J. Adam Rothstein, a partner in Honigman Miller Schwartz and Cohn LLP’s real estate department, has been appointed as Michigan State Director for ICSC for a one-year term beginning in May.
In this volunteer role, Rothstein will advocate for the interests of owners, developers, investors, marketers and other retail specialists across the state of Michigan.
ICSC is a global trade association of the shopping center industry with more than 55,000 members in over 90 countries.
Rothstein concentrates his Detroit-based practice on counseling shopping center, hotel, self-storage and office building owners and investors, nationally, in acquisitions, dispositions, financings and major tenant leasing. He also advises real estate owners and operators in joint ventures, syndications and investment fund creation.
Rothstein has been named in Best Lawyers in America (2006-2012), Michigan Super Lawyers (2006-2011) and DBusiness magazine’s Top Lawyers (2010 and 2011).
He earned a J.D. from the University of Michigan Law School and a B.A. in economics and political science from the University of Michigan.
NREI asked Rothstein about his goals and challenges as the director of the Michigan State ICSC.
NREI: What are your goals for the ICSC during your tenure?
Rothstein: To grow the use of ICSC here in Michigan as a tool for the promotion of retail real estate investment for both tenants and users, on the one hand, and owners and operators, on the other hand.
NREI:What challenges do you see for retail specialists, given the state of the economy in Michigan?
Rothstein: The greatest challenge facing the commercial real estate industry here in Michigan is attraction of capital to the state from lenders and equity investors. The financial crisis saw a flight of investment capital for retail real estate projects from our state. ICSC needs to be at the forefront in selling the very bright future here in Michigan for retail real estate. The state has a very compelling investment story and our trade association will be sure that, nationally, lenders, investors and retailers know that story.
How do you think the ICSC can meet these challenges?
Rothstein: Capitalizing on our very active membership and terrific programming, we will work to put a national outreach platform in place that will sell our story to lenders, investors and retailers.
FelCor Lodging Trust Incorporated has promoted Jeffrey D. Symes to senior vice president, chief accounting officer and controller.
Symes joined FelCor in April 2002 as its vice president and assistant controller and was promoted to vice president and controller in February 2007.
Prior to joining FelCor, Symes was a senior manager in the Dallas operating office and KPMG LLP’s national department of professional practice. He is a certified public accountant and a board member and past-president of the Real Estate Financial Executives Association.
“Jeff has been an integral member of our team for the past 10 years, during which time he has taken on increasingly meaningful responsibilities,” Andrew J. Welch, FelCor’s executive vice president and chief financial officer, said in a statement.
“His technical expertise, combined with his deep understanding of our business and strategy, has proven invaluable time and again,” Welch added. “This is a well deserved promotion, and I look forward to working with Jeff in the coming years.”
Glimcher Realty Trust promoted Ward Kampf, vice president of leasing, to the position of senior vice president of retail strategies at the REIT.
Kampf will continue to provide leadership to Glimcher Realty’s leasing team, as well as the entire company.
“I am very pleased to announce this promotion for Ward Kampf,” T.J. Drought, executive vice president, director of leasing, said in a statement. “Ward has been an integral part of the growth and success Glimcher has enjoyed throughout his time at the company. This is a well-deserved promotion and I am looking forward to his continued contributions and leadership.”
Kampf has been with Glimcher since 2009, successfully leading the leasing efforts at Scottsdale Quarter in Scottsdale, Ariz. In his new role, Ward will be setting the retail and leasing strategies for all new developments and key redevelopments and acquisitions. Kampf is an active member of the Urban Land Institute and the International Council of Shopping Centers.
Financial and professional services firm Jones Lang LaSalle hired Jeff Adams to join the firm’s agency leasing group as vice president and Dave Naeger to oversee the firm’s data centers practice group in St. Louis.
Adams comes from Colliers International, where he was vice president of office and industrial brokerage. There he worked closely with clients in the technology, legal and financial services industry.
Adams will be based in Pittsburg and will leverage his market knowledge and industry experience to grow the practice with new clients and assist existing clients with their needs.
In Pittsburgh, Jones Lang LaSalle has approximately 7.9 million sq. ft. under leasing and management in the region.
“Jeff’s credentials speak for themselves and his reputation makes him the ideal fit for this role. He has the talent that we’ve been targeting to grow our investor services platform in Southwestern Pennsylvania,” Jason Stewart, executive vice president and director of agency leasing, said in a statement. “I foresee Jeff making an immediate impact on our team and we’re very excited to have him aboard.”
