November-December 2020

THE ARCHITECTURE OF FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT AMAZ NG BU LDINGS

HIROSHIMA TODAY YOU NEED (OR MIGHT WANT) TO KN W THE CTBUH AWARDS

VIENNA – THE WORLD’S GREENEST CITY ARTCH TECTURE THE SUPREME COURT

EGAL VIEW TEXAS’S OWN THANKSGIVING THE FACTOR LUCREZIA BORGIA

UNESCO DESIGN CITIES

THE POWERS OF THE LT. GOVERNOR TR E DAT

SIGIRIYA THE LIGHTER SIDE OF THE PANDEMIC THE FUTURE OF LAND

THE ARCHITECTURE OF WASHINGTON D.C. REAL ESTATE F THE FU URE

PROFILES OF SURV VAL

The VOICE OF REAL ESTATE IN TEXAS

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VIENNA – THE WORLD’S GREENEST CITY

Resonance Consultancy names the best cities and the greenest cities for 2020.

YANKEE STADIUM

The first sports venue to achieve WELL health-safety rating.

THE 2020 CTBUH AWARDS OF EXCELLENCE

Pictures of some of the best buildings in the world.

PROFILES OF SURV VAL

HIROSHIMA 75 years after the A-Bomb.

THE ARCHITECTURE OF WASHINGTON D.C.

A pictorial tribute to the monumental buildings of our nation’s capital.

THE REME AWARDS

The 2020 winners of IREM’s annual recognition and achievement awards. 27

STUBBORN TEXAS ONCE CELEBRATED ITS OWN THANKSGIVING DAY

The Star-Telegram’s Bud Kennedy presents some enlightening history.

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FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT

A pictorial retrospective of the “greatest American architect of all time.”

Contributing Editor Roxana Tofan begins a new series of success in the time of coronavirus with a look at Mike Watson of Independence Commercial Advisors.

THE LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR OF TEXAS IS MORE POWERFUL THAN THE GOVERNOR Julia Hammock explains why – and how that came to be.

Contributing Editor Rose-Mary Rumbley, in her inimitable way, looks at Britain’s finest hour during WWII.

49

THE PAGE

Who was Lucrezia Borgia?

EGAL VIEW – FINDERS KEEPERS, LOSERS WEEPERS

Abandoned Property – What’s the law? Attorney and Contributing Editor Anthony Barbieri examines how it works in Texas. IMPORTANT VOICES Andre Perry and Carl Roemer of the Brookings Institution explain why protesting is as important as voting.

AMAZ NG BU LDINGS –FOR SALE: CORPORATE HEADQUARTERS, NEVER USED

Contributing Editor Angela O’Byrne examines the ‘repositioning’ of REI’s newly- built corporate headquarters in Seattle.

NAVIGATING THE COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE MARKET DURING UNCERTAIN TIMES

Austin attorney Johnny Merritt advises how prepare yourself and your clients.

ARTCH TECTURE

The secret is out! Ed Wheeler is Santa Claus.

54

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A technology start up offers personalized greetings and frictionless access control.

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ABOUT US

Now in our 28th year, we’ve outgrown the ability the list all of our real estate affiliated associations and include their logos on just one page. reaches over 50,000 Texas real estate professionals quarterly! We proudly serve and service any and all real estate associations in the state of Texas - including (but not necessarily limited to) the ones you see here. If your group isn’t shown and you’d like for us to include pictures, information and event-coverage, please let us know. Email: editor@crestnetwork.com or call the number above.

EXECUTIVE STAFF

ANDREW A. FELDER: Publisher/Managing Editor. aafelder@crestpublicationsgroup.com

XENIA MONTERO: Graphic Designer. xeniam.design@gmail.com

ANNETTE LAWLESS: Social Media Manager. annettelawless@hotmail.com

MARK ANGLE: Director of Business Development. mark@crestnetwork.com

CONTRIBUTING EDITORS

ANGELA O’BYRNE, AIA: Amazing Buildings.

ROSE-MARY RUMBLEY: Herstory.

ANTHONY BARBIERI: Legal.

JULIE BRAND LYNCH: Professionals on the Move.

ROXANA TOFAN: Profiles of Survival.

ADVISORY BOARD

ANDY GABEHART: President & CEO of Office Interiors Group, 247Workspace.com, United Electronics Recycling.

KIM GHEZ: Director of Marketing, Presidio Title.

KRISTIN HIETT, CAE: Executive Director/CEO – IREM Dallas Chapter.

KIM HOPKINS: Executive Director, CREW Dallas.

JONATHAN KRAATZ: Executive Director, USGBC Texas Chapter.

MYCHELE LORD: CEO, Lord Green Strategies.

DOUG MCMURRY: Executive Vice President, San Antonio AGC.

LAURA MCDONALD STEWART, RID, FASID, ILDA LEED AP:

Editor of PLINTH and CHINTZ, an interior design blog.

JESSICA WARRIOR: Director of Property Management, Granite Properties.

STAFF, EDITORS & ADVISORY BOARD

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CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

Our Digital Edition is an exact replica of the printed magazine, only better! Browse, save articles, or even check the archives for something you want to read again!

JULIA HAMMOCK (P. 47) is a Senior at Smithson Valley High School in the San Antonio area. She has a passion for debate and debate competitions, politics and writing and serves as her school’s Debate Vice President and a member of the National Honor Society. When she is not involved in school activities, she volunteers her time as a teacher assistant for scout merit badges and as a vacation bible school leader. She loves to travel and explore new places and is excited about going to college next year.

BUD KENNEDY (P. 31) is a journalist for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. A home-grown Fort Worth guy, he started out covering high school football when he was 16 and then went to the Fort Worth Press and newspapers in Austin and Dallas. He returned to Fort Worth in 1981. Since 1987, he has written more than 1,000 weekly dining columns and more than 3,000 news and politics columns. His columns run on Sundays, Wednesdays and Fridays.

SCOTT KOENIG (P. 54) is the spokesperson for Greet Solutions.  He helped to develop the use cases for their technology.  Before that, he grew a legacy 70-year-old domestic lighting manufacturer from 2000 until it’s sale in 2018.  He worked closely with his customers, the bulk of whom were real estate developers such as Tulfra, LLC, Tishman Speyer and premier brokers such as Cushman and Wakefield.  He and his company were recognized by NJBIZ as a leader in innovation and technology in 2014.  Teaming up with the Greet Solutions group made sense given the use cases Greet can provide for the real estate industry.  At his core he is a finance professional, having received a BS from Lehigh University and an MBA in finance from The Weatherhead School of Management at Case Western Reserve University.  In his early years he developed his skills in auditing at Congress Finance Corporation (now part of Wachovia) and then as an investment banker at BT Securities (now part of Deutsche Bank).

JOHNNY MERRITT (P. 35), an equity partner of Hajjar Peters, LLP, is an attorney with over three decades of experience in complex corporate and real estate matters. For the majority of his career, he has also served as outside general counsel for billion-dollar companies involved with interstate commerce. A native of West Texas, Merritt credits herding livestock across native pastures with his family for giving him a keen understanding of the importance of teamwork and loyalty in every endeavor. Merritt is also a founder and board member of Keystone Bank, and he serves as ambassador of The Bless Foundation, a faith-based organization mobilizing people and resources to reach the unreached throughout the world. He earned his J.D. at Texas Tech University School of Law, and lives in Austin, Texas, with his wife, DeNise.

ANGELA O’BYRNE (P. 32) is the president of national architecture, design-build, and real estate development firm Perez, APC. She champions the principles of smart growth in her home community of New Orleans and in her frequent travels across the country and abroad. Born in Cali, Colombia, Angela is a licensed architect in over a dozen states, a licensed general contractor in Louisiana, a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects, and a member of the National CREW Network (Commercial Real Estate Women) Board of Directors. A singer, golfer, music-lover, and globetrotter, she relishes spending free time with her three grown children and large extended family. She is a Contributing Editor of and her Amazing Buildings feature appears in every issue.

ANTHONY BARBIERI (P. 50) is a shareholder at Kessler Collins, where he enjoys a broad legal practice. He has been a speaker for ICSC, IREM, and BOMA, has taught continuing legal education seminars, and has been named a Texas Super Lawyer Rising Star for many years, as well as being a Fellow of the Litigation Counsel of America. He and his wife, Cathy, enjoy traveling and spending time with their extended families, getting involved in their church and supporting the community through various programs – including raising awareness of muscular dystrophy, education and exercise to fight heart disease, providing care and treatment for autism, and counseling domestic-violence victims. He is also a Contributing Editor of and his Legal View appears in every issue.

ANDRE M. PERRY (P. 31) is a fellow in the Metropolitan Policy Program at Brookings, a scholar-in-residence at American University, and a columnist for the Hechinger Report. He is the author of the new book Know Your Price: Valuing Black Lives and Property in America’s Black Cities. A nationally known and respected commentator on race, structural inequality, and education, Perry is a regular contributor to MSNBC and has been published by The New York Times, The Nation, The Washington Post, TheRoot. com and CNN.com. He has also made appearances on CNN, PBS, National Public Radio, NBC, and ABC. His research focuses on race and structural inequality, education, and economic inclusion. Perry’s recent scholarship at Brookings has analyzed Black-majority cities and institutions in America, focusing on valuable assets worthy of increased investment.

CARL ROMER (P. 31) is a Research Intern at the Metropolitan Policy Program at the Brookings Institution.

ROSE-MARY RUMBLEY (P. 48) holds a Ph.D. in communications from the University of North Texas. She is a well-known speaker in Texas and enjoys researching each and every topic. She is a Contributing Editor of and Herstory appears in every issue.

ROXANA TOFAN (P. 45) is the owner of Clear Integrity Group in San Antonio, Texas and the company’s principal broker in Texas, Ohio and South Carolina. Her main focus is multifamily commercial brokerage in San Antonio area and property management. She enjoys taking over nonperforming properties and turning them around. She is also a Contributing Editor of and her Profiles of Survivors will appear in every issue. In addition to her company, her passion is giving back to the community as she volunteers for various support organizations such as Boy Scouts of America, Special Olympics, Alzheimer’s Association and supporting the military. She loves to travel with her teenage children and supporting their extra-curricular activities.

