We are building a national community of dealmakers for our new Ascent membership platform. Last week, we gathered a group in West Hollywood at the Little Door to start building the next generation of leaders for our Ascent community, who represent the best and brightest under 45. We have scheduled a dozen local dinners, cocktails and experiential events over the next two months on the West Coast, and the pièce de résistance is our national retreat Ascent West in Scottsdale, Ariz., from April 24 to April 26.

Joining us last Thursday were Yvonne Li, Gemdale USA Corp.; Danny Barnes and BJ Turner, both with Dunleer; Kevin Yee, Caruso; Mo Saraiya, The CIM Group; Jonathan Baruch, Vista Investment Group; Sandeep Pathak, Ackman Ziff; Adam Belfer, H.I.G. Realty Partners; Steve Ravan, South Park Group; Lauren Nourafchan, PRG Funds; David Freeman, Latitude Real Estate Investors; Mark Blumenthal, Partners Capital; and Alyssa Schram, Colorado Federal Savings Bank.

We hosted the dinner in conjunction with our strategic partner, Ackman Ziff.

Be on the lookout for similar gatherings leading up to Ascent West. Check out www.bisnow.com/ascent to learn more and apply to be considered. Email us at curators@bisnow.com with any questions.