Crain's New York Business, July 29, 2024

INSIDE:

Q&A

SL Green CEO

Marc Holliday on why his Times Square casino bid will win in the end.

PAGE 31

SL GREEN’S MOMENT

CITY’S LARGEST OFFICE OWNER SEIZES CHANCE TO POUNCE ON STRICKEN RIVALS

By Aaron Elstein

You can see Manhattan from bottom to top from the observation deck of SL Green Realty’s 73-story 1 Vanderbilt Ave. at East 42nd Street, but the latest target for leaders of the real estate investment trust is just 10 blocks north. ere lies the Seagram Building on Park Avenue, the rst skyscraper built with oor-to-ceiling windows, a handsome, 30-story, 1958 building with some bigname tenants but roughly $1 billion in debt that owner RFR Realty may have trouble re nancing when the loan comes due next May.

SL Green hears the sound of opportunity knocking. It has become Manhattan’s largest o ce landlord in part by snagging top-shelf properties from tapped-out own-

BY THE NUMBERS

The number of buildings SL Green has assembled in its portfolio after 44 years of near-constant buying and selling of buildings

ers, most recently when it seized control of 245 Park Ave. in bankruptcy court two years ago. At a dinner last month at e Summit, the restaurant and observatory at the pinnacle of 1 Vanderbilt, SL Green o cials told institutional investors they’re now eyeing the Seagram.

“ ey just used it as an example of a building with looming loan maturities that they’d target,” said Alexander Goldfarb, a real estate industry analyst at Piper Sandler who hosted the dinner. “ e point is, here is the type of building they’re thinking about.”

SL Green’s chief executive, Marc Holliday, in an interview said : “We’re always interested in investing in those

See SL GREEN on Page 30

State OKs closure of Mount Sinai Beth Israel

By Amanda D’Ambrosio and Amanda Glodowski

CHASING GIANTS

This startup is on a mission to automate the detection of deepfakes.

PAGE 3

e state Health Department has approved Beth Israel’s closure plan with some conditions. e state says Mount Sinai must operate a new urgent care center near the site of the Lower East Side hospital for at least three months and develop an agreement with NYC Health + Hospitals to invest in an expansion of Bellevue Hospital’s emergency room and psychiatric emergency department, according to Erin Clary, a spokeswoman for the Health Department.  e health system had pushed to close Beth Israel for the last 10 months because of nancial challenges it said were too vast to overcome. e hospital reportedly had faced cash ow de cits that left it with just $29 million in cash reserves by the end of 2023. e hospital has been losing $18 million per month, according to the submitted closure plan. e state approval comes shortly after Mount Sinai was forced to keep Beth Israel open past its July 12 deadline, awaiting the green light. e hospital still faces an ongoing lawsuit from community members blocking the closure that must play out in court.

Mount Sinai has now asked the state court for an expedited review of that suit so it can o cially close Beth Israel, said Loren Riegelhaupt, an outside communications specialist who represents the health system. A new closure date has not been set.

2024

Crain’s spotlights 79 trailblazers. PAGE 11

Mount Sinai Beth Israel in Stuyvesant Square | BUCK ENNIS

The Seagram Building in Midtown | BUCK ENNIS

Battle over November ballot measures could get messy

By Nick Garber

Mayor Eric Adams and Council Speaker Adrienne Adams have maintained a publicly cordial relationship even as they battled over budget cuts and butted heads on legislation. But that decorum could dissolve in the coming months, as lawmakers prepare to campaign against a set of questions the mayor is putting before voters in November that could rewrite the city’s governing document to curb the City Council’s power.

“It is a dangerous attempt to shift power away from the people represented by the City Council to one single individual,” Speaker Adams said during a rally on July 25, outside the Brooklyn Public Library’s central branch. “Do you want a king?”

a ect public safety, and tightening rules about how the council studies the scal impact of new laws.

Speaker Adams described the charter commission’s ballot measures as an “attack on democracy,” a claim that was echoed by the other politicians and progressive groups that spoke out against the charter rewrite. e allusion to former President Donald Trump was intentional.

A City Council sta er who spoke on the condition of anonymity argued that the mayor had “laid the groundwork for people to compare him to Trump.” (City Hall declined to comment on the provocative comparisons, and skeptics will note that none of the proposed revisions would radically change how the council does its work.)

“It is a dangerous attempt to shift power away from the people represented by the City Council to one single individual.”

She made the remarks minutes before the mayor’s handpicked 13-member Charter Revision Commission met inside to approve the proposed changes, which mirror Mayor Adams’ own grievances against the City Council by slowing the legislative process when it considers bills that

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Council members were clearly conscious of the charter revisions’ unusual placement on a presidential election-year ballot — a change from the most recent City Charter changes in 2019, which took place during a lower-turnout, oddnumbered election years and passed easily. ose 2019 amendments all passed with about threequarters of the vote, including a measure that instituted ranked-choice voting.  is year, the presidential turnout will alter the landscape.

Adams kickstarted this year’s fast-moving e ort just two months ago, in what lawmakers saw as a clear maneuver to block the City Council from adding its own No-

vember ballot measure, which would increase its oversight of mayoral appointments.

To persuade New Yorkers to reject the proposals, however, council leaders and their allies may need to mount a paid campaign.

Details of the potential opposition campaign remained unclear on July 25. But Gale Brewer, a veteran Manhattan City Councilwoman, predicted that “the money will come.”

“And I think we can do it in a very short time period,” Brewer added. (Any campaign could not be paid for by the City Council itself, since it would amount to illegal electioneering; instead, it would need to be funded by outside groups or through elected of-

cials’ campaign accounts.)

In a last-minute twist on July 25, the Charter Revision Commission revealed right before its meeting that it had removed a few of the more controversial measures announced earlier in the week. A proposal forcing the council to wait about three months before voting on bills that a ect the NYPD, Fire Department or Corrections Department has been shortened to require just a 30-day window. It no longer tasks those departments with ling their own “public safety impact statements” on proposed laws.

Carlo Scissura, the commission’s chair and head of the New York Building Congress, said July 25 that the changes came in re-

sponse to feedback from the public “and others” in the short time since the proposals were released on July 23.

Government responsiveness

But the City Council showed no immediate signs of being mollied by the changes. Mayor Adams, who has consistently defended the charter rewrite as a sincere e ort at improving government responsiveness, praised the nal ballot measures as “thoughtful.”

Besides the contested items that a ect the City Council, the commission also approved a few less controversial questions that would clarify the Sanitation Department’s street-cleaning authority, enshrine a new City Hall position focused on boosting minorityand women-owned businesses, ease permitting for lm shoots and tweak how the city plans for costly capital projects.

Dominated by friends and allies of the mayor, the Charter Revision Commission held a dozen public hearings — many of which were sparsely attended. Although the mayor has come under re from legislators, he got nothing but praise on July 25 from members of the commission he convened.

“I want to take the time and thank a man that really cares about the city, our very own Mayor Eric Adams,” commissioner Jackie Rowe-Adams, an anti-gun violence advocate, said at the start of the meeting. “He heard the voice of the people.”

Developer plans to tear down 1920s-era

Ancott building on the Upper West Side

By Eddie Small

A Manhattan-based developer appears to have new plans in mind for the site of a nearly 100-year-old rent-regulated building on the Upper West Side.

ABS Partners Real Estate recently led plans with the Department of Buildings to demolish 2560 Broadway, a multifamily property located by the West 96th Street subway stop for the 1, 2 and 3 lines. e building spans about 53,000 square feet and stands 7 stories and 74 feet tall with 27 residential units, two of which are still occupied, according to the ling. It was not immediately clear as of press time what will become of the parcel once the building is torn down.

The Ancott

Known as e Ancott, the property was built in 1925, according to commercial real estate database CoStar. It includes about 7,500 square feet of retail space in addition to the residential units, CoStar says.

e building includes rentregulated apartments, according to the demolition ling, but many

seem to have gone for market-rate prices in recent years, according to StreetEasy. A three-bedroom unit went for about $6,000 per month in October 2020, for instance, while a two-bedroom unit was $4,000 in May 2021, the site says.

e building is part of developer

ABS Partners’ expansive portfolio, which includes 102 properties across 11 states spanning more than 14 million square feet overall, according to its website. Its other Manhattan buildings include 200 Park Ave. South at Union Square, where the rm itself is headquar-

tered; 270 Madison Ave. in Midtown, where it recently inked a deal to lease space to the New York Public Library; and the boutique o ce building at 145 E. 57th St.

A representative for ABS declined to comment on the company’s plans for 2560 Broadway.

Kathryn Wylde

Council Speaker Adrienne Adams

Council Speaker Adrienne Adams called the City Charter rewrite led by Mayor Eric Adams an “attack on democracy” during a rally on July 25, before the mayor-appointed commission nalized the list of questions for the November ballot. | JOHN MCCARTEN/NYC COUNCIL MEDIA UNIT

Startup is on a mission to automate detection of deepfakes as ‘synthetic content’ escalates

The upstart: Reality Defender

Four years ago, Ben Colman, Ali Shahriyari, and Gaurav Bharaj received research grants to investigate how deepfakes and generative arti cial intelligence could a ect the presidential election.

“We were certainly correct about the problem. We were incorrect in the timing,” said Colman. “While the technology existed, the methods to use the technology did not yet exist at a level that was easy enough and cheap enough. at’s changed over the last 24 months in a dramatic way.”

ere are now thousands of apps and websites that allow people without any technical skills to create “synthetic content” and broadcast it to the world for little to no money. Colman, Shahriyari, and Bharaj founded Reality Defender in 2021 to combat the prevalence of deepfakes by creating a platform to verify content created by generative AI.

Weinberg, founder of ex/ante, an early-stage venture fund that backed Reality Defender in 2021.

The reigning Goliath: Meta

Reality Defender’s software can detect a variety of deepfakes across audio, video, image, and text les. Clients use Reality Defender’s web application to drag and drop les and pay to verify individual les, or they can pay for the API and pre-purchase a certain number of scans. e API is priced between $100,000 and $1 million a year. Businesses in particular are at risk of being defrauded by bad actors using AI for voice-cloning or identity theft, for example.

e company has raised just over $22 million over three funding rounds and has over $1 million in annual revenue. Clients have included Comcast and Microsoft, and its technology has been used in broadcast newsrooms, bank call centers, humanitarian organizations and governments around the world.

“ ey were very early at recognizing that this would be a meaningful threat both to democracy and society writ large as well as a key challenge for enterprises as we enter an age in which generative AI is increasingly globalized,” said Zoe

is spring, Meta announced it would begin labeling content made or altered with AI. e decision follows Meta’s Oversight Board’s recommendations to update its review policy as AI-generated content sweeps the internet.

Meta will not automatically detect the software and instead give users the choice to label their content as “Made with AI” themselves. However, the announcement noted that moderators will add the label if they detect the use of AI.

How to conquer the giant

Colman, Shahriyari, and Bharaj were so early to the world of deepfakes and generative AI that it made fundraising an uphill battle when they started to pitch venture capital rms in late 2020. Colman described being repeatedly told that deepfakes would not be a problem.

“It wasn’t di cult. It was impossible. It was like we were trying to sell, I don’t know, we’re going to go mine gold on Mars,” he recounted. But Colman and his team insisted that this would be an issue that companies and governments needed to get ahead of. “We were really, really con dent that if bad actors can do something with new technology, they will.” ey eventually found support from a couple of investors, participated in incubators like Y Combinator and the FinTech Innovation Lab, and were selected to attend events and conferences like TechCrunch Disrupt and the RSA Conference (“Like the Oscars” for the cybersecurity world, according to Colman.) At the same time, Reality Defender carried out paid and unpaid pilots with companies, government and humanitarian organizations, and journalists.

“In the early days, there was just not a sophisticated un-

derstanding of how this could be a market,” said Weinberg. “What Ben has done a really good job of, over the years, is helping people to see that this is a cybersecurity problem and can be a fraud issue.”

Eventually, as platforms like OpenAI and ChatGPT became ubiquitous, Reality Defender’s technology found a market.

“Fast forward to today. We’re no longer begging and pleading to attend conferences. We’re now being invited to speak at them,” Colman said.

The next challenge

In April 2024, Colman testi ed in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee in support of more robust regulation and legislation to curb the threat of generative AI. “Within cybersecurity, AI is changing everything,” he said. “Both from the traditional cybersecurity tools and services, but also creating a whole new vector for risk.”

Colman now nds himself spending a lot of time in Washington, D.C., advocating for policies that would indicate that something is AI-generated or manipulated, all while acknowledging that the most comprehensive solution would necessitate checking in real-time—comparing Reality Defender’s tools to a metal detector.

In Colman’s view, the current push for more content moderators that can watermark or add notes to indicate media is AI-generated is short-sighted and could end up deceiving more people versus helping the general public.

“My father will forward me something that is, in his view, obviously real because it’s been community-noted,” he explains.

“Even the things that look real can be fake. Because while our team of 40 is two-thirds Ph.D. researchers and engineers, in the last six months, to their trained eye, they cannot know the di erence,” he added. “Which means that my father just doesn’t stand a chance.”

Olivia Bensimon is a freelance journalist in New York City who reports on human-centered stories.

Reality Defender co-founders Ali Shahriyari (left) and Ben Colman (right) have raised just over $22 million to build a platform that automatically detects deepfakes. | BUCK ENNIS

OLIVIA BENSIMON

Developers shop for remnants of Greenwich Village’s once-bustling antiques district

University Place is becoming like the Meatpacking District as historic businesses fade away

Alongtime hub for Regency armchairs, Chippendale chests and Louis XV-style tables may be on its last legs.

Earlier this month a developer acquired the Greenwich Village building that for nearly a century housed Charles Cheri Galleries with plans to convert the 7-story site into housing. e move has in turn helped shrink the antiques district around University Place, which teemed with about two dozen shops in the 1970s but is down to just a handful today.

“It’s sad, because it’s the place where our family has been since the 1930s,” Alan Wachman said of his four-generation family business. “ is was home.”

Wachman likely exited with his head held high. His prewar building, located at 84 University Place near East 11th Street, sold for $11.3 million, a solid haul when considering his family paid around $500,000 for the 14,900-square-foot commercial structure in 1981, or the equivalent of $1.8 million today when adjusting for in ation. And Charles Cheri , which specializes in French furniture that glimmers with gold-leaf detailing, did not call it quits but rather moved to Long Island City.

Renting 19th-century chairs to period dramas like HBO’s “ e Gilded Age” has been a bright spot for the company. But “people’s tastes have changed,” said Wachman, who works with his brother Stephen and son Jonathan. “ ey’re not entertaining at home and not willing to buy special pieces.”

In a sense, Charles Cheri may have overstayed its welcome in the district, which once stretched from about East 10th to East 13th streets and University Place to Fourth Avenue. Indeed, for years now expensive condos, trendy chain restaurants and upscale boutiques have been creeping into the neighborhood, much of which is not considered an historic district, which might have checked development.

And it perhaps should not come as a surprise. Several other neighborhoods once associated with a single industry—Chelsea’s ower district, the Garment District and especially the Meatpacking District—have few traces left of their historic selves.

Some antiques shops do hang on by University. Survivors include Seidenberg Antiques at 36 E. 12th St. and Hyde Park Antiques at 836 Broadway, though the latter isn’t long for that location. e Karr family, which has owned the store’s 6-story building since the 1980s, unloaded it in 2021 to developer ZG Capital for $39.3 million, according to the city register, and ever since has leased its space there as a tenant.

And ZG, which is renovating the landmark o ce building, has not extended the store’s lease past next year.

One of the most beloved (and only) bowling alleys in Manhattan for years, Bowlmor Lanes rumbled at this site from 1938 to 2014. Then-Vice President Richard Nixon hurled balls there in 1958. After it shuttered, owner William Macklowe Co., headed by longtime developer William Macklowe’s son Billy Macklowe, demolished the site and its sidewalk stores to put up a 22-story, block-long condo and retail complex. Billy Macklowe, who partnered with Goldman Sachs on the project, earned $304 million from sales of the building’s 52 homes, which are mostly 1- to 4-bedroom units, according to the condo’s offering plan. Closings began in 2019, though the retail spaces, which line a wide podium under the tower that uses the address 110 University Place, took longer to ll. Tenants in them today include a wine bar from the Sera na restaurant group that opened in the fall. Tom Shannon, who bought Bowlmor in 1997 but had to exit when the site sold, has since become a bowling mogul, buying other alleys like the Lucky Strike line in 2023. His Bowlero Corp. today owns 12,000 lanes across the country.