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YOU NEED (OR MIGHT WANT) TO KNOW Editor’s note

ANDREW FELDER aafelder@crestpublicationsgroup.com Managing Editor & Publisher

Nancy Pelosi: We will have to wait until the chicken crosses the road to see what it says.

Ben Carson: This isn’t brain surgery; it wanted grain.

John McCain: My friends, the chicken crossed the road because he recognized the need to engage in cooperation and dia logue with all the chickens on the other side of the road.

Dr. Phil: The problem we have here is that this chicken won't realize that he must first deal with the problem on this side of the road before it goes after the problem on the other side of the road. What we need to do is help him realize how stupid he is acting by not taking on his current problems before adding any new problems.

Donald Trump: I’ve been told by many many sources, good sources, they’re very good sources, in fact everyone’s talking about it – that the chicken crossed the road. All the fake news wants to do is write nasty things about the road…but it’s a really good road. A beautiful road. An unbelievable road! Everyone knows how beautiful it is. And, anyway, we will build a big wall to keep illegal chickens from crossing it.

Joe Biden: Why did the chicken do the... thing in the...? Come on, man! You know the rest.

Sarah Palin: The chicken crossed the road because, gosh darn it, he’s a maverick!

Barack Obama: Let me be perfectly clear…. If the chickens like their eggs, they can keep their eggs. No chicken will be required to cross the road to surrender her eggs. Period.

Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez: Chickens should not be forced to lay eggs! This is the result of corporate greed. Eggs should be able to lay themselves.

Hillary Clinton: What difference does it really make at this point why the chicken crossed the road?

George W. Bush: We don’t really care why the chicken crossed the road. We just want to know if the chicken is on our side of the road or not. The chicken is either with us or against us. There is no middle ground here.

Dick Cheney: Where’s my rifle?

Bill Clinton: I did not cross the road with that chicken.

John Kerry: We will trust the chicken to tell us whether it crossed the road or not.

Rand Paul: It’s none of our concern why the chicken crossed the road.

Bernie Sanders: That little chicken will pay 80% income taxes no matter what side of the road it’s on. He’s got to help finance free college even for those that just want a fouryear vacation.

Al Sharpton: Why are all the chickens white?

Al Gore: I invented the chicken.

Brian Williams: I crossed the road with the chicken.

Oprah Winfrey: Well, I understand that the chicken is having problems, which is why he wants to cross the road so badly. So instead of having the chicken learn from his mistakes and take falls, which is a part of life, I'm going to give this chicken a NEW CAR so that he can just drive across the road and not live his life like the rest of the chickens.

Anderson Cooper: We have reason to believe there is a chicken, but we have not yet been allowed to have access to the other side of the road.

Nancy Grace: That chicken crossed the road because he's guilty! You can see it in his eyes and the way he walks.

Pat Buchanan: To steal the job of a decent, hardworking American.

Martha Stewart: No one called me to warn me which way the chicken was going. I had a standing order at the Farmer's Market to sell my eggs when the price dropped to a certain level. No little bird gave me any insider information.

Dr. Seuss: Did the chicken cross the road? Did he cross it with a toad? Yes, the chicken crossed the road, but why it crossed I've not been told.

Ernest Hemingway: To die in the rain, alone.

King David: O Lord, why dost the chicken cross the road? And why art the chicken hawks beset around it? Surely in vain the road is crossed in the sight of any predator.

Grandpa: In my day we didn't ask why the chicken crossed the road. Somebody told us the chicken crossed the road, and that was good enough for us.

Barbara Walters: Isn't that interesting? In a few moments, we will be listening to the chicken tell, for the first time, the heart-warming story of how it experienced a serious case of molting and went on to accomplish its lifelong dream of crossing the road. Aristotle: It is the nature of chickens to cross the road.

Bill Gates: I have just released eChicken2020, which will not only cross roads, but will lay eggs, file your important documents and balance your checkbook. Internet Explorer is an integral part of eChicken2014. This new platform is much more stable and will never reboot.

Albert Einstein: Did the chicken really cross the road, or did the road move beneath the chicken?

Colonel Sanders: Did I miss one? n

-POLITICAL CONSIDERATIONS-

Incredible!! I love how you all did the sketches for people's headshots, that looks so cool! We will definitely share out through ASID and Novita` channels.

Lucy Mathias, New York, NY

I love the cover. I knew the last issue’s cover was tough to beat – but this equals it!

Ruben Iglesias, San Antonio, TX

You really pack a lot into the magazine and it’s all very interesting and fun to read. Keep up the good work.

Dawn Paladrino, Houston, TX

is a great escape from the stresses of today’s workplace (and world, in general). I love learning (and learning about) new things – and I sincerely look forward to every new issue.

Heather Kendricks, El Paso, TX

“Outstanding!”

Burt Haimes, New York, NY

LIBERTY LEADING THE PEOPLE BY ED WHEELER

Eugene Delacroix’s Liberty Leading the People commemorated the July Revolution of 1830. A woman holding the tricolor flag of the French Revolution in one hand mounts the ramparts. This flag was the flag of the revolution, but became the national flag of France. Liberty’s raised hand is much like the gesture of our Statue of Liberty, which was a gift from the people of France 50 years later. The painting was created the same year as the revolution. In a letter to his brother, he wrote: "I’ve embarked on a modern subject—a barricade. And if I haven’t fought for my country at least I’ll paint for her."

ELECTION DAY

For the first half-century of American history, each state set its own election date and balloting for the presidential election stretched out over six months. In 1845, Congress set a national date for the election – the Tuesday after the first Monday in November – and that is when it has been ever since.

In theory, Congress could choose to change this date, as well as the date set for the electoral college to choose the president. Moreover, the 20th Amendment to the Constitution established that the president’s term ends on Jan. 20 at noon. If at that time a president and vice president have not yet been chosen by the electoral college, the speaker of the House of Representatives becomes president. Our guess is that President Trump has not considered that delaying the election for a significant amount of time would mean Nancy Pelosi becoming president.

THE NEW MISSISSIPPI STATE FLAG

Mississippi will soon have a Confederate-free state flag. A governorappointed commission voted 8-1 in favor of a magnolia design for the state’s new flag, which would replace a divisive Confederate battle emblem that was dropped from the banner earlier this year.The panel’s recommendation will now go on the

November ballot for a final vote. If voters reject the design, the commission will have to reconvene and begin the process again. Lawmakers shelved the controversial Confederatethemed flag under pressure from those who saw the banner as a racist symbol. Religious leaders, schools, sports groups, businesses and politicians across Mississippi joined a chorus of voices pushing for the flag to be changed, an effort that happened during nationwide protests against systemic racism and police brutality.

THE FLAG OF THE EUROPEAN UNION

The European flag is an official symbol used by the Council of Europe (CoE) as a symbol representing Europe and the European Union (EU). It consists of a circle of twelve five-pointed stars on a blue field. (In 1949, the Council of

Europe was founded with the idea of unifying Europe to achieve common goals. Further European integration by some states led to the formation of the European Union (EU), a separate political entity that lies between a confederation and a federation (see separate article below). It originated in Western Europe but has been expanding eastward since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991.)

The design for the flag was conceived in 1955, and officially adopted later that year by the Council of Europe as a symbol for the whole of Europe. The Council of Europe urged it to be adopted by other European organizations, and in 1985 the European Communities (EC) adopted it. The EU also inherited the emblem’s use when it was formed in 1993 as the successor organization to the EC. The flag is used by different European organizations as well as by unified European sporting teams under the name of Team Europe.

The number of stars on the EU flag doesn’t represent anything. 12 stars were chosen as a number with no political association and for a symbol of unity.

YOU NEED (OR MIGHT WANT) TO KNOW YOU NEED (OR MIGHT WANT) TO KN W

By Lokal_Profil, CC BY-SA 2.5

CONFEDERATION VS FEDERATION

A confederation (a/k/a confederacy or league) is a union of sovereign groups or states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issues such as defense, foreign relations, internal trade or currency, with the general government being required to provide support for all its members. The nature of the relationship among the member states in a confederation varies considerably, as does the relationship between the members and the distribution of powers among.

Since the member states of a confederation retain their sovereignty, they have an implicit right of secession. In a confederation, the central authority is relatively weak. Decisions made by the general government in a unicameral legislature, a council of the member states, require subsequent implementation by the member states to take effect; they are not laws acting directly upon the individual but have more the character of interstate agreements. Also, decision-making in the general government usually proceeds by consensus (unanimity), not by majority.

n Federal states

n Unitary states

A federation (a/k/a federal state) is a political entity characterized by a union of partially self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a central federal government (federalism). In a federation, the self-governing status of the component states, as well as the division of power between them and the central government, is typically constitutionally entrenched and may not be altered by a unilateral decision of either party, the states or the federal political body. Alternatively, a federation is a form of government in which sovereign power is formally divided between a central authority and a number of constituent regions so that each region retains some degree of control over its internal affairs.

The governmental or constitutional structure found in a federation is considered to be federalist, or to be an example of federalism. It can be considered the opposite of another system, the unitary state. France, for example, has been unitary for multiple centuries. Germany, with its 16 states is an example of a federation. Federations are often multi-ethnic and cover a large area of territory (such as Russia, the United States, Canada, India, or Brazil), but neither is necessarily the case (such as Saint Kitts and Nevis or the Federated States of Micronesia).

VIENNA – THE WORLD’S GREENEST CITY

Resonance is a BRitish columBia, Canada-based international consultancy group in real estate, tourism, and economic development (resonanceco.com/Reports). Its annual rankings consider a broad array of factors and categories – everything from weather to diversity to nightlife. London, England topped the list for 2020.

