Washington D.C. State Of The Market

Jodie W. McLean is Chief Executive Officer of EDENS, one of the nation’s leading private owners, operators and developers of retail real estate. With a more than 25-year tenure at EDENS, she has been a key player in the company’s growth and expansion to its current marketplace leadership, capitalized by blue chip investors and assets valued at $6.5 billion. Jodie is responsible for EDENS’ strategy to move the portfolio to major urban centers and first-ring suburbs, creating a portfolio of assets that are the center of community life. She was named Chief Investment Officer in 1997, President in 2002 and CEO in 2015. Overall, she has been responsible for the development, redevelopment, acquisition and disposition of more than $20 billion in retail assets. McLean passionately believes that retail should evolve beyond a shopping experience, and advocates for connectivity to the communities surrounding the company’s retail centers. To ensure this, each EDENS development is crafted to serve as an authentic gathering place, including a unique merchandising mix and welcoming design elements, fostering a sense of engagement with its neighbors. McLean is Chairman of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond and serves on several Board of Directors including Cushman & Wakefield (NYSE: CWK), Wofford College and Milhaus. She is also a Trustee of the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) and The Real Estate Round Table. McLean is a member of the Aspen Global Leadership Network’s Liberty Fellowship, Class of 2009. A native of Chicago, IL, she holds a B.S. in Finance and Management from the Moore School of Business, University of South Carolina, and a degree from South Carolina Honors College.

Deborah Ratner Salzberg manages Uplands’ investor relations and capital-raising activities. She previously was the Washington, DC Region Chairman for Brookfield Properties, a global real estate development and operating company with 300 million square feet of prime commercial space and 59,000 apartments under management, as well as 9 million square feet of commercial space in development. Prior to joining Brookfield, Debby worked for over 30 years at Forest City Realty Trust. Most recently, she served as President of Forest City Washington, a subsidiary of Forest City Realty Trust, overseeing the company’s activities in the DC, Philadelphia, Boston, and New Jersey markets. During her career with Forest City, Debby’s responsibilities spanned development, leasing, construction, financing, and management, beginning with individual projects and progressing to executive supervision of multiple high-profile, large-scale developments in the DC Region, including The Yards in the Capitol Riverfront district, Waterfront Station in Southwest DC, and the redevelopment of Ballston Quarter in Arlington, Virginia. Debby began her career as a trial attorney in the Civil Division of the U.S. Department of Justice. She earned a bachelor’s degree from George Washington University, a Juris Doctor degree from the University of San Francisco, and is a member of the California Bar Association. Debby is active with numerous community and professional organizations, including the Federal City Council, District of Columbia Building Industry Association (DCBIA), the Washington Housing Conservancy, the Urban Land Institute, Kenyon College, CubeSmart (CUBE), and the NY Common Real Estate Advisory Committe

Yes, Bisnow’s the name of a real person. Right up there with Sol Price starting the Price Club. Don’t think there was a Mr. Sizzler, however. Mark started out very cool, growing up in LA. Even when he went to Stanford and Harvard Law School, he wore jeans and cutoffs. Then he came to DC, where he wore three piece suits. Fortunately no pictures of him exist from this period. He worked for Congressmen and Senators a few years, helped run a presidential campaign (unsuccessful), became a lawyer at Latham & Watkins (perfecting his skill at footnotes), went into the corporate world as Asst. to the CEO of USAir, General Counsel of United Express, Chief of Staff at Microstrategy, and Chief Marketing Officer at WebMethods. He still wouldn’t recognize a piece of software if it hit him over the head. (He doesn’t know if it can even do that.) But armed with a faint understanding of P&Ls, he was emboldened to become an entrepreneur, first doing Bisnow on Business shows on WTOP in the late 1990s and then around 2004 starting the Bisnow daily email newsletters in a variety of industries, finally focusing on commercial real estate. It was the one industry where you could feel productive if you spent your time eating and schmoozing. However, after expanding Bisnow Media into 40 major metros across the country, he found he was spending more time on HR than schmoozing, so he sold the company in 2016. Since then, he has been in training to be a grumpy old man, but he is having trouble with the grumpy part.