90 UNIVERSITY PLACE

Although this 3-story plain-fronted building may look unassuming, it played a starring role in the area’s bohemian history. It contained the studio of photographer Arthur Swoger, known for his portraits of the poets and abstract expressionist painters who imbibed at Cedar Tavern, a nexus of the downtown art world when it was at University and East Ninth Street, according to historical accounts. (The bar’s building later came down to make way for the massive Brevoort East apartment complex.) Swoger’s subjects included painters Willem de Kooning and Joan Mitchell and poet Frank O’Hara, sometimes drinking, sometimes in their studios. No. 90 has had the same owners for decades, records indicate, and they seem to include members of the Erlitz family. But the building’s retail spaces turned over frequently and have included a housewares store, jazz bar and noodle shop through the years. In 1978 one of the city’s rst sushi joints, Japonica, moved in before decamping in 1991 to a larger berth at 100 University Place. But when a wrecking ball claimed No. 100 a decade ago, Japonica returned to its No. 90 berth, according to the restaurant news site Eater. An outpost of the café chain The Grey Dog occupies the other narrow storefront.

99 UNIVERSITY PLACE

The Textile Workers Union of America owned and operated this ornate 10-story Beaux Arts building in the mid-20th century, around when the area near Union Square was a base for labor organizations. The word “Union” in the park’s name, however, refers to its location at the merger of several roads. In 1991 local landlord Bijan Nassi purchased No. 99 from TWUA for $2.4 million, according to the city register, and the 41,500-square-foot site has mostly served as a Class C of ce building for small companies since then. But Nassi did not pry off the facade’s metal “TWUA Building” letters until around 2017, according to photos from Google Maps. Fashion giant Ralph Lauren operated stores in the retail space in recent years, including for its Rugby brand and Denim & Supply offshoots. Cncpts, a store dedicated to skate-wear fashion that sells sneakers and caps, occupies the 2,500-square-foot berth today. Nassi, who has appeared on the public advocate’s worst landlords list, faced foreclosure on the site in 2022 after defaulting on a $10.5 million mortgage note but squared away his debts the following year, according to court records.

86 UNIVERSITY PLACE

The history of this site is as colorful as the strings of lights that twinkle in its downstairs Mexican restaurant. Once the home of Benjamin Field, a prominent hospital philanthropist, the building later housed the human hair wig business of German immigrant Bernhard Mittelstaedt, according to Village Preservation, an in uential nonpro t advocacy group. His name remains carved on the cornice. During Prohibition No. 86 housed a speakeasy, and in the 1940s it was home to a lesbian bar called the Bagatelle, accounts show. The current eatery, whose name El Cantinero means “the bartender” in Spanish, opened in the early 1990s. Its 3,500-square-foot two-level berth pours margaritas seven days a week. The 5-story property, which also features four apartments, has changed hands several times in recent decades. In the most recent transaction from 2015, New Jersey investor Lewis Lustbader sold No. 86 to Mark Lundy of Long Island rm Gould Investors for $13.7 million. Lundy borrowed $6.8 million for the transaction from Florida-based BankUnited, the city register shows.

This 7-story Italianate building, whose facade is somewhat shrouded with dark-toned re escapes, was home to Charles Cheriff Galleries from the 1930s until this year. The antiques store specializes in French furniture made in the late 19th century to resemble classics from the 18th-century era of Kings Louis XV and Louis XVI. Earlier this year brothers Stephen and Alan Wachman sold the site for $11.3 million to developer Mark Guindi, the CEO of GD Capital Group, who plans on turning the building into a six-unit rental that has retail space on the ground oor. Guindi did not return a call for comment. The Wachmans, whose grandfather Charles founded the business in 1924 after emigrating from Russia, have relocated their 3,000-piece collection to 22-19 41st Ave. in Long Island City near the Ed Koch-Queensboro Bridge. With Charles Cheriff’s departure from University Place, a longtime antiques district in the neighborhood has almost disappeared.

Cedar Tavern, whose crowd in the abstract expressionist heyday of the 1950s might have had the highest number of artists in the city’s history, was based rst at 24 University Place. It was dislodged by development in the 1960s and wound up at this address soon afterwards. Bob Dylan was among the new site’s early habitués. Amid the frenzy of the mid-2000s condo boom, tavern owner Michael Diliberto took a turn as a developer and added seven oors atop the existing structure to create a seven-unit condo, sales of which nabbed him $16.4 million, according to its offering plan. A stipulation of that plan was to not allow bars again, and the downstairs retail space offers bikini waxes today. The 3-bedroom duplex penthouse, which has a terrace, traded for about $4 million in 2023. It sits “just steps away from Whole Foods,” its ad said, “making it the perfect location.”

83 UNIVERSITY PLACE

This 11-story, 191,000-square-foot building from 1890 seems to have once been a manufacturing building. Textile and garment companies were early tenants, according to news clips. But in recent decades, No. 83 has served as an of ce building catering to PR rms, doctors, insurance companies, ntech startups and co-working providers. Its most visible contribution, though, might be the numerous fast-casual style restaurants that ring the building’s ground oor. A two-year-old location of the popular and quickly-growing Naya chain, which serves falafel and hummus dishes at 11 locations in Manhattan, is here. The building’s ownership hasn’t changed since at least the 1960s, according to property records. It seems to involve members of the Manley family, though a trust has controlled No. 83, which also uses the addresses 95 University Place and 41 E. 11th St., since 2005. The rm that runs the building day to day is the Thomas F. Campenni Company. It is currently listing a 20,000-square-foot berth on the fth oor for a rent of $40 per square foot annually.

C. J. Hughes

21 E. 12TH ST.

82 UNIVERSITY PLACE

84 UNIVERSITY PLACE

Couple with ties to cryptocurrency scores penthouse on Lower East Side for $9M (in conventional money)

C. J. Hughes

A couple with ties to the cryptocurrency world has picked up a penthouse on the Lower East Side in the largest deal in the neighborhood in years.

Chris Paik, a venture capitalist who has invested in crypto platforms, and his wife, Keely Paik, who works for an online art gallery requiring payments in blockchain, bought a six-bedroom triplex with a private roof deck atop 199 Chrystie St.

e price, paid not in crypto but in conventional dollars, was $9 million, which included a deeded parking space and a storage unit, according to the city register.

It appears to be the largest sale involving a co-op or a condo in the neighborhood in three years, according to listings service StreetEasy, which takes a broad view of the area and lumps it in with the Seaport district. By its data, the last comparable sale was in 2021, when a condo unit at Seaport development 252 South St. traded for $9.1 million.

But in terms of the immediate area, no home has sold for more than $7 million going back to 2019, according to a Crain’s analysis.

Despite the steep price, the Paiks, who went into contract June 4 and closed July 10, according to the deed, can claim to have scored a deep bargain.

According to the 2019 offering plan for 199 Chrystie, a 14-unit condo near Stanton Street, developer KD Sagamore Capital assumed someone would pay a hefty $20.5 million for the unit, whose 4,700 square feet includes six baths, a living room with a replace and 18-foot ceilings, and a kitchen that opens to a balcony.

But by the time the penthouse arrived on the market in 2023, its price had been trimmed to $19.5 million, and further reductions followed until it nally sold for $9 million, meaning the developer miscalculated by more than 50%.

Price adjustments

e Paiks, who borrowed $6.8 million from JPMorgan Chase for their purchase, are not the only buyers at 199 Chrystie to wind up with an apartment that traded far below what developers initially hoped.

No. 9S, a three-bedroom, for instance, was supposed to command $6.5 million, according to the plan, but was unveiled at $5.6 million in September before itnally changed hands for $4.4 million last month.

Adjustments to prices in o ering plans are typical, especially when markets uctuate as a project drags along. But 199 Chrystie’s developer, who expected a total sellout of $102 million, will likely fall far short of that amount. Two units remain unsold at the building, including the other penthouse, which once sought $18

million and is now asking about $9 million. KD Sagamore could not be reached for comment.

“ ere’s just not that deep of a pool for this kind of product walking around on the Lower East Side,” said Glenn Davis, the Douglas Elliman agent handling sales at the condo, which previously had two other sales teams. “We had to be opportunistic with the market.” (But a previous o er in bitcoin from a di erent buyer was declined, he said.)

Davis added that although home sales activity did indeed show surprising strength in the

second quarter, those deals often came about because sellers were nally willing to slash prices.

For her part, Keely Paik, who works for TRLab, a startup that sells nonfungible tokens, or NFTs, including works by gunpowder-focused Chinese artist Cai GuoQiang, could not be reached by press time.

And Chris Paik, a co-founder of the early-stage VC rm Pace Capital, whose $400 million under management has been deployed in part toward companies that have created crypto platforms, did not return an email seeking comment.

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199 Chrystie St. on the Lower East Side has a private roof deck (right). DOUGLAS ELLIMAN

Biden’s dropout drama never needed to happen

Democrats should regret not having an open primary, but Kamala Harris is an upgrade to take on Donald Trump in November

It all happened faster than I ever could have imagined: Kamala Harris is on track to be the Democratic nominee for president. e endorsements are rolling in.

Joe Biden desperately didn’t want to exit the race, but the pressure from elite Democratic politicians and donors was, in the end, too much. ey were abandoning him in droves, both privately and publicly. e reality is that the June 27 televised debate was too devastating and revealed what should have been known all along: At 81, Biden simply wasn’t up to the task of waging another national campaign.

after one term with many legislative successes, he wasn’t running again. en Democrats could have found their battle-tested nominee to take on Donald Trump. at might have been Harris anyway. But her political weaknesses are obvious. She ran a disastrous 2020 campaign for president and would have faded into obscurity if Biden hadn’t plucked her for his ticket. Before then, she had won a noncompetitive Senate primary and struggled in the general election during her rst race for attorney general.

At 81, Biden simply wasn’t up to the task of waging another national campaign.

Democrats paid the price for not having an open primary. Biden and his team did a great deal of damage by insisting, until now, that he could run again. A year or two ago, Biden could have declared victory and announced,

In the White House, she never had a large pro le under Biden, and when she was handed signicant if unenviable tasks like managing the politics of immigration, she didn’t exactly succeed. Harris critics will have much to pick over these next few months.

Democrats, however, were right to dump Biden. Harris may not be the strongest Democrat to replace him — there are senators and governors who have won very competitive elections in swing states — but she is an upgrade. She can campaign forceful-

ly and press the case against Trump on abortion rights. If Trump agrees to a televised debate with her, she will perform far better than Biden because she can talk coherently and nish sentences.

Choosing a running mate

Harris has energy and charisma. She also has a chance to choose a running mate who genuinely bolsters the ticket and gives Democrats a real shot to win as many swing states as possible. Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, and Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly all t the bill. It’s a shame they couldn’t have all competed against each other in a primary with the voters deciding who was best. Instead, Harris and her team will pick someone, and her team will de nitely have the Electoral College in mind.

Is Trump still the favorite to win this fall? Yes. In ation continues to rise, and many voters blame the Biden administration. Trump has hammered Biden for the in ux of immigrants across the southern border. All year, Democrats have been on the defensive, and Trump will relish lashing Harris in all the

City invites landlords to install e-bike chargers on sidewalks

By Caroline Spivack

Property owners looking for a safer way for their tenants to charge e-bikes will soon have the option to install city-approved charging sites on sidewalks outside of their buildings.

e Department of Transportation is proposing an expedited city process for building owners to in-

“The idea is to be able to come together with the private sector, where they can charge a small fee in a safe way, so that we’re not looking at businesses that are effectively death threats.”

Laura Kavanagh FDNY commissioner

stall e-bike battery swapping and charging cabinets on the public sidewalks outside of their properties, which current city rules do not allow.

Such a process would enable landlords, or commercial tenants with the owner’s consent, to apply for a city permit to set up sidewalk

e-bike charging stations outside of buildings or storefronts. e Adams administration says the e ort seeks to make safe charging infrastructure more accessible to curb re safety concerns, while giving private property owners the perk of monetizing public space and the ability to better serve their commercial tenants, said Meera Joshi, the city’s deputy mayor for operations, at a July 22 news conference on e-bike safety.

“Often there’s a small fee that goes along with using these [charging sites] and so there is that aspect of it,” said Joshi. “But also many of these are the same businesses that are working regularly with deliveristas, and so it really helps to create that organic environment to support the workers that they’re using day in and day out.”

Proposed charging locations would have to comply with specific safety and dimension requirements — like sensors to monitor the batteries and automatic shut-

ways he lashed Biden. e new ticket, though, should rejuvenate Democrats. Harris can expect a modest boost in the polls. Biden was not capable of launching sustained, aggressive attacks on Trump. is won’t be a problem for Harris and her running mate. ey’ll be on the campaign trail enthusiastically, and they won’t hide from the media like Biden did.

e Democratic pressure campaign against Biden was evidence that they wouldn’t fall prey to the

sunk cost fallacy. Just because they had come this far with Biden didn’t mean they had to continue, especially with the formal nomination slated for August. Now, Biden’s delegates will choose Harris.

If far from ideal, it is a more seamless process than anyone might have imagined. As time passes, it will seem all the stranger that Biden ever decided to run at all.

Ross Barkan is a journalist and author in New York City.

o s if a battery is overheating — and would undergo reviews and approvals by Fire Department and the Department of Buildings inspectors.

DOT o cials haven’t crafted the speci c rules yet and will hold a virtual hearing on Aug. 21 at 10 a.m. to incorporate the public’s feedback in its rule making process. e Adams administration says it aims to begin accepting applications for the program before the end of the year, and to have the application and installation process take roughly six weeks.

Open to the model

e in uential Real Estate Board of New York, along with some landlords, have told the city they’re potentially open to the model, said FDNY Commissioner Laura Kavanagh, who intends to resign from her post but has said she will stay on until a successor is named. REBNY, at FDNY’s request, said it hosted a recent meeting with its members on battery safety. “We plan to review these proposed rules more closely and provide feedback to the Department of Transportation,” said Zachary Steinberg, REBNY’s se-

nior vice president of policy.

“ e idea is to be able to come together with the private sector, where they can charge a small fee in a safe way, so that we’re not looking at businesses that are effectively death threats,” said Kavanagh, referring to illegal, potentially re-starting sites where e-bike users pay to have their bikes juiced up or improvise their own setups. Due to a lack of public charging infrastructure, it’s common to see extension cords snaking out of apartment windows hooked up to e-bikes.

Unregulated batteries and plugins can have deadly consequences. Since 2019, lithium-ion

batteries have started 733 res, killing 29 New Yorkers and injuring 442 more, according to city data.

e Adams administration also intends to share updated info on its website to make it easier for companies that sell lithium-ion battery storage and swapping cabinets to receive FDNY approval. To inform that guidance the city will convene a working group made up of representatives from tech companies, the real estate industry and transit and re safety experts. “ ese e-mobility vehicles and bikes, they’re not the enemy,” said Mayor Eric Adams. “Proper use is what we must do.”

Ross Barkan

President Joe Biden’s messy dropout saga shows his re-election bid was a folly from the start, writes columnist Ross Barkan. | BLOOMBERG

A new city rule would enable landlords to install e-bike charging stations on sidewalks outside of their buildings. | BLOOMBERG

Finalists named for 2024 New York ORBIE® Awards

NewYorkCIO has announced the nalists for its 2024 New York ORBIE Awards. The New York ORBIE Awards honors chief information of cers and chief information security of cers who have demonstrated excellence in technology leadership. With support from Crain’s New York Business, NewYorkCIO will honor CIOs and CISOs who are driving innovation and transforming Greater New York’s leading organizations. The 2024 New York ORBIE Awards event is scheduled for November 14 at Ziegfeld Ballroom. www.orbie.org/newyork/2024.

City and state must find a way to pay for more AC units as heat waves persist

Ascorching heat wave has plagued the city this summer, with real-feel temperatures routinely reaching triple digits. Local o cials must acknowledge that many residents are at risk from the heat and ensure they have the resources they need to survive the sti ing weather.