THE WORLD’S 25 BEST CITIES OF 2020

1. London, England

2. New York City, United States

3. Paris, France

4. Tokyo, Japan

5. Moscow, Russia

6. Dubai, United Arab Emirates

7. Singapore

8. Barcelona, Spain

9. Los Angeles, United States

10. Rome, Italy

11. San Francisco, United States

12. Madrid, Spain

13. Chicago, United States

14. Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

15. Amsterdam, Netherlands

16. Beijing, China

17. Toronto, Canada

18. Doha, Qatar

19. Hong Kong, China

20. San Diego, United States

21. Boston, United States

22. Sydney, Australia

23. Las Vegas, United States

24. Miami, United States

25. San Jose, United States

Vienna ranked 36th on this list, but (based on criteria like air quality, walkability, and access to recycling and composting programs) it ranked #1 on a new listed that was released on Earth Day – the World’s Greenest Cities. (Resonance looked at the world's 50 most-visited cities as measured by the total number of reviews they receive on Tripadvisor.)

The Austrian capital gets 30% of its total energy needs from renewable sources, and half of its population uses public transportation to get to work. It has lots of public green spaces, city-wide recycling and composting programs, and 135 farmers’ markets. The city’s water consumption and air quality, its plentiful parks and popular electric tram were also significant positive factors. To see more about Resonance’s methodology and the world’s greenest cities, visit bestcities.org

THE TOP 10 GREENEST CITIES IN THE WORLD

1. Vienna, Austria

2. Munich, Germany

3. Berlin, Germany

4. Madrid, Spain

5. São Paulo, Brazil

6. Manchester, United Kingdom

7. Lisbon, Portugal

8. Singapore

9. Amsterdam, Netherlands

10. Washington, D.C.

See an eagle’s eye view of the Austrian capital here: www.wien.info/en/sightseeing/ eagle n

The male praying mantis cannot copulate while its head is attached to its body. The female initiates sex by ripping the male’s head off. (“Honey, I’m home. What the …?”)

In the 2016 presidential election, 51% of those eligible to vote in Texas turned out. The national average was 60%.

YANKEE STADIUM

THE FIRST SPORTS VENUE TO ACHIEVE WELL HEALTH-SAFETY RATING

in late august, the International WELL Building Institute (IWBI) announced that Yankee Stadium is the first sports and entertainment venue in the world to achieve the WELL Health-Safety Rating for Facility Operations and Management. The rating requirements, which have been fulfilled by the club, serve as a blueprint for best operating procedures to help combat COVID-19, while also providing world-class standards for overall health and safety. By achieving this designation, which has been confirmed by a third-party verifier, Green Business Certification Inc. (GBCI), the club can operate with confidence that they are utilizing best practices for players and staff, and that they are appropriately prepared to accommodate the reintroduction of fans when approved to do so by Major League Baseball and local governmental authorities.

Launched in June and created by IWBI, the WELL Health-Safety Rating is informed by guidance developed by the World Health Organization (WHO), U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), global disease control and prevention centers and emergency management agencies, recognized standardmaking bodies, such as ASTM International and ASHRAE, and leading academic and research institutions. IWBI has leveraged insights from its Task Force on COVID-19, established at the outset of the pandemic to help business and building leaders integrate actionable insights and proven strategies in the fight against COVID-19 and other respiratory infections.

The WELL Health-Safety Rating achieved by the Yankees is an evidence-based, third-party verified rating for all new and existing buildings and spaces. The WELL Health-Safety Rating provides operational policies, maintenance protocols, emergency plans and stakeholder engagement strategies to help organizations prepare and maintain their spaces for re-entry in a post COVID-19 environment. The Yankees joined more than 100 organizations, encompassing over 500 facilities, who enrolled in the documentation-based program at launch and who have begun implementing its scientific guidance.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has underscored to companies in every sector how critically important it is to be prepared for a crisis. The Yankees have demonstrated outstanding leadership by taking immediate and thoughtful action to help support the health and safety of their players, fans and employees,” said Rick Fedrizzi, IWBI chairman and CEO.

Adapted from features in the WELL Building Standard (WELL) that focus on facility maintenance and operations, the WELL Health-Safety Rating is designed to guide and empower the actions of large and small businesses alike in taking the necessary steps to maintain facilities that prioritize the health and safety of their staffs, visitors and stakeholders. It also serves as an annual process that supports efforts to promote long-term health and safety.

Yankees Senior Vice President of Stadium Operations Doug Behar said, “Given that the WELL criteria have been informed by renowned experts and standard-making bodies in this field gives us confidence that we are taking appropriate preventative measures to support the health and safety of our players, field staff, employees — and eventually fans. Reaching this level and receiving third-party verification from GBCI was a long and uncompromising road, but one that is clearly in the best interests of everyone who steps foot into Yankee Stadium.”

• Emergency preparedness programs which provide a blueprint for dealing with unforeseen events and an actionable plan for re-entry after an emergency event.

• Health service resources which promote the well-being of employees through screening services, mental health services, seasonal vaccination programs and a smoke-free environment.

• Stakeholder engagement and communications (including proper signage throughout the stadium and promoting health literacy to employees, partners and patrons as well as food service safety verification).

Rachel Gutter, IWBI president said, “Players, staff and fans can feel confident that the Yankees have implemented our research-backed strategies to provide a safer and healthier environment to play ball.”

“Restoring the sports and entertainment sectors is among the most complicated challenges the COVID-19 pandemic has engendered, socially and biologically. The New York Yankees’ effort to provide confidence to its players, staff and its community is a model for all sports venues to emulate,” said Allen Hershkowitz, Environmental Science Advisor to the Yankees and Co-Chair of the WELL Advisory for Sports and Entertainment Venues.

Yankee Stadium achieved the WELL HealthSafety Rating by implementing features across five categories:

• Air and water quality management (including the assessment of ventilation and fresh air supply through mechanical or natural means and reviewing the inventory of all filters and ultraviolet germicidal irradiation equipment).

• Cleaning and sanitization procedures (including ensuring proper handwashing and surface contact by staff, improving cleaning practices and their frequency, and selecting cleaning products that disinfect without harmful ingredients).

Owners, operators and tenants can pursue the WELL Health-Safety Rating for projects independently, seamlessly using the rating as a steppingstone to achievement of WELL Certification or integrate the rating as a milestone within their WELL Certification or WELL Portfolio journey.

To learn more about the WELL Health-Safety Rating, visit:

https://www.wellcertified.com/health-safety. n

The International WELL Building Institute (IWBI) is focused exclusively on the ways that buildings and communities, and everything in them, can improve our comfort, drive better choices, and generally enhance, not compromise, our health and wellness. The WELL Health-Safety Rating is an evidence-based, third-party verified rating for all facility types, focused on operational policies, maintenance protocols, emergency plans and stakeholder education to address a post-COVID-19 environment now and broader health and safety-related issues into the future. More information on WELL can be found here.

TR E DAT: WHODDATHUNKIT?

SEXOLOGIST AND PROFESSOR BEVERLY WHIPPLE DISCOVERED THE EROGENOUS ZONE WE NOW CALL THE G-SPOT IN 1982. WHILE CONDUCTING RESEARCH AND WORKING ON HER BOOK WITH COLLEAGUES JOHN PERRY AND ALICE KAHN LADAS, IT WAS SUGGESTED THAT THE AREA SHOULD BE NAMED THE “WHIPPLE TICKLE” AFTER HER. SHE POLITELY AND PROFESSIONALLY DECLINED.

“Hello” (a variation of hallo, which was an alteration of holla or hollo) came into use in the mid-1800s. It is. These words were used to attract immediate attention and demand that the listener come to a stop or cease what he or she was doing. Hallo was used to incite hunting dogs. When Alexander Graham Bell invented the phone (1876), he preferred to use ‘Ahoy’ (primarily a nautical greeting). Thomas Edison mistakenly heard a person say ‘Hullo’ on the phone and responded with the ‘Hello’. And it became the standard for answering calls.

Eugene Aserinsky (1921 – 1998) was a graduate student at the University of Chicago in 1953 when he discovered REM sleep after hours spent studying the eyelids of sleeping subjects. Ironically, he died in a car accident having fallen asleep at the wheel.

The American Mustache Institute (AMI) is an advocacy organization and registered 501(c)(3) not-for-profit founded in St. Louis in 1965.In 2013, it moved to Pittsburgh. Its full-time staff supports more than 700 global chapters which advocate for greater acceptance of mustaches in the workplace and throughout modern culture.

The Tale of Two Lovers was written in 1444 and was one of the bestselling books of the fifteenth century. It is one of the earliest examples of an epistolary novel, full of erotic imagery. Its author, Aeneas Sylvius Piccolomini, became Pope Pius II and served from 1458-1464.

IN 2006, A SUDANESE MAN NAMED CHARLES TOMBE WAS FORCED TO "MARRY" A GOAT WITH WHICH HE WAS CAUGHT ENGAGING IN BESTIALITY. HE WAS ORDERED BY THE TOWN ELDERS TO PAY THE OWNER THE COST OF THE GOAT AND PAY A DOWRY OF 15,000 DINAR ($50.00). THE GOAT APPARENTLY ACQUIRED THE NAME "ROSE" DURING THE ELDERS' DELIBERATIONS.

THE FBI INVESTIGATED THE KINGSMEN’S 1963 SONG

“LOUIE LOUIE” BECAUSE THE LYRICS WERE ACCUSED OF BEING ‘DIRTY’ BY CONCERNED PARENTS. EVENTUALLY THEY ABANDONED THE INVESTIGATION BECAUSE THEY COULDN’T MAKE OUT THE WORDS.

HeavenO or Heaven-O is a greeting coined by Leonso Canales, Jr. of Kingsville, Texas, and promoted as a positive alternative to "hello" (despite the fact that any negative connotations would not occur to most level-headed people and the two words aren't related anyway). In 1997, Canales (who died in 2014 at the age of 74) successfully persuaded officials of Kleberg County, Texas, to officially adopt "HeavenO" as the county's preferred form of greeting.

Iceland is very strict about baby naming laws. Parents have to meet certain rules of gender, grammar, and meaning to save the child from embarrassment in the future. The name has to contain letters that occur in the Icelandic alphabet. There is a list of 1853 approved names for girls and 1712 approved names for boys. The Naming Committee was established in 1991 to determine whether new given names not previously used in Iceland are suitable for integration into the country's language and culture. It is comprised of 3 appointees of the Ministry of Justice who serve for four years—one nominated by the Icelandic Language Committee, one by the Faculty of Philosophy of the University of Iceland, and one by the university's Faculty of Law. The name of the committee (in Icelandic): Mannanafnanefnd.

