Shaping the Future of Phoenix’s Entertainment Districts

Unpacking the region’s largest sports, resort, and mixed-use projects transforming the Valley’s live-work-play ecosystem

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  Ann O’Brien

  Phoenix Vice Mayor Ann O’Brien is focused on reducing bureaucracy and cutting red tape to spur economic development and increase housing options. As Chair of the Economic Development and Housing Subcommittee, Vice Mayor O’Brien pushes for smart investments and policies with meaningful results to ensure Phoenix remains competitive and attractive to companies and residents. She is committed to working in a nonpartisan manner to keep Phoenix moving forward.

  City of Phoenix

  Vice Mayor

  Ann O’Brien

  Vice Mayor

  City of Phoenix

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  Ron Price

  As President & CEO of Visit Phoenix, Ron Price leads the organization in its mission to harness the transformative power of travel, elevating communities and inspiring visitors. Phoenix, the 5th largest city in the United States, is a dynamic hub for travel and tourism, consistently ranked as a top 10 destination for leisure travel and meetings & conventions. Under Ron’s leadership, Visit Phoenix champions the city’s appeal to global audiences, driving economic growth and enhancing the visitor experience. With nearly 30 years of experience in the tourism industry, Price has long been an active proponent of tourism on national, state, and local levels. He currently serves on various industry and community boards and is a member of the Executive Board of Directors for the U.S. Travel Association, the Board of Directors and Executive Committee for the Arizona Lodging and Tourism Association, the Board of Directors for Downtown Phoenix Inc., the Greater Phoenix Chamber, and is currently the Vice Chair of the Phoenix Aviation Advisory Board. Prior to his arrival in Greater Phoenix, Price served as President & CEO of the Arlington Texas Convention & Visitors Bureau. He previously served as Assistant Executive Director of Visit San Antonio, a recognized leading convention destination. Before his time in the DMO world, Price spent over 12 years as a Marriott International executive.

  Visit Phoenix

  President & CEO

  Ron Price

  President & CEO

  Visit Phoenix

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  Daniel Lupien

  Daniel Lupien is a 20-year market veteran and industry expert who has bought, sold, developed and leased more than $6 Billion of commercial real estate throughout his career. Mr. Lupien graduated from Arizona State University in 1998 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Business and Communication and took the roll of Development Manager of Triple Five Development Group helping to build and develop over 1.5 million square feet of retail and mixed-use primarily in Las Vegas and Phoenix. In 2003 he was recruited by Kimco Realty (NYSE: KIM), one of the nation’s largest publicly traded real estate investment trusts (REIT) and took the roll of Director and then Senior Director of Real Estate. His responsibilities included managing all transactional activity for development, leasing, and management of same site NOI growth and value creation for one of their largest portfolios. Over a span of 15 years he helped to expand the western region from roughly 3 million square feet in 2003 to over 26 million square feet in 2016 through multiple acquisitions and millions of feet in development. Mr. Lupien is now focused on creating his own projects through his personal investment firm Palmer Development. With a $200 Million development pipeline primarily in the Western United States, Palmer Development is poised to rank as one of the top retail, hospitality and office development firms in the Southwest.

  Palmer Development Group

  Managing Principal & Founder

  Daniel Lupien

  Managing Principal & Founder

  Palmer Development Group

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  Matt Tillman

  Matt Tillman is a licensed Architect supporting the Hospitality & Entertainment team at HFA. Matt shares the responsibility for concepting, programming, designing, document production, contract writing, and code analysis. He brings 13 years of industry experience, including construction administration, to his role at HFA and has been essential to designing the concepts for well-known companies in sports entertainment, fast casual dining, and arcade/sports bar industries.

  HFA Architecture + Engineering

  Architect

  Matt Tillman

  Architect

  HFA Architecture + Engineering

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  Tonya Lively

  As Vice President of Escrow & Sales Operations at Commonwealth Land Title National Commercial Services, Tonya Lively utilizes her 20 plus years of Escrow experience to provide the best in class closing services to clients in Arizona and across the country. Her leadership has resulted in increased market share through providing education and data-based knowledge to both her escrow and sales staff but also to her clients.