One solution is continuing to push for more money from the federally funded Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program, which foots the bill for residents to buy and install cooling units. en, ocials must ensure that the funds — which are distributed by Congress and allocated by the Department of Health and Human Services — are being stretched as far as possible. e program spent its full $22 million budget on 27,000 households, or about $815 per AC unit.

ere’s an outsize demand for the program with about 2 million New Yorkers living below the poverty line. ough the city received $5 million more than last year, it ran out of funds on July 19, just 29 days into summer, Crain’s health care reporter Ethan Geringer-Sameth found. Last

year, the program ran out of money even quicker: in just three weeks. City and state o cials must negotiate fair prices with vendors to ensure the funding is reaching more households. If

the funding is still not enough to meet New Yorkers’ needs, the city and state should tap local funding to supplement the program. e city also must continue to push for su cient cooling systems in new buildings, as outlined in Mayor Eric Adams’ strategic plan for climate resilience. e business community needs livable housing stock for its employees as temperatures rise.   New York City is a “heat island” — densely populated with skyscrapers, cars and buses with minimal tree cover. at leads to an average temperature that is 9.7 degrees hotter than it would be otherwise, which is the highest per-capita bump of 65 cities nationwide, according to a new report from the

Hidden costs in City of Yes plan could result in unforeseen consequences

Raymond Kessler, once known as “ e Haiti Kid,” remembers the cheers as he wrestled professionally against opponents like Hulk Hogan. Today, at 76, the roaring crowd is replaced with his neighbors at e Woodstock Hotel. Kessler is one of 290 tenants in the permanent housing facility owned by Project FIND, which has been improving seniors’ lives for over 50 years.

His arc underscores a profound truth: Anyone, regardless of past success, can nd themselves in need of a ordable housing. And as housing becomes increasingly scarce, we applaud e orts to bolster housing security via e City of Yes for Housing Opportunity plan.

City of Yes is a planning framework to boost housing production in the city. We commend Mayor Adams’ bold vision, inspiring hope for a more accessible future for all. However, no legislation is perfect to start. Currently, certain provisions may have unintended consequences, especially the Universal A ordability Preference (UAP), which replaces the Voluntary Inclusion-

ary Housing (VIH) program.

VIH preserves a ordable housing stock and provides capital to maintain quality living environments. e plan’s 10-year phase-out of density bonuses and other changes, though well-meaning, may harm organizations like ours, which depend on these incentives to build and operate housing for middle- and lowincome communities.

is

director of Project FIND, a nonpro t that operates four supportive housing residences, and is an adjunct professor at NYU’s Silver School of Social Work.

Importantly, the plan lowers the bonus ratio in R10 districts.

e city currently permits developers to build beyond the maximum ratio of building-size-tofootprint for providing certain public bene ts, like a ordable housing units. City of Yes lowers this ratio, increasing construction costs without o setting them — disincentivizing developers from building additional a ordable housing units. Removing certi cates, a funding source for nonpro t developers, exacerbates this.

e City of Yes’ impacts are not theoretical, they have real-life consequences. With VIH funding, we are installing needed upgrades at our Upper West Side

Hamilton House location, like a new boiler, updated electrical, and free Wi-Fi. ese improvements enhance tenants’ quality of life, particularly for seniors with mobility challenges or who remain unconnected to modern technology. Removing that critical funding source would jeopardize our ability to complete those upgrades. Similarly, the Woodstock Hotel, where Kessler lives, direly needs modernization that would be threatened by proposed changes in the City of Yes. Improvements like new elevators and ADAcompliant bathrooms may not happen, as they depend on the sale of air rights under the current VIH program. However, the City of Yes risks drying up the market for this valuable asset. Further, the potential lost value of unsold air rights would negatively impact our balance sheets and negate our ability to nance future a ordable housing development deals.

Carefully amend policies

Given these concerns, the City Planning Commission and City Council must carefully amend City of Yes policies. While its goals are commendable, certain policies must be tweaked to ensure they don’t accidentally decelerate a ordable housing production.

nonpro t Climate Central. e city heat has sent at least 285 people to the emergency room so far this summer, a 74% increase over last year. e majority of heat-related deaths occur in homes without air conditioning. is disproportionately describes Black New Yorkers who are twice as likely to die from heat-exacerbated conditions.

Increase residents’ life expectancy

Older New Yorkers with preexisting conditions — obesity, heart and respiratory illnesses — are also at higher risk for heat-related injury and death, a key consideration as the city strives to increase residents’ life expectancy.

Elected o cials appreciate the risks and have issued warnings: “Stay indoors. Stay with your air conditioning,” Gov. Kathy Hochul said at the start of summer. Added Adams: “It is crucial that you plan ahead and make sure everyone is safe including your pets.” ey should add to their message a push to fund more ACs.

Raymond Kessler’s story reminds us that real people are impacted by these policies — and that preserving incentives helps sustain a ordable housing access for those like him. Industry experts and experienced developers must be heard to avoid unintended negative consequences that prevent New Yorkers from accessing the housing they need and deserve.

As Mayor Adams addresses housing scarcity, developments like Project FIND’s must be protected. Keeping provisions like density bonuses in R10 districts and maintaining existing certi cates’ value will enable the City of Yes to produce more a ordable housing. is proposal can be a force for good. But without addressing these concerns, it risks doing more harm than good. Let us take time to get this right so the City of Yes lives up to its name.

A construction worker hydrates on a hot day. BUCK ENNIS

Mark Jennings

executive

The plan’s phase-out of density bonuses may harm nonpro ts that depend on these incentives to build and operate housing for middle- and low-income communities, writes Mark Jennings of Project FIND. JOHN ED REED/MAYORAL PHOTOGRAPHY OFFICE

Navigating uncertainty amid state’s AI regulatory efforts

In February, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul proposed sweeping artificial intelligence regulatory measures intended to protect against untrustworthy and fraudulent uses of AI. Then in May, the state of New York committed $275 million to launch a state-of-the-art AI computing center at the University at Buffalo. This center aims to promote responsible research and development, create jobs, and advance AI for the public good.

While these statewide initiatives are commendable, there is still widespread confusion around proper implementation of AI in business in New York. For instance, according to BDO’s CFO Outlook Survey, across all New York CFOs surveyed, 1 in 3 have not yet formalized a policy for generative AI usage. Looking specifically at New York technology CFOs, a smaller subset of the data collected, 62% say their employees do not have a clear understanding of policies and processes related to data collection and processing.

ness operations, those who take a proactive and thoughtful approach to generative AI can gain market share now and reap success in the future.

Establish privacy protocols and fraud prevention

Russell Diller is an assurance principal with BDO, an international network of public accountants and tax advisers.

That’s because embracing AI in business is more than just new tools or grappling with evolving legislation. It’s a mindset shift. And in an era where AI is rapidly becoming integral to busi -

PERSONAL VIEW

AI is an invaluable tool for decision-making, brainstorming, automating processes and improving accuracy. However, it also presents significant challenges. Bad actors can exploit AI to fabricate identities and documents with unprecedented credibility and realism. To mitigate AI risks, companies must proactively establish robust technical and physical safeguards to protect personal information, prevent data leaks, and ensure unauthorized access is averted. And while New York technology CFOs are ahead of most other technology CFOs across the country with privacy protection (85% of New York’s technology CFOs plan to deploy privacy technologies to combat future breaches vs. 42% of technology CFOs nationally), there is a rising threat of data breaches as reliance on AI to organize personal information increases. It is key for fraud prevention

and risk management departments to work closely with data protection professionals as it can reduce the potential for privacy breaches and identity theft. It is also important for businesses to do more than improve their company’s data privacy positioning; they must also find ways to communicate their policies to customers. Transparent data privacy policies and the documentation to back them up can help companies build trust in a world where it’s quickly disappearing.

Strengthening AI systems through effective data management

Data is the building block of AI systems. Managing that data with tactics, such as data mapping and inventory management, is essential to building resilience against AI's risks. BDO’s survey shows that only 23% of the smaller sampling of New York technology companies surveyed have already begun deploying these tactics, compared to 51% of technology CFOs across the country. Building resilience against AI risks requires an effective data governance strategy that prioritizes data management, quality control and collaboration across business functions. By digitizing as much data as possible and applying an agreed-upon methodology, organizations can reduce disrup -

Airport service workers demand more workplace support. It’s time we listen.

Service workers at John F. Kennedy, LaGuardia, and Newark Liberty International airports gathered this month to protest stagnating wages and inadequate bene ts, pushing the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey to update its existing workplace standards rules so that all airport service workers’ compensation keeps up with rising costs. ese workers — including cleaners, wheelchair agents, baggage handlers, caterers, concessions and cargo workers — report struggling to stretch their wages enough to cover basic living necessities, like rent, utilities and car payments, while also fearing the loss of health care coverage.

Karla Walter is a senior fellow for inclusive economic policy at the Center for American Progress.

Research shows that when airport service workers are poorly compensated, the public also pays the price as airports struggle to retain quali ed workers. By raising its minimum standards now, the Port Authority could support safer, more e cient air travel for countless Americans every day.

Yet, current airport workplace standards in New York and New Jersey are stagnating as the cost of living climbs, jeopardizing the region’s ability to attract and retain a well-quali ed workforce. Without Port Authority action, the $19-per-hour mini-

mum wage for all regional airport workers will stay at, as will the health care bene t contributions for workers at JFK and LGA. is may mean thousands of low-wage workers losing their current healthcare plans, a devastating blow to New York working families that could also result in higher reliance on public assistance. Even now, many service workers in concessions, retail, cargo handling and other services as well as all part-time workers in New York are excluded from existing bene ts. e reality is many of these standards fall short of other national leaders. For example, jurisdictions governing the Los Angeles, Seattle and Chicago airports have all adopted pay standards that rise automatically with increasing costs. San Francisco requires employers at its airport to provide health care coverage for service workers and their families at no cost. And Philadelphia’s airport standard covers concessions workers and includes a bene ts supplement that increases periodically.

Inadequate worker compensation doesn’t just harm airport workers; the public bears hidden costs by providing services to supplement airport employers’

poverty wages — like housing, nutrition assistance and Medicaid. If New York’s standard is not updated to re ect the cost of health insurance, costs to public programs could also rise, as workers previously covered by employer health insurance plans could be forced onto the Medicaid rolls.

Coupled with a tight labor market and high turnover, airline and airport employers will fail to maintain a well-quali ed workforce, reducing airport e ciency and security. What’s more, we rely on airport and airline service workers to help respond to emergencies like extreme weather events, active shooter situations and terrorist attacks.

Research shows strong airport standards produce good outcomes for the public. A study of San Francisco Airport showed that among security screeners, turnover fell from nearly 95% to just 19% after a wage standard was adopted, saving employers thousands of dollars per employee in re-sta ng costs. Similarly, the Port of Seattle found low wages, poor bene ts and other job quality factors drove high turnover rates before it adopted its own workplace standard.

ere’s a long-established link between airport workplace standards and positive outcomes for the public. A federal study conducted in 2000 found that low wages led to high turnover among security screen-

tions caused by new or dissonant data, be it from a business acquisition or an enterprise resource planning (ERP) system implementation. Establishing master data management provides uniform processes for effective data analysis, reduces manual reconciliations, and enables data to be used for multiple purposes, accelerating business growth.

The road ahead: balancing innovation with regulation

As AI technology continues to evolve, so will the regulatory landscape. New York’s proactive measures in regulating AI and investing in AI infrastructure demonstrate a commitment to fostering a secure and innovative technology environment. However, businesses cannot afford to wait for statewide policies to catch up with the rapid pace of AI advancements.

To remain competitive and innovative, New York businesses must proactively address AI risks and establish clear guidelines for AI use. Those that embrace a data-driven approach to AI risk management and develop robust AI policies will reduce vulnerabilities and position themselves as pioneers in the AI landscape. By taking these steps, companies can ensure they are not only compliant with future regulations, but also leaders in ethical AI use.

ers and, consequently, poor performance in detecting dangers. Similarly, a 2007 government report found that low wages and high turnover among ramp and fuel workers contributed to ramp accidents and aircraft entering runways without permission. Finally, implementing wage standards helps level the playing eld for airport employers who respect their employees. Without strong standards, companies that pay good wages and provide decent bene ts can be forced to compete against low-road contractors that undercut the market.  By adopting best practices that uphold parity across all airports, the Port Authority could catch up with other national airport leaders. Ensuring wages and bene ts increase with rising costs, supporting universal access to paid leave, and broadening coverage to include more service workers would not only improve the lives of airport service workers across the region, but it would also increase aviation workforce stability in New York and New Jersey, making air travel safer and more e cient for the public.

BLOOMBERG

PEOPLE ON THE MOVE

To place your listing, visit www.crainsnewyork.com/people-on-the-move or, for more information, contact Debora Stein at 917.226.5470 / dstein@crain.com

ACCOUNTING

Prager Metis

FINANCIAL SERVICES

IDB Bank

FINANCIAL SERVICES

IDB Bank

Prager Metis, a leading global accounting and advisory rm, is pleased to announce the appointment of Jared Mahar as a new Partner in its Tax Department. With nearly two decades of service in the eld of taxation, Jared brings a wealth of expertise in investment partnership taxation and a proven track record of delivering exceptional client service to the rm. His specialized focus includes, emerging managers, registered investment advisers, and family of ce fund structures.

ADVERTISING / PR / MARKETING

Weber Shandwick

Weber Shandwick has announced the appointment of Ben Branham as Head of New York Corporate & Public Affairs. In his new role, Branham will oversee 70+ employees on an integrated team that re ects the agency’s recent expansion in corporate and public affairs. Branham served as the CCO for The Port Authority of New York & New Jersey from 2018 to 2022, where he led comms on key projects including the total overhaul of LaGuardia Airport and the 20th anniversary of 9/11.

EDUCATION

Green Ivy International Schools

Gabriella Rowe has been named Chief Executive Of cer at Green Ivy International Schools and its parent company, KSS Immersion Schools, a top-tier language immersion school and multilingual programs. With over 15 years of transformative leadership experience as Head of School at The Mandell School in NYC and the Village School in Houston, she plans to spearhead the East Coast expansion of the Green Ivy brands, including Battery Park Montessori and Pine Street School, both located in NYC.

Nadav H. Schwartz joins IDB Lido Wealth with over 17 years of experience in Private Wealth Management. He provides customized investment strategies, sophisticated planning, and family-of ce solutions for entrepreneurs, executives, and multigenerational families. Nadav holds the NASAA Series 65 & 63 licenses and has robust experience in building investment portfolios with notable nancial institutions. He works extensively with clients to enhance their nancial decisionmaking.

LEGAL

Benesch

Ana Bou-Goldsmith has joined IDB Lido Wealth, a Registered Investment Adviser and joint venture between IDB Bank and Lido Advisors, LLC, as Senior Vice President & Senior Wealth Manager. Leveraging more than 15 years of industry experience, she helps to drive portfolio growth, as well as investment strategy and planning across the rm’s highnet-worth clientele. A seasoned wealth manager, Ana holds a NASAA Series 65 license.

LEGAL SERVICES

Tannenbaum Helpern Syracuse & Hirschtritt LLP

Eric Schlabs focuses his practice on litigation. He has extensive experience handling bet-thecompany disputes, including trade secret, trademark, patent, antitrust, breach of contract, class action, corporate governance, nancial fraud, unfair competition, digital assets, securities, and founders’ disputes. Eric’s career has encompassed all phases of litigation, from pre-suit investigation to trial, and spanned federal and state courts, arbitration, and administrative agency proceedings.

Tannenbaum Helpern proudly announces the arrival of partner Howard W. Kingsley to the Firm’s Litigation and Dispute Resolution practice. Howard is known for his strategic approach to cases and a tenacious litigation style, as well as his successful history of litigating important cases in New York state and federal courts. Howard’s extensive expertise in real estate, commercial and construction litigation makes him a soughtafter asset in complex, highstakes litigation.

NOTABLE REAL ESTATE LEADERS

It’s no exaggeration to say that real estate has been a driving force behind New York City’s economic vitality over the centuries. A recent Columbia Business School article cautions, however, that “the rise of remote work, declining commercial property values, and the resulting decreased tax revenue demand bold solutions.”

Fortunately, this dynamic sector consistently attracts some of the boldest thinkers in business, as evidenced by the 79 real estate professionals we spotlight in this issue. Whatever their role, each of these leaders is pushing the boundaries of development, design, construction, leasing and sales to keep New York City a vibrant heart of real estate innovation and economic growth. Read on to celebrate these trailblazers and their contributions to the essential fabric of the city.

Methodology: Featured honorees were nominated by peers, companies and acquaintances. Crain’s New York Business editors selected nominated honorees based on their accomplishments and success and contributions to their industry and community, as outlined in the eligibility section of the nomination form.

Nessa Amamoo

Partner, Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom

Scope of work: Nessa Amamoo is a partner at the law rm Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom. She holds experience with large-scale construction and development projects, casino and gaming transactions, U.S. and offshore private placements, real estate investment trusts, leasing and real estate-related capital markets and syndicated loan transactions.