Most boat owners name their boats.

The most popular boat name: Obsession

IN 2008, IN SOUTH AFRICA, CARLO MOSCA DIONISIO STRUNG 18,500 LATEX CONDOMS TOGETHER AND (SUCCESSFULLY) JUMPED FROM A HUNDRED-FOOT TOWER.

UNESCO CREATIVE CITIES NETWORK & DESIGN CITIES

the united nations educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) based in Paris aimed at contributing "to the building of peace, the eradication of poverty, sustainable development and intercultural dialogue through education, the sciences, culture, communication and information. It has 193 member states and 11 associate members. The Organization seeks to build a culture of peace and inclusive knowledge societies through education, natural sciences, social/human sciences, culture and communication/information.

In our December of 2017 issue, we looked at its efforts to establish international cooperation agreements to secure "World Heritage Sites" of cultural and natural importance.

The UNESCO Creative Cities Network (UCCN) is a project launched in 2004 to promote cooperation among

cities which recognized creativity as a major factor in their urban development. As of 2017, there are 180 cities from 72 countries in the network which aims to foster international cooperation with and between member cities committed to invest in creativity as a driver for sustainable urban development, social inclusion and cultural vibrancy. See a complete list of those cities and a brief video here and see the organization’s brochure here.

environment maintained by design (architecture, urban planning, public spaces, monuments, transportation); design schools and design research centers; practicing groups of designers with a continuous activity at a local and national level; experience in hosting fairs, events and exhibits dedicated to design; opportunity for local designers and urban planners to take advantage of local materials and urban/ natural conditions; designdriven creative industries such as architecture and interiors, fashion and textiles, jewelry

and accessories, interaction design, urban design, sustainable design.

In 2005, Buenos Aires became the first Design city - with Montreal joining in 2006. Buenos Aires is home to the Metropolitan Design Center (CMD) created in 2001 with the aim of stimulating the productive framework and the quality of life of the citizens of the city, through an effective management of the various areas of design. The International Festival of Design is conducted annually in the CMD.

UNESCO's Design Cities project is part of the wider Creative Cities Network. To be approved as a Design City, cities need to meet a number of criteria set by UNESCO.

Designated UNESCO Design Cities share similar characteristics such as having an established design industry; cultural landscape and the built

“I would like to take you seriously, but to do so would affront your intelligence.”

(William F. Buckley)

é Buenos Aires.

Q: What word is it that when you take away the whole, you still have some left?

A: Wholesome

Montreal is known for a considerable number of venues for the presentation of design, along with notable organizations that highlight the creations of designers and architects from Montréal and elsewhere.

Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan on the western shore of the Caspian Sea, has extremely varying architecture, ranging from the Old City with (1) The Palace of the Shirvanshahs to modern buildings such as (2) Heydar Aliyev Center designed by Zaha Hadid, (3) the Carpet Museum and (4) Flame Towers. Baku joined this network of Design Cities on the occasion of World Cities’ Day on October 31, 2019 along with Asahikawa (Japan), Bangkok (Thailand), Cebu City (Philippines), Fortaleza (Brazil),

and San José (Costa Rica).

/1/ The Palace of the Shirvanshahs is a 15th-century palace built by the Shirvanshahs and described by UNESCO as "one of the pearls of Azerbaijan's architecture". Together with the Maiden Tower, it forms an ensemble of historic monuments inscribed under the UNESCO World Heritage List of Historical

Monuments.

/2/ The Heydar Aliyev Center is a 619,000 sq ft building complex designed by Iraqi-British architect Zaha Hadid and noted for its distinctive architecture and flowing, curved style that eschews sharp angles. The center is named after Heydar Aliyev, the first secretary of Soviet Azerbaijan from 1969 to 1982, and president of the Azerbaijan Republic from October 1993 to

October 2003.

/3/ The Azerbaijan National Carpet Museum is a museum in Baku that displays Azerbaijani carpets and rugs of various weaving techniques and materials from various periods. It has the largest collection of

The 37 Cities of Design with the year they achieved the designation, links to more information about each city, and each country’s national flags are:

Asahikawa (2019)

Baku (2019)

Bandung (2015)

Bangkok (2019)

Beijing (2012)

Bilbao (2014)

Brasília (2017)

Budapest (2015)

Buenos Aires (2005)

Cebu City (2019)

Curitiba (2014)

Detroit (2015)

Dundee (2014)

Fortaleza (2019)

Geelong (2017)

Graz (2011)

Hanoi (2019)

Helsinki (2014)

Istanbul (2017)

Kaunas (2015)

Kobe (2008)

Kolding (2017)

Kortrijk (2017)

Mexico City (2017)

Montreal (2016)

Muharraq (2019)

Nagoya (2008)

Puebla (2015)

Querétaro (2019)

Saint-Etienne (2010)

Azerbaijani carpets in the world. /4/ Flame Towers is a trio of skyscrapers in Baku. The height of the tallest tower is 597 ft) The flame-shaped towers symbolize the element of fire - historically resonant in a region where natural gas flares shoot from the earth and Zoroastrian worshippers saw in fire a symbol of the divine. The buildings consist of 130 residential apartments over 33 floors, a Fairmont hotel tower with 250 rooms and 61 serviced apartments, and office blocks that provide a net 367,000 square feet of office space. n

San José (2019)

Seoul (2010)

Shanghai (2010)

Shenzhen (2008)

Singapore (2015)

Torino (2014)

Wuhan (2017)

Hanoi (Vietnam), Muharraq (Bahrain), Potsdam (Germany)

é Montreal.

é By Urek Meniashvili - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons. wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=28310779

é By sefer - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index. php?curid=51003203

é By President.az, CC BY 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/ index.php?curid=65601237

PResident tRuman, waRned By some of his advisers that any attempt to invade Japan would result in horrific American casualties, wanted to bring World War II to a speedy end. On August 6, 1945, the American bomber Enola Gay dropped a five-ton bomb over the Japanese city of Hiroshima. A blast equivalent to the power of 15,000 tons of TNT reduced four square miles of the city to ruins and immediately killed approximately 80,000 people. Another 35,000 were injured and at least another 60,000 would be dead by the end of the year from the effects of the fallout. Three days later, another bomb was dropped on the city of Nagasaki, killing nearly 40,000 more people. A few days later, Japan announced its surrender.

In 1958, the population of Hiroshima reached 410,000, finally exceeding what it was before the war. Today it is a major urban center, home to about 1.12 million.

HIROSHIMA

of that bombing, was registered on the World Heritage List in 1996. Now, it will be protected forever to tell future generations about the cruel tragedy of the atomic bomb.

The Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park was the design that elevated Kenzō Tange to one of the most influential architects of the 20th century. A modernist, he was confident in his role of remaking the post-war world. Peace Plaza is the backdrop for this, the /1/ Peace Memorial Museum. The park is designed to allow 50 thousand people to freely gather around the Peace memorial in its center.

However, the people of Hiroshima have certainly not forgotten the fact that their city was once transformed to rubble by an atomic bomb. The A-bomb Dome, a silent witness to the horror

Every year on August 6th, the day the bomb was dropped, Hiroshima holds a ceremony in Peace Memorial Park. There, the mayor reads an annual Peace Declaration, committing the city to fulfil its mission as an international peace culture city – doing whatever it can to rid the world of nuclear weapons and build a world of genuine and lasting peace. More than half a century after the atomic bombing, the few remaining survivors (called hibakusha in Japanese) are quite elderly and their numbers are dwindling.

Sarchasm: the gulf between the author of sarcastic wit and the recipient who doesn’t get it.

The Hiroshima Prefectural Industrial Promotion Hall (the A-Bomb Dome) stands alone in the rubble. The explosion produced a supersonic shock wave followed by extreme winds that remained above hurricane force more than three kilometers from the hypocenter. A secondary and equally

devastating reverse wind ensued, flattening and severely damaging homes and buildings several kilometers further away. Only remnants of a few reinforced structures remained. (Photo: Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum).

é The A-Bomb Dome - Then and Now

/2/ The Peace Memorial (a/k/a The A-Bomb Building) stands at the center of the park. It is visible from the monument (see #6) at one end and the museum at the other.

/3/ The Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art became Japan's first public museum dedicated to modern art when it opened (1989). The building, designed by renowned architect Kisho Kurokawa, sits atop Hijiyama, a hill overlooking the city.

/4/ The visually and structurally stunning Wedding Chapel (featured in in December of 2017), designed by NAP Architects, has won numerous prizes. It was completed in 2013. The architect wrote: “By entwining two spiral stairways, we realized a free-standing building of unprecedented composition and architecturally embodied the act of marriage in a pure form.” The two spirals seamlessly connect at their 50.5 feet summit to form a single ribbon.

/5/ Originally constructed in 1589, Hiroshima Castle served as the political and economic center of the city. Along with the rest of the city, it was demolished by the atomic bomb attack. Meant to raise awareness of the city and its history, this designated national historic site rose from ruins in 1958, featuring four floors of museum exhibits.

/6/ The Memorial Cenotaph bears the epitaph of “Let all the souls here rest in peace for we shall not repeat the evil,” and has a perfect view of the A-bomb dome. It is in the Peace Memorial Park designed by Kenzō Tange .There are monuments to many specific groups of victims dotted around the park including one for Korean victims, certain schools as well as individuals who helped during the crisis. (Yesthat is Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and President Barack Obama.)

/7/ Listed on UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Hiroshima Peace Memorial (A-Bomb Dome and the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park) stand as the important historical monuments to prove such history and the world to learn not repeat the history. Another UNESCO World Heritage Site is Itsukushima Shrine on the sacred Miyajima Island. The shrine is best known for the stunning scenery of the floating large red torii gate, one of the most photographed sights among tourists in Japan. Besides, Miyajima Island offers numbers of tourist attractions including Mt Misen, the island's highest mountain which offers the overlook view of Seto Inland Sea, Daishoin Temple, the Buddhist temple located on the hillside of Mt Misen.