Naeger is a 15-year veteran of the data center industry in the Midwest, working with many local, regional and national companies to develop business plans for data center moves, migrations and upgrades. Among his clients are Anheuser-Busch, Hallmark, Applebee’s International, Washington University, RiverCity Internet Group, Energizer Battery, BJC Healthcare, Monsanto and Wal-Mart.
Naeger has extensive experience working with multi-factor authentication and SaaS providers developing hosting architecture, compliance certification/remediation and managed hosting services. He is also a frequent industry speaker on cloud technologies and data center trends.
“Data centers are a huge growth area in commercial real estate both here in St. Louis and across the country,” Lynn Schenck managing director of Jones Lang LaSalle's St. Louis office, said in a statement. “We are extremely excited for Dave to join our team and bring his deep knowledge of this industry to our clients.”
Hunt Midwest Real Estate Development Inc. named Brenner Holland the general manager of its residential development division.
Previously, Holland served as director of residential real estate and entitlements for Hunt Midwest.
In his new role, Holland will continue to oversee the residential real estate division and supervise the acquisition of land strategic to Hunt Midwest’s existing properties as well as construction services for public/private infrastructure projects. He will also identify growth opportunities through new product offerings, with an emphasis on senior housing.
“Brenner is well deserving of this promotion,” Ora Reynolds, President of Hunt Midwest Real Estate Development Inc., said in a statement. “During his eight years at Hunt Midwest, he has taken on progressively higher levels of responsibility and leadership. He has kept our residential division profitable, while spearheading general contractor/infrastructure services, and has successfully led the ongoing effort to implement our senior housing business plan.”
Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services has promoted Peter Von Der Ahe to first vice president–investments, an achievement that is one of the highest levels of recognition the firm awards to its investment specialists.
Von Der Ahe is the top producing multifamily agent in the Manhattan Marcus & Millichap office and has consistently ranked among the top 10 most active multifamily property brokers in New York City since joining the firm in 2002.
In 2011, Von Der Ahe and his team closed 21 transactions with a combined value of $133 million. Significant deals include the portfolio sale of five prime Midtown West Apartment buildings valued at $25.7 million. Currently, Von Der Ahe is exclusively marketing a 168-unit property located in the heart of Midtown and a 29-unit asset situated steps from the Highline in the historic Chelsea neighborhood.
Grosvenor Fund Management named Charles “Chip” Walters managing director and head of fund portfolio management in the firm’s Philadelphia office.
Walters will be responsible for the development and management of a perpetual life investment vehicle focusing on real estate.
Walters comes to GFM from Prudential Real Estate Investors, where he had worked since 1992, most recently as Principal, Head of the Northeast Acquisition Team. In 2011, his team completed over $280 million in transactions including hotel, office and retail properties.
A Certified Public Accountant, Walters holds a Master of Business Administration degree from Columbia University and a Bachelor of Science degree from Drexel University.
“With over 19 years of experience, Chip is a valuable addition to our team as we continue to create value for our clients and shareholders with an expanded range of fund products,” Alexia Gottschalch, joint CEO of GFM’s U.S. operations, said in a statement.
Colliers International named John Donnelly a managing director at Colliers International New Jersey, where he will join the industrial services group and focus on Northern and Central New Jersey.
A 20-year industry veteran, Donnelly has extensive experience with some of the region’s most prominent industrial real estate tenants, owners and developers. His work includes bringing a 200,000-sq.-ft. industrial lease for Delonghi North America to the Meadowlands and a 110,000-sq.-ft. relocation for SupplyOne Queens, New York to Paterson, N.J.
“John’s industrial experience will strengthen our industrial team and enable us to expand our client base in New Jersey,” Robert R. Martie, executive vice president of Colliers International New Jersey, said in a statement. “His work with some of the area’s premier owners and developers will add a new level of depth to our operations in Northern and Central New Jersey, where Colliers is rapidly expanding.”
John Poblocki has joined Manhattan property management firm Sierra Real Estate, an affiliate of Lee & Associates NYC, Inc.
Previously, Poblocki was vice president and senior regional vice president for Grubb & Ellis in New York, in charge of the Northeast and Southeast regions, managing more than 50 million sq. ft. of commercial assets and corporate facilities for institutional and private owners.
“I have been watching Sierra for a while and they have impressed me in their approach to management and the energy they seem to exude,” Poblocki said in a statement. “And now, with their partnership with Lee & Associates, the leverage and support this will mean to me will be ideal in how I can service my clients.”
During his tenure at Grubb & Ellis and in his previous positions at Cohen Brothers Realty and CBRE, Poblocki accumulated an impressive list of management assignments, including the Sony Building on Madison Avenue, the Scholastic Publishing Building on Broadway and the Riverside Church and Union Theological Seminary.