Biggest career win: Amamoo helped represent the gaming company Las Vegas Sands in connection with its pursuit of a downstate New York gaming license and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey with the redevelopment plan for John F. Kennedy International Airport.

Other contributions: Amamoo is a trustee of the New York Academy of Medicine and represents The Eye-Care Foundation pro bono.

Melissa Billig

Partner and co-chair of construction and design practice, Tannenbaum Helpern Syracuse and Hirschtritt

Scope of work: Melissa Billig is partner and co-chair of legal services company Tannenbaum Halpern Syracuse and Hirschtritt’s construction and design practice group. She oversees multimilliondollar development projects for commercial, residential, religious and educational buildings.

Biggest career win: Billig expanded the construction and design capabilities of the company to construction, design and real estate projects incorporating her diverse client base of architects, designers and engineers in the New York area.

Other contributions: Billig co-chairs her rm’s diversity, equity and inclusion committee as well as the sustainability committee of the Women Builders Council. She previously served on the board of The Center of Architecture for more than 10 years.

Shlomi Avdoo

Principal and founder, Avdoo and Partners

Scope of work: Shlomi Avdoo, principal and founder of 10-yearold real estate company Avdoo and Partners, directs acquisitions, strategic development, nancing, construction and marketing.

Biggest career win: Avdoo united development and construction, facilitating his team’s ability to ensure value engineering, product quality and achievable construction timelines, all while fostering a people- rst culture that is re ected in community partnerships and amenities. Other contributions: Avdoo has volunteered for more than six years with Project Sunshine, a nonpro t that sends volunteers to hospitals to provide companionship to pediatric patients and their families. He also actively integrates local artists and businesses into company development projects.

Will Blodgett

Founder and chief executive of cer, Tredway

Scope of work: As founder and chief executive of cer of real estate developer Tredway, Will Blodgett leads all strategic decision-making, including sourcing investment transactions and investment decisions.

Biggest career win: Blodgett expanded Tredway’s footprint across the country with 3,500 units owned in nine states and 1,500 units in development in New York City. The rm recently acquired Sea Park Apartments in Brooklyn, Midtown Towers in Pittsburgh and 14 properties in North Carolina.

Other contributions: Blodgett sits on the board of the Affordable Housing Tax Credit Coalition and is a trustee of the Citizens Budget Commission. He also serves on the board of the Children’s Museum of Manhattan and the American Institute for Stuttering.

Benjamin Bass

Executive managing director, JLL

Scope of work: Benjamin Bass, executive managing director at real estate company JLL, specializes in representing landlords and tenants in the high-end sector of ce market. He has helped clients through underwriting and acquisition executions, new construction and developments and complicated lease renewals.

Biggest career win: Bass helped rearrange more than 800,000 square feet of leases at SL Green’s One Madison Avenue, helping to reinvigorate the Midtown South market and attract companies such as IBM, Coinbase and FanDuel to the neighborhood.

Other contributions: Bass is chair of the Next Generation board at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum and works on national JLL initiatives, including the rm’s leadership counsel advisory board.

Dale Burnett

Managing director and co-founder, BIG Equity Investors

Scope of work: At real estate platform BIG Equity Investors, managing director and cofounder Dale Burnett spearheads investment strategy, sourcing and acquisitions of real estate assets. He boasts more than two decades of experience and this past year executed $800 million of transactions alongside minority investors.

Biggest career win: Along with Basis Investment Group, Burnett founded BIG Equity Investors, forming partnerships with rms and innovating investment structures that empower retail investors of color.

Other contributions: Burnett serves as chairman of the board of Praxis Housing Initiatives and board director of the New York State Real Estate Board and the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation.

Jonathan Bennett

President, AmTrust Realty

Scope of work: Jonathan Bennett manages property management company AmTrust Realty’s more than 10 million-square-foot portfolio of commercial and multifamily properties, guiding the rm’s strategic approach and overseeing investment activity, capital improvements and leasing initiatives. He manages a team of more than 100 employees and 14 properties.

Biggest career win: In 2023, Bennett spearheaded physical upgrades to many of AmTrust RE’s properties. Among other notable projects, he was involved in the 36,500-square-foot retail lease with Fitness International at 59 Maiden Lane, one of New York City’s largest retail leases of the year. Other contributions: Bennett, who volunteers at a local nonpro t focused on delivering food to those in need, also serves on Yeshiva University’s real estate committee.

Partner and head of New York real estate group, Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom

Scope of work: Marco Caffuzzi is partner and head of the New York real estate group at law rm Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom. He advises clients including Brook eld Properties and JPMorgan Chase on transactions and was involved in restructurings for the American Dream Mall in New Jersey as well as 9 DeKalb in Downtown Brooklyn. Biggest career win: Caffuzzi is currently representing real estate development company Silverstein Properties in connection with the development of 2 World Trade Center.

Other contributions: Caffuzzi has represented the New York Theater Workshop pro bono in connection with its expansion into a custom theater and production facility.

Marco Caffuzzi

David Carlos

Head of nonpro t, education and government practice of New York, JLL

Scope of work: David Carlos is head of real estate company

JLL’s nonpro t, education and government practice in New York. He focuses on strategic planning, portfolio analysis, acquisitions, dispositions and ground-up development for clients including the City University of New York, New York Presbyterian Hospital and the New York Public Library.

Biggest career win: Carlos recently secured a contract with Weill Cornell Medicine to evaluate their 3.4 millionsquare-foot portfolio.

Other contributions: Carlos, who is a three-time recipient of the Most Ingenious Deal of the Year Award from the Real Estate Board of New York, also serves on the building committee at Larchmont Temple in Westchester.

Peter Chavkin

Managing member, Biddle Real Estate Ventures

Scope of work: Peter Chavkin, managing member of Biddle Real Estate Ventures, oversees the development of the $1 billion mixed-use, transit-oriented Edge-on-Hudson community in Westchester County. He also oversees the team focusing on East Coast projects with a budget exceeding $1.2 billion.

Biggest career win: Chavkin is set to develop housing, a boutique hotel, retail space and of ce space in the Edge-on-Hudson community, with all completed units and rental units sold out and leased, respectively. The project won the National Association of Home Builders Silver Award for Multifamily Community of the Year in 2020.

Other contributions: Chavkin has supported the educational nonpro t Historic Hudson Valley as well as the Hudson Valley Make-a-Wish Foundation.

Melissa Cohn

Regional vice president, William Raveis Mortgage

Scope of work: Melissa Cohn is regional vice president for mortgage lender William Raveis Mortgage, managing mortgage operations in Florida and leading a private practice in New York.

Biggest career win: Cohn has been consistently ranked as a top originator nationwide in recent years by the nancial institution Scotsman Guide and Mortgage Women Magazine. She is frequently quoted by news outlets including CNBC, Business Insider, CNN and The Wall Street Journal.

Other contributions: Cohn sits on the board of the Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation and is treasurer of the board of the Ellen Hermanson Foundation, which works to help breast cancer patients. She is also a former governor of the Real Estate Board of New York.

NOTE WORTHY

$4.9B

Greg Corbin

President, Northgate Real Estate Group

Scope of work: As president of Northgate Real Estate Group, Greg Corbin oversees the operations of the company and works as lead broker on deals. He focuses on originating new business and negotiating transactions, and also works on business development and brand building.

Biggest career win: Corbin founded Northgate Real Estate Group in 2023 to focus on bankruptcy, foreclosure and restructuring arenas. He and his team have arranged for the sale, workout or recapitalization of 49 buildings, development sites, membership interests or loans.

Other contributions: Corbin co-founded Give2Give Foundation in 2015, an organization supporting people facing mental, physical or nancial burdens to their health and well-being.

Craig Deitelzweig

President and chief executive of cer, Marx Realty

Scope of work: As president and CEO of real estate company Marx Realty, Craig Deitelzweig oversees development, construction, leasing and property management. He also manages 5 million square feet of commercial of ce, retail and residential space.

Biggest career win: Deitelzweig recently oversaw the construction of 10 Grand Central, Marx Realty’s foray into hotel-style of ce buildings. He has also worked on the 1.4 millionsquare-foot Cross County Center in Yonkers, an open-air shopping center.

Other contributions: Deitelzweig is an Urban Land Institute mentor and sits on the nonpro t’s ULI New York committee. He also serves on advisory boards at Tulane University, Shadow Ventures and Merchants National Properties.

Buckingham Palace is the most expensive residence on Earth, valued at

$4.9 billion.

Craig Desmond

Founder and chief executive of cer, Ecotone

Scope of work: Craig Desmond works as founder and CEO of Ecotone, a company using woodworking to enhance community wellness. Desmond and his team design high-end spas, gardens and retreats for top developers and high-net-worth individuals. Biggest career win: Desmond helped Ecotone secure a contract with the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation to install 15 community garden structures, in line with the company’s vision for urban wellness. Other contributions: Desmond has built public parks and gardens to foster community wellness and has worked to educate youth through woodworking apprenticeships, reaching more than 100 children. Ecotone has received support from The Doe Fund, Green City Force and Apex Trade School.

Scott Durkin

President and chief executive of cer, Douglas Elliman

Scope of work: Scott Durkin is president and CEO of real estate company Douglas Elliman. With three decades of experience, he directs the brokerage’s operations, technology initiatives and strategic growth efforts.

Biggest career win: Under Durkin’s leadership, Douglas Elliman expanded its national footprint to include Texas; Nevada; Mid-Valley in Basalt, Colorado; Washington, D.C.; Virginia; Maryland, Naples, Vero Beach, Weston, Sarasota and Santa Rosa Beach in Florida; Wellesley and Nantucket in Massachusetts; Fair Haven in New Jersey and a joint alliance with Knight Frank in the Bahamas.

Other contributions: Durkin sits on the boards of nonpro ts God’s Love We Deliver and Have a Heart Animal Welfare Fund.

(Forbes)

Blima Ehrentreu

Founder and chief executive of cer, The Designers Group

Scope of work: Blima Ehrentreu is founder and CEO of The Designers Group, an interior design rm specializing in residential and commercial interiors. She focuses on streamlining operations, delegating responsibilities and promoting the rm to potential clients and partners.

Biggest career win: Ehrentreu expanded the rm into New York and Miami, and has developed initiatives including TDG Tech Hub and TDG Virtual Team with the goal of enhancing ef ciency and client engagement.

Other contributions: Ehrentreu founded TDG Gives Back, a program that supports local community initiatives and serves residents in senior living communities that the rm designs. She also established TDG Furniture Exchange, connecting people in need with donated furniture.

James Famularo

President of retail leasing, Meridian Capital Group

Scope of work: At commercial real estate brokerage Meridian Capital Group, James Famularo is president of retail leasing. He started the division in 2018 and has expanded the team to include more than 60 brokers since.

Biggest career win: Famularo was able to close 200 deals in 2020 despite the Covid-19 pandemic, with noteworthy leases including Brooklyn Chop House and a 20,000-square-foot restaurant near Times Square.

Other contributions: Famularo sits on the Real Estate Board of New York’s retail committee and is a member of the International Council of Shopping Centers. He also writes a column in The New York Real Estate Journal, discussing market trends on a quarterly basis.

Bess Freedman

Chief executive of cer, Brown Harris Stevens

Scope of work: Bess Freedman, CEO of luxury brokerage rm Brown Harris Stevens, oversees more than 2,200 agents and 44 of ces. She has built a team of tech, marketing and managerial experts and is responsible for instituting new policies to maintain industry standards.

Biggest career win: Freedman was involved in the successful merger of Brown Harris Stevens and Halstead in 2020, and has since helped the company boost its agent ranks and launch new brand campaigns.

Other contributions: Freedman is a member of the Real Estate Board of New York’s board of governors, the Fordham Real Estate Institute’s executive advisory council and the board of The Bridge, a male-centric sober luxury living home.

Mark D. Friedman

Licensed real estate salesperson, Brown Harris Stevens

Scope of work: Mark D. Friedman is a licensed real estate salesperson at luxury brokerage rm Brown Harris Stevens, where he leads the Friedman Rosenthal team. He specializes in Manhattan neighborhoods, including Soho, Tribeca, and the Upper West and Upper East sides, and has been successfully marketing properties in video format.

Biggest career win: Friedman was chosen from thousands of brokers to sell musician Sting’s apartment, responsible for dealing with sensitive issues and respecting the privacy of selling a celebrity property.

Other contributions: Friedman has raised funds for cancer charities including the American Cancer Society. He is a member of the Real Estate Board of New York and The Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists.

Raja Ghawi

Partner, Era Ventures

Scope of work: Raja Ghawi is partner at venture capital rm Era Ventures, which invests in projects or ideas that use technology and innovation to reimagine the built environment. In that role, he supports the company’s founders and plays a key role in various fundraising and operational activities.

Biggest career win: Ghawi has been instrumental in Era Ventures’ growth since the rm’s inception, most notably his involvement in all eight of the investments made by the company to date.

Other contributions: Ghawi recently became involved in Cycle for the Cause, a three-day, 275-mile bike ride from Boston to New York that aims to raise money and awareness in the ght against HIV/AIDS.

NOTE WORTHY

$1.4B Investors today can buy properties in the virtual world on the Metaverse platform, a $1.4 billion market that’s expected to grow dramatically over the next few years.

(The New York Times)

Keyvan Ghaytanchi

Chief investment of cer, BEB Capital

Scope of work: Keyvan Ghaytanchi has been CIO of real estate investment rm BEB Capital since 2022, working to develop industrial, of ce and multifamily assets throughout the East Coast. He manages the rm’s day-to-day business activities, overseeing transactions and operations including asset management, developments, legal affairs and leasing.

Biggest career win: He spearheaded BEB Lending in March 2020 to provide private and creative nancing solutions for commercial real estate assets in primary and secondary markets across the U.S., with loan sizes ranging from $5 million-$50 million.

Other contributions: He is a board member of Mobile Health, which provides pre-employment health screening services; and Care Connect, which provides technology to home health care agencies.

John Gluszak

Head of real estate, Of ce of the New York City Comptroller

Scope of work: As head of real estate at the Of ce of the New York City Comptroller, John Gluszak oversees the management and growth of the real estate portfolio for all ve New York City retirement systems. He is tasked with strategically investing an additional $2 billion per year.

Biggest career win: Gluszak negotiated a $250 million separate account in 2021 with the Hudson Companies to build quality “green” properties in New York City. This portfolio has created hundreds of workforce housing units, 125 of which are affordable.

Other contributions: Gluszak serves on the board of the Pension Real Estate Association, a nonpro t for the global institutional real estate investment industry.

Jeffrey Goldberg

Chief executive of cer, Fairstead

Scope of work: As real estate developer Fairstead’s CEO, Jeffrey Goldberg leads all operational and investment decision-making. The rm owns more than 170 communities, which in total contain more than 25,000 units, across the country.

Biggest career win: Under Goldberg, Fairstead has closed on more than 10,000 units since 2020. Notably, the Fairstead team recently closed on a preservation project in Brooklyn involving more than 1,600 homes in a New York City Housing Authority PACT deal. In addition, Affordable Housing Finance recently named Fairstead a top company in completing acquisitions and substantial rehabilitations.

Other contributions: Goldberg supports and serves on the Child Psychiatry advisory board of Mount Sinai Hospital.

Adam Gordon

Managing partner, Wild ower Limited

Scope of work: Adam Gordon, founder and managing partner of Wild ower Limited, creates and evolves the real estate developer’s strategy, oversees design and acquisitions and focuses on creating real estate infrastructure for New York City.

Biggest career win: Wild ower is opening a new lm studio in NYC that will aim to provide more than 1,000 union jobs for local lm creatives. The company is also creating a new public electric-vehicle supercharger station at John F. Kennedy International Airport as part of its mission to advance the clean energy transition.

Other contributions: Gordon was previously a director’s cabinet member at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of California, San Diego.

Eric Gotsch

New York market manager, Wells Fargo Home Lending

Scope of work: Eric Gotsch leads the home mortgage retail sales team in New York City and Long Island, including three regional of ces and more than 125 employees. For the past four years, Gotsch has held the title of #1 Market Manager for Wells Fargo Home Lending.

Biggest career win: In 2023, he launched Wells Fargo’s Homebuyer Access Grants, which offers $10,000 grants applied toward the down payment for buyers purchasing homes in underserved communities.