/8/ Long-established historical heritages such as Hiroshima Castle (#5) and Shukkeien Garden which have been reconstructed after the war and are among today's top tourist sites. n

One of the hardest things to learn in life is which bridges to burn and which ones to cross.

THE ARCHITECTURE OF WASHINGTON, DC

washington is a city of wonderful and truly monumental architecture, colossal structures that fill the pages of architectural tomes. This modest smattering of some of the betterknown buildings is meant to whet readers’ appetites to want to learn/see more.

At the Democratic Convention in Philadelphia in 2016, Michelle Obama poignantly said, "I wake up every morning in a house that was built by slaves." And that was (and is) true. The White House she is referring to is the one that was rebuilt by James Hobart (the same Irish-born architect who designed the original one) after the British burned the original in 1814.

Architect Benjamin Henry Latrobe added the porticoes in 1824 and that transformed the White House from a modest Georgian house into a neoclassical mansion. Of course, it has changed substantially since then.

ê The White House built with slave labor after 1814.

French engineer Pierre Charles L'Enfant planned the city of Washington, and it was expected that he would design the Capitol as well. But when he didn’t accept the authority of the commissioners, he was dismissed, and Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson preferred a classical plan among those submitted in a public competition. He suggested that the Capitol be modeled after the Roman Pantheon, with a circular domed rotunda. Like the White House, the Capitol was burned by the British in 1814 and has gone through several major renovations. Also like at the White House, most of the labor was done by enslaved African Americans. The cast-iron neoclassical dome was added in the mid-1800s. (The original dome was smaller and made of wood and copper.)

Alfred Mullett, the chief architect, based his design on architecture that was popular in France during the mid-1800s, giving it an elaborate façade and a high mansard roof. The interior is noteworthy for its cast iron details and enormous skylights.

Union Station is modeled after the buildings of ancient Rome, with elaborate sculptures, ionic columns, gold leaf, and grand marble corridors in a mix of neoclassical and BeauxArts designs. Architect Daniel Burnham, assisted by Pierce Anderson, modeled the arch after the Arch of Constantine in Rome and inside, he designed grand vaulted spaces resembling the ancient Roman Baths of Diocletian.

Victorian architect James Renwick, Jr. made this Smithsonian Institute building look like a medieval castle. It was originally designed as the home for the secretary of the Institute, but it is now administrative offices and a visitor center. Renwick was a prominent architect who went on to build St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York City. (Interesting fact: When the Smithsonian Castle was new, its walls were lilac gray; as it aged, the sandstone turned red.) [See of September 2018 to see a pictorial about the many museums that comprise the Smithsonian.]

Formerly known as the Old Executive Office Building, the huge building next to the White House was renamed the Eisenhower Executive Office Building in 1999. It had also been called the State, War, and Navy Building because those departments used to be housed there. Today, it is ‘home’ to a variety of federal offices, including the office of the Vice President.

The Jefferson Memorial is a round, domed monument dedicated to the third President of the United States (who was also an architect). Jefferson admired the architecture of ancient Rome and the Memorial is modeled after the Pantheon in Rome and Italian Renaissance architect Andrea Palladio's Villa Capra (in the second half of the 1500s). Architect John Russell Pope designed Jefferson's Memorial to reflect those tastes; when he died in 1937, architects Daniel P. Higgins and Otto R. Eggers took over the construction. It also resembles Monticello, the Virginia home that Jefferson designed for himself.

Many native American groups took part in the design of the National Museum of the American Indian, a part of the Smithsonian Institution. Set in a four-acre landscape that recreates early American forests, meadows, and wetlands, the 5-story curvilinear building is constructed to resemble natural stone formations. The exterior walls are made of

é The White House today.

There is no ‘I’ in ‘team’, but there are four in ‘platitude quoting idiot.’

gold colored Kasota limestone from Minnesota. Other materials include granite, bronze, copper, maple, cedar, and alder.

The Marriner S. Eccles Federal Reserve Board Building is a modern twist on Beaux Arts architecture. It is more commonly known as the Eccles Building or the Federal Reserve Building. Completed in 1937, the imposing marble building was constructed to house offices for the United States Federal Reserve Board. Paul Philippe Cret, the architect, trained in France, designed a classical structure mixed with ornamentation - the result: a building that is monumental and dignified.

Architect Robert Mills' design of the Washington Monument is a simple, tapered stone obelisk topped with a pyramid, inspired by ancient Egyptian architecture. Political strife, the Civil War, and money shortages delayed construction and because of those delays, the stones are not all the same shade. The monument was not completed until 1884. (Interesting fact: At that time, it was the tallest structure in the world - and it remains the tallest structure in Washington D.C.)

The Joseph H. Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden is named after the financier and philanthropist who donated his extensive collection of modern art. The Smithsonian Institution asked Pritzker Prizewinning architect Gordon Bunshaft to design it. The Museum has become as much of an attraction as the art it contains.

When you stand in front of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall, its mirror-like black granite reflects your image. Architect Maya Lin’s design for the 250-foot wall is the main part of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. The modern-styled memorial created a great deal of controversy, which resulted in the addition of two more traditional memorials— (the Three Soldiers statue and the Vietnam Women's Memorial) nearby.

Officially called the Cathedral Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, the Washington National Cathedral is an Episcopal cathedral and also a place where interfaith services are held. Architects George Frederick Bodley and Henry Vaughn designed the building in Neo-Gothic style with pointed arches, flying buttresses, and stained-glass windows.

The first stone of the Lincoln Memorial was laid on Lincoln's birthday in 1914. Architect Henry Bacon designed it with 36 Doric columns, representing the 36 states in the Union at the time of Lincoln's death. Two additional columns flank the entrance. Inside is a 19-foot statue of a seated Lincoln carved by sculptor Daniel Chester French. The Lincoln Memorial has provided a stately backdrop for important speeches over the years. (Interesting Fact: On August 28, 1963, Martin Luther King, Jr delivered his famous "I Have a Dream" speech from the steps of the memorial.)

The National Archives Building is the exhibition hall for the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and the Declaration of Independence. As you would expect, interior features (including specialized shelving and air filters) preserve the documents from damage.

The John A. Wilson District Building, popularly known as the Wilson Building, houses the municipal offices and chambers of the Mayor and the Council of the District of Columbia. Originally called the District Building, it was renamed in 1994 to commemorate former Council Chair John A. Wilson. It was completed in 1908, during the administration of 26th President Theodore Roosevelt.

In Virginia, on the shore of the Potomac River, is scenic Mount Vernon - the 500-acre estate of George Washington. It includes a 14-room mansion that is beautifully restored and furnished with original objects dating back to the 1740's. Visitors can tour the outbuildings, including the kitchen, slave quarters, smokehouse, coach house, and stables.

The Octagon was designed by Dr. William Thornton, the first architect of the U.S. Capitol. It was part of Pierre L'Enfant’s plan to establish a residential section of the federal city. During the War of 1812, the Octagon served as a temporary home for James and Dolley Madison after the White House was burned. It has also been a girls’ school, the Navy Hydrographic Office, and headquarters for the American Institute of Architects. Today, it is a museum of architecture, design, historic preservation, and the early history of Washington, DC.

The Watergate Complex is a group of six buildings in the Foggy Bottom neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Built between 1963 and 1971, it was considered one of Washington's most desirable living spaces. In 1972, the headquarters of the Democratic National Committee (then located on the sixth floor of the Watergate Office Building), was burglarized; private campaign documents were photographed and telephones were wiretapped. The U.S. Senate investigation into the burglary revealed that high officials in the administration of President Richard Nixon had ordered the break-in and later tried to cover up their involvement. Additional crimes were also uncovered. The Watergate scandal, named after the complex, resulted in Nixon's resignation on August 9, 1974. The name "Watergate" and the suffix "-gate" have since become synonymous with and applied by journalists to controversial topics and scandals in the United States and elsewhere

Arlington House, which sits on top of a hill with an excellent view of Washington D.C., was the home of Robert E. Lee and his family before the Civil War. Built between 1802 and 1818, the house and grounds have served many purposes over the last 200 years: a family home for the Lees, a plantation estate and home to 63 slaves, a monument honoring George Washington, a military headquarters for Union troops, a community for emancipated slaves, and a national cemetery. About 200 acres of the land that occupies Arlington National Cemetery was originally the property of the Lee family.

Located in Arlington County, Virginia, across the Potomac from Washington, D.C., the Pentagon (the headquarters building of the United States Department of Defense since 1943) was designed by architect George Bergstrom. It is the world's largest office building, with about 6,500,000 square feet of floor space. Some 23,000 military and civilian employees, and another 3,000 non-defense support personnel, work in the Pentagon, which has five floors above ground, two basement levels, and five ring corridors per floor with a total of 17.5 miles of corridors. The central five-acre pentagonal plaza is nicknamed "ground zero" on the presumption that it would be a prime target in the event of a nuclear war. On 11 September 2001, exactly sixty years after the building's construction began, American Airlines Flight 77 was hijacked and flown into the western side of the building, killing 189 people (including the five terrorists on board). It was the first significant foreign attack on Washington's governmental facilities since the city was burned by the British during the War of 1812. n

I dropped out of communism class because of lousy Marx.

IREM’S 2020 REME AWARD WINNERS

the iRem® Reme (Real Estate Management Excellence) Awards champion the great companies and individuals in the industry and highlight the excellent work they are doing to propel real estate management forward. In this time of extraordinary challenges, it’s good to know that real estate managers have risen to the occasion with creativity, innovation, and commitment to professional excellence.

CPM® OF THE YEAR, MICHAEL DIGIACOMO

Mike DiGiacomo, CPM®, stumbled into real estate when he took a job as a resident director at a student housing community 14 years ago. Today, Mike’s vice president of student and senior housing with United Plus Property Management, LLC (UPPM), covering more than 3,000 units and 2,000 student beds across eight states. He credits his quick rise within his company to the skills he’s learned through IREM education.

engagement in many locally sponsored philanthropic events.