  Commonwealth Land Title

  VP

  Moderator

  Tonya Lively

  VP

  Commonwealth Land Title

Retail Resurgence

Navigating Tenant Demand, Redevelopment, and the New Consumer Experience

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  Joshua Simon

  Joshua began his career in commercial real estate in 2004, and it wasn’t long before his headstrong attitude allowed him to forge ahead and start SimonCRE in 2010, during some of the toughest economic times. As Founder and CEO, Joshua leads the company’s growth strategy while directing the daily operations. He carries the torch for a team committed to developing projects that benefit clients and the communities they serve. SimonCRE develops properties all across the country. To date, the company has completed more than 295 projects across 23 states, equaling a total value of more than $1.222 billion. He applies his boundless energy toward supporting and giving back to the industry he loves. He’s served on a number of boards and routinely presents as an industry expert at numerous conferences across the country. He is extremely active in the community, chairing the YPO Retail Symposium and with his involvement with ICSC. Under his leadership, SimonCRE has become a vital partner in the rapid growth of many national retailers within emerging communities. Beginning with the new retail center of Village at Prasada and the addition of Prasada North, which at 1,300,000 square feet is the largest open-air retail center to be built on the West Coast in the last 15 years, he has expanded his efforts to better serve tenants and communities alike. To this end, several other open-air retail centers are now under development: Medina Station in Mesa, bringing 350,000 square feet; Roosevelt Commons, covering 100,000 square feet; Asante Trails, which will be a multi-phase 44-acre mixed-use project; and Elm Street at Surprise City Center, which will be a multi-phase 40-acre project with the first phase occupying 70,000 square feet. All of these developments are poised to add exciting new retail and dining options for consumers. When Joshua isn’t working, he enjoys spending time with his wife, Brittany, and their children, Sloane and Oliver.

  SimonCRE

  CEO

  Joshua Simon

  CEO

  SimonCRE

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  Amy Malloy

  Amy Malloy started the real estate development and advisory company Evolve Ventures, LLC with her business partner Heather Personne in 2019. In the six years since its inception, Evolve Ventures has worked with over 40 developers, municipalities, landowners, tenants, and brokers to bring a wide array of commercial and residential projects to fruition. Additionally, Evolve has begun development of its own with two urban infill multi-family projects in the heart of Midtown Phoenix and Downtown Chandler. Prior to creating her own company, Malloy worked as Vice President of Development for the Pederson Group, where she managed and oversaw development activity throughout Arizona. Prior to joining the Pederson Group, Malloy worked at Evergreen Development, managing retail development and redevelopment projects throughout Arizona, California, and Colorado. Prior to Evergreen, Malloy was Assistant Vice President of Development at Macerich. During her almost ten years at Macerich, she managed projects throughout the Scottsdale-Phoenix Metropolitan Area, in Southern Arizona and in Northern Arizona, specifically concentrating on the entitlement and redevelopment/development of Scottsdale Fashion Square, Kierland Commons, Biltmore Fashion Park, and Arrowhead Towne Center. Prior to joining Macerich, Malloy served as the Business Advocate in the Economic Development department for the City of Apache Junction, AZ. In Apache Junction, she managed the downtown redevelopment efforts, spearheaded the City’s master planning efforts for 12 square miles of state land, and initiated a regional Economic Development Task Force. Malloy is a member of Urban Land Institute (ULI) and serves as outgoing Chair of the Infill Redevelopment Local Product Council and has previously served as Chair on the Arizona District Council’s 2020 Trends Day Committee, Vice-Chair of the 2018-2019 Trends Day Committee for Arizona’s ULI District Council, and Chair of the AZ-Technical Assistance Panel (AZ-Tap) Committee from 2017-2019. In 2022, she was selected to participate in Leadership West’s Class 29 and was subsequently elected by alumni in 2023 to also serve as a board member for Leadership West. Additionally, in 2016, she received a scholarship from the National Women’s Leadership Institute for her involvement in Arizona’s District Council. Finally, in 2006, she was recognized as one of the Top 50 Women in Business, in The Business Journal of Phoenix. Malloy holds a Master’s in Public Administration from the University of Arizona, and a Bachelor of Arts from St. Olaf College in Northfield, MN. Malloy is a proud West Valley resident and heavily engaged in West Valley charitable efforts, where she currently serves as a board member for the New Life Center and for her local Upper Northwest National Charity League Chapter, as well as serving as Chair for the Political Action Committee for the Peoria Unified School District 2025 school override campaign. She is a third generation Arizonan and has two human children Madeleine and Brendan, and three canine children, Maggie, Winnie, and Fletch, with her husband John.

  Evolve Ventures

  Managing Principal

  Amy Malloy

  Managing Principal

  Evolve Ventures

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  Mike Kallner

  Mike Kallner brings over 30 years of experience in business development and real estate finance to his role leading RED’s retail leasing and marketing efforts. Since joining RED in 2006 Kallner has played a key role in multiple company initiatives. He currently focuses on his efforts leading the team’s national leasing strategy for mixed-use developments across the portfolio. Prior to his current role, he led the expansion of an international grocery chain throughout Arizona. Prior to joining RED, Kallner held various positions in real estate finance and public accounting. Kallner graduated from Indiana University Bloomington with a Bachelor of Science in Business & Accounting.