“John’s experience will be instrumental in raising the profile of our commercial property management services, helping us move forward as we expand our operations here in New York,” James Wacht, president of Sierra Real Estate and Lee New York City, said in a statement. “To get someone with as much talent and expertise as John has is phenomenal.”
Massey Knakal appointed Bruce Whipple to direct its capital services division focusing on central and northern Westchester County and Yongqing (Alex) Liu to focus on Downtown Manhattan.
In Westchester County, Whipple will utilize Massey Knakal’s deep relationships with the lending community to procure the most effective financing in the commercial real estate debt markets for assets in the New York metropolitan market.
Whipple comes to Massey Knakal with national experience in debt origination, equity placement, underwriting, valuation, real estate development consulting, and condominium conversions and asset management. His capital markets expertise includes originating in excess of $1.1 billion in capital.
Previously, Whipple was director at Johnson Capital, a direct lender for CMBS, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and FHA programs. Notably, he handled a $15.5 million loan with Allstate Insurance for a regional shopping center in Westchester County and a $10 million hotel construction loan in Newark, N.J.
Yongqing (Alex) Liu will focus on the Financial District and TriBecCa.
Liu received a B.A. in English language and literature from Xiamen University in Xiamen, China. A few years later, he received a MBA degree from the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, Ala. Currently, Liu is pursuing a Masters degree in real estate from Baruch College.
Liu is fluent in Chinese and worked as a freelance interpreter prior to joining Massey Knakal. As a branch manager at CTM Inc. in New York, Liu managed its East Coast branch while building relationships with more than 200 major architectural firms. Earlier, he was an account analyst at TFS Freight International in New York and an assistant manager at Cathay Pacific Airways’ (Hong Kong) Xiamen office.
Two former business owners have joined Eastern Consolidated, strengthening the firm’s investment sales expertise.
Olivia Wu will come on board at Eastern as an associate director and Steven Zimmerman will join as an associate. Wu was the founder and president of Berkeley Global, a commercial real estate brokerage firm, and Zimmerman was founder and president of Direct Connect LLC, a boutique information technology executive search firm.
Both will focus on the sale and acquisition of commercial properties throughout the greater New York metropolitan area.
While at Berkeley, Wu completed over 100 office leasing and purchasing transactions in Manhattan, representing companies from fields ranging from architecture to financial services to international trade and logistics
As the head of Direct Connect LLC, Zimmerman oversaw sales, finance, strategic planning and business development and was responsible for recruiting all new accounts.
“We are delighted to welcome the creativity and leadership that Olivia and Steve bring to the table as we expand professionally to offer additional services in an accelerating market,” Daun Paris, president of Eastern Consolidated, said in a statement.
David Eyzenberg has joined the Canadian commercial real estate firm Avison Young as a principal in the New York office.
“I am excited to be a part of the capital markets team, led by Earl Webb, James Solomon and Amy Erixon in providing sophisticated representation to owners, developers and investors seeking to access institutional capital and assets,” he said in a statement.
Currently Eyzenberg’s team is focused on recapitalization, using innovative structures to link equity, mezzanine and debt investors to qualified assets and entities. He is also active in advising Canadian institutions on deploying capital into the best U.S. investment opportunities.
Peter Riguardi, president of operations for Jones Lang LaSalle’s Tristate region, will be the guest of honor at the Realty Foundation of New York’s annual luncheon on May 10.
Riguardi has devoted the past 28 years to the commercial real estate industry and was involved in some of New York City’s largest deals, among them the Metropolitan Transit Authority’s 1.6 million-sq.-ft. transaction at 2 Broadway and Bank of America’s 1.5 million-sq.-ft. transaction at One Bryant Park.
Riguardi joined Jones Lang LaSalle in 2002 and has grown the firm’s leasing and investment sales divisions by recruiting some of New York’s most talented professionals, many from competing firms. Presently, he oversees a 1,700-strong staff in seven offices throughout New York, New Jersey and Connecticut.
“Peter has served as a dedicated board member and we are delighted to be honoring him this year,” Jerry L. Cohen, the Realty Foundation’s chairman, said in a statement. “He is committed to the goals of the foundation and has helped to communicate our message that our purpose is to help real estate professionals in need. Totally reliant on the generosity of our real estate community, the Realty Foundation is grateful for his efforts to raise awareness of our initiatives.”
The luncheon will be held at 12p.m. in the Grand Ballroom of the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in Midtown Manhattan.