Creating Overnight Success in Hospitality Investment, Development, and Operations

• 

  Jason DaPisa

  Jason DaPisa is the Senior Vice President of Business Operations at Foxtrot – a contemporary evolution of the corner store and café. Foxtrot’s spaces offer the most-loved aspects of neighborhood cafés, and you can call on the Foxtrot App for swift delivery and pickup of the best breakfast tacos, chef-prepared meals, fine wines, and everyday essentials. In his role at Foxtrot, acquired under new ownership in mid 2024, he is leading the day to day execution of the business and store relaunch strategy. Jason was the first head of development at Foxtrot, where he led all real estate, design, construction, and facilities, growing the unit count from 5 to 35+ stores and supporting facilities across the country. He attended Northwestern University, Kellogg School of Management, and began his career working in construction management and consulting, focusing on a wide variety of project types and sizes, including infrastructure, hospitality, and retail.

  Foxtrot

  SVP, Business Operations

  Jason DaPisa

  SVP, Business Operations

  Foxtrot

• 

  Mark Keiser

  President, Development

  Viceroy Hotels & Resorts

• 

  Kristen Pike

  Director of Development, NW Region

  Hilton

• 

  Eric Bullion

  Senior Vice President

  Pepper Construction

• 

  Rick Fawell

  With more than 40 years of experience designing, planning, and managing a variety of project types, Rick has built a strong rapport as a trusted partner to developers, operators, and brands throughout the hospitality industry. He represents the firm as a Hospitality Leader for the North Central region, based in Gensler’s Chicago office. In his role as a Senior Project Director, Rick leverages his deep expertise and experience, both locally and across numerous national and international markets, serving as a dependable guide to clients on complex projects, from early-stage financing and planning to design and delivery phases. Rick’s global professional experience spans from the U.S. to Finland, France, and China, where he opened and managed two offices in Beijing and Shanghai previous to joining Gensler. His design work has been recognized with national and international awards from the AIA, FIABCI, ULI, BD&C, ALA, USITT (Theater), SAFA (Finnish Architects), as well as organizations in South America and China.

  Gensler

  Hospitality Leader, Senior Project Director,Principal

  Rick Fawell

  Hospitality Leader, Senior Project Director,Principal

  Gensler

• Moderator

  Sanjeev Misra

  Chairman & CEO

  Paramount Lodging Advisors and Atira Hotels

Staying Power: Chicagoland as a Destination for Tourism and Travel

• 

  Robert Habeeb

  Robert Habeeb is the Founder and CEO of Maverick Hotels and Restaurants. Based in Chicago, Maverick has earned a reputation as an industry leader for its innovative and forward-looking approaches to development and management of hotels and restaurants. With a long resume of successful hospitality developments Mr. Habeeb is one of the most sought after experts in the industry. Among his recent projects he gained national attention for his ambitious redevelopment of a large swath of Chicago’s famous Navy Pier. Prior to Maverick, Habeeb served for 21 years as First Hospitality Group’s high-profile President and CEO. He is regarded as one of the leading voices in the Hospitality Industry today. Over his tenure at FHG the company saw significant growth earned a long list of recognitions including multiple years as best of category on Forbes Magazine’s Best Employers and INC magazine’s Fastest Growing Companies lists.   Mr. Habeeb is also dedicated doing his part to nurturing tomorrow’s hospitality leaders through education. He has received an impressive list of recognitions including Global Hotelier of The Year.  He is a frequent and popular industry speaker and author. His innovative approaches to management have been widely recognized in and out of the hospitality industry. With a strong passion for educating those pursuing a career in the hospitality industry, Habeeb serves as a long-time member of the adjunct faculty of Chicago’s Roosevelt University, where he teaches at a graduate level in the Manfred Steinfeld School of Hospitality Management. He has served on numerous industry and academic boards and councils, including the board of directors and executive committee of the American Hotel & Lodging Association and board of the Illinois Hotel and Lodging Association where he served two terms as chairman. He is widely considered the “go to guy” and leading expert on the hospitality industry.

  Maverick Hotels and Restaurants

  CEO

  Robert Habeeb

  CEO

  Maverick Hotels and Restaurants

• 

  Carmen Rossi

  Principal, CEO

  8 Hospitality

• 

  Ryan McNamara

  Vice President

  Hyatt

• 

  Alissa Bozza

  Alissa Bozza is a licensed architect and Project Designer based in Chicago, with extensive expertise in hospitality architecture. A dynamic team player, she excels in strategic partnerships, networking, and business development initiatives to drive growth for her firm. Alissa's professional involvement includes serving on the ULI Chicago Advisory Board from 2021 to 2023, sitting on the ULI Chicago Housing Flight and participating in women-in-the-industry groups, where she collaborates on innovative projects and builds meaningful connections in the commercial, mixed-use, and hospitality sectors.

