2024 Mentors of the Year

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  Ana Tenzer

  Partner

  Hogan Lovells

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  Ann Adams

  Principal

  Davis Partnership

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  Catherine Bean

  Since joining Element Properties in 2015 Catherine Bean, Principal, has managed development projects and helped to craft and execute the company’s strategy. She’s overseen a range of projects, including the conversion of more than 230 apartments from market rate to permanently affordable, the repositioning of a commercial building in Flatiron Park, and the development of for-sale townhomes in downtown Boulder. Catherine has also spearheaded Element’s growing permanent supportive housing portfolio by receiving competitive 9%, 4%, and Colorado state low-income housing tax credits (LIHTC) for projects that will provide housing and supportive services to the most vulnerable in our community. Previously, she spent four years with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) where her responsibilities included managing FHA’s Breaking Ground Program and overseeing and analyzing HUD’s $13.6 billion share of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Prior to that, she worked for New Orleans Area Habitat for Humanity in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. Catherine earned her B.A. in history from the University of Virginia and her MBA from Harvard Business School. She sits on the board of the Boulder Shelter for the Homeless and enjoys spending time with her husband, daughter, twin boys, and dog, Huckleberry.

  Element Properties

  Principal

  Catherine Bean

  Principal

  Element Properties

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  Cathy Orquiola

  President, Western US

  PCL Construction

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  Daniela Machado

  Regional Business Leader, Mountain West

  Stantec

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  Diana Rael

  Principal

  Norris Design

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  Jordan Swisher

  SVP

  Brue Baukol

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  Kate Cusack

  Managing Director, Head of Production

  Nuveen Green Capital

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  Katie Kruger

  Investor

  She's Independent Investments

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  Kitty Yuen

  Principal, Denver Studio Leader

  RATIO Design

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  Kristin Sullivan

  Senior Advisor, Land Use & Infrastructure

  Foster Graham Milstein & Calisher

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  Lindsey Sousa

  SVP

  AECOM

2024 Rising Stars of the Year

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  Abby Pattillo

  VP

  Colliers

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  Andrea Horvath

  Senior Counsel Attorney

  Otten Johnson

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  Annie Liston

  Annie is currently the Director of Operations for the Denver Investment Sales platform (Private Capital and Institutional) at Berkadia. In her role, she oversees the support staff members including analysts, designers, transaction managers, and project managers throughout the lifecycle of a deal, from initiation to completion. Annie is responsible for identifying and implementing efficiencies, while supporting and leading various team marketing initiatives. Prior to joining Berkadia, Annie was Vice President of brokerage specializing in office tenant representation where she led workplace strategy initiatives, portfolio/lease administration, and facility acquisition, disposition, and relocation services for local and national clients. Annie executed over $100 million in transaction volume across more than 1,000,000 square feet through acquisitions/dispositions, office leases, and assignments/subleases on the tenant-buy side. Before stepping into the commercial real estate world, Annie spent her time stepping onto the football field where she spent five years as a Denver Broncos Cheerleader. Annie is passionate about community involvement as she spends her free time as a Head Instructor for the Junior Denver Broncos Cheerleaders, and sits on CREW Network Councils, CREW Denver Education Committee, and most recently Vice President of the CU Real Estate Alumni Network.

  Berkadia

  Director of Operation, Investment Sales

  Annie Liston

  Director of Operation, Investment Sales

  Berkadia

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  Aviva Sonenreich

  Managing Broker

  Warehouse Hotline

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  Elizabeth Meyers

  VP, Client Experience

  Kairoi Residential

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  Ellen Hafer

  Managing Broker

  Panorama Commercial Group

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  Erin Clark

  As the Chief Real Estate Investment Officer, Clark provides leadership and strategic direction to the real estate division, including overseeing policies, procedures and investment decisions for real estate development, acquisitions, dispositions, financing, marketing and partnership activities for DHA. She also establishes and maintains relationships with government agencies, community stakeholders, residents, vendors, financial partners, and various associations for the execution of DHA’s real estate investment strategic goals among other key responsibilities. Prior to joining DHA, Clark worked for Urban Land Conservancy (ULC), a Denver-based non-profit real estate development organization focused on land acquisitions and development of affordable housing and supportive community benefit uses. Earlier in her career she also served in city government in the planning and development department for the City of Pasadena, California. Clark currently serves on the Colorado State Land Board as commissioner at large as a gubernatorial appointee and served on the Denver Planning Board as a mayoral appointee for five years. Clark is a thought leader in the industry, having served on multiple panels at various events. She also earned a Trailblazer Award from the Denver Chapter of Commercial Real Estate Women (CREW), and was an Eagle Award nominee from Housing Colorado. Clark holds her Juris Doctor from the University of Wisconsin, a Master of Planning from the University of Southern California, and a Bachelor of Arts from Brown University.