Other contributions: Gotsch participates in the National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals, the Asian Real Estate Association of America, the Real Estate Board of New York, the National Bar Association and the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.

NOTE WORTHY

$90,773

Laurie Grasso

Partner and global real estate co-head, Hunton Andrews Kurth

Scope of work: Laurie Grasso is partner and global real estate co-head of real estate rm Hunton Andrews Kirth. She leads a team of more than 200 lawyers to collaborate on industry trends and works to ensure exemplary services.

Biggest career win: Dedicated to nding creative solutions for clients, including exploring alternative capital avenues and different nancing strategies, Grasso has closed dozens of transactions valued at more than $2.5 billion in the past year.

Other contributions: Grasso spearheads the rm’s legal partnership with Project Destined, which works to transform minority youth into owners throughout their communities. She also serves as co-chair for Rebuilding New York’s “She Builds” program.

Katherine Gray

Development director, Gilbane Development Company

Scope of work: Katherine Gray, development director at Gilbane Development Company, leads the affordable housing platform for New York. She oversees project concepts, community engagement and nancing strategies, managing a budget of $870 million.

Biggest career win: Gray led her rm’s successful bid for the New York City Housing Authorityissued Manhattanville project, which involves renovating more than 1,200 apartments across six buildings.

Other contributions: Gray was previously a member of the American Institute of Certi ed Planners within the American Planning Association. She also co-founded Place in History, serving as a grant writer and project developer for communityfocused installations, publications and education programs.

Average annual earnings for a real estate agent in New York State is $90,773; nationwide, that gure is $85,793. (Zip Recruiter)

Kevelyn Guzman

Regional vice president, Coldwell Banker Warburg

Scope of work: Kevelyn Guzman is regional vice president at real estate company Coldwell Banker Warburg, overseeing hundreds of agents while managing all departments. She also leads the “What Moves Her” campaign, aiming to empower women through events and panels.

Biggest career win: In her previous role as chief operating of cer, Guzman helped rebrand the company under the 2021 Coldwell Banker Global Luxury program and played a key role in the acquisition of Warburg Realty.

Other contributions: Guzman is a member of the Real Estate Board of New York Fellows Leadership Program and has participated in Kids Walk for Kids with Cancer, a walkathon supporting pediatric cancer research at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.

Elizabeth Hart

President of leasing in North America, Newmark

Scope of work: Elizabeth Hart is president of leasing in North America for commercial real estate and advisory rm Newmark, overseeing operating businesses in the U.S. and Canada. She is responsible for leasing strategy and supporting advisers and clients. Hart fosters cross-platform synergies, enhances ef ciencies and boosts leasing revenue growth.

Biggest career win: Hart has assembled a tenant representation platform and orchestrated collaboration across service lines. She also advocates for arti cial intelligence initiatives, committed to innovation and client satisfaction.

Other contributions: Hart is a member of the Young Presidents Organization, a community of chief executives, and supports the Robot Heart Foundation. She works to mentor talent across the Newmark platform.

Marcene Hedayati

Principal broker, Corcoran Legends Realty

Scope of work: Marcene Hedayati has been principal broker, owner and manager of real estate agency Corcoran Legends Realty since its inception. Formed in 2007, the company aims to provide quality customer experience through technology and leadership support.

Biggest career win: During the Covid-19 pandemic, Hedayati and her team navigated hybrid and remote work models to adapt and improve digital and virtual efforts to help clients safely nd homes. Other contributions: Hedayati is involved in various community events that Corcoran Legends Realty sponsors, including street fairs, music festivals and sidewalk sales. She was previously part of the Hudson Gateway Association of Realtors, the New York State Association of Realtors and the National Association of Realtors.

Dov Hertz

Founder and principal, DH Property Holdings

Scope of work: Dov Hertz, founder and principal of real estate developer DH Property Holdings, is responsible for investment policies and strategic direction. He has overseen the development of more than 6 million square feet of industrial assets and assembled a portfolio of more than 1.5 million square feet of existing industrial properties.

Biggest career win: Hertz helped develop the rst spec multistory warehouse on the East Coast in Brooklyn in partnership with Goldman Sachs Asset Management, which was immediately leased to Amazon.

Other contributions: Hertz has helped fund school programs and sponsors a program for Telem, a nonpro t based in Israel that provides college and technical school scholarships to students from underserved communities.

Les Hiscoe

Chief executive of cer, Shawmut Design and Construction

Scope of work: Les Hiscoe is CEO of Shawmut Design and Construction, overseeing the $1.6 billion construction management rm with more than 1,300 employees. Working to create a differentiated customer experience, he has collaborated with executive leadership to ensure client service and develop teams emphasizing diversity, equity and inclusion.

Biggest career win: Hiscoe implemented a growth plan that increased revenue from 2022 to 2023 by 35%. He has been part of projects involving sites including St. John’s University, Taconic Partners’ life sciences hub and the New York Public Library Aguilar Branch.

Other contributions: Hiscoe is a trustee at Roger Williams University and a corporation member of Construction Industry Round Table.

Peyton Horn

Vice chair, Cushman & Wake eld

Scope of work: Serving as vice chair of commercial real estate agency Cushman & Wake eld, Peyton Horn is responsible for advising top corporate clients and delivering analytical, data-driven expertise. He has also served as co-head of the strategic advisory group since 2017, consulting on complex of ce assignments and focusing on anchor tenant and headquarters transactions for corporate users.

Biggest career win: Horn has been instrumental in representing various ground-up and redevelopment projects, including the Metlife Headquarters extension, Franklin Templeton Headquarters consolidation, Weill Cornell Life Science facility, Fiserv Headquarters and New York Presbyterian Headquarters.

Other contributions: Horn is an active member of the Real Estate Board of New York.

John Horowitz

Senior vice president and division manager, Marcus and Millichap

Scope of work: John Horowitz, senior vice president and division manager of commercial property company Marcus and Millichap’s Northeast division, manages more than 200 brokers across of ces on the East Coast. He oversees day-to-day operations and drives strategic growth, with his division generating upwards of $100 million annually.

Biggest career win: He led the advancement of the Northeast division in the U.S. and Canada, helping train and develop agents and managers. He has created several specialized training programs and improved the division’s position and performance.

Other contributions: Horowitz is president of Brooklyn’s largest Reform synagogue, Congregation Beth Elohim, and serves as a board member of the Greenpoint Manufacturing Design Center.

NOTE WORTHY $125

Midtown Manhattan’s Plaza District was the most expensive of ce space submarket in the fourth quarter of 2023, with an average rent of $125 per square foot.

(Commercial Search)

Ted Hunter

Partner, Manatt, Phelps and Phillips

Scope of work: Ted Hunter is a partner at law rm Manatt, Phelps and Phillips, working as a dealmaker in development projects for U.S. military bases and private equity rms.

Biggest career win: Hunter assisted in the privatization of lodging on more than 26 U.S. military bases, including a 50-year ground lease, hotel management agreement and $815 million construction loan facility.

Other contributions: Hunter is a member of the New York State Bar Association, the Real Estate Board of New York and the Young Real Estate Professionals of New York. He served as a member of the board of trustees of Bergen County’s Elisabeth Morrow School.

Helene Jacobson

Executive managing director of U.S. practice lead valuation and advisory, Newmark

Scope of work: Helene Jacobson serves as executive managing director and U.S. practice leader for commercial real estate and advisory rm Newmark’s valuation and advisory practice. She has integrated technology and specialty practices and helped expand the rm’s international practice to nearly 900 valuation professionals.

Biggest career win: Jacobson has expanded the valuation and advisory practice to cover more than 65 of ces and reach annual revenues exceeding $165 million.

Other contributions: Jacobson serves on the board of the Appraisal Institute’s New York Metro Chapter and advises students with Project Destined, a social-impact platform offering training for careers in real estate development.

CONGRATULATIONS

BUCK ENNIS

Joanna Kandel

Director, Camber Property Group

Scope of work: Joanna Kandel oversees new development projects, provides oversight and assistance to junior staff, manages contractors, prepares proposals and analyzes acquisition opportunities. She also represents the rm at meetings with lenders, business partners, government agencies and community stakeholders.

Biggest career win: Kandel successfully helped facilitate the development of more than 700 new units of affordable rental, homeownership and senior housing opportunities across six new developments at the Stevenson Commons in the Bronx.

Other contributions: Kandel volunteers for multiple causes, including universal child care, public transit access and improving recreational facilities. She previously served as a board member for Women in Housing and Finance for six years.

Ayush Kapahi

Principal and founding partner, HKS Real Estate Advisors

Scope of work: Ayush Kapahi is principal and founding partner of HKS Real Estate Advisors, which specializes in long-term and short-term debt in the form of bridge, mezzanine, construction and permanent nancing. He has led the rm’s growth into multiple verticals, including investment sales, direct lending and groundup development.

Biggest career win: In 2021, Kapahi arranged a $75 million re nance of a high-rise apartment building comprising 359 residential units and 21,700 square feet of commercial space.

Other contributions: During the pandemic, HKS partnered with City Harvest and Kapahi’s personal network to raise $25,000 for the organization. Kapahi also mentors those entering the real estate industry through a summer internship program at HKS.

Dan Kaplan

Senior partner, FXCollaborative

Scope of work: Dan Kaplan works toward a more sustainable future through innovative architecture and urban design. He has worked on Brooklyn’s 1 Willoughby Square, the Bronx’s La Central, Queens’ Jamaica Crossing, Staten Island’s River North and Manhattan’s 3ELEVEN.

Biggest career win: He displayed his dedication to environmental stewardship and collaboration in Brooklyn’s 1 Willoughby Square; the building’s innovative architectural concept and addition to Downtown Brooklyn’s skyline has led to high leasing rates.

Other contributions: Kaplan is co-chair of the executive committee for Cornell’s College of Architecture, his alma mater. He is also a founding member of the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat’s equity, diversity and inclusion committee.

NOTE WORTHY

$4B

Robert Lapidus

Valerie

Kelly

Partner, Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson

Scope of work: In her role, Valerie Kelly advises commercial real estate investors and developers, of ce and retail tenants, investment funds, banks and other nancial institutions on large commercial real estate transactions.

Biggest career win: During the Covid-19 pandemic, Kelly advised clients on various commercial leases, including Citadel’s 10-year lease of a 585,000-square-foot of ce space and a 390,000-square-foot lease of its future headquarters. She also advised the Hospital for Special Surgery’s 32-year, 200,000-square-foot lease.

Other contributions: Kelly serves as a board member of the Legal Aid Society of The District of Columbia and is a member of The Economic Club of Washington, D.C.

Nicole Kushner Meyer

President, Kushner

Scope of work: As president of the real estate agency, Nicole Kushner Meyer spearheads deal sourcing, investor relations and execution of real estate development. She oversees an extensive real estate portfolio encompassing $2.6 billion in transactions in 2023, 26,500 apartments, 2.2 million square feet of retail, 5.2 million square feet of of ce space and 688 hotel keys.

Biggest career win: Kushner Meyer secured approval for the redevelopment of Monmouth Mall in Eatontown, New Jersey, and has signed leases with national retailers including Whole Foods and Barnes & Noble.

Other contributions: Kushner Meyer has served on New York University’s Dean’s Advisory Council and volunteers for the Met Council. She is also a member of the National Home Builders Association.

Columbia University is the largest private landowner in New York City, with 320 properties valued at nearly $4 billion.

(Curbed)

Vivian Liao

President and chief investment of cer, L&L Holding Company

Scope of work: As president and chief investment of cer of real estate developer L&L Holding, Robert Lapidus leads capital formation, nancing efforts and acquisition and disposition activity. He has been involved in more than $20 billion of transactions involving capital formation, nancings and restructuring.

Biggest career win: In 2022, Lapidus and the L&L team opened 425 Park Avenue, the rst new of ce tower in the Plaza District in upwards of 50 years. The tower is 90% leased and Lapidus has helped secure a re nancing package.

Other contributions: Lapidus is a member of the Young Presidents Organization and sits on the board of directors of the Madison Square Park Conservancy.

Co-founder and principal, Totem

Scope of work: In her role at the real estate development rm, Vivian Liao works to expand affordable housing, job creation and economic development in underserved neighborhoods. She leads branding, narrative strategy and real estate advisory work for community-based organizations.

Biggest career win: In 2024, Liao helped launch Ailanthus, an impact housing platform working to mitigate New York City’s housing crisis through the creation of 10,000 housing units over the next ve years and seeding $1.5 billion in projects, focusing on Brooklyn.

Other contributions: Liao is a board member and chair of the advancement committee for Brooklyn Org. She has aided the public foundation in expanding its platform and launching its rst public service announcement campaign.

Pamela Liebman

President and chief executive of cer, The Corcoran Group

Scope of work: Pamela Liebman oversees The Corcoran Group’s 4,500 employees and various corporate projects as president and CEO. She has grown the company from $2 billion in sales to more than $23 billion.

Biggest career win: Liebman launched the Corcoran Af liate Network in 2020, a strategic vision that grew to 10 markets within the rst year and has helped the rm comprise more than 100 of ces and 4,500 salespersons in urban, suburban and resort markets worldwide.

Other contributions: Liebman is a member of the University of Miami’s Master of Real Estate Development and Urbanism Advisory Board as well as the Real Estate Board of New York.

Regina Loveridge

Director of housing operations, JASA

Scope of work: Regina Loveridge is director of housing operations for the largest nonpro t manager of senior housing in New York City. She oversees the coordination of complex tenant-in-place unit renovations and manages the implementation of enhanced security systems and property design upgrade initiatives.

Biggest career win: Loveridge has a critical role at Casa Celina, a 204-unit senior affordable housing development in the Bronx. She managed the operations of the building during the transition from construction to move-in.

Other contributions: Loveridge is involved with the #JustPay movement, which calls for New York City to end government sanctioned wages affecting tens of thousands of human service workers, predominantly women of color.

Kelly Mack

President, Corcoran Sunshine Marketing Group

Scope of work: Kelly Mack is president of the real estate consultant Corcoran Sunshine Marketing Group, overseeing a portfolio consisting of Hudson Yards, Waterline Square and Greenwich Lane. She leverages two decades of experience to collaborate with developers and designers on residential developments and has empowered more than $60 billion in sales.

Biggest career win: Mack represented one of the most expensive residential real estate sales in U.S. history — the $238 million penthouse at 220 Central Park South — and oversaw the development of Hudson Yards. Other contributions: Mack is vice chairman of the New York University board of trustees and the board’s Next Gen committee, working to identify and mentor the next generation of leaders at NYU.

Gabe Marans

Vice chairman,

Savills North America

Scope of work: Gabe Marans is vice chairman for real estate brokerage rm Savills North America. With more than $2 billion in real estate leased, he guides clients toward innovative solutions and fosters an inclusive team culture.

Biggest career win: During the Covid-19 pandemic, Marans shifted Savills’ clients to exible platforms with customized business strategies. He facilitated a New York headquarters relocation on behalf of Duolingo and helped the Big Ten Conference restructure its of ce lease to achieve a 40% rent reduction. Other contributions: Marans serves on the Jewish Federations of North America’s National Young Leadership Cabinet and is former chairman of New York University’s Bronfman Center.

Laurinda Martins

Partner and deputy co-chair of real estate department, Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson

Scope of work: Laurinda Martins specializes in commercial mortgage, mezzanine and construction nancing on behalf of lenders and borrowers, preferred equity investments, joint ventures and acquisitions and dispositions.

Biggest career win: Martins played an integral role in the construction nancings for Two Manhattan West and Four Manhattan West, as well as the ground lease and joint venture with Silverstein Properties for 5 World Trade Center. She recently steered Brook eld through a $3.8 billion acquisition of Watermark Lodging Trust.

Other contributions: Martins leads the rm’s partnership with Project Destined, a nonpro t that introduces diverse students to business and real estate fundamentals.

When Ryan Simonetti co-founded the premium hospitality company Convene, he was looking to bring what he knew about design, hospitality and lifestyle to traditional commercial real estate assets. He saw the potential to help commercial real estate landlords bring more to their tenants by delivering premium experiences. The New York City-based startup, founded in 2009, soon became a disruptor in the commercial real estate industry.

Today Convene is a global lifestyle brand. It has 39 locations in nine cities, with a portfolio of brands that includes etc. venues, Club 75 and “by Convene” and more than 500 employees.

Along the way Simonetti has been named a Top Entrepreneur by Crain’s and an Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year New York, among many other honors. And he isn’t slowing down. Crain’s caught up with Simonetti recently to gather insights on the future of the workplace, commercial real estate and more.