His motto, “We work where you live,” is meant to give the residents under his management comfort—he believes their homes should be safe, happy and comfortable, and they should be proud to call their community home.

ARM® OF THE YEAR, BRODY SHEETS

Brody Sheets, ARM®, is a management systems specialist with Pedcor Management Corporation. He believes IREM is all about making a difference, and that it starts in your own backyard. Brody actively gives back to his community with

As an IREM member, he believes ethics are an integral part of both personal and professional practices, as real estate managers are trusted with a wealth of property and resident data, and tasked with manag-ing investor assets, owner property, tenant businesses and homes.

AMO® OF THE YEAR, AYRE & OXFORD, INC.

Ayre & Oxford, an AMO® firm, is celebrating 25 years in business this year. Since achieving AMO status in 2014, the company has had three improvement goals: maintaining ethical behavior, a clear understanding of how each individual fits within the organization, and improving client and tenant relations. With the implementation of these initiatives, employee turnover has been minimal, and many of the new hires have been referred by current staff members—a reflection of the firm’s success.

INNOVATORS OF THE YEAR— CORTLAND, AMO®, AND OHIO CAPITAL CORPORATION FOR HOUSING

Cortland, AMO®, strives to please residents, and that means ensuring a pest-free environment. Bedbugs can go undetected for long periods of time, but have been reported not only in homes, but in hotels, cars, theatres and even on airplanes.

Until now, bedbug remediation was a costly and difficult process. But Cortland studied the natural triggers that cause bedbugs to feed and set out to exorcise these demons. Armed with new knowledge on the ways of the bedbug, a device was designed, and patented, for use in vacant units, before a new resident moved in.

Volume 11 of the Greenprint Performance Report™, which measures and tracks the performance of 10,190 properties owned by Greenprint members finds that, over the past year, carbon emissions have dropped by over 3%, energy consumption by almost 3% and water consumption by over 3%. In 2019, Greenprint members invested over US$50.1 million on sustainability projects spanning from tenant engagement to building envelope upgrades and recommissioning, totaling more than 6,000 individual projects.

Ohio Capital Corporation for Housing (OCCH), responded to resident needs just as the country’s “stay at home” orders took effect. The company committed $1 million from retained earnings to provide rental assistance, and raised additional $800,000 from investor partners, to commit $1.8 million to a Resident Impact Emergency Fund. n

An economic analysis of Greenprint’s triple-bottom-line impact amounts to value of over US$687 million since its inception in 2009. This includes financial savings from energy and water use reductions, as well as the environmental value of carbon emissions reductions and the social value of air pollution and water. In total, this represents a reduction of 1.43 million tons of CO2 emissions from Greenprint members’ properties.

The Greenprint Center is an alliance of the world’s leading real estate owners, investors, and financial institutions who are committed to improving environmental performance across the global market. According to its most recent report, its members have continued to make significant progress in reducing carbon emissions while increasing asset value.

é W. Edward Walter

“Now more than ever, sustainability is a clear value driver in real estate and the Greenprint Performance Report is continuing to make the business case to the industry for advancing green buildings,” said ULI Global Chief Executive Officer W. Edward Walter. “As the report notes, ESG has come front and center as a cause that our Greenprint members are championing. They continue to lead the way to inspire a broader movement within the real estate sector to improve building performance while bolstering the bottom line.”

The Institute of Classical Architecture & Art Texas Chapter announced that it is hosting an Architectural Drawing Competition. Through this competition, they hope to bring greater recognition to the artistic work done by architects and design professionals in support of their trade and the classical tradition.

They are looking for submissions of original two-dimensional artwork (e.g., renderings, perspectives, and landscapes). The medium must be non-computer generated - it must be made by the artist’s hand (watercolors, charcoal, pencil, acrylics, and oil). The subject matter must be architecture. Eligible submissions must be by a Texas-based practitioner and member of the Texas Chapter of the ICAA. Each entrant may submit a maximum of five projects for consideration.

Submissions will be put online for viewing and voting by the public. A jury will also pick the winning submissions. Winners will be noti-

TITLEAFFILI TE NEWS

United Protective: Eddy Allen, Ken Elridge, Kris Heald, and Greg Either. Jesse Zimmerman won the putting contest.

CPM Candidate

VP Industry Partners:

Michelle Morris, CPM

VP Programs:

Conner Ivy, CPM, CCIM

The chapter golf tournament looked much different this year at Coyote Ridge Golf Course (on October 2nd). After a lot of tough decisions and behind-the-scenes efforts by Committee Chair Terry Barnes, ACoM and Vice Chair Holli Biggerstaff, it was a safe, fun day – with masks, social distancing and sanitization stations throughout the course, In the end, 1st place went to Property Paving: Dylan Barnes, Jacob Gibson, Brian Matwijecky, and Blake Ezell and in 2nd place was

2021 IREM DALLAS ELECTED EXECUTIVE COUNCIL

President: Amanda Eller, CPM

President Elect: Sharon

Simmons, CPM , RPA, FMA, LEED GA, Broker

Secretary Treasurer: Susan Heath, CPM

Past President: Z Young, CPM

ARM Liaison:

Nekesha Lyles, CPM, ARM

VP Community Outreach: John Glen

VP Education/Scholarship

Review: Scott Cessac, CPM VP Golf: Holli Biggerstaff,

VP Leadership Development: Christie Clenney, CPM

VP Membership & Credentialing: Morgan Neely, CPM

VP Student & College Outreach/ Case Competition:

Iliana McQuown, CPM, CCIM, LEED GA, RPA

Advisors: Lew Hoppen, CPM

Academic Advisor: Dr. Steve Brown, PhD, MBA, CPA, CFP

Student Advisor: Franziska Schroeder, UTA

Staff: Kristin Hiett, CAE Executive Director/CEO; Allie Smith, Associate Director.

The deadline for submissions is November 30th, 2020. Visit classicist-texas.org/events-new for more information.

Superior Waste Minimization Winner:

Community Waste Disposal (CWD)

Excellence in Materials

Recovery Honorable Mention: City of Frisco Environmental Services

Excellence in Materials

Recovery Winner: City of Fort Worth Material Management Team

Green Thumb Honorable Mention: Silver Creek Materials

Best Recycling Partnership Winner: Turn Compost and Farmers Assisting Returning Military (FARM)

Recycler Of The Year: Champion Waste and Recycling

Green3 Achievement Winner: Town Of Little Elm

Innovative Recycling Special Event Honorable Mention: Keller Chamber of Commerce

The North Texas Corporate Recycling Association announced the win-ners of this year’s gR3een awards, the purpose of which is to recognize and honor the outstanding accomplishments of individuals, organizations, communities, schools, and businesses in developing or maintaining programs involving sustainable materials management, recycling, environmental outreach and education, composting, waste reduction and other sustainability efforts in North Texas.

Green Thumb Winner: City Of Fort Worth Master Composter program

Excellence In Education And Outreach Honorable Mention: City of Allen

Excellence In Education And Outreach Winner: City of Plano Green School Program

Best Recycling Partnership

Honorable Mention: Goodwill Industries of Fort Worth and Tarrant County College

Innovative Recycling Special Event Winner: City of Allen

Green Elected Official Winner:

Mayor Alan Brundett of Azle

Green Media Winner: City Of Plano n

fied by email prior to the digital announcement.

STUBBORN TEXAS ONCE CELEBRATED ITS OWN THANKSGIVING DAY

thanksgiving.” The double Thanksgivings came again in 1940 and 1941. Texas’ turkey breeders liked the extra sales. Football also played a part. The 1939 college rivalry games, including the University of TexasTexas A&M game, had already been scheduled on the last Thursday before Roosevelt’s proclamation.

But by 1956, the back-to-back Thanksgiving weeks had become an inconvenience. Texas couldn’t afford to be thankful twice, because state workers wanted to take both holidays.

BUD KENNEDY bud@star-telegram.com

Bud Kennedy is a journalist for the Fort-Worth Star-Telegram.

Texas holidays into law, aligning the state and federal Thanksgiving. In conservative Montague County, the Saint Jo Tribune complained that he “went Yankee.”

A ‘YANKEE INSTITUTION’

we’Re oRneRy aBout eveRything in Texas. Including Thanksgiving.

As late as 63 years ago, Texans dined twice on turkey dinners, because the Lone Star State celebrated Thanksgiving on a completely different day from the rest of America. Until 1956, Texas’ official state Thanksgiving holiday was the last Thursday in November. Some years, that’s a week after the national holiday, which was originally cussed in Texas as a federal abomination.

In the newspapers, the two holidays were called “Texas Thanksgiving” and (President Franklin) “Roosevelt’s Thanksgiving.”

The Star-Telegram headlined: “Take Your Pick, 2 Days Slated for Thanksgiving.” Stores and federal post offices closed on the federal holiday. But public schools and state colleges and offices closed the following week. “Big business caused it,” an unnamed “woman shopper” complained in The Dallas Morning News. Actually, politics caused it.

Back in 1939, Gov. W. Lee “Pappy” O’Daniel, a Fort Worth Democrat, had declared Texas would continue to celebrate the last Thursday as Thanksgiving in the name of America’s “Pilgrim Fathers,” not switch the holiday along with the rest of the country to the previous Thursday. The new, earlier holiday was derided as a business scheme and Roosevelt’s “New Deal Thanksgiving.” “While much of the world is at war,” O’Daniel said, “ … we, the citizens of Texas, have so much for which we should be thankful, we can very well observe two days of

A ‘STATES’ RIGHTS’ THANKSGIVING

Still, the Texas Legislature bickered mightily over changing it. State Rep. Calvin Matthew from Cuero, “turkey capital of the world,” fought hard to protect the bird business: “You’re cutting in half the number of turkeys we can sell.”

With civil rights and school desegregation both prominent issues, state Rep. James Cotten of Weatherford called for Texas to defend celebrating its own separate Thanksgiving as “states’ rights”: “It is a Texas tradition and a Texas holiday.” Never mind that Texas was solely American Indian country when the Pilgrims feasted in Massachusetts. Or that when President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed the first official Thanksgiving in 1863 during the Civil War, Texas was fighting on the other side.