  Denver Housing Authority

  Chief Real Estate Investment Officer

  Erin Clark

  Chief Real Estate Investment Officer

  Denver Housing Authority

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  Janessa Biller

  Janessa is responsible for helping Tenants with all aspects of their occupancy needs and strategy. Prior to working at JLL, Janessa spent 10 years living in New York City and working on Wall Street. She started her career at Goldman Sachs, spending time in both Operations and Client Services working with Hedge Funds and Private Equity Firms. She then went on to work at Dynasty Financial Partners where she helped Financial Advisors with all aspects of starting and running their businesses. This is where she got her start in Commercial Real Estate as she helped her clients manage all aspects of their real estate. A Denver Native, Janessa joined JLL upon her return to Denver in 2018. She won the CREW Rising Leader award in 2019. With a strong financial services background, she helps her clients with financial reviews, negotiations, and creative problem solving. Janessa attended New York University and received a Bachelor of Arts in Policy Economics and Romance Languages. Janessa also later attended New York University Stern School of Business for her Master’s of Business Administration with a specialization in Finance, Marketing and Management. In her free time, Janessa spends time outdoors hiking, running, snowshoeing, skiing (both downhill and cross country!), golfing, tennis, and gardening.

  JLL

  EVP

  Janessa Biller

  EVP

  JLL

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  Laura Newman

  Laura is the Vice President of Investment & Development at Golub, a role that entails overseeing the pursuit and implementation of development projects in Denver. Her primary focus is managing Denargo Market, a $1 billion mixed-use project. Laura’s responsibilities encompass all aspects of the project, including acquisition, underwriting, equity and debt capitalization, zoning and entitlements, pre-development, community engagement, investor relations, leasing, and overall project execution. In addition to her work on Denargo Market, Laura has also been involved in the acquisition of Golub’s other land sites in Denver. Prior to assuming her current position and opening Golub’s Denver office in 2018, Laura held roles as a Leasing Associate and Assistant Operations Manager within the company’s Chicago office. Outside of her professional responsibilities, Laura actively participates in the community. She serves on the board of the Denver Park Trust and is a member of ULI Colorado, NAIOP Colorado Chapter, and the Downtown Denver Partnership. Laura’s involvement with the Downtown Denver Partnership included participation in their Leadership Program in 2020. Laura completed her undergraduate studies at Middlebury College, earning a Bachelor of Arts degree.

  Golub & Company

  VP, Investment & Development

  Laura Newman

  VP, Investment & Development

  Golub & Company

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  Lauren Fry

  Sales Manager

  Denver Commercial Property Services

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  McCall Perry

  Director of Real Estate Operations

  HM Capital Group

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  Megan Krest

  Associate Director, ESG & Sustainability

  Cushman & Wakefield

Empowering Equity: Women Leaders Transforming the Industry

Examining the Role of Female Leadership in Redefining Industry Standards

• 2023 Trailblazer

  Elizabeth Osborne

  Managing Director

  JLL

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  Susan Chong

  The principal of Iconique Real Estate grew up in Denver, Colorado and was inspired by its emerging urban lifestyle. Understanding the appeal of vibrant, walkable and convenient living, in 2004 she set off on a path of new construction sales and marketing. Since then, she has been involved in selling thousands of condominiums totaling over three-quarters of a billion dollars in revenue, including The Coloradan at Union Station and 42-story tower, SPIRE in Downtown’s Theater District. Susan has mastered selling residential real estate, being recognized as a top Denver area broker by Denver Metro Association of Realtors. With her niche expertise and local connections, Susan focuses on building community, making her a natural fit to partner with developers on sales and marketing strategies to sell multi-family projects in Denver’s urban core.

