Reimagining Union Square: The Future of Macy’s Landmark Flagship

How TMG’s Repositioning of Macy’s 600K SF Property Could Shape the Next Chapter of Union Square

• 

  Ben Kochalski

  Benjamin Kochalski, President and Chief Investment Officer, joined TMG in 2019, and heads the firm's newly-opened Silicon Valley office. His responsibilities include establishing the investment strategy for the office, leading all acquisitions and dispositions, while supporting the firm’s development activities, and is a member of TMG's Investment Committee. Prior to TMG, Ben was principal and director of John Buck Company's JBC West division. Since opening the San Francisco office of the John Buck Company in 2011, he managed and grew it while leading high profile projects such as Park Tower and One Steuart Lane. During his time at The John Buck Company he was responsible for over $2.7 billion of acquisitions and dispositions and his responsibilities included implementation of investment strategy, oversight and coordination of the West Coast investment activities, joint venture structuring, and the origination of new investment opportunities for the firm’s West Coast regional office. After graduating from The Ohio State University with a Bachelor of Applied Science (BASc) in Civil Engineering, he completed his MBA in Real Estate Management, Finance, Entrepreneurship and Innovation at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management. He resides in the Bay Area with his wife and three children.

  TMG Partners

  President

  Ben Kochalski

  President

  TMG Partners

• 

  Marisa Rodriguez

  Marisa Rodriguez is the CEO of Union Square Alliance, a downtown association dedicated to enhancing San Francisco's Union Square District, a key destination and economic center for the Bay Area. Spanning 27 city blocks and accounting for $21 billion in assessed rates, it makes up 3% of the city's total assessed value. Under her leadership, she has led the Alliance to new heights, elevating its role as a destination marketing organization and reshaping the narrative of the square to attract visitors. Rodriguez, a visionary and solutions-driven leader, was brought in to help catalyze a turnaround in the district and meet the challenges of the post-pandemic era. She has crafted a forward-thinking strategy that reimagines the crucial role of zoning and other key elements for the long-term health and vitality of the district. Her goal is to help support the area’s transformation into a thriving urban neighborhood that is well-positioned to succeed in the 21st century. Rodriguez understands that strategic partnerships and collective work with community leaders, legislators, and other key decision-makers are crucial to achieving success. Her track record of creating positive change in various industries, including tourism, law enforcement, and nonprofit management, attests to her exceptional leadership skills. She believes that a safe and clean environment is the foundation for any successful community, as she often says, 'You cannot pass-go without clean and safe.' She has successfully implemented solutions that keep the visitor experience top of mind, given the 12,000 hotel rooms in the district. She also champions the safety of Union Square's workers and residents. Additionally, she has worked to help legislate policies that create flexible zoning to attract new business, ensuring the continued growth of the district. Her commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion is another defining aspect of her career. She continues to prioritize these values by ensuring that Union Square is attractive to everyone as a place for celebrating life's moments coining the phrase, “There is something for everyone in Union Square.” Post-pandemic, her leadership was critical in navigating the challenges and pivoting effectively. As a result, footfall has increased by ~102% YOY (July ‘21 vs. ‘22). Currently, she is envisioning the next phase of Union Square by developing the 2022 Union Square Alliance Strategic Plan. Her plan has been embraced by the community, Mayor London Breed, Board of Supervisors President Aaron Peskin, and various key department heads.

  Union Square Alliance

  CEO

  Marisa Rodriguez

  CEO

  Union Square Alliance

• 

  Alex Sagues

  Alex Sagues oversees a seven-person Urban Retail team, which focuses on representation and consulting for best-in-class landlords and tenants throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. Alex and the Urban Retail Team are called on for their exceptional consulting work for assets in need of repositioning, assets needing a fresh perspective and large national scale developments. Alex and his team are known for researching and discovering innovative and unique restaurant and retail concepts to complement the needs of the projects the Urban Retail Team represents. He is particularly passionate about food and restaurant-focused assignments, although his dedication to uncovering new and exciting retail concepts, particularly those thriving through omni-channel and experiential endeavors, is often noted.

  CBRE

  SVP

  Moderator

  Alex Sagues

  SVP

  CBRE

Demand, Leasing and Location Shifts: Retail Resilience Across the Bay Area

How Consumer Strength, Cost Pressures and Site Selection Are Shaping Expansion and Portfolio Performance

• 

  Jeff Kreshek

  Jeff oversees the asset management, leasing and operating teams for Federal’s West Coast portfolio, which comprises nearly 6.5 million square feet of some of the best retail and mixed-use real estate in the country. Prior to his current role, to which he was promoted in 2023, he served as senior vice president, West Coast Leasing. Prior to joining Federal in 2011, Jeff was the principal in charge of leasing for the CIM Group where he was responsible for formulating the leasing strategy on CIM’s commercial portfolio of approximately 12 million square feet. Prior to that, he was vice president of development and operations for Regent Properties, Inc. and before that, he formed and operated Vision Property Management, Inc., a full-service real estate development, leasing and management company. Jeff has over 30 years of experience in leasing, entitlements, property and asset management with an emphasis on redeveloping and repositioning underperforming and functionally obsolete assets. Jeff received his undergraduate degree in real estate finance, his master of business administration and his master of real estate development from the University of Southern California. In addition, he holds the Certified Leasing Specialist (CLS), Certified Property Manager (CPM), Senior Certified Shopping Center Manager (SCSM), Certified Commercial Investment Manager (CCIM) designations, and retains his position as adjunct faculty at the University of Southern California, teaching Retail Development in the Masters of Real Estate Development program.