  RED Development

  EVP

  Mike Kallner

  EVP

  RED Development

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  Christian Davis

  Christian Davis serves as Executive Director of Preconstruction for Haydon Companies’ Building Division, where he leads strategy, budgeting, and early-phase planning across a diverse range of commercial and mixed-use developments. Since relocating to Phoenix in 2020 after more than 15 years in the Atlanta market, Christian has become a key voice in shaping Arizona’s built environment, particularly as it relates to the evolution of entertainment-driven, community-centric spaces. With over 22 years of experience in construction, and a degree in Construction Management from Southern Polytechnic State University, Christian’s leadership is defined by deep collaboration, cost intelligence, and delivery innovation. His portfolio includes large-scale projects in retail, healthcare, hospitality, and entertainment, including recent work on live-work-play districts and redeveloped commercial sites, core themes of today’s event. At Haydon, Christian plays a central role in helping developers and municipalities reimagine aging retail corridors and entertainment zones, translating vision into constructible reality through preconstruction excellence. His team’s recent projects, like The Village at Prasada and Verrado Marketplace, reflect his ability to deliver complex, high-impact projects on time and with purpose. Outside of work, Christian enjoys traveling with his wife, Sara, staying active through competitive bodybuilding, playing golf, and cheering on his favorite sports teams. He’s also a dedicated dog dad who enjoys spending time outdoors with his four-legged companion. Whether mentoring junior talent or supporting clients through evolving market conditions, Christian’s genuine passion for people and places continues to influence the growth of Phoenix’s retail and entertainment spaces.

  Haydon Companies

  Executive Director, Presconstruction

  Christian Davis

  Executive Director, Presconstruction

  Haydon Companies

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  Emily Ganem

  Emily Ganem is the dynamic Executive Vice President of Ganem Companies, a leading force in the construction industry based in Phoenix, Arizona. With a management degree from the University of Phoenix, Emily brings a blend of strategic vision and hands-on leadership to her role, driving the company's growth and strategic development. Since stepping into the construction industry over five years ago, Emily has played a pivotal role in shaping the company's trajectory. In her two years as EVP, she has been instrumental in overseeing the accounting and marketing teams, leveraging their strengths to catapult the company's strategic growth. Emily excels in bridging the gap between strategic planning and execution, ensuring that initiatives are aligned with the company’s long-term goals and market opportunities. Emily's leadership extends beyond the boardroom. She is actively involved in mentoring emerging leaders within the company, fostering a culture of collaboration, innovation, and continuous improvement. Her commitment to community engagement is evident through her involvement with local organizations, reinforcing her belief that strong community ties are essential for sustainable business success. Known for her energetic approach and results-driven mindset, Emily thrives on turning challenges into opportunities. Her work is characterized by a relentless pursuit of growth, learning, and creating meaningful impacts—both within the company and in the broader construction sector. In addition, Emily is also the co-owner of Sky Restaurant Concepts (parent company of Squid Ink Sushi, Highball Cocktail Bar, and Sparrow (coming soon to Peoria) and also serves as a board member for Child Crisis Arizona. When she's not leading projects or strategizing for growth, Emily enjoys spending quality time with her family, engaging in self-work, meditation, and fitness. Her passion for personal development mirrors her professional ethos: to continuously evolve, inspire, and lead with purpose.

  Ganem Companies

  Executive VP

  Moderator

  Emily Ganem

  Executive VP

  Ganem Companies

Remarks from the Podium

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  Marty De Rito

  Marty De Rito will share his insights on the evolving landscape of retail and entertainment, with a special focus on The Pavilions at Talking Stick—a premier entertainment destination and retail power center located within the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community. Notably, The Pavilions was the first power center ever developed on tribal land, originally envisioned by Vestar Development in 1984 as a 400,000 to 600,000 square-foot project. When Marty acquired the property in 2008, the center was facing significant challenges. Tenant retention was uncertain, and soon after, the Global Financial Crisis triggered a sharp increase in vacancies. At the time, the center included over 1 million square feet of leasable space across 135 acres—but it needed a bold new direction. With a long-term vision in mind, Marty invested $25 million, expanded the property by 7.8 acres, added 12 new pad sites, and increased the total gross leasable space to 1.3 million square feet. His leadership and perseverance were instrumental in transforming The Pavilions into the thriving, mixed-use entertainment and retail hub it is today. Key to this transformation was Marty's deepened partnership with the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community. Marty’s redevelopment of The Pavilions not only revitalized a struggling asset but also set a benchmark for respectful, community-centered development on tribal land.

  De Rito Partners Development & De Rito Property Management

  CEO

  Marty De Rito

  CEO

  De Rito Partners Development & De Rito Property Management