After 25 years of federal service in Congress and the executive branch, Dan founded Mathews Associates LLC in 2021 as a strategic consulting and business development firm. He helps his clients navigate the highest levels of Washington and the complex world of federal real estate and government procurements to expand their revenue, identify new partners and enter new markets. In 2024, President Biden appointed Mathews to the Public Buildings Reform Board, which is tasked with making recommendations to realign the federal real estate portfolio. He also serves on the Industry Advisory Group of the US State Department’s Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations. In addition, Mathews is a board member of both the Federal Real Property Association and the National Federal Development Association. He has extensive experience with federal real estate issues and served as Commissioner of the US General Services Administration’s Public Buildings Service, where he led the 375 million square foot civilian real estate portfolio of the federal government, over 5,000 employees, and a $12 billion budget. Mathews graduated from Georgetown University with a degree in government and philosophy. He is married, has two daughters, and resides in Alexandria, Virginia.

Mr. Oliver T. Carr, III has been the President and Chief Executive Officer at Carr Properties Holdings LP since 2004. Mr. Carr co-founded Carr Capital Corporation in 1994 and served as its President and Chief Executive Officer until 2005. He was responsible for managing Carr Capital, and led managing major acquisitions and financial transactions at the firm. Mr. Carr served as a Director of WashingtonFirst Bankshares, Inc. and its subsidiary WashingtonFirst Bank from December 2012 to May 17, 2013. He served as an Independent Director of Alliance Bankshares Corporation since July 2007. Mr. Carr served as a Director of Alliance Bank Corporation since August 15, 2007 and Alliance Bankshares Corporation since July 2007. He received Master of Science in Real Estate Development from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1992 and his Bachelor of Arts in Urban Studies, with a concentration in Economics, from Trinity College in 1987.

Bob Murphy is the Managing Principal for MRP Realty. He has over 34 years of experience in commercial real estate operations, ownership and investment. He joined Trammell Crow Company (TCC) in 1987, managing the firm’s regional operations for many years as Principal. Bob’s last role with TCC was area president of the development and investment group in the Mid-Atlantic where Bob and his team completed $1.8B of investments totaling over 10 million square feet. He co-founded MRP Realty (MRP) in 2005, capitalizing on his in-depth knowledge of Mid-Atlantic real estate markets, extensive network of capital relationships, and his reputation as a collaborative and creative partner to drive the firm. Under Bob’s leadership, MRP has deployed nearly $7.8B of office, residential/mixed-use and industrial developments and acquisition investments with an active pipeline totaling over 8 million square feet. He has actively participated in leadership roles at NAIOP and ULI and at various charitable activities during his career; currently serving on the board of Habitat for Humanity of Washington D.C. Bob received his B.S. in Civil Engineering from the University of Notre Dame; his M.B.A. in Finance at Columbia Business School; and was an officer in the United States Army.

Mr. Otteni holds a Bachelor of Science in Commerce from the University of Virginia and a Master of Business Administration with a concentration in Real Estate from the Kenan- Flagler Business School at the University of North Carolina. He joined Boston Properties in 2000 upon his graduation from KFBS, and has since taken on increasingly complex roles in the development of the company’s projects. As a Senior Vice President in the Development department in Washington, DC, Pete has direct responsibility for all aspects of development, acquisition and disposition projects throughout the greater DC region, including acquisition/land acquisition, financing, entitlement, design, construction, and leasing. Since joining Boston Properties, Mr. Otteni has managed or been directly involved with over 4.5 million square feet of completed or in process development.