Even in 1956, State Rep. Scott McDonald, a Fort Worth attorney, was making the same states’ rights argument. “Don’t you think if Texas holds the line, the other states will come along with us?” he asked. By then, Texas had celebrated a separate Thanksgiving seven times in the 17 years since 1939. Finally, in May 1957, Gov. Price Daniel — a graduate of Fort Worth’s Central High School, now Paschal — signed a new set of

That wasn’t even the first time Texas went rogue on Thanksgiving. From 1879 to 1882, we had a governor who refused to declare the holiday. Gov. O.M. Roberts hated it. Roberts, the first Tarrant County district judge and later the leader of Texas secession in the Civil War, considered the day an unwelcome federal mandate from Union Republicans in Washington. He called it a “damned Yankee institution.”

Not until 1868 did Texas first celebrate Thanksgiving. Even then, the Austin State Gazette mocked the day and asked why any Texan should ever celebrate “Reconstruction, the 14th amendment and [n-word] voting.”

Roberts called Thanksgiving a “religious exercise.” He said prayer wasn’t a government function. Northern newspapers did not take him well. The Cleveland Dealer called Roberts an “unrepentant rebel and traitor.” The Philadelphia Inquirer wrote that he “seems determined to keep up his state’s record for barbarism.” Even the Southern New Orleans Times called him “the most consummate demagogue ... pandering to the worst prejudices.” A 1907 Star-Telegram story calls him a Texas hero while adding casually that his slogan was “ ‘Civilization begins and ends with the plow’ — the motto of the Aryan race.”

Texas was stubborn about more than Thanksgiving. n

© 2020 The Fort Worth Star Telegram. This article originally appeared in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. It was adapted from columns that appeared in 2011 and 2016.

FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT “THE GREATEST AMERICAN ARCHITECT OF ALL TIME”

FRank lloyd wRight (1867 – 1959) was an American architect, designer, writer, and educator. He designed more than 1,000 structures over a creative period of 70 years and 532 of them are still standing. Wright believed in designing in harmony with humanity and its environment, a philosophy he called organic architecture. This philosophy was best exemplified by Fallingwater /01/ (1935), called (by Mike Brewster in Business Week in 2004) "the best all-time work of American architecture." As a founder of organic architecture, Wright played a key role in the architectural movements of the twentieth century, influencing three generations of architects worldwide through his works.

Wright was the pioneer of what came to be called the Prairie School movement of architecture /02/ (marked by horizontal lines, flat or hipped roofs with broad overhanging eaves), and he also developed the concept of the Usonian home /03/, his unique vision for urban planning in the United States. In addition to his houses, Wright designed original and innovative offices, churches, schools, skyscrapers, hotels, museums, and other structures.

In the late 1880s and early 1890s, Wright worked for the firm of Adler & Sullivan designing homes, but he was constantly short of money, probably because he had expensive tastes in wardrobe and vehicles. (Sullivan was featured in the September-October 2020 issue of .) He independently designed private homes - "bootlegged" houses, as

he later called them, were conservatively designed in variations of the fashionable Queen Anne /04/ and Colonial Revival styles – and eight of them remain today. He did this work on his own time, but when Sullivan (who knew nothing of the work) learned about it, he immediately fired Wright.

So Wright established his own practice, sharing loft space with Robert C. Spencer, Jr., Myron Hunt, and Dwight H. Perkins, with whom he formed (what became known as) the Prairie School.

His first independent commission was the Winslow House /05/ in 1894. Which he always considered extremely important to his

career. Looking back on it in 1936, he described it as "the first 'prairie house'. The Warren Hickox House /06/ (1900) and the B. Harley Bradley House (both in Kankakee, IL were the last transitional step between Wright's early designs and the Prairie creations.

The Thomas House /07/ and Willits House were recognized as the first mature examples of the new style and the Frederick C. Robie House /08/ (all three of which are in Chicago) is considered a masterpiece of the style.

Wright often designed interior elements for his structures including furniture and stained glass. He wrote 20 books and many articles and was a popular lecturer in the United States and Europe. He was recognized in 1991 by the American Institute of Architects as "the greatest American architect of all time." In 2019, a selection of his work became a listed World Heritage Site as The 20thCentury Architecture of Frank Lloyd Wright.

Take life with a pinch of salt… a wedge of lime and a shot of tequila.

é Frank Lloyd Wright's home and studio in Oak Park, Illinois.

The Frederick C. Robie House. Credit: By Teemu08 - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0

She loves nature, in spite of what it did to her.

é Taliesin West (just outside of Phoenix) was his beloved winter home and desert laboratory; it was built in 1937 and diligently handcrafted over many years into a world unto itself. Deeply connected to the desert, it has an almost prehistoric grandeur. It was built and maintained almost entirely by Wright and his apprentices, making it among the most personal of the architect’s creations.

A gallery of some of his other important work:

/09/ Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church in Wauwatosa, WI, one of Wright's last works; it was designed in 1956, and completed in 1961 – after his death. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

/10/ Beth Shalom Synagogue, outside Philadelphia. Built in 1960, it was designed to architecturally suggest Mount Sinai.

/11/ The Aline Barnsdall Hollyhock House in East Hollywood in Los Angeles was designed as a residence for oil heiress Aline Barnsdall (built, 1919–1921). It is now the centerpiece of the city's Barnsdall Art Park. In July 2019, along with seven other buildings designed by Wright in the 20th century, it was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List. It is the first time modern American architecture has been recognized on the World Heritage List.

/12/ The Grady Gammage Memorial Auditorium in Tempe, AZ on the main campus of Arizona State University began construction in 1957 and was completed in 1964. (It is named for a former ASU President.) It is considered to be one of Wright’s last public commissions, and it was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1985.

/13/ The Historic Park Inn Hotel and City National Bank are two adjacent commercial buildings located in downtown Mason City, IA which Wright designed in the Prairie School in 1910. The hotel is the last remaining Wrightdesigned hotel in the world, of the six for which he was the architect of record. The City National Bank is one of only two remaining Frank Lloyd Wright-designed banks in the world.

Pictured is the front of the hotel (right) and side of the bank (left), both listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

é The Walter Gale House in Oak Park, IL (1893). While a Queen Anne in style, it features window bands and a cantilevered porch roof which hint at Wright's developing aesthetics. It, like many of Wright’s homes featured here, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Credit: IvoShandor / CC BY-SA

é Warren Hickox House Credit: Teemu08 - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0

é The Thomas House Credit: IvoShandor / CC BY-SA

é Credit: Photographs in the Carol M. Highsmith Archive, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division.

/14/ Herbert and Katherine Jacobs First House (commonly referred to as Jacobs I) is a single family home located in Madison, WI. It is considered by most to be the first Usonian home. It was designated a National Historic Landmark in 2003. The house and seven other properties by Wright were inscribed on the World Heritage List under the title "The 20th-Century Architecture of Frank Lloyd Wright" in July 2019. Usonia is a word that Wright used to refer to the United States in general (in preference to America), and more specifically to his vision for the planning of cities and the architecture of buildings. Wright proposed the use of the adjective Usonian to describe the particular New World character of the American landscape as distinct and free of previous architectural conventions. The word usually refers to a group of approximately sixty middle-income family homes he designed. They are typically small, single-story dwellings without a garage or much storage; they are often L-shaped to fit around a garden terrace on unusual and inexpensive sites; and they are characterized by native materials: flat roofs and large cantilevered overhangs

for passive solar heating and natural cooling; natural lighting with clerestory windows; and radiant-floor heating. Another distinctive feature is that they typically have little exposure to the front/'public' side, while the rear/'private' sides are completely open to the outside. A strong visual connection between the interior and exterior spaces is an important characteristic of all Usonian homes. (Interesting Fact: The word carport was coined by Wright to describe an overhang for sheltering a parked vehicle.)

/15/ The Price Tower is a 19-story (221-foothigh) tower built in 1956 in Bartlesville, Oklahoma. It is the only realized skyscraper by Wright, and is one of only two vertically oriented Wright structures extant (the other is the S.C. Johnson Wax Research Tower in Racine, WI). It was commissioned by the H. C. Price Company, a local oil pipeline and chemical firm.

/16/ The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum (The Guggenheim) is an art muse-

um located on Fifth Avenue in New York City. It is the permanent home of a continuously expanding collection of Impressionist, Post-Impressionist, early Modern, and contemporary art and also features special exhibitions throughout the year. In 1959, the museum moved from rented space to this landmark of Frank Lloyd Wright. The cylindrical building, wider at the top than at the bottom, was conceived as a "temple of the spirit". Its unique ramp gallery extends up from ground level in a long, continuous spiral along the outer edges of the building to end just under the ceiling skylight.n

Wright’s colorful personal life made headlines throughout his life: leaving his first wife, Catherine Lee "Kitty" Tobin, and their children for Mamah Borthwick Cheney in 1909, the murders at his Taliesin estate by a staff member in 1914, his tempestuous marriage with second wife Miriam Noel in 1923, and his relationship with Olgivanna Lazović, who became his third wife in 1928. He fathered four sons and three daughters and adopted Svetlana Milanoff, the daughter of his third wife. While not the subject of this article, it does make for interesting reading, (Interesting fact: John Lloyd Wright – a son from his first marriage - invented Lincoln Logs in 1918, and Catherine Wright Baxter – a daughter from his first marriage – was the mother of Oscarwinning actress Anne Baxter. See hundreds of his buildings here.

You know you’re getting older when a $5 bottle of wine is “pretty good stuff.”