NOTE WORTHY 1652

The Wyckoff Farmhouse Museum in Brooklyn is the oldest surviving building in New York City; construction began in 1652. (NYHistory)

Lev

Mavashev

Principal, Alpha Realty

Scope of work: As founder and principal, Lev Mavashev oversees strategic decision-making, deal execution and expansion efforts for the real estate agency, which specializes in New York City’s highly competitive multifamily investment sales market.

Biggest career win: Mavashev has led Alpha Realty through numerous industry challenges, including 2019 rent regulation changes, the Covid-19 pandemic and, most recently, an environment of rising interest rates. He has been recognized for three consecutive years by CoStar as the New York City Multifamily Power Broker.

Other contributions: Mavashev is involved with the Community Housing Improvement Program and Small Property Owners of New York nonpro ts. He is also a board member and fundraiser for the Jewish Children’s Museum.

Tom McGee

President and chief operating of cer, ICSC

Scope of work: As president and COO of the International Council of Shopping Centers, Tom McGee oversees strategy and operations, managing nearly 120 employees and enabling the global trade association to host more than 100 live events in 2024. He facilitates dealmaking opportunities and leads discussions on business trends and thought leadership.

Biggest career win: During the pandemic, McGee transitioned all ICSC events to a virtual environment, which resulted in a successful return to signature live events, drawing 64,000 industry professionals in 2023. Other contributions: McGee is a member of the Association Committee of 100 in the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, supporting the organization’s advocacy work for U.S. businesses.

NOTABLE SPOTLIGHT with Ryan Simonetti

Sponsored Content

How an innovator in exible meeting space changed the commercial real estate landscape

What inspired you to start Convene?

While working at a real estate investment rm that primarily invests in hotel and of ce assets, I saw an opportunity to run of ce buildings more like lifestyle hotels, with exible meeting and amenity spaces that companies could use on demand, allowing them to save money. It was a crazy time to start a business with the nancial markets and real estate industry in crisis, but our persistence paid off.

How has the world of work changed since Convene rst launched, and how has Convene changed in response?

The world of work has become increasingly more exible, dynamic and experiential. Over the last 14 years, Convene has evolved into a global hospitality platform that offers a suite of future-of-work solutions. We are the go-to provider of hospitality solutions for landlords; the ultimate venue partner for meeting and event professionals, and the ideal workspace for teams of 5+ seeking a exible yet fully-activated workplace experience. The company’s diverse product mix helps create attractive, lifestyle-driven workplace destinations and monetize otherwise unoccupied spaces.

The pandemic ushered in work-fromhome arrangements, and now many

companies have asked their teams to come back to the of ce. What were some of the lessons from those trends and how is Convene working with building owners to adapt?

Post-pandemic, we’ve seen our clients grow a new appreciation for experiential hospitality and the need for exibility. It’s clear that the future of work is here and calls for a dynamic workplace strategy inclusive of inspiring third places to bring teams together for meetings, events, and exible workspaces. Convene has been at the forefront of bringing hospitality to commercial real estate assets for nearly 15 years and is witnessing an accelerated adoption of experiencedriven solutions from landlords and tenants.

You are also a co-founder of Ease Capital, which is bringing innovation into the world of commercial real estate lending. How does Ease Capital differ from other lenders, and how has the response been in the marketplace?

Ease Capital is a tech-enabled multifamily lending platform that I co-founded and am Chairman of. Ease is focused on providing nancing solutions from $5.0 - $50.0 million for multifamily and mixed-use real estate assets nationally. Given the ongoing challenges within the regional banking

sector, we see a huge opportunity to partner with institutional capital to provide multifamily owners with a diverse set of xed- and oating-rate loan products. Ease Capital stands out because of our speed, structural exibility, and certainty of execution.

You’ve invested in growthstage companies disrupting the commercial real estate industry. Where can we expect to see most of the disruption in the next ve to 10 years?

With Class A+ and Trophy buildings outperforming across asset classes, developers and owners must look towards a holistic repositioning of their buildings. In the next 5-10 years, we will see the rise of buildings-as-a-brand across the commercial real estate sector. These assets will be rich with amenities, powered by technology, infused with hospitality, and run by brands like Convene. I also foresee property management getting replaced with “experience management” as the real value moves from the back-ofhouse to the front-of-house.

WIKIMEDIA

Hank Minskoff

Vice president of preservation, Douglaston Development

Scope of work: In his role at the real estate company, Hank Minskoff spearheads and manages all operations surrounding preservation efforts across the rm’s portfolio, including the proposal, development, underwriting and nancial processes.

Biggest career win: Minskoff’s team was recently awarded a more than $477 million design-build contract for the comprehensive modernization of the New York City Housing Authority’s Saint Nicholas Houses in Harlem, marking the agency’s largest design-build contract and capital project to date.

Other contributions: Minskoff is a member of the Urban Land Institute, a mentor for socialimpact platform Project Destined and a volunteer for the nonpro t Fund for Public Housing.

Danielle Naftali

Executive vice president of marketing and design, Naftali Group

Scope of work: Danielle Naftali leads product development, marketing, sales and leasing for real estate developer Naftali. She collaborates with external sales teams, overseeing all aspects of product development and brand identity.

Biggest career win: Naftali, who established the rm’s brands for uptown projects, played a pivotal role in launching its South Florida arm, which led to Naftali Group’s rst South Florida development, JEM Private Residences.

Other contributions: Naftali contributes to real estate development programs at New York University and Columbia University, collaborating with professors to create case studies. She also works with the Southampton Arts Center and the Real Estate Board of New York.

Bonnie Neuman

Partner, co-chair of the nance group and head of the real estate nance practice, Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft

Scope of work: Bonnie Neuman is a partner, co-chair of the nance group, head of the real estate nance practice and a member of the management committee at law rm Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft. She focuses on commercial properties including of ce buildings and recreational facilities, ranging from single assets to multifamily assets and multi-use projects.

Biggest career win: Neuman represented lenders in the $1.37 billion re nancing of 660 Fifth Avenue, a Manhattan of ce building that was transformed into a modern green facility.

Other contributions: Neuman is a member of the CRE Finance Council Women’s Network and assists Friends of the Children New York City with legal needs.

NOTE WORTHY

$742,930

Matthew Nielsen

Managing director and project and development services leader in New York, Cushman and Wake eld

Scope of work: Matthew Nielsen leads the New York City Project & Development Services group at the real estate company Cushman and Wake eld, where he is managing director. He oversees 28 individuals across six teams in New York and manages 144 projects.

Biggest career win: Nielsen manages the entire real estate lifecycle from pre-lease to postmove, working with top brokerage teams to provide a comprehensive service model. His active projects involve various leading investment rms and major government agencies in New York.

Other contributions: Nielsen collaborates with rm leadership to fundraise and participate in philanthropic initiatives, working to develop best practices and training for the Project & Development Services group.

Josh Plattner

Chief investment of cer, Belveron Partners

Scope of work: Josh Plattner is CIO of investment company Belveron Partners. He leads investment activities and is responsible for the development, acquisition, rehabilitation and disposition of affordable and workforce housing assets.

Biggest career win: In the past three years, Plattner has overseen the acquisition of more than 6,000 units of multifamily housing in high-opportunity urban areas. He partnered with local housing agencies to create affordability restrictions for approximately half of these units, ensuring they will be available to low-income and workforce residents.

Other contributions: Plattner currently serves on the board of directors at the National Housing and Rehabilitation Association, a professional trade association of affordable housing development and nance professionals.

The average price for a home in New York City is $742,930, up 0.3% over the past year.

(Zillow)

Stephen Powers

Co-founder, OPEN Impact Real Estate

Scope of work: Stephen Powers oversees day-to-day operations at the agency and focuses on serving nonpro ts, spearheads strategy implementation, leads team development and manages dozens of projects.

Biggest career win: Powers recently helped the agency form and announce a new strategic alliance with real estate and investment management company Jones Lang LaSalle. This pioneering partnership forms one of the largest woman-owned business commercial real estate platforms in the country.

Other contributions: Powers volunteers with various nonpro ts, including the Grand Street Settlement and The Phipps House. He also offers pro bono consulting to impact organizations each year and is a junior board member for the Museum of Mathematics.

Steven J. Pozycki

Founder, chairman and chief executive of cer, SJP Properties

Scope of work: Steven J. Pozycki is founder, chairman and CEO of real estate development rm SJP Properties, which manages more than 30 million square feet of trophy assets. He established an SJP Project Solutions division to improve the rm’s growth strategy.

Biggest career win: Under Pozycki’s leadership, SJP Properties attracted clients including Valley Bank, Deloitte, Sano and industrial research lab Nokia Bell Labs. The developer plans to build an electronics lab for the team at Nokia Bell Labs.

Other contributions: Pozycki is a board member for the Partnership for a Drug-Free New Jersey and chairs its Angel of Hope Gala. He also serves on the council of trustees of the New Jersey Performing Arts Center and is chair of the development committee for the Center of Civic Responsibility.

Michael Puntillo

Managing partner, PX4 Development

Scope of work: Michael Puntillo oversees the strategic direction and day-to-day operations of the family-owned real estate development rm. He leads major projects from conception to completion, coordinates legal application and develops nancial models for the rm’s investments.

Biggest career win: Puntillo managed the entitlement process for the Aurora at Carleton Avenue in Central Islip. He oversaw the zoning process and increased the site’s value from its initial acquisition cost to $76 million.

Other contributions: Puntillo served as co-chair of the Young Advocates Circle for the Boys Club of New York for six years, playing a pivotal part in steering programs that promote educational and developmental opportunities for male youth.

Jennifer Recine

Partner, King & Spalding

Scope of work: Jennifer Recine is a rst-chair trial lawyer with experience handling complex real estate disputes for developers, hotel management companies and hospitality companies. Her cases focus on crisis management and various existential threats, including sensitive tax disputes and government overreach.

Biggest career win: She defeated a motion to dismiss a $100 million lawsuit brought against New York City on behalf of a Chelsea hotel owner. She secured a ruling that the city must turn over privileged communications about the building’s status and permits involving privileged deliberations. Other contributions: Recine has an active pro bono practice, assisting clients in disputes and court proceedings. She also volunteers with Rebuilding New York’s “She Builds” program, a committee of real estate professionals.

Pat Reidy

President and part-owner, Reidy Contracting Group

Scope of work: Pat Reidy oversees all aspects of the general contracting business, including preconstruction, construction and project closeout. He is instrumental in client retention and business development for the company, which achieved a gross revenue of $140 million in 2023.

Biggest career win: Over the past ve years, Reidy has secured contracts for the headquarters of Warner Brothers Discovery, the American Express Centurion Lounge and ongoing work in the Empire State Building.

Other contributions: Reidy supports and is involved with various organizations, including Play Rugby USA, the Crumlin Children’s Hospital, the Greater Harlem Chamber of Commerce, the committee for Hispanic Children and Families and the American Cancer Society.

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Wells Fargo Home Mortgage

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Peter Riguardi

Chairman and president, New York region, JLL

Scope of work: Peter Riguardi is chairman and president of the New York region for real estate company JLL, coleading the region and responsible for 2,700 professionals across seven of ces. He has worked to develop strategic relationships with investor and occupier clients.

Biggest career win: Riguardi recently negotiated the 1.1 million-square-foot renewal for Barclays Bank at 745 Seventh Avenue, a 1.2 million-square-foot consolidation at 1 Columbus Circle for Deutsche Bank and the 1 million-square-foot deal for Blackrock at 50 Hudson Yards.

Other contributions: Riguardi received the Real Estate Board of New York’s Louis Smadbeck Memorial Broker Recognition award and was named Real Estate Person of the Year in 2017.

Ronnette Riley

Principal and owner, Ronnette Riley Architect

Scope of work: Ronnette Riley is principal and owner of the namesake rm Ronnette Riley Architect, which she founded in 1987. Her mission is to integrate new and traditional materials and methods into her work, focusing on educational, health care, government and institutional projects.

Biggest career wins: Riley has completed more than 1,000 renovation projects during her long career, including the design of a re station for the FDNY and a 22,000-square-foot senior center.

Other contributions: Riley is national president of the Society of American Registered Architects. She was also previously an adjunct professor at the School of Visual Arts and the New York University Schack Institute of Real Estate.

Nick Romito

Chief executive of cer and co-founder, VTS

Scope of work: Nick Romito is CEO and co-founder of the commercial real estate technology platform, which connects owners, operators, brokers and customers. VTS comprises 1.2 million users, including Blackstone, Brook eld Properties and JLL.

Biggest career win: He helped launch VTS Activate, a tenant experience platform that allows a fully integrated experience and meets the demands of hybrid work models, and has attracted more than 250,000 residents across hundreds of buildings.

Other contributions: Through civic initiatives at VTS, Romito encourages employees to participate in local community and charitable programs. He also volunteers for Stoked, a mentorship program that utilizes sports to teach young students resilience and self-con dence.

NOTE WORTHY

122,600

Jessica Ross

Managing director of nancial planning and analysis, Link Logistics

Scope of work: Jessica Ross leads a cross-functional team of 32 professionals and ve senior direct reports, providing multiyear cash ow projections, development reviews and market rent and ratings analyses at Link Logistics.

Biggest career win: Ross is spearheading a multiyear, multimillion-dollar, nancialrelated technology initiative aimed at data accessibility, which required support from senior stakeholders and will allow Link Logistics to transact easier, faster and with greater insight.

Other contributions: Ross is Link Logistics’ sponsor of Read Ahead, a New York City public school mentoring program for students. She is also a member of Chief, a network of senior women executives.

Michael Rossi

Founder and chief executive of cer, Elegran / Forbes Global Properties

Scope of work: As founder and CEO of the real estate agency, Michael Rossi has developed a technology-enabled, data-driven business model, resulting in a company that has grown three times faster than traditional rms and achieved sales eight times higher than the industry standard.

Biggest career win: Rossi’s rm was invited to become the exclusive member of Forbes Global Properties in Manhattan in 2022, allowing Elegran to grow its international reach and Forbes’ referral network.

Other contributions: Rossi is a longtime donor to nonpro t social enterprise Kick4Life. He is also a founding member, board member and active donor to the Generosity New York philanthropic community.

As of 2023, 122,600 people were employed in New York City’s real estate sector. (Federal Reserve)

Erica Sachse

Co-founder, Powered by DMT

Scope of work: Erica Sachse, a co-founder of real estate broker Powered by DMT, leads business growth, digital marketing, technology and branding efforts for the rm. Under her leadership, the company has grown from eight to 25 employees in recent years.

Biggest career win: Sachse oversaw Powered by DMT’s expansion into South Florida. Her strategic marketing initiatives led to a more than $4 million sale at Pagani Residences, a new residential project in North Bay Village and a 360-unit residential cooperative on Roosevelt Island.

Other contributions: Sachse participates in the Women Tech Network, dedicated to advancing gender diversity in tech and empowering female leaders. She also mentors high school students in Philadelphia and the Bronx.

Carlo Scissura

President and chief executive of cer, New York Building Congress

Scope of work: Carlo Scissura supports more than 500 organizations comprising more than 250,000 tradespeople and professionals. He spearheaded the group’s advocacy efforts through research and recommendations on how government and industry partners should invest in infrastructure and housing policy.

Biggest career win: Under Scissura’s leadership, the company successfully advocated for developing projects including One Vanderbilt and The New York Blood Center and received funding from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act for major infrastructure initiatives.

Other contributions: Scissura chairs the Federation of ItalianAmerican Organizations’ board of directors and was a board member for the Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corporation.

Daniel Seigle

Chief architecture and design of cer, Brown Harris Stevens Development Marketing Scope of work: In his role at the luxury brokerage rm, Daniel Seigle guides developers and project teams on architectural programming, planning and design throughout all phases of predevelopment, marketing and sales, and creating residences and amenities.

Biggest career win: Seigle, who has been focusing on the important work of transitioning of ce buildings to residential spaces, recently co-authored a piece on the subject for Commercial Observer.

Other contributions: Seigle is part of the Syracuse University Mentor-Mentee Alliance, a program that builds relationships between professionals and high school students in the New York City area to enhance their academic and social skills.

Ryan Simonetti

Chief executive of cer and co-founder, Convene

Scope of work: Ryan Simonettti, chief executive of cer and co-founder of global lifestyle hospitality company Convene, leads real estate strategy, corporate growth efforts and commercial functions.

Biggest career win: Simonetti led the company’s expansion to the United Kingdom, resulting in 16 new locations in the Convene portfolio. Under his leadership, the company has also expanded its ability to service a diverse set of clients in various locations.

