanthropic Foundation and the Perez Family Philanthropic Foundation, which have dispersed more than $214 million since being founded in 2015. Nick graduated from Loyola Marymount University with a B.S. in Business Administration and received his Executive MBA from Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.

Dean Trantalis was first elected mayor of Fort Lauderdale in 2018 and was re-elected in Novembe 2020. His 2018 election represented the largest victory in city history for a candidate running for a first term as mayor. The 2020 election was also by landslide proportions and featured the largest turnout ever in a city race. Mayor Trantalis previously served on the City Commission representing District 2 for eight years. As mayor, he represents Fort Lauderdale on the Florida League of Cities, the Broward County Tourism Development Council, the Metropolitan Planning Organization, the Greater Fort Lauderdale Alliance and the Broward Workforce Development Board. He also served as a member of Gov. Ron DeSantis’ Re-Open Florida Task Force in 2020. Born and raised in Norwich, Connecticut, he attended high school at Norwich Free Academy. At Boston University, he majored in political science and graduated cum laude and with distinction in 1975. He received a Juris Doctorate in 1979 from Stetson University School of Law. Mayor Trantalis was admitted to the Connecticut and Florida Bar Associations in 1980 and has practiced law in Broward County since 1982. He maintains a successful general law practice in Broward County with some emphasis in the areas of real estate, probate, estate planning, bankruptcy, and corporate matters. His long track record of public service in our community began with his involvement in the fight for civil rights. As mayor, he is committed to improvements to the city’s infrastructure, responsible growth, community involvement in development decisions, increased fiscal responsibility in city government and the maintenance of the great quality of life in our neighborhoods. Recognized for his leadership in our community, Mayor Trantalis has received multiple awards and honors. He was an inaugural honoree of the Diversity Honors awards presented by the Harvey Milk Foundation in 2015 and was presented with their lifetime achievement award in spring 2018. He also has been honored as a Community Champion by the Broward County Commission and the Broward County Human Rights Board for his work on behalf of equal rights. In October 2019, he received the Visionary Award from the Gay and Lesbian Business Exchange of the Greater Fort Lauderdale Chamber of Commerce.

Mr. Schlank is a Founder and Managing Partner of Savanna. At Savanna, Mr. Schlank sits on the investment committee and is in charge of construction and redevelopment and shares responsibilities for asset management, sales and marketing and acquisitions. Mr. Schlank has overseen the acquisition and redevelopment of more than 70 real estate assets, comprising over 20 million square feet of space and nearly $3.8 billion of total capitalization, including raw land development sites, apartments, office buildings, industrial to residential conversions, retail and warehouse/distribution properties. Prior to founding Savanna, Mr. Schlank was a project manager for the Westside Federation for Senior Housing, a New York-based developer of low-income housing. Mr. Schlank received an MS in Real Estate Development from the Columbia School of Architecture and a BA in Urban Studies from the University of Pennsylvania. Mr. Schlank is an Assistant Adjunct Professor at Columbia University where he teaches a seminar in Real Estate Finance to graduate students in the Columbia Architecture School’s Real Estate Master’s Degree Program.

Chris Gandolfo is the senior vice president of development for Tavistock Development Company. In his role, Gandolfo leads and oversees the development and construction of the revitalization of the iconic Pier Sixty-Six property in Fort Lauderdale.

Peter Baytarian is the Founding and Managing Partner of Forest Development LLC, an elaborate team of real estate development professionals with more than 30 years of experience in the United States and Europe. Additionally, Peter is the Founder and Managing Partner of two firms based in New York, NY focused on the renovation, ownership and management of high-end value-add properties including townhomes, condominiums, and commercial sites in Manhattan. Previously he was a developer and home builder in Cape Cod, MA completing more than 150 residences. Nautilus 220, a project currently underway by Forest Development at 220 Lake Shore Drive, will include 330 condominium residences in two towers, restaurants, retail, and offices adjacent to the Lake Park Marina. Peter was born in Beirut, Lebanon, attended high school at The American School in London and studied economics at Boston University. He resides with his wife and two daughters in South Florida. Peter serves as a member of the Executive Trustee Council for the Palm Beach North Chamber of Commerce

James Galvin is the Founder of Miami Coastline Management, an Owners Rep. firm specializing in ground-up commercial real estate development within the multi-family condominium and hospitality sectors. With hands-on experience from notable projects such as The Surf Club, Seaway at The Surf Club, Hillcrest in Surfside, and The Delmore, James also offers comprehensive expertise in the development, planning, and execution of custom single-family residences and condominium build-outs. James began his career in the South Florida construction industry as an estimator for a local roofing company while pursuing a degree in Construction Management at Florida International University. He simultaneously advanced as a Project Engineer with a local General Contractor while earning his M.B.A. After obtaining his General Contractor’s license, James operated his own construction firm before merging with Shawmut Design & Construction, a leading national builder. Transitioning to the ownership side of the business, he joined Fort Partners' Development Team, managing beachfront projects in Surfside and overseeing pre-development, design, entitlement, execution, and completion phases. More recently James served as Vice President at DAMAC and the company's first U.S.-based employee, he managed DAMAC’s inaugural U.S. project, The Delmore. His extensive background in construction and development, strategic planning, and project management underscores a career marked by growth, innovation, and leadership in South Florida’s dynamic real estate market.