So long, Frank Lloyd Wright

I can't believe your song is gone so soon

I barely learned the tune

So soon (x2)

I'll remember Frank Lloyd Wright

All of the nights we'd harmonize till dawn

I never laughed so long

So long (x2)

Architects may come and Architects may go and Never change your point of view

When I run dry

I stop awhile and think of you

Architects may come and Architects may go and Never change your point of view

So long, Frank Lloyd Wright

All of the nights we've harmonize till dawn

I never laughed so long

So long (x8)

é Credit: James Steakley - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0

é Credit: Emersonbiggins85 at the English language Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0

IMPORTANT VOICES

CARL ROMER cromer@brookings.edu

PROTESTING IS AS IMPORTANT AS VOTING

at the local level, challenging the preponderance of research that shows that civil resistance succeeds despite, not because of, violence. Much of that research described the consequences of negative national attitudes toward protesters, not the protests’ successes at the local policy level.

in late august, JacoB Blake became the latest victim of state-sanctioned violence against Black Americans when he was shot seven times in the back by a Kenosha, Wis. police officer. While Blake survived the shooting, he is reportedly now paralyzed. Subsequent demonstrations in Kenosha have joined what could be the largest protest movement in U.S. history, spurred by the killing of George Floyd in May.

From those national protests, “defund the police” quickly emerged as a rallying cry for Americans demanding systemic reform. And those demands have generated substantive policy change. Both Democrats and Republicans have offered federal legislation on police reform, and across the nation, local municipal leaders are cutting bloated police budgets

Recognizing these small steps forward, NAACP president Derrick Johnson wrote in an June op-ed that after weeks of organized rallies, marches, and sit-ins, “Now is our chance to escalate the energy of the moment and move from protest to power to policy change.” But the shooting of Jacob Blake proves that protesting is not something to be moved away from—instead, if protesting is indeed the catalyst for true structural change, now is the chance to escalate the movement for racial justice.

In spite of several legislative victories, we’ve heard pundits and lawmakers say that voting—not protesting—is the real solution to systemic racism, and that we shouldn’t let slogans like “defund the police” hijack supposed real reforms. The diminution of protesting is nothing new: During his 2008 campaign for president, Barack Obama began using the refrain, “Don’t boo. Vote.” While Obama, a former organizer, is not necessarily deriding the act of protesting, he signals there is a priority. And prioritizing voting over protesting is the not-so-subtle way we devalue marginalized groups. Voting is only one way that people can exercise their power to create policy change—now, as national protests grow and Black athletes boycott their games, we are being shown that there are other ways to influence policy.

“Power concedes nothing without a demand,” Frederick Douglass said. It was demand—through massive, international protests—that spurred the quick arrest of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin for George Floyd’s murder. It was those ongoing protests that led the Minneapolis City Council to vote to eliminate their police department. And it was protests that prompted international corporations—including Apple, Bank of America, Comcast, Nike, and dozens more—to invest

billions in fighting racism and inequality.

By framing voting as the be all, end all form of engagement, we minimize protesting’s power to change policy. We also ignore why people have taken to the streets in the first place: Their voices are not being heard through conventional means. “[Ordinary citizens] have little or no independent influence on policy,” concluded a 2014 study on the influence of elections, confirming previous scholarship showing that only the affluent have significant influence in policymaking.

On the other hand, a 2020 evaluation of the 1960s civil rights demonstrations found that “subordinate minorities” can successfully “[d]rive media coverage, framing, congressional speech, and public opinion” when engaging in nonviolent protest.

Public protests are manifestations of dissent and an expression of the urgent need to change policy. By driving media coverage, catalyzing congressional action, and shifting public opinion, nonviolent protests have been a force behind positive social change. A 2019 study of the 1992 Los Angeles riots found that even violent protests can ultimately prompt less hostile policing policies

Even if you believe voting to be the most effective way to produce change, there is still plenty of proof that protests alter voting behaviors, shift the attitudes of marginal voters, and mobilize many previously disengaged voters. In 2010, large Tea Party rallies led to more Republican votes. Eight years later, the March For Our Lives protests were successful in registering and mobilizing many young voters who were instrumental to Democratic victories in the 2018 midterms. By highlighting incumbent political failings, protesting makes an apathetic majority sympathetic to the demonstrators’ cause—particularly at the ballot box.

Protests are inextricably linked to policy. Despite arguments that we should move off the street, the country’s marches, rallies, boycotts, and gatherings in the name of racial justice must continue if we expect substantive, structural change. Tamir Rice, Eric Garner, Michael Brown, Michelle Cusseaux, Gabriella Nevarez, Natasha McKenna, Freddie Gray, Alton Sterling, Philando Castile, Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, Jacob Blake—every Black American is just as vulnerable to police injustice as these people were. Consequently, we stand up and protest not just because it’s the right thing to do; we do so also to protect ourselves with the best tools we have at our disposal. n

This article originally appeared on the Brooking Instituion’s website on August 28th at www.brookings.edu/ blog/the-avenue/2020/08/28/ protesting-is-as-important-as-voting It is reprinted here with permission.

“Reality is only an illusion that occurs due to a lack of alcohol.”

(H. L. Mencken)

Carl Romer is a Research Assistant in the Metropolitan Policy Program at the Brookings Institution.

ANDRE M. PERRY aperry@brookings.edu

Andre M. Perry is a Fellow in the Metropolitan Policy Program at the Brookings Institution.

AMAZ NG BU LDINGS

ANGELA O’BYRNE aobyrne@e-perez.com

Angela O’Byrne, FAIA, is President of Perez, APC, a 70+ year-old architecture, planning, interior design, and construction firm. She is also a Contributing Editor of

FOR SALE: CORPORATE HEADQUARTERS, NEVER USED

as the eFFects oF the Coronavirus pandemic stretch on, the future of work is feeling less and less certain. Our basic assumptions about the necessity of meeting in person seem to have evaporated, and a sudden shift to digitally enabled, remote productivity has meant nearly abandoned office parks, the rise of the serious home office setup, and perhaps even a wholesale reckoning with contemporary workplace trends. And perhaps no idea is under more scrutiny than the open plan office.

For years, we’ve seen a pronounced shift toward the “one-big-room” workplace, as cubicles disappear and workers circulate and collaborate to suit their day’s tasks. But in an era of social distancing, the open office—orchestrated explicitly to encourage chance run-ins and maximize commingling—can start to feel like a liability. Idea-generating environments may also encourage other kinds of propagation, after all.

The movement away from central offices is about more than leaving conference rooms and commutes behind. It may also signal a monumental shift in how companies attract talent. Tech giants have long used remarkable work environments—stocked with perks like on-site gyms, free food, and on-site dry cleaning—to attract the best and the brightest. Those days may be ending. A

number of tech stalwarts—including Pinterest and Twitter—have already freed up millions by terminating their costly Bay Area leases and sending their people off to work remotely.

Of course, it’s not just Silicon Valley that’s reconsidering their beloved physical headquarters. For one of the clearest pictures of how the workplace winds are changing, we only need to look a little further north.

Back in March, 1,4000 corporate employees of the Seattle area-based outdoor giant REI were looking forward to moving into their long-awaited new home. After four years of collaboration, development, and construction, REI was putting finishing touches on a 400,000 square-foot complex set on eight acres in Bellevue, Washington. Custom-built for the cooperatively run company, it was tailored specifically for its active, fleece-clad workforce. Compared in the press to a “summer camp for adults,” the sprawling environment boasts a “blueberry bog” and cozy fire pits both inside and out.

You can never tell which way the train went by looking at the track.

Life is a waste of time, and time is a waste of life. So get wasted all of the time and have the time of your life.

Guided by a design philosophy meant to maximize the integration of indoor and outdoor spaces, the campus is suffused with natural light thanks to massive windows, skylights, and myriad garage doors. An abundance of covered walkways ensure employees can work outside even in the midst of the Seattle drizzle. And to help employees reach their daily step goal, architecture firm NBBJ even included additional, non-essential stairs in the project’s design.

Like REI’s storefronts, the campus’s aesthetics are the pinnacle of post-industrial chic. Conference tables incorporate reclaimed dead trees and old bridge beams. Butcher block-style cubes of oak abound. However, the specifics of the complex were deliberately left unfinished, allowing the employees to dictate how and where they’d like to work. Ironically, this progressive and open-ended approach to space planning would make the complex easier to sell off.

Coronavirus hit Seattle early. In March, REI employees received word that they’d be working remotely for safety reasons. And so, through the summer, their custom-built headquarters sat finished but unused, a pristine relic of a

suddenly bygone era. Finally, in August, REI’s CEO Eric Artz made a stunning announcement: they’d never be moving in. REI put the state-of-the-art facility on the market in the midst of total market uncertainty. It would prove to be a profitable gamble.

It turns out that not everyone is ready to give up on commanding corporate spaces. In September, it was announced that Facebook would pay $368 million for REI’s brand-new campus—roughly double the cost of the project’s development. REI would instead shift to a scheme that spread its workforce across scattered satellite offices and home offices.

Despite the fact that Facebook has already announced its plans to work remotely until at least summer 2021, the potential value of the Bellevue campus—connected to light rail and convenient to Seattle’s airport—was clearly too rich to pass up. While the future of work may be uncertain, it’s clear that flagship real estate projects aren’t disappearing any time soon. n

TITLEAFFILI TE NEWS

The Houston chapter installed new officers and board members at its first face to face meeting since March. Front Row: President, Kathy Ceronsek, Vice President, Kelly Gregory, Parliamentarian, Sandy Field, Recording Secretary, Hillary Mullins, Corresponding Secretary, Theresa Martinez. Back Row: Director Abigail Soto, Director Daniela Covarrubias, Director Jennifer Castillo, Director Leslie Reyes, Director Shellie Natho, Immediate Past President

DIVERSI NS BREAKING UP IS HARD TO DO

1960

BREAKING UP COUNTRY STYLE

How Can I Miss You if You Won't Go Away?

—Dan Hicks & His Hot Licks, 1969

I Flushed You from the Toilets of My Heart

—J.D. Blackfoot, 1975

Don't Believe my Heart Can Stand Another You

—Tanya Tucker, 1976

How Come your Dog don't Bite Nobody but Me?

—Mel Tillis, 1975

I Wouldn't Take Her to a Dogfight (Cause I'm Afraid She'd Win)

—Charlie Walker, 1967

You Can't Have Your Kate and Edith Too

—The Statler Brothers, 1968

If the Phone Don't Ring, Baby, You'll Know It's Me

—Rusty Ford, 2012

I Keep Forgettin' That I Forgot About You

—Wynn Stewart, 1965

Don't Strike A Match to The Book Of Love

—Hal Ketchum, 1991