  Federal Realty Investment Trust

  SVP, Western Region President

  Jeff Kreshek

  SVP, Western Region President

  Federal Realty Investment Trust

• 

  Laura Tinetti

  As a senior lead on the retail team, Laura has served the needs of retailers, real estate property owners, and investors. Her area of expertise is tenant expansion that spans the regional retail markets of Northern California and agency work on urban retail in San Francisco. With over 20 years of experience, Laura offers creative solutions for her clients' needs. She has considerable experience in all aspects of site selection, multi-market expansion, strategic planning, and store development for several of the nation's leading retailers, resulting in high-volume, profitable retail locations. Leading and helping teams manage their strategic store rollout programs has been one of the most rewarding aspects of her career to date. Laura also enjoys her agency work, which includes core assets for institutional landlords in the Financial District, Union Square and premium neighborhoods in San Francisco. She has worked with these clients on repositioning assets via implementing thoughtful design ideas and targeted retail programming. This ultimately aligns with the client's goals of increasing the building's brand awareness and serving as an amenity, while adding a significant financial increase to the bottom-line value of the property. Her knowledge of the retail industry and strategic problem-solving capabilities for her clients is unparalleled, as demonstrated by several top achievements and national awards. She has established herself as a dynamic leader in tenant representation and creative leasing strategies through an ability to communicate effectively with retailers and landlords alike.

  JLL

  Managing Director, Retail

  Laura Tinetti

  Managing Director, Retail

  JLL

• 

  Adriano Paganini

  Crowned “the anti-snob of the San Francisco Food Scene” by San Francisco magazine, Adriano Paganini has created some of the San Francisco Bay Area’s most beloved restaurants. Paganini grew up near Milan where his father was a tailor. More interested in food than fabric, he enrolled in culinary school, and managed to become an apprentice to world famous French chef/restaurateur Paul Bocuse. Adriano ultimately moved to London where he got a job cooking at the Hyde Park Hotel. He stayed for five (5) years honing his skills in the kitchen. When the Italian Ambassador gave a dinner for the Queen of England, Italian chefs from all over London prepared dishes. The Ambassador chose three of Adriano’s preparations and, at 24 years of age, he was placed in charge of Italy’s dinner for Queen Elizabeth. He also cooked for Margaret Thatcher, and cooked for Luciano Pavarotti. Adriano moved to San Francisco, took over the kitchens at the Donatello Restaurant in the hotel of the same name. He then moved on to open his own restaurant in the Marina. However, cooking 6 nights per week at Café Adriano wasn’t enough. In 1994, at the age of 27, Adriano Paganini opened the first chef driven restaurant in America. Pasta Pomodoro was the inspiration for the entire fast casual dining segment of the industry that spawned hundreds of concepts. Pasta Pomodoro was not only game changing for fast casual and casual dining in America, it was also wildly successful in its own right. Adriano built 46 units and ultimately sold the brand. A master at understanding and reading contemporary culture, Adriano’s track record in both creating and exploiting trends, of identifying the right concept in a particular location, and his history of finding and preserving relationships with talented people are what have led to the success of Back of the House: Belga; Beretta; Delarosa; El Techo de Lolinda; Lolinda; Starbelly; Super Duper Burger; Uno Dos Tacos.

  Back of the House

  Founder and CEO

  Owner of 22 restaurants across the Bay Area

  Adriano Paganini

  Founder and CEO

  Back of the House

• 

  Cherie Song

  Cherie Y. Song is a Partner in Lubin Olson's Real Estate and Business Practice Groups. She specializes in commercial leasing, acquisitions and dispositions, and telecommunications. Ms. Song represents institutional landlords, multi-billion dollar investment management companies, REITs, pension funds, and national retailers in a broad range of lease-related matters for office, retail, industrial, mixed-use properties and telecommunications assets. She also represents developers and investors in the acquisition, development, disposition and financing of commercial properties. Her practice also includes advising startups and private companies on various real estate and business-related matters. Prior to joining Lubin Olson, Ms. Song practiced in the San Francisco office of Buchalter Nemer and the Los Angeles office of McGuireWoods. Ms. Song was honored by Thompson Reuters as a Super Lawyer “Rising Star” in 2009 and 2010.

  Lubin Olson

  Partner

  Moderator

  Cherie Song

  Partner

  Lubin Olson

Evolving Retail Environments: Design, Store Formats & Experience

How Brands and Builders Are Rethinking Store Footprints and Unit Economics in High-Cost Markets

• 

  Nathan Lundell

  Nathan oversees asset management responsibilities for a portfolio of office, retail and residential assets in the San Francisco Bay Area. He also works closely with the local development team on Grosvenor’s build-to-core strategy for multi-family residential assets. Prior to joining Grosvenor in 2021, he held roles in commercial real estate investment management & capital markets, and most recently led the global real estate strategy & analytics function for a major apparel retailer. Nathan earned his Bachelor of Science, Real Estate Studies from the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minnesota.

  Grosvenor

  VP, Asset Management

  Nathan Lundell

  VP, Asset Management

  Grosvenor

• The Most Well-Known Boutique Fitness Brand in the U.S.

  Isabel Kurzner

  Senior Director, Real Estate

  Barry’s

• Moderator

  Kristin Anderson

  President & CEO

  Eric F. Anderson, Inc