Timothy R. Lowery is the Vice President – Mixed-Use, East Region with the global commercial real estate investment firm Hines. Mr. Lowery has overseen the management, operations, marketing, and tenant relations for the landmark, mixed-use development CityCenterDC in Downtown Washington, DC since its opening in 2013. Mr. Lowery is responsible for the general coordination of all uses at the Project, including office, retail, residential rental, condominium and hotel at CityCenterDC, managing the activities of a team of approximately one hundred and fifty professionals. Under Mr. Lowery’s noteworthy leadership, CityCenterDC has been recognized as one of the most significant and transformative downtown projects in the nation, garnering awards from the real estate, retail and marketing spheres including MAXI® Awards from the International Council of Shopping Centers, ADDY® American Advertising Awards from the American Advertising Federation, three EMMY® Awards from The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences and multiple DowntownDC Momentum Awards. Mr. Lowery has been with Hines since 2002 based in New York, NY and Washington, D.C. and has been responsible for the management, coordination, due diligence, project management, leasing, marketing and programming of over nine million square-feet of property developed and acquired by Hines in multiple regions during his tenure with the company. A social and cultural luminary in the community of Washington, D.C., Mr. Lowery was named by Washingtonian Magazine in 2016 as one of the top ten Washington, D.C. Style Setters, by DC Magazine as one of their 2021 Washington Men of Style, and by Washington Life Magazine as a Washington D.C. Trendsetter. Mr. Lowery is currently a member of the Board of Directors for The Kennedy Center – National Symphony Orchestra, a member of the Board of Directors for The Washington Ballet, a member of the Board of Directors of Children’s National Hospital Foundation, a member of the Board of Directors for the DowntownDC BID Foundation and a member of the Board of Directors for the Penn Quarter Neighborhood Association.

With an unparalleled understanding of complex real estate transactions, Lou Christopher has led some of the Washington, DC market area’s most significant real estate assignments on behalf of Fortune 500 companies, large law firms and other leading enterprises. He provides many of these organizations with national and international representation and has conducted transactions in more than 80 markets. As a 35-year industry veteran, Lou is known as a trusted advisor who delivers meaningful and measurable results. As a market leader, Lou’s work is distinguished by an exhaustive approach focused on how the real estate solution should support his clients’ strategic business goals. His market knowledge, financial expertise, proficiency in negotiating construction related issues and wide transactional experience continue to deliver superior outcomes. All told, Lou has completed over 47 transactions in excess of 75,000 square feet. He is honored to have worked with a wide variety of exceptional clients including: Accenture, The AES Corporation, Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP, American Chemistry Council, CEB, Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc., McKesson Corporation, McKinsey & Company, Nestle USA, Strategic Education Inc., Sullivan & Cromwell LLP, Westat and Wiley Rein LLP. Serving as Vice Chairman, Lou is a leader within CBRE and serves on the Executive Committee of the firm’s National Law Firm Group and most recently as Chairman of the firm’s Americas Producers Advisory Board. He is also consistently recognized by industry organizations for his market leadership.

Tyler currently leads business development efforts for Experience Management (XM). In this role, he partners with a wide range of owners to creatively activate their assets. He works closely with a number of REITs, institutional investors, private owners and occupiers in all U.S. markets Experience. Tyler has nearly a decade of real estate experience with JLL. He began his career in accounting, and immediately began working with a variety of REITs and investors around the country. Eventually changing his specialty over time, Tyler has spent the majority of his career with JLL in various assistant general manager and general manager roles. Most recently, he had the responsibility of overseeing a $70M redevelopment in downtown Chicago. Throughout his career, Tyler has embraced his role as a leader, and was recognized by his peers in 2019 when he received a Gold Circle award as BOMA Chicago’s Emerging Leader of the year. Also in 2019, BOMA International featured Tyler as one of the year’s four Rising Stars of commercial real estate. In 2011, Tyler received his Bachelor of Science degree in business administration, and majored in accounting at Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He is a member of BOMA Chicago and is a licensed real estate broker in the state of Illinois.

Terra Weirich joined Bernstein Management Corporation (BMC) in 2018 as Vice President of Investments. Ms. Weirich focuses on value creation throughout the BMC portfolio through strategic acquisitions and dispositions, JV partnerships, financing and operational improvements. She also serves on the company’s Investment Committee. Prior to joining BMC, Ms. Weirich spent 13 years at CIM Group, where she sourced and evaluated acquisition opportunities across numerous product types, deal structures and geographies, and closed transactions totaling over $2.5 billion. Ms. Weirich is actively involved at Hyde-Addison Elementary, a District of Columbia public school, serving both as Vice President of Fundraising for the PTA, and on the Equity and Anti-Racism Task Force. She is also an active participant and contributor in BMC’s women’s affinity group. Ms. Weirich earned her Bachelor of Science in Commerce with concentrations in finance, marketing and management from the McIntire School of Commerce at the University of Virginia and a Master of Science in Real Estate and Infrastructure from the Carey Business School of Johns Hopkins University.