Other contributions: Simonetti is co-founder and chairman for Ease Capital, a digital lending platform for multifamily real estate. He serves on the board of New York’s Regional Planning Association and has spoken at events for the Young Men and Women’s Real Estate Association of New York.

Executive managing director, Cushman & Wake eld

Scope of work: Kevin Smith is executive managing director and head of real estate company Cushman & Wake eld’s property management business for the Northeast Region, leading the third-party asset management service line across North America.

Biggest career win: In 2020, Smith launched Cushman & Wake eld’s third-party asset management business for North America, a completely new service line. The portfolio manages 70 assets across 15 states as well as Canada, serving clients including large foreign banks, sovereign wealth funds and family of ces.

Other contributions: Smith serves on the advisory board of the NYU Schack School of Real Estate Studies and is a member of the Real Estate Board of New York as well as the Urban Land Institute.

Kevin Smith

NICOLE KUSHNER MEYER PRESIDENT

Todd E. Soloway

Partner, litigation group

co-chair, head of the hotel and hospitality group and real estate litigation practice, Pryor Cashman

Scope of work: Todd E. Soloway is a partner, executive committee member, litigation group cochair, and head of the hotel and hospitality group and real estate litigation practice at legal services company Pryor Cashman. He advises clients in the hospitality, real estate and nance industries.

Biggest career win: Soloway led a trial team that represented Virgin Hotels in asserting claims for wrongful termination of the long-term hotel management agreement one year after opening, which led to an award of $11.5 million in damages.

Other contributions: He is a member of philanthropic organization UJA-Federation’s Real Estate & Allied Trades Division.

Steven Sommer

Executive general manager and president of construction, East Coast region, Lendlease

Scope of work: Steven Sommer is executive general manager and president of construction in the East Coast region at construction company Lendlease. Boasting more than three decades of experience, he is focused on expanding the rm’s market share in several sectors.

Biggest career win: Sommer has led several projects in New York, including Central Park Tower, Time Warner Center, the construction of the Jerome L. Greene Science Center at Columbia University and the $1.5 billion expansion of the Jacob K. Javits Center.

Other contributions: He is co-chair of Nontraditional Employment for Women, sits on the board of the New York Building Congress and is a member of the Building Trades Employment Association.

NOTE WORTHY

$6,449 Houses with black front doors sell for approximately $6,449 more than homes with doors of another color.

(Zillow)

Dan Stanco

Partner and global co-head of real estate investments and transactions group, Ropes & Gray

Scope of work: Dan Stanco is partner and global co-head of the real estate investments and transactions group at the law rm. He represents lending real estate investors across the full spectrum of debt, equity, distressed and opportunistic investments.

Biggest career win: During the Covid-19 pandemic, Stanco helped stabilize the real estate credit and capital markets by instituting widely used deal structures and resolutions.

Other contributions: Stanco sits on the board of directors of Feed Foundation, a nonpro t dedicated to raising funds to ght hunger and eliminate malnutrition. He is also counsel to two New York City schools and adviser to a New York artist-in-residence program and educational center.

L&L Holding Company congratulates all the 2024 Crain’s New York Business Notable Leaders in Real Estate honorees, including our President & Chief Investment Officer, Robert Lapidus.

Brian Steinwurtzel

Principal and co-chief executive of cer, GFP Real Estate

Scope of work: Brian Steinwurtzel oversees the property investment company’s new investments, nancing, leasing, asset management, development and project management.

Biggest career win: Steinwurtzel has created and grown GFP’s acquisition and development team, which has completed projects including the redevelopment of David Geffen Hall and construction of dorms for The New School. He and the GFP team also facilitated the repositioning of Guardian Life Insurance’s former headquarters into 100 Pearl Street, a nearly $850 million project. Other contributions: Steinwurtzel serves on the boards of Cooper Union college and nonprofts Alliance for Downtown New York and Selfhelp Community Services.

landmark buildings and next-generation architectural icons, along the Manhattan skyline. With every new project, L&L sets new standards for innovation, design, and wellness.

Jeff Torkin

Principal, Timber Equities

Scope of work: Jeff Torkin is principal at real estate development and management company Timber Equities. He oversees an internal design and construction team, as well as the broader team of contractors, architects, engineers and specialty consultants who design and build each of Timber’s developments.

Biggest career win: Timber Equities recently completed 55 Dash Place in Central Riverdale. The company aimed to create dedicated entrances for each component of the building, which includes 30 luxury rental units and a 16,000-square-foot charter school.

Other contributions: Torkin serves as a board member of the Van Cortlandt Park Alliance and the Financial Secretary of Young Israel Ohab Zedek of North Riverdale & Yonkers.

Michael Tortorici

Founding partner, Ariel Property Advisors

Scope of work: A founding partner of property consultant

Ariel Property Advisors, Michael Tortorici has participated in the sale of more than 600 transactions worth more than $2 billion. He is responsible for originating and executing the sale of commercial real estate transactions on behalf of clients including private companies, developers, nancial institutions, nonpro ts and faith-based organizations.

Biggest career win: Tortorici has ensured the scal health of numerous faith-based organizations, advising them on how to take advantage of their various real estate holdings.

Other contributions: Tortorici supports the Inner City Scholarship Fund and Futures in Education. He is also a member of Bricks and Mortals and the Real Estate Board of New York.

Clelia Warburg Peters

Founding and managing partner, Era Ventures

Scope of work: In her role, Clelia Warburg Peters manages all fund operations for Era Ventures, including fundraising and day-to-day support for the venture capital fund itself. She also identi es and evaluates investments and supports portfolio companies.

Biggest career win: Warburg Peters has been involved with Era Ventures’ investments, including building management disruptor PassiveLogic, next-generation homebuilder Welcome Homes and construction risk innovation platform Shepherd.

Other contributions: Warburg Peters serves on the Urban Land Institute’s New York leadership board, is president of the Gerard and Kelly Foundation and was previously a founding member of the Real Estate Board of New York’s technology committee.

David West

Founding partner, Hill West Architects

Scope of work: David West, founder of Hill West Architects, has overseen the design of nearly 100 multifamily projects. He is regarded as one of New York’s top planning and zoning experts, with extensive experience in land-use approvals.

Biggest career win: West recently oversaw the design of Bankside, a mixed-use development spanning seven towers in Mott Haven and containing amenity, retail and community spaces, and a 34,000-square-foot public waterfront park.

Other contributions: West is a member of the Real Estate Board of New York’s Zoning and Design advisory committee. He was also an organizer and moderator for American Institute of Architects New York’s Of ce to Residential Conversions Conference.

Jessica Yoon

Managing director, L+M Development Partners

Scope of work: Jessica Yoon oversees affordable housing development in New York through conception, predevelopment, nancing, construction and stabilization. She manages joint venture partnerships and spearheads new development opportunities.

Biggest career win: Yoon completed Sendero Verde, the largest multifamily affordable passive housing development in the U.S. Between 2019 and 2021, it obtained $478 million of nancing through multiple closings during the Covid pandemic recession times.

Other contributions: Yoon serves on the executive board of Enterprise Gotham Society, a young professionals group, and created a curriculum on career paths within real estate development for L+M’s partnership with public charter school Murray Hill Academy.

CONSTRUCTION COMPANIES CRAIN’S LIST

1

AECOM TISHMAN | AECOM HUNT 3

100 Park Ave.,New York,NY10017 212-708-6800;aecomtishman.com

2 STRUCTURE TONE/PAVARINI MCGOVERN

3

330 W. 34th St.,New York,NY10001 212-481-6100;structuretone.com

HUNTER ROBERTS CONSTRUCTION GROUPLLC

MichaelNeary, president, Structure Tone EricMcGovern, president, chief executive, Pavarini McGovern

55 Water St., 51st Floor,New York,NY10041 212-321-6800;hrcg.com JamesMcKenna

4 TURNER CONSTRUCTIONCO. 66 Hudson Blvd. E,New York,NY10001 212-229-6000;turnerconstruction.com

5 SKANSKAUSA

6

350 Fifth Ave.,New York,NY10118 917-438-4500;usa.skanska.com

J.T. MAGEN & CO.INC.

44 W. 28th St.,New York,NY10001 212-790-4200;jtmagen.com

7 LENDLEASE (US) CONSTRUCTION LMBINC.

200 Park Ave.,New York,NY10166 212-592-6700;lendlease.com

8 JRM CONSTRUCTION MANAGEMENT

242 W. 36th St.,New York,NY10018 212-545-0500;jrmcm.com

9 SUFFOLK 50 Rockefeller Plaza,New York,NY10020 646-952-8000;suffolk.com

10

KIEWITCORP.

470 Chestnut Ridge Road,Woodcliff Lake,NJ 07677 201-571-2500;kiewit.com

328 Newman Springs Road,Red Bank,NJ07701 732-704-9800;torcon.com

1 Rockefeller Plaza,New York,NY10020 718-571-9599;iovinoent.com

GILBANE

88 Pine St.,New York,NY10005 212-312-1600;gilbaneco.com

URBAN

85 Fifth Ave.,New York,NY10003 646-892-6280;uag.nyc

5 Renaissance Square,White Plains,NY10601 914-773-7700;lrcbuild.com

550 Seventh Ave.,New York,NY10018 212-388-5700;tritonconstruction.net

245 Newtown Road,Plainview,NY11803 516-921-7100;ewhowell.com

CLUNE CONSTRUCTION

18

405 Lexington Ave.,New York,NY10174 212-682-1789;clunegc.com

575 Lexington Ave., 18th Floor,New York,NY10022 212-246-9100;schimenti.com

TUTOR PERINICORP.

20

1000 Main St.,New Rochelle,NY10801 914-739-1908;tutorperini.com

21 HUDSON

61 Broadway,New York,NY10006 212-608-6600;hudsonmeridian.com

22 SHAWMUT DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION 488 Madison Ave.,New York,NY10022 212-920-8900;shawmut.com

MichaelViggiano, executive VP SeanSzatkowski, general manager, executive VP

MauriceRegan, president StevenMount, chief nancial of cer

StevenSommer

MatthewSchimenti, president JamesHarrison, executive VP

Paramount Theater, Live Nation; Cartier SoHo

LesHiscoe,

NewYorkarea includesthe veboroughsofNewYorkCityandNassau,SuffolkandWestchestercountiesinNewYorkandBergen,Essex,HudsonandUnioncountiesinNewJersey. Crain's usesstaff research,extensivesurveysandthemostcurrentreferencesavailable,butthereisnoguaranteethattheselistingsarecomplete.Toqualifyforthislist,aconstructioncompanymusthaveaNewYork–area of ceandmustbuildprojectsinthearea.Allinformationwassuppliedbythecompaniesunlessotherwisenoted.Inthecaseofatie,companiesarerankedalphabetically.n/d-Notdisclosed. 1. Full-time and full-time-equivalent only. 2. Selected projects and clients for active or recently completed work in the New York area. 3. Formerly listed as AECOM Tishman.

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LRC Construction, a divison of the Cappelli Organization, continually exceeds expectations by delivering projects on time and on budget because we believe your success is our success. Services include but are not limited to brownfield consulting, construction management, design-build, estimating, general contracting, pre-construction, scheduling and value engineering.

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Long-shuttered Chelsea women’s prison to be converted into affordable housing as state chooses developers

Nick Garber

e state is advancing plans to convert a long-shuttered Chelsea women’s prison into a ordable housing, as Gov. Kathy Hochul on July 22 announced the developers chosen to shepherd the transformation of the Bayview Correctional Facility.

e $108 million conversion of the vacant lockup at 550 West 20th St., facing the West Side Highway, will be undertaken by a joint venture of Manhattanbased Camber Property Group and the criminal justice-oriented nonpro t Osborne Association.

e groups were selected through a request for proposals that the state launched last fall.

It’s the latest in a series of transformation plans for the for-

e project, led by Empire State Development, still needs to undergo environmental and public reviews before getting a nal approval.

“A few years down the road, New Yorkers will be unlocking the doors of their beautiful homes in a place where people were once locked behind bars,” Hochul said at a press conference on July 22.

Previous plans fell through

“A few years down the road, New Yorkers will be unlocking the doors of their beautiful homes in a place where people were once locked behind bars.”

mer prison, where previous redevelopment e orts failed to materialize.

e existing eight-story, 100,000square-foot brick building will be expanded to include 124 a ordable apartments, as well as 15 short-term transitional units for people with mental health needs that will be funded by the state.

Members of the neighboring community board helped craft the plan to redevelop Bayview, which opened in the 1970s and last housed 153 prisoners. Since it closed due to damage from Hurricane Sandy in 2012, the state has puzzled over what to do with the structure, and previous plans to sell the building or convert it to a hub for women’s services fell through. ( e “hub” plan fell apart in 2019 after its main backer, the NoVo Foundation, deemed it nancially unfeasible.)

e latest e ort to transform Bayview overlapped with similar plans to redevelop the stateowned former Lincoln Correctional Facility building in Harlem. An RFP there resulted in plans for a 105-unit a ordable housing project announced in December.

The new project will leave Bayview’s existing structure largely

intact while adding a new wing in its interior courtyard that will stand some seven stories above the current roofline, according to a news release and renderings from Hochul’s office. The future development will include a community facility focused on youth programming, and Osborne As-

sociation will provide on-site services for the formerly incarcerated.

Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine said July 22 that the project “almost didn’t happen,” since Bayview could have been renovated as a prison, demolished or repurposed for less essential

uses before the nearby community board got involved to call for supportive housing.

“What we’re talking about here is a win for public safety,” Levine said. “ ere are not a lot of communities in New York City or New York state who would even accept this kind of proposal.”

‘Omnivorous’ Empire State Building owner still hungry for more real estate deals after $195M retail purchase

By Aaron Elstein

Even after paying $195 million for retail space on North Sixth Street in Williamsburg, Tony Malkin still has more on his shopping list, and the Empire State Building owner is ready to make another deal for just about any kind of real estate.

“We’re omnivorous opportunivores,” Malkin said July 25 on an earnings call that introduced a new anthropological term to the business-speak lexicon.

Leasing volume, occupancy up

Malkin’s feisty words came after his family-controlled business, Empire State Realty Trust, reported another quarter of aboveaverage leasing volume and occupancy rose by 90 basis points to 88.5%. BMO Capital Markets said Malkin paid a considerable $2,575 per square foot for the Williamsburg retail properties, located on North Sixth between Berry Street and Wythe Avenue, plus another

unidenti ed location.  Malkin can a ord to keep shopping because his rm has the most risk-averse balance sheet of any publicly traded New York landlord. Half a billion dollars are parked in cash and there’s no oating-rate debt. Leverage levels are half that of rivals.

e price Malkin paid in Williamsburg means the property could yield as little as 2%, BMO analyst John Kim calculated. at’s not an attractive return when a two-year U.S. Treasury bond yields 4.4%. Malkin assured that over time the properties will deliver.

“ e fact is they will produce a

heck of a lot of cash,” he said. Empire State Realty’s stock price was little changed July 25, at $10.50 a share. It has gained about 25% in the past year, better than Boston Properties or Vornado Realty Trust.

Malkin’s family has owned the Empire State Building since 1961

Tony Malkin’s family has owned the Empire State Building since 1961 and their company controls 8 million square feet of space.

and their company controls 8 millions square feet of space, mostly in modernized Midtown o ce buildings such as 1350 Broadway and One Grand Central Place on East 42nd Street.

Malkin said he looked into buying 250 Park Ave., which is being acquired by JPMorgan for more than $300 million. O ce accounts for 58% of Empire State’s rental income, and even though he’s ready to shop for just about anything, Malkin’s not ready to buy an o ce building.

“We’re biding our time,” he said.

Gov. Kathy Hochul

A rendering of the planned redevelopment of the former Bayview Correctional Facility at West 20th Street and 11th Avenue, which will include a new multistory addition. COOKFOX ARCHITECTS

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Risk Management Analyst (Jiaxipera North America, Inc.)

Play a crucial role in supporting the company head in overseeing & managing all aspects of the company’s business practices. Will report to the Jiaxipera office in New York, NY but may telecommute from any location within the U.S. We are offering a salary of at least $91,000. Apply w/resume to: Alina Zhu, Jiaxipera North America, Inc., 1120 Avenue of the Americas, Suite 4066, New York, NY 10036. No relo. avail. No 3rd party responses. EOE

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Quantitative Researcher II (Citadel Enterprise Americas Services LLC – New York, NY); Mult. Pos. Avail. Formulate adv math and simulation models of cmplx mkt problems, rel constants and variables, restrictions, alter, conflicting obj, and their num parameters using tech, math and stat modeling, and comp sys. Conceptualize trading strats, dvlp & enhance math models & rsrch tools, & translate algorithms into code. F/T. Sal range $225,000 - $275,000/yr. Resumes: citadelrecruitment@citadel.com. Ref. Job ID: 8479200.