  Iconique Real Estate

  Principal Broker

  2023 Trailblazer

  Susan Chong

  Principal Broker

  Iconique Real Estate

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  Marilee Utter

  Citiventure Associates is a Denver-based real estate advisory firm specializing in transformational projects and public-private transactions. Established in 1991, the company has become known for its capacity to analyze opportunities, set the program, organize implementation, and guide the development to get results. With background working in the public, private and nonprofit sectors, and in multiple aspects of real estate. Citiventure delivers straight talk, inspired visions based on pragmatic analysis, catalytic elements, collaborative partnerships, and disciplined follow-through. Led by Marilee Utter, the firm provides front-end strategy as well as project coaching throughout implementation. Vision and execution to insure results. When needed, Marilee draws on her national network to assemble customized teams of top professionals in areas such as design, finance, engineering and transportation to provide comprehensive project services. Marilee is well-positioned to advise regionally, nationally, and globally in real estate matters, having recently served as the Executive Vice President for District/National Councils at the Urban Land Institute, based in Washington D.C. For five years she managed ULI's offices in 75 cities around the world, including in Europe, Asian and the Americas. In this role, she advised and worked with key ULI staff, government officials, economic development directors, economists, financial resources, developers, academics, urban planners, transportation directors, and other high-level professionals to encourage best practices in smart, resilient, and healthy urban growth. Her work in the Denver region spans multiple-disciplines and roles. She has served as Regional Vice President for the Trillium Corporation, a real estate development company; Director of Asset Management for the City and County of Denver; Vice President of Wells Fargo Bank; and Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) Specialist for RTD, the Regional Transportation District. Marilee earned a BA in Mathematics and French from Colorado Women's College, an MBA from UCLA's Anderson School, and a Certificate in State and Local Public Policy from Harvard's Kennedy School. Professional affiliations include the Counselors of Real Estate designation, the Fellow of Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors designation, member of the Urban Land Institute, and member of the International Women's Forum.

  Citiventure Associates

  President

  2023 Trailblazer

  Marilee Utter

  President

  Citiventure Associates

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  Lauren Gerdes

  Lauren has over 12 years of experience serving clients across the country by providing industry-specific insights that allows them to stay at the forefront of the changes within their industry. As a member of the national real estate practice, she provides audit and other advisory services, including financial statement audit services, attest engagement services and specific transaction related services to a wide range of privately held companies developing and operating assets in all sectors of real estate. Lauren specializes in working with private equity investment advisors and funds holding various equity and debt positions in domestic and international real estate. She works closely with her clients through complex accounting and operational matters surrounding acquisitions, valuations and structures, including Qualified Opportunity Zone funds, real estate investment trusts (REITs) and open-ended funds. Lauren was selected as a senior analyst in RSM’s cutting edge Industry Eminence Program, which positions its senior analysts to understand, forecast and communicate economic, business and technology trends shaping the industries RSM serves. These senior analysts advise clients on conditions influencing middle market leaders. Lauren’s focus is on the real estate industry. Lauren is also active in RSM’s employee network group, STAR, which advocates for women in the workplace with a focus on stewardship, teamwork, advancement and retention opportunities.

  RSM US

  Partner & Real Estate Senior Analyst

  Lauren Gerdes

  Partner & Real Estate Senior Analyst

  RSM US

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  Kerry Joannides

  Kerry Joannides is Director, Development, for the Rocky Mountain Region. In this role she works on all project development initiatives for the region including Paradigm River North, a 200,000 square foot building, also known as 3400 Walnut Street; the company’s planned joint venture development of 1055 19th Street in downtown Denver – the 2.5-acre site of the former Greyhound bus terminal; and the 250-unit multifamily development at 1158 Delaware St. in Denver’s Golden Triangle Neighborhood. Ms. Joannides has more than twenty years of experience in project management, due diligence, financial analysis, leasing, acquisitions, and dispositions of investment properties throughout the United States. Prior to joining Rockefeller Group, she was founder and partner of Kalon Corporation, a Denver-based real estate solutions provider. While at Kalon, a company she founded in 2014, she provided project-based asset management services for clients including Hines, Amazon, CBRE and Alpine Investments Partners. Ms. Joannides has also worked for San Diego-based Cruzan Monroe, a southern California-based commercial real estate property company as well as Hines in San Diego as Director, where she was responsible for asset strategy for both companies. She began her career as Portfolio Manager for New York City’s Shorenstein Realty Services East, supporting the management team on MetLife’s Manhattan portfolio, which at the time included more than 3.2 million square feet of Class A office space. Ms. Joannides earned her bachelor’s degree from James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Va. She is a licensed Associate Real Estate Broker in Colorado and is also a WELL Accredited Professional.

  The Rockefeller Group

  Director

  Kerry Joannides

  Director

  The Rockefeller Group

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  Morgan Hoddes-Flores

  Morgan joined the commercial interior design world with Curate Workplace in 2022 after 16 years in residential design. Morgan is passionate about creating a seamless client experience and elevating the aesthetic of commercial office interiors. She has designed homes world-wide for high-profile clientele and is leveraging her design skills for the emerging resi-mercial industry. Morgan has a passion for travel, and has nourished her passion for architecture, design and dance in over 30 different countries. She enjoys spending time with her Husband and four daughters singing musicals, going dancing, snowboarding, wake surfing, and spending time in the mountains.

  Curate Workplace

  VP, Design and Project Management

  Moderator

  Morgan Hoddes-Flores

  VP, Design and Project Management

  Curate Workplace