Evens Charles is the founder and managing principal of Frontier Development & Hospitality Group LLC. A native of Washington, D.C, Mr. Charles attended Temple University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania where he was a Big East Conference Division-I football athlete. During his five-year athletic tenure at Temple University, he earned a B.A. in Psychology and a Master of Education. Shortly thereafter, at the age of 25, Mr. Charles was inspired by his landlord to execute his first small transaction that required an out-of-pocket investment of $1,000 resulting in a $25K profit six months later. Mr. Charles organically grew over a ten-year period by executing several successful residential and multi-family acquisition and development projects, then by the age of 36, made his first hotel investment. He has since grown Frontier to over a $200 million capitalized portfolio of Hilton and Marriot Internationally branded hotel assets across six states, with another $560 million of urban infill, commercial real estate development in its pipeline. Some of his recent accomplishments includes being recognized as the lead developer of DMPED’s 2021 award of the Hill East Bundle II Project, which is 1.2 million square feet of waterfront, mixed-use development in Washington DC; The 2021 Business of the Year by Prince Georges County Bi-County Business; 2019 Black Enterprise largest 100 Black Owned Businesses in the nation and the 2019 Outstanding Entrepreneur Award by the Caribbean American Heritage. He has been featured in various publications including Hotel Business, Lodging Magazine, Black Enterprise & Business Journals across multiple cities. He has an endowed scholarship in his name at Temple University targeting underserved students, supports many philanthropic causes and serves as a mentor to many. He is also a member of Temple University’s School of Hospitality & Tourism Board of Visitors, member of the Real Estate Executive Council (REEC), as well as industry organizations such as the National Alliance of African American Hotel Owners and the Asian American Hotel Owners Association.

Katie focuses on leasing as well as maintaining broker and tenant relationships at Meridian. She has over 15 years of experience in commercial real estate, including leasing and market research. Prior to joining Meridian, Katie was a vice president with Boston Properties, where she oversaw the company’s Reston Town Center portfolio totaling more than three million square feet and completed over 115 transactions with a diverse mix of tenants including tech companies, law firms, government contractors, and Fortune 100 companies. She began her career with Lincoln Property Company, where she focused on research and brokerage in Washington, DC. Katie received her B.S. in management from Georgetown University.

Toby Millman is the Regional Partner for Transwestern Development Company in the Mid-Atlantic, where he is responsible for overseeing and directing the company’s development pipeline in the region. Over his nearly 30-year career, Toby has been involved with the development of over 15 million square feet of residential, office, and retail space. Prior to joining Transwestern, Toby was Senior Vice President for Brookfield Properties where he oversaw the development pipeline in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeast regions. Prior to Brookfield, he was Senior Vice President at Vornado Realty Trust, creating and leading the multifamily development group for Vornado’s Washington division. Earlier in his career, Toby also owned and operated Agora Development, a development and homebuilding company and worked for Washington-area developers EYA and Abdo Development. Toby earned an undergraduate degree from Cornell University and a master’s degree in city and regional planning from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. Mr. Millman holds an undergraduate degree from Cornell University and a Master’s Degree in City Planning from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

As the Director of Business Development for ARCO Design/Build, George Hassan brings over 8 years of experience in the construction industry. With expertise in strategic and operational marketing and building client relationships, George plays a crucial role in driving ARCO’s new business opportunities and helping future clients find solutions to their needs. George manages client relationships in the DC area and Northern Virginia region. Prior to joining ARCO, George served as the Director of Business Development for a Concrete subcontractor serving the DMV. George graduated from The Pennsylvania State University with a double major in Business and Labor Employment Relations.

