Innovation in Retail

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  Paul Travis

  Managing Partner

  Washington Square Partners

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  Jaime Schultz

  Jaime Schultz joined Lee & Associates NYC (“Lee NYC”) in January 2014 as a director in its retail leasing division, where she will focus on the Brooklyn market. Prior to joining Lee NYC, Ms. Schultz was a leasing broker with GFI, where she was instrumental in building its retail group. While at GFI, she completed the leasing of 20,000 square feet in the Finger Building in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, including placing Juice Press, Antica Pesa, DNA Footwear, Crossroads Trading, 16 Handles, and Beth Israel, for a total of nine retail tenants, in the building. Ms. Schultz has worked for other notable landlords in Brooklyn, including Forrest City Ratner, where she leased the entire 5000 retail square feet of its DKLB project on Dekalb Street near Flatbush Avenue, including putting Smashburger, Salon 718, Sunny Bagels, Celebrtea, and O’Crepes into the development. Ms. Schultz began her real estate career at Prudential Douglas Elliman, primarily involved in development site sales, before she gravitated to commercial real estate sales and leasing. Before launching her real estate career, she worked for many years in the art museum world as a consultant for exhibitions, where she served as an installation coordinator. Since beginning her real estate career in 2007, she has closed over 25 real estate transactions in Brooklyn, for a lease value total of over $30 million. Ms. Schultz holds the Bachelor of Fine Arts from Pacific Northwest College in Portland, Oregon. She is licensed to practice real estate in New York. She lives in Brooklyn.

  Lee & Associates

  Executive Managing Director

  Jaime Schultz

  Executive Managing Director

  Lee & Associates

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  Jay Norris

  Jay Norris, Co-founder, and CEO of Guesst®, has over 15 years in developing experiential marketing concepts. Jay started in the music industry developing multi-city tours and venues for top recording artists for Clive Davis’ Arista Record and others. In 1997, Jay started Tastemakers Media, which published a cutting-edge magazine throughout the US featuring the best retail & lifestyle offerings domestically and abroad. In 2005, Jay brought his expertise in lifestyle and experiential marketing to the commercial real estate tenant brokerage industry. Jay is a small to medium-size business growth executive at heart, continually looking to maximize resources, build relationships and identify growth opportunities. Jay has been effectuating Retail-Matchmaking in the analog space for a number of years, which has led to the founding of Guesst - A Retail-Sharing Community.

  Guesst Software

  Co-Founder & CEO

  Jay Norris

  Co-Founder & CEO

  Guesst Software

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  Michael Feinstein

  Michael Feinstein joined Rosenberg & Estis in 1994 and has been a member since 1998. Mr. Feinstein is a smart and insightful attorney, whose strong level of commitment and focus on the big picture and business practicalities has earned him a highly successful record of achievement in the firm's Supreme Court and appellate practices. Over the years, he has successfully handled all facets of real estate litigation, including landlord-tenant disputes, breach of contract actions, corporation, partnership and limited liability company disputes, brokerage disputes and co-op/condo matters. Mr. Feinstein also has extensive experience in mortgage and cooperative loan foreclosures, representing both lenders and borrowers. In addition, Mr. Feinstein has successfully represented claimants in condemnation proceedings. Mr. Feinstein is also an accomplished appellate advocate, who has successfully briefed and argued numerous appeals in the New York State courts. Mr. Feinstein has been an active member of various bar association sections and committees, including the Real Property Law Committee of the Association of the Bar of the City of New York, the Real Property Law Section of the New York State Bar Association, and the Supreme Court Practice Committee of the New York County Lawyers' Association. Since February 2012, Mr. Feinstein has co-authored the Landlord/Tenant Law column in the New York Law Journal.

  Rosenberg & Estis

  Member

  Moderator

  Michael Feinstein

  Member

  Rosenberg & Estis

Office Conundrum

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  Andrew Kimball

  President & CEO

  New York City Economic Development Corporation

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  Toby Moskovits

  CEO

  Heritage Equity Partners

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  David Ehrenberg

  President & CEO

  Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corporation

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  Robert Gilman

  Robert Gilman, CPA, CGMA, is an accounting and audit partner at Anchin and Co-Practice Leader of the Firm's Real Estate Industry Group. His practice covers a wide range of services for his clients who are mainly involved in the commercial, residential and development of real estate. These services include due diligence on acquisitions, tax structuring on deals, securing financing, and assisting with client investor relations for both domestic and international investors. Rob also advises clients with financial and estate planning, budgeting, tax planning, and cash flow strategies. Rob is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), the New York State Society of Certified Public Accountants (NYSSCPA) and the Real Estate Board of New York (REBNY). He is involved with a number of Real Estate industry organizations and is actively involved with the Long Island Chapter of the March of Dimes, which he was recently honored for.