  HKS

  Associate & Project Designer

  Alissa Bozza

  Associate & Project Designer

  HKS

• 

  Tim Reber

  Woolpert Vice President Tim Reber manages the hospitality studio and has been involved in the hospitality industry for over 15 years. He has worked on hundreds of hotel developments, assisting clients with everything from concept, design, entitlements, and many aspects needed until the grand opening, for multiple brands nationwide. Woolpert is a full-service design firm known for its architecture and engineering expertise. The company is recognized as an industry leader in the extended stay segment, serving as a prototype and preferred architect for several brands.

  Woolpert

  Vice President

  Tim Reber

  Vice President

  Woolpert

• 

  Chris Redpath

  One of Clune Construction’s most tenured Project Executives, Chris Redpath, has spent his entire career with the company. He started with Clune as an Intern in the Fall of 1992 and was hired as an Assistant Project Manager upon his graduation from Purdue University in 1993. Chris got his start in construction even earlier than that, when he spent his summers on house framing crews in Chicago’s western suburbs. Today, he leads Clune’s airport and hospitality divisions in the Chicago area and has helped the firm become a trusted leader for these complex projects. Chris has earned a reputation in the construction industry for maintaining a steady demeanor and taking time to thoughtfully evaluate each challenge when it arises. In addition to applying his vast industry knowledge to his projects, Chris also enjoys passing on what he knows to those who are coming up in the industry. He describes the most gratifying part of his job as seeing the many Clune employees that he mentored rising through the company’s ranks to reach their own success. Chris serves on the Board of Directors of the ACE Mentorship Program in Chicago and as co- chair of the organization’s Fundraising committee. He is also on the Construction Management Advisory Committee for the College of DuPage.

  Clune Construction

  Managing Director

  Chris Redpath

  Managing Director

  Clune Construction

• 

  Meg Prendergast

  Meg Prendergast brings decades of design experience to her luxury and lifestyle design projects, with a focus towards hospitality, and experiential commercial spaces. She has a unique capacity to partner with clients on a broad spectrum of services, with a firm belief that research, a deep dive into any project’s brand DNA insures a more meaningful design solution and connection with the ultimate user. Meg is an expert in the development and delivery of luxury level design environments. Her luxury focused portfolio includes destination resorts, boutique lifestyle hotels, multi‑family residences, clubhouses and private residential projects, with hundreds of commissions ranging from new construction to full historic repositioning for prominent hotel companies, developers, and private clients. She is a frequent speaker at design and business events, design jurist, and guest lecturer to emerging professionals in the design field.

  Soucie Horner Design Collective

  Director

  Moderator

  Meg Prendergast

  Director

  Soucie Horner Design Collective

State of the Market: The Keys to Success in a Complex Economy

• 

  Wes Klockowski

  Wes Klockowski is a 15-year veteran in the construction industry, helping develop more than 100 projects in Chicago totaling over 2+ million square feet. In his current role as project executive with Skyline Construction – a Chicago-based general contractor with additional locations in Seattle, San Diego, and the Bay Area – Wes has spearheaded some of the firm’s largest projects in Chicagoland, including the 200,000-square-foot Residence Inn conversion off the Mag Mile and the 120,000-square-foot Panasonic offices, warehouse, and customer experience center in Hoffman Estates. Currently, Wes leads a team of seven project managers, assistant project managers and project engineers, serving as project head throughout all phases of preconstruction and post-construction. Additionally, he oversees the project’s budget and schedule, manages resources and implementation, and contributes to the Chicago office’s strategic decisions.

  Skyline Construction

  Project Executive

  Wes Klockowski

  Project Executive

  Skyline Construction

• 

  Vamsi Bonthala

  Vamsi Bonthala is Chief Executive Officer of Arbor Lodging Partners, an award-winning national hotel investment firm that he co-founded. In this role, Vamsi leads all company activities including general corporate strategy, investor relations, strategic relationships, acquisitions, dispositions, and asset management. Vamsi has led all efforts related to approximately $1 billion of transaction volume since the inception of Arbor Lodging Partners. Vamsi is also co-founder and Principal of Arbor Lodging Management, the management affiliate of Arbor Lodging Partners, which has been named one of the nation’s top hotel companies multiple times by Hotel Management Magazine. Prior to co-founding Arbor Lodging Partners, Vamsi practiced law in the Private Equity group of Kirkland & Ellis LLP and the Real Estate group of Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP. Vamsi earned his AB in Economics and Political Science from the University of Michigan, where he received Class Honors and University Honors. Vamsi earned his JD from the University of Michigan Law School, where he was an Associate Editor of the Michigan Journal of International Law. Vamsi has been a speaker at numerous industry events and is a member of the Young Presidents Organization (YPO), the Economic Club of Chicago, and the Chicago Council on Global Affairs. Vamsi was recently selected as an Emerging Leader by the Chicago Council on Global Affairs and recognized as one of Real Estate Forum Magazine’s 50 Under 40 of 2015.