Pillsbury partner James Bobotek concentrates his practice on a variety of construction and insurance matters. Jamie guides clients through all phases of development and construction of commercial properties, including preparation, review and negotiation of development, design, construction, design-build, and related agreements. Jamie also counsels clients in analyzing insurance coverage claims, formulating risk management strategies, and developing contractual insurance requirements. Jamie has secured many favorable outcomes for commercial policyholders on CGL, builder's risk, commercial property, business interruption, E&O, cyber, professional liability, D&O, pollution, fidelity and other claims. Representative Experience Drafted and negotiated construction, design, and development contracts for projects totaling billions of dollars. Represented public-private partnerships with respect to construction, design, and ancillary agreements relating to United States military housing privatizations across the country, including projects in California, Arizona, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, Nevada, Georgia and Missouri. Drafted form construction and design contract packages for owners, developers and contractors for use throughout the United States. Achieved partial summary judgment against AIG entity in connection with property insurance coverage dispute for multinational university arising from the 2010 earthquakes in Chile. Obtained a summary judgment ruling in a Student Financial Corp. bankruptcy legacy case for an additional insured/policyholder under a fidelity bond (financial institution bond) in connection with alleged Ponzi-scheme losses. Obtained a dismissal of first-filed insurance carrier declaratory judgment action, allowing an iconic brand company's $18 million flood loss claim to proceed against carrier in carrier's home forum of Tennessee. Deployed novel theory to defeat insurance carrier effort to align parties to create federal court jurisdiction, creating favorable new law in removal disputes with insurance carriers. Represented a telecommunications provider in successful prosecution of its claims against its E&O insurer confirming coverage for class action claims alleging cyber-related activities. Obtained significant recovery under a builders risk policy on behalf of a contractor for a delay claim arising out of a subcontractor's provision of defective materials. Procured multi-million dollar defense and indemnity recovery under "personal injury" CGL coverage relating to a discrimination suit brought by the U.S. Department of Justice on behalf of multiple claimants. Obtained recovery under an event cancellation policy for two class action suits brought as a result of logistical difficulties in connection with a client's presidential inauguration-related experiential student conference. Obtained full property loss and business interruption coverage, as well as defense and indemnity coverage for third-party suits, arising out of a catastrophic fire at a defense contractor's warehouse facility. Attained defense and indemnity coverage for an international construction company arising out of concrete plant emissions. Obtained defense and indemnity coverage under a professional liability policy for an engineering company faced with excess exposure. Recovered full pre-suit indemnity for a government contractor in a construction claim related to faulty subcontractor work. Protected a commercial developer's interests under a builders risk policy in connection with a faulty workmanship claim. Represented clients in various industries in structuring and negotiating the terms of their cyber insurance programs. Professional Highlights Member of the Insurance Recovery & Advisory practice, named by Law360 as a Practice Group of the Year in 2015 and 2016. Member of the ABA's Insurance Coverage Litigation Committee, co-chair of its Construction Subcommittee and appointed vice-chair of the Committee's 2017 Annual CLE Seminar and Meeting. Authored "Builders Risk Insurance," New Appleman on Insurance Law Library Edition, Chapter 50 (updated 2016) and "Understanding Product Liability Insurance," New Appleman Insurance Law Practice Guide, Chapter 30B (2013). Presented "Mind the Gaps: Potential Gaps Between Cyber and Other Commercial Policies," at the ABA Insurance Coverage Litigation CLE Seminar, March 2016.

Nathan Riley is a Principal of Asset Management at BGO, a leading, global real estate investment management advisor that serves the interests of more than 750 institutional clients with approximately $83 billion USD of assets under management. In his role, Nathan oversees office and industrial assets in DC, Massachusetts, New York, and Virginia. He also manages BGO’s U.S. medical office portfolio as well as BGO’s U.S. self-storage portfolio. Nathan has more than 10 years’ experience in commercial real estate and held various roles, including Senior Associate, at Bentall Kennedy, a predecessor firm to BGO. Prior to joining Bentall Kennedy in 2015, Nathan worked as a Market Research Analyst at First Capital Realty, a multifaceted commercial real estate brokerage company headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland. Prior to First Capital Realty, Nathan worked as a Transaction Analyst at small Washington, D.C. area family office. Nathan is a graduate of The American University, where he has served as a member of the Real Estate Advisory Council since 2015. He holds both a Bachelor’s in Business Administration and a Master’s in Science in Real Estate from the Kogod School of Business.