William O’Donnell has managed the DESIMONE Miami office for 35 years. During his tenure, the firm has designed well over 100 million square feet of projects in Florida. Recent Florida hospitality projects include the Four Seasons in Surfside, Naples, and Jacksonville, the St. Regis in Longboat Key, the Raleigh, Ritz-Carlton Residences, and Miami Beach Convention Center Hotel on Miami Beach, the Broward County Convention Center Hotel, the renovation and expansion of Pier 66 in Fort Lauderdale, and the new Mandarin Oriental on Brickell Key replacing the existing building he designed in 1999. Current Caribbean projects are underway in The Bahamas, Puerto Rico, Jamaica, St. Maarten, St. Lucia, and Antigua. He is a graduate of the University of Miami, has been on two industry advisory boards at UM, and is a Trustee for Barry University.

Brad Meltzer is a Partner and President of Two Roads Development. In this role, he oversees real estate development activities from design through construction and supports the team in identifying new opportunities. Meltzer has facilitated the growth of numerous regional business units scaling some from start up to more than 250 employees. Specializing in delivering high-end projects, Meltzer has led award-winning projects from inception to completion across various asset classes, including condominium, multifamily, hospitality, office, and retail. A sampling of such projects includes Biscayne Beach, The One Thousand Museum Tower, the 4 Tower Paraiso Complex, the Ritz Carlton Residences Miami Beach, The Marquis, Millicento, W Hotel South Beach, One Hotel and Homes, Icon Bay, Carillon Miami Beach (aka Canyon Ranch), Town Center One at Dadeland, Aventura Mall Expansion, Westshore Marina Pointe, Mandarin Oriental Miami. Meltzer led the construction of 15 buildings in excess of 35 stories and 2 in excess of 60 stories. He holds a Masters's in Architecture from Tulane University and has more than 30 years of construction experience, having headed a top national construction firm as its CEO. Meltzer also sits on the Advisory Board of the University of Miami MRED+U and Construction Management programs, Tulane University School of Architecture Advisory Board, Gulliver Prep Board of Trustees, and Voices for Children Board of Directors.

Carlos Rosso is the Founder of Rosso Development, a fully integrated development firm focused on high-end boutique development opportunities. Rosso is set to oversee multiple upcoming awe-inspiring projects in key markets in South Florida and Latin America—with the first ever The Standard Residences in Midtown Miami as his debut project. Rosso founded Rosso Development in 2020 after nearly 20 years with The Related Group, where he was a driving force behind the company’s condominium operations. As the president of the condominium and international development divisions, he oversaw all facets of condominium development domestically and internationally. Over the course of his career, Rosso developed well over 16,000 units, and in the process, mastered diverse development disciplines including construction, project financing, land acquisition and sales and marketing. Under his leadership, Related successfully delivered iconic projects including the 1,600 unit Paraiso District in Miami; Residences by ARMANI/CASA designed by César Pelli; Hyde Beach House; Park Grove by OMA/Rem Koolhaas; Auberge Beach Residences and Spa in Fort Lauderdale; SLS Cancun & Residences in Mexico; and V:HOUSE in Brazil. Prior to his time at Related, Rosso held a number of positions across global development firms, having served as Vice President of Real Estate Development for Investment Properties Ltd. in Boston; and ten years as Project Director for Besix International, overseeing the development and construction of over ten million square feet of multi-family, hotel and office buildings in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Rosso graduated summa cum laude from the Universidad de Buenos Aires with a master’s degree in Architecture. He also earned a master’s degree in Real Estate Development and Finance, with the highest honors, from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). www.rossodev.com

Emily Trapani is a tech business leader with over 15 years of experience, including more than 8 years in leadership at Google, creating and executing sales strategies and innovation for technology products and services. As the Head of Retail at Google Fiber, she oversees strategy, innovation and operations in retail and other non-traditional sales and service experiences for the company's high-speed internet offerings. She has an invariable track record of delivering results and growth for Google Fiber and its parent company, Alphabet Inc., by developing and managing various sales channels and partnerships, including B2B, B2B2C, multifamily, direct, indirect and nontraditional. She is also an author and a futurist, who has published two books and a podcast on technologies and industry trends. She is passionate about empowering women and underrepresented groups in technology and STEM, and volunteers as an instructor and facilitator for several Google programs and initiatives.

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.