  Anchin Block & Anchin

  Partner

  Moderator

  Robert Gilman

  Partner

  Anchin Block & Anchin

Downtown Brooklyn

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  AJ Pires

  President

  Alloy Development

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  Jeffrey Mandel

  Mr. Mandel joined Tishman Speyer in 2014 and oversees the firm's acquisitions efforts for the New York metropolitan area, and the United States more broadly. In this expanded role, he sets the strategy for driving the firm's acquisitions across the United States, growing business and engaging with regional teams. Prior to joining the company, he served in the Bloomberg administration as senior advisor to the Deputy Mayor for Economic Development. In that role, Mr. Mandel was responsible for a number of signature redevelopment initiatives, including the World Trade Center and Essex Crossing projects, as well as several million square feet of public and private re-zonings. Previously, he held positions at Bank of America Securities, Lehman Brothers and Cravath, Swaine & Moore, LLP. Mr. Mandel holds a BA, MBA and JD, all from Columbia University.

  Tishman Speyer

  Senior Managing Director, Co-Head of US Acquisitions

  Jeffrey Mandel

  Senior Managing Director, Co-Head of US Acquisitions

  Tishman Speyer

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  Stephen Palmese

  Stephen Palmese is Vice Chairman at JLL, were he focusses on investment sales in Brooklyn and Queens. He is a 15-year New York real estate veteran and has successfully helped his clients sell over 400 commercial properties for an aggregate value of approximately $3.5 billion. Experience Prior to his role at JLL, Stephen was Vice Chairman at Cushman & Wakefield where he received numerous awards for production and origination. Earlier, he was Partner at Massey Knakal Realty Services, which was acquired by C&W in 2014. As a thought leader in New York City real estate, Stephen is often quoted in publications such as Commercial Observer, Wall Street Journal, The Real Deal, Bisnow and GlobeSt. Education Stephen graduated from Georgetown University where he pursed a double major in international finance and new and small business management. As a compliment to this program, he studied abroad at Oxford University in Oxford, England and Florence, Italy. Achievements • Top Producer, Cushman & Wakefield, 2015, 2016 • Top 100 Brokers Nationwide, Cushman & Wakefield, 2014 - 2016 • Co-wide Salesperson of the Year, Massey Knakal, 2004 • Brooklyn Salesperson of the Year, Massey Knakal, 2010-2014 Affiliations • The Brooklyn Hospital Center (TBHC) • Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM) • Cristo Rey Brooklyn • Laugh It Out • Brooklyn Historical Society

  JLL

  Vice Chairman

  Stephen Palmese

  Vice Chairman

  JLL

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  Ari Goldstein

  As Senior Vice President of Development at Extell Development Company, Ari Goldstein is responsible for all phases of development, from approvals and design through construction, sales and marketing. Mr. Goldstein has overseen $2 billion of mixed-use developments in the Lower East Side, East Village and Brooklyn totaling over two million square feet including 1,500 residential units. Brooklyn Point, Extell’s first development in Brooklyn, is a 68-story tower with 458 luxury for-sale apartments and over 40,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor amenities, including the tallest rooftop infinity pool in the Western Hemisphere. Mr. Goldstein was previously Senior Project Manager at Jonathan Rose Companies where he oversaw the completion of Via Verde, the award-winning, mixed-income 222 unit LEED-Gold development in the Bronx, Dr. Muriel Petioni Plaza, the first LEED-Silver HUD 202 for low-income seniors in Harlem, and the RFP award of Gowanus Green and BAM North Site II in Brooklyn. Mr. Goldstein graduated summa cum laude with a Bachelors of Arts in Architecture from the University of California, Berkeley and received a Masters in City Planning from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) with additional coursework at Harvard Law School and Harvard Business School. He has also served as a Harvard Rappaport Public Policy Fellow and a Coro Leadership New York Fellow. Mr. Goldstein lives in Brooklyn with his wife and daughter.

  Extell Development

  SVP - Development

  Ari Goldstein

  SVP - Development

  Extell Development

• Moderator

  Andrew Sasson

  Senior Director

  Eastern Consolidated

Residential & Multifamily

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  Susi Yu

  EVP

  Forest City Ratner

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  James Hedden

  Chief Development Officer

  Rose Associates

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  Michael Feldman

  In 2010 Michael Feldman & Benjamin Bottner founded Choice New York with a simple premise: to create a third party Property & Asset Management Company that provides a superior level of service, expertise and financial performance to Property Owners. At inception, the company had zero clients. Today, Choice New York Management and affiliated companies claim hundreds of Property Owners as clients and have just under 2 Billion Dollars of Assets under active Management. Mr. Feldman’s role has continued to evolve with the companies continued growth. In true start up form, Mr. Feldman has performed virtually every single function at the company in the past. Today, Mr. Feldman focuses his day to day activities on business development, brand awareness strategy, staff recruitment, talent retention, and select client advisory engagements. Prior to co-founding Choice New York Management, Mr. Feldman was a Managing Director at AFC Realty Capital, a boutique commercial real estate investment bank. There, he focused on the securing of debt and equity on multi-family, retail and office transactions throughout the United States. Prior to AFC, he was a Senior Private Banker with Indymac Bank. Mr. Feldman is regularly asked to speak on an array of real estate topics. He periodically teaches a continuing education class for attorneys called, “Receiverships and Bankruptcies” for the National Law Institute. He also teaches a continuing education course for Real Estate Brokers titled, “Commercial Property Management,” as an adjunct instructor for the Real Estate Board of New York. Additionally, he has served as a private consultant for the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office as well as a counselor to individual members in the United States Congress House of Representatives Financial Committee, whereupon he provides practical evaluations of various mechanisms by which Federal policy can impact local real estate. Mr. Feldman has served as a hired consultant for the prominent Venture Capital Company called Pre-Hype, where he counsels the technology based software company on the operational efficiencies within the property management industry. Mr. Feldman’s memberships and professional affiliations include being Director of the Board of Managers of the Cast Iron Corporation, Treasurer of the Real Estate Services Alliance (RESA), and he is a licensed New York State Real Estate Broker. Mr. Feldman takes special pride in his ongoing role on the Board of Rising Realty Stars, a non-profit aimed at placing the best and brightest young professionals from urban, impoverished backgrounds into internships and entry level positions within the Commercial Real Estate industry. Mr. Feldman’s formal education was at the University of Rochester where he earned a BA in Political Science. He was a 1997 recipient of the University’s prestigious Rush Rhees Scholarship, awarded for outstanding scholastic achievement.

  Choice New York

  Co-Founder and Senior Managing Partner

  Michael Feldman

  Co-Founder and Senior Managing Partner

  Choice New York

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  Rich Velotta

  Mr. Velotta is a Managing Director with Meridian Investment Sales focused on the sale of multifamily, mixed-use, retail, and development properties throughout New York City. Prior to joining Meridian Investment Sales, he was a Director of Sales at Cushman & Wakefield (formerly Massey Knakal Realty Services) with a specialization in the Brooklyn market. Mr. Velotta has been involved in the sale of properties with an aggregate value in excess of $500,000,000 and was recognized in October 2017 by the Commercial Observer in its 30 Under 30: The Best and the Brightest of NYC Real Estate. Recently of note, Mr. Velotta has closed on the sale of 35-01 36th Street, a 50,000 square foot office and retail building in Queens for $24,000,000, 162-168 East 82nd Street, a 38-unit walk-up apartment building in Manhattan for $19,400,000, and 292 Midwood Street, a 46 unit mixed-use building in Brooklyn for $10,460,000. Mr. Velotta graduated from Bates College with a B.A. in Economics and was an NCAA baseball player. He is an avid runner, golfer, and currently resides in Brooklyn Heights.

  Meridian Investment Sales

  Director

  Rich Velotta

  Director

  Meridian Investment Sales

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  David Pfeffer

  David J. Pfeffer is a partner, chair of Tarter Krinsky & Drogin’s Construction Practice, and a member of the Firm’s Executive Committee. Mr. Pfeffer serves as a business partner to his clients – including real estate owners and developers, educational institutions, high-net-worth individuals, healthcare organizations, and cultural centers – and advises on all aspects of their construction, development, real estate, and business needs. His work has helped reshape skylines through some of the most significant construction and development projects in Brooklyn, Manhattan, and Long Island City. Mr. Pfeffer leverages his keen insight into the business climate to provide clients with sophisticated guidance in order to mitigate risks and manage their complex issues. Combining his understanding of business-focused solutions with a legal perspective, Mr. Pfeffer focuses his practice on project delivery strategies and the preparation and negotiation of design, construction, and related contracts for private and public real estate development projects. He handles matters such as contract preparation, development, continuing operation, leasing and dispute resolution, and also maintains an active practice in business negotiation. David is a frequent speaker, published author, and quoted source who has been featured in Law360, The Real Deal, Crain’s New York Business, The New York Post, and Real Estate Weekly, among others. He has been ranked in Chambers as a leading construction lawyer in New York (2006–2021) and recognized as a 2020 New York Trailblazer by the New York Law Journal. Mr. Pfeffer serves on various boards including John Jay College of Criminal Justice.

  Tarter Krinsky & Drogin

  Partner

  Moderator

  David Pfeffer

  Partner

  Tarter Krinsky & Drogin