Senior Consultant (PA Consulting Group, Inc. – New York, NY); Mult. pos. avail. Job duties incl: Provide corp. strategy advice relating to prod. opportunities & identify ways to accelerate prods. to the mrkt. Facilitate remediation options for risks & decisions for all Life Sciences prods. F/T. Sal. range $120,000-$130,000 /yr. Position based in New York, NY. Telecommuting permitted up to 4 days/wk. Apply w/ resume to MaryAnn.Bettencourt@PAConsulting.com. Ref. JobID: 7026190.

Business Intelligence Analyst (Citadel Enterprise Americas Services LLC –New York, NY); Mult pos avail. Offer’ng salary of $150,000 - $200,000 per year. Conduct adv data analytics in order to drive & inform bus critical decisions. Synthesize & communicate clear & actionable insights from complex analyses to empower data driven decision making across vital business areas. F/T. Resumes: citadelrecruitment@citadel.com. Ref. Job ID: 8479222.

Quantitative Researcher I (Citadel Enterprise Americas Services LLC – New York, NY); Mult. Pos. Avail. Formulate math and simulation models of complx mkt problems, rel constants and variables, restrictions, alter, conflicting objectives, and their num parametrs using tech, math and stat modeling, and comp sys. Prvd tech & invstmnt analytics to support the trade desks. F/T. Sal range $175,000 - $250,000/yr. Resumes: citadelrecruitment@citadel.com. Ref. Job ID: 8479131.

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The text of the legal notice is as follows: Fable & Harmony Studio, LLC Articles of Org. filed NY Sec. of State (SSNY) 7/3/24. Office in NY Co. SSNY desig. agent of LLC upon whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to 131 7th Ave PMB 102, NY NY 10011. Purpose: Any lawful purpose.

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kinds of projects.”

SL Green is one of the only ofce landlords that can dare to dream so boldly. Over the course of 44 years of near-constant buying and selling (in stark contrast to its mostly buy-and-hold competitors), the rm has assembled a portfolio of about 50 buildings encompassing 30 million square feet of o ce space, 90% in Manhattan and about a third located in a handful of Midtown blocks near Grand Central Terminal. e area happens to be the nation’s hottest o ce market, so New York’s biggest real estate bull is ready to magnify its considerable bet on the city’s o ce future when rivals are in retreat.

Manhattan o ces are a bet fewer investors want to make, and SL Green has bought out some doubting partners in recent months at startlingly low prices. It paid just $7 million to acquire the 45% stake in 10 E. 53rd St., a building that’s 98% occupied, from the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, a fund with $400 billion in assets. It also bought back an unidenti ed Israeli partner’s 44% stake in 2 Herald Square for no money, then persuaded the lender, U.S. Bank, to retire the $182.5 million mortgage in return for a $7 million payment. With scores of

“SL Green isn’t a battleground. It is the battleground.”

John Kim, BMO analyst

Manhattan towers still disturbingly vacant and billions’ worth of mortgages coming due, overleveraged owners may be forced in the months and years ahead to sell at re-sale prices to SL Green. ink Worldwide Plaza, where SL Green is a 25% owner. Maybe even the Seagram Building.

“We’re ready to really take advantage,” Chief Financial O cer Matthew DiLiberto said at a conference last month.

Betting on Manhattan

Bravado is a necessary part of any salesman’s playbook, but coming from an o ce landlord, it’s more than a touch discordant in light of the mounting nancial

pressures they all face. at includes SL Green.

Vacancy rates citywide are 15% and continued creeping higher last quarter, securities rm Evercore ISI says, while commercial broker CBRE reports only 2% of o ce buildings nationwide are thriving. Hundreds of billions’ worth of mortgages will have to be re nanced at higher rates, while Fitch Ratings says 9% of these loans are in special servicing, aka the intensive care ward.

SL Green believes it has the sort of buildings that tenants want and knows how to meet their needs. It’s about to install a golf lounge at 245 Park as part of a $200 million upgrade so nance bros can work on their swing without leaving the building. Occupancy in its Manhattan buildings rose last quarter to 86.7%, 80 basis points higher than in the rst, an unexpectedly strong showing, according to JPMorgan analyst Anthony Paolone. Every tenant is sacred because SL Green has borrowed to the hilt to bet all its chips on Manhattan. Its $11 billion debt burden is 11 times higher than operating earnings. Six times is what investors want to see, according to BMO Capital Markets. Ever the wheelerdealer, SL Green plans to ease the burden by selling buildings. It just completed the $635 million sale of 625 Madison Ave. to e Related Cos. only months after seizing control of the property when billionaire developer Ben Ashkenazy defaulted on a loan. It is also expected to soon sell slugs of 245 Park and 1 Vanderbilt, a tower which analysts estimate is worth $4.6 billion.

Unlike most of New York’s largest real estate owners, who pass properties down from generation to generation, SL Green has never been a buy-and-hold investor and since 2001 has sold all or part of 50 buildings. Wall Street admires a dealmaker, and though SL Green shares still trade 30% below prepandemic levels, they have doubled in value in the past 12 months — far ahead of the shares of rival Manhattan o ce owners Vornado Realty Trust and Boston Properties.

But there’s always another side of a trade, and it happens that betting against SL Green is one of the most popular wagers in real estate.

A hefty 20% of its shares have been sold short, the most of any o ce landlord. Bears reckon there are only so many tenants who can pay the high rents SL Green needs to

service its debt, and unless interest rates decline dramatically, the landlord will be stuck with a pile of o ce mortgages that it can’t roll over and be forced to sell properties at depressed prices.

“SL Green isn’t a battleground,” BMO analyst John Kim said. “It is the battleground.”

Hairy beginning

Many of New York’s biggest real estate owners got into the business the old-fashioned way: inheritance. Brooklyn native Stephen L. Green got into the business through hair.

Around 50 years ago, Green was a lawyer who lent a neighbor — some say it was a client — $50,000 and was repaid with wigs instead of cash, according to his alma mater, Hartwick College in upstate New York. Green took the inventory to Asia, sold it at a 100% pro t and soon was manufacturing wigs in Hong Kong and South Korea. He sold the enterprise to Gillette for $7 million and plowed the money into Manhattan o ce buildings, such as 36 W. 44th St. and 38 E. 30th St. It was the early 1980s, New York’s renaissance was years away, and longtime owners were ready to sell for whatever they could get. Green’s wife, Nancy, was in charge of construction and turning the old garmentmanufacturing buildings into humming white-collar o ces.

“He was proli c,” recalled Barry Gosin, who was shing in the same waters as Green at the time and now is CEO of real estate broker Newmark Group.

Green became known as “King of the Bs” because he bought older Class B buildings instead of fancier Class As. But his more modest buildings stayed lled enough to survive the early 1990s crisis that wiped out some rivals and started buying on avenues instead of streets. To raise more money for acquisitions, he took his company public in 1998.

He broke into the big leagues four years later, when he and a partner paid $480 million for 1515

Broadway, a 1.8 million-squarefoot tower that the rm now hopes to turn into a casino. e deal was a bold move, as banks weren’t lending when the economy contracted after 9/11, and property insurance was nearly impossible to get at any price. But the Times Square tower was a success, and e Lion King has played in its theater for nearly 20 years.

Sept. 11, 2001, was auspicious for SL Green for another reason: It was primary election day in New York, and Green’s brother, Mark, who served as the city’s public advocate and was not involved in real estate, was running for the Democratic nomination for mayor against then-Bronx Borough President Fernando Ferrer. e election was postponed after the planes crashed into the World Trade Center, and Ferrer’s victory on Sept. 25 disrupted Mark Green’s momentum. Although he eventually beat Ferrer in an October run-o , he lost to Michael Bloomberg in November’s general election.

“Most people think the delay turned the tide and allowed Bloomberg to win,” said Robert Ivanhoe, a partner at law rm Greenberg Traurig who has represented SL Green for more than 30 years.

During the campaign, SL Green took a roasting in the press for being the largest landlord to city agencies. It responded by acquiring yet more buildings, including a big Midtown o ce portfolio from developer Scott Rechler in 2006. at deal marked the arrival of Green’s successor, Marc Holliday, an investment banker who had joined the rm as chief investment o cer in 1998 after helping take SL Green public. e new CEO was from a real estate family: His father, Morton Holliday, was the city’s No. 1 mortgage broker for several decades.

“He was a lender to everyone,” Gosin said, “literally everyone.”

Including SL Green. In 2009, with the economy wrecked by the nancial crisis, Morton Holliday lined up a $145 million loan to

re nance the Graybar Building at 420 Lexington Ave., a landmarked, 1.2 million-square-foot tower that SL Green owned and used for its headquarters. e son’s rm paid the father’s a $428,000 broker fee, according to a regulatory ling. After the crisis faded away, Holliday began planning his signature statement: a supertall tower that would bring Park Avenue-level rents to East 42nd Street. It was a project that would transform the owner of Class B properties into a builder of Class A space.

‘Deal of the century’

In the summer of 2001, SL Green struck an unremarkable-looking deal to buy 317 Madison Ave. for an unremarkable-sounding $106 million. But the 22-story building o ered a key parcel of land for what became 1 Vanderbilt Ave. Ground was broken in 2016 to develop the city’s fourth-tallest tower at a cost of $3.3 billion, and analysts were skeptical tenants would pay the prices commanded by Park Avenue buildings like the Seagram.

But today 1 Vanderbilt is 99% occupied, thanks to TD Bank moving from 317 Madison and paying $130 per square foot in rent, while Greenberg Traurig came from the MetLife Building across the street and pays $127 a square foot. Ivanhoe said the building’s huge windows, two Michelin-star restaurants and easy access to public transportation make for an attractive workplace, even if it means his longtime client is never far away.

“We’re just one oor above SL Green,” Ivanhoe said. “When you get the call, you’re right there.”

As part of the development, SL Green agreed with the city to pay $220 million to connect the building underground to Grand Central and improve access to the subway. Holliday also agreed to build 1 Vanderbilt slimmer than he could have in order to create a larger public space between the building and the train terminal. (He built taller instead.)

Herald Square

BUCK ENNIS

10 East 53rd St. | BUCK ENNIS

e building opened just as tenants began demanding new space and the nest amenities to lure workers back from home after the pandemic. It also created a template for success in other buildings. e next one is to be 245 Park, a 1.7 million-squarefoot tower that SL Green acquired out of bankruptcy in 2022. SL Green had bought a stake in 2018 and as a mezzanine lender assumed the mortgage and forced out Chinese owner HNA after it led for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Soon after taking control, Green sold 50% to a Japanese partner for $1 billion, a startlingly high sum that BMO’s Kim called “the deal of the century.”

e tower at 245 Park, 20% vacant as of June, got a boost this month when Ares Management, which leases three oors, agreed to add an additional eight and help ll a void after Major League Baseball moved out in 2021. Bond-rating rm KBRA said the building’s $1.2 billion mortgage is no longer a “loan of concern.”

Filling vacancies is crucial because SL Green has $1.3 billion in bills due next year, when mortgages for 11 Madison Ave. and 1515 Broadway mature. Lenders required Stahl Organization to cough up $250 million in cash in order to re nance 277 Park’s $750 million mortgage, and similar terms could be demanded of SL Green, which has $200 million on its books. Because SL Green has a table of still-valuable properties that it’s willing to sell a piece of, including 1 Vanderbilt, it should be able to put up the down payments necessary to re nance loans.

“Our lenders believe in the assets we have, believe in us,” Holliday told Crain’s, “and we are doing everything we can to ensure they have a good result on their investment in us.”

Depending on how 1 Vanderbilt’s sale shakes out, SL Green could emerge with enough cash that it would be positioned to snap up the Seagram Building. SL Green is in the process of raising a $1 billion fund to invest in the debt of Manhattan o ce buildings and knows the Seagram well, considering it helped negotiate an 18-month loan extension last year for the tower.

Tenants include private equity giant Clayton Dubilier & Rice and Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund. But about $1 billion worth of debt on the 860,000-squarefoot building comes due next May, and there are signs that owner RFR, which declined to comment, might have trouble renancing. Its 50% partner in the Chrysler Building is insolvent, and an older Fifth Avenue o ce building that RFR owns missed a property-tax payment last year.

Not only does the Seagram come with a gilded tenant roster, but RFR has also invested in the latest amenities, including a former 24,000-square-foot underground garage converted into the Playground with a pickleball court and a rock-climbing wall.

“It’s a great building,” Holliday said. “ ere aren’t more than a few dozen that one would call really great buildings.”

SL Green CEO Marc Holliday on why his Times Square casino bid will win in the end

SL Green is New York’s largest commercial landlord, and Marc Holliday has been its CEO for nearly 20 years. During his tenure, the rm has amassed a portfolio of nearly 50 of ce towers, including 1 Vanderbilt Ave., 280 Park Ave., 11 Madison Ave. and the Graybar Building at 420 Lexington Ave. Its stock price has signi cantly outperformed its peers’ in the past year, and the rm is eyeing acquisitions while rivals struggle to stay in the game. Holliday recently sat down with Crain’s to discuss his view on the of ce market, the bene ts of redevelopment over rebuilding and the “massive community support” for his rm’s Times Square casino bid. By | Aaron Elstein

How does the Manhattan of ce market look to you?

It is a challenging market right now, although vastly improved over what it had been like from March of 2020 until maybe the middle of last year. Tenants have options, and they’re choosier. But we’re thriving now, as we’ve done consistently over the past 26 years as a public company.

Interest rates are their highest in many years, and a lot of landlords, including SL Green, have big mortgages coming due that will need re nancing. Does that concern you?

It doesn’t. Our lenders believe in the assets we have, believe in us, and we are doing everything we can to ensure they have a good result on their investment in us. at’s resulted in modi cations and extensions of our debt, which ensures our buildings have the proper resources to either maintain or get back to full occupancy.

Crain’s of ces are on Third Avenue, where a number of buildings remain pretty vacant. Can you envision any of them coming down?

Only in extraordinary circumstances does it really make sense to tear down and rebuild. It’s usually more sensible to redevelop, which is what we’re going to do with our building at 750 ird Ave. starting in 2025. We’ll make major modi cations to that building and convert it into what will be in excess of 600 residential units, both

market rate and a ordable.

How much will the transformation cost? Probably in the order of $500 million. I’ll be spending the second half of the year lining up debt and equity capital for that conversion. But the economics make sense because we’ll have 600 apartments in the end. If it was only a 100-unit or 200-unit project, I couldn’t do this.

Let’s talk about towers you might buy. How about the Seagram Building? Its owner, RFR, seems to be in some dif culty. It’s a great building. We’re always interested in investing in those kinds of projects.

The city is trying to help renovate older of ce buildings with its M-CORE program, but so far only a few landlords have signed up. Why?

e program was tailored to incentivize owners like us to make signi cant capital investment in older buildings, but my impression is not a lot of owners have access to the capital today needed to carry out these very signi cant upgrades. I think the combination of an improving capital market and an improving leasing market will result in more people applying.

You’ve applied with the state for a casino license in Times Square. The Broadway League, which represents producers, is opposed.

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Can you change their mind?

I think we have massive community support for this project, more than any other bid right now by a wide margin. We have incredible support from unions, competing hotels and surrounding building owners. is would be a $4 billionplus development bringing 10 million people a year with real disposable income into a six-star hotel environment. ere will be all sorts of cool entertainment alternatives, not just for tourists but for locals who don’t go to Times Square frequently anymore.

And yet the Broadway League still doesn’t want a casino on Broadway. Actors Equity wants it. e Broadway League doesn’t speak for all of Broadway. I do think that the overwhelming support for our bid will eventually carry the day over the objections of a very few that kind of just want to maintain the status quo of something that really could be greatly improved.

The Summit observatory in 1 Vanderbilt Ave. is a hit with tourists, and now you’re opening one up in Paris. So how is your French? I’m going to have to brush up because my second language in high school was Spanish. But I built a very good team of people who are now on the ground in Paris and have been integral in helping us secure the new location. I won’t tell you where it is exactly, but we hope to open doors in 2026.

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