  Arbor Lodging Partners

  CEO

  Vamsi Bonthala

  CEO

  Arbor Lodging Partners

• 

  Alex Dyer

  President of Operations

  LG Group

• 

  Molly Phelan

  Molly is a partner in the Chicago Office of Siegel Jennings, a national property tax law firm. As a litigator and trusted advisor, she collaborates with Owners, Asset Managers, Acquisition teams and Tax Departments to identify, create and execute property tax reduction strategies. She becomes a member of her clients’ management team. Her goal is to maximize and protect the full potential of real estate assets, minimize related tax liabilities, and resolve disputes with tax authorities and government entities. Molly’s client experience ranges from family owned 1031 portfolios to national commercial investment funds, including special use properties such as hospital campuses to multi-million-dollar manufacturing facilities. Her comprehensive understanding of the commercial real estate market was developed in part through her time as a real estate broker in the Chicago area prior to starting her legal career. Molly regularly represents clients in hearings before review boards, local assessors’ offices, the Illinois Property Tax Appeal Board, and the circuit courts.

  Siegel Jennings

  Partner

  Molly Phelan

  Partner

  Siegel Jennings

• 

  David Duncan

  David is the President and CEO of First Hospitality, based in Chicago. He has over 25 years of global operating experience in managing high performing teams and in executive roles in both private and publicly held organizations. He coordinated over $10 billion of real estate and capital market transactions across multiple geographies and currencies. His experience ranges from fee-simple equity transactions to mortgage and mezzanine lending and complex joint venture and structured transactions. David began his career in public accounting, consulting, and financial institutions before he found his true passion in the hotel and travel space. He has been immersed in the lodging investment and operating space for more than 20 years now. He especially enjoys harmonizing the right capital structure with the right real estate, branding, and operational solutions to optimize investor returns in lodging, and related investments. His formative institutional experience was with GE Capital Real Estate, Guggenheim Partners, and Ernst & Young, LLC [in Los Angeles, Boston, Stamford CT, and New York]. Before joining First Hospitality, David served in executive roles at JC Resorts in La Jolla, CA and Denihan Hospitality in New York City. David received his B.A. from Western Michigan University, located in his hometown of Kalamazoo, MI. He was an adjunct professor in the Carroll School of Management, Boston College.

  First Hospitality

  President & CEO

  David Duncan

  President & CEO

  First Hospitality

• 

  Mike Schlictman

  Partner

  Paramount Lodging Advisors

• 

  Chris Hamer

  As President, Chris builds client relationships with responsiveness and dedication, continuing the standards set by Aria’s founders. He sets the course for company strategy and provides inspired leadership to our executive team. Chris also leads one of the studios in the office – leading a group of exceptional design and technical teammates building exciting brands and environments for clients. In his years at Aria Group, Chris has been involved in all aspects of project development from concepting to design to drafting to contract administration. His focus has been on learning the aesthetic, functional and operational needs of his clients to deliver the best possible project. Understanding the way, the business is run, how food gets from kitchen to table, is just as important as delivering a great looking space. He also has been involved in marketing, social media, and branding for our firm. Chris has completed projects across the country for a number of multi-unit and independent clients including: California Pizza Kitchen, Nordstrom, Dave & Buster’s, Del Frisco’s, Perry’s Steakhouse & Grille and Tortazo by Rick Bayless. Chris joined Aria in 2004 and was promoted to Associate in 2013, and Senior Associate in 2018. He was promoted to President in 2023. Before joining Aria Group, Chris worked at Holabird & Root as a technician and Project Coordinator. He is a licensed architect in Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Oregon and Washington State, a member of the American Institute of Architects and is a LEED© Accredited Professional. Chris served two terms on the Building Code Advisory Commission in his hometown of Oak Park, where he advised on code adoption and interpretation, and is the former Communications Chair for the AIA’s Retail and Entertainment Knowledge Community. In his spare time, he plays music and rides bikes.

  Aria Group

  President

  Moderator

  Chris Hamer

  President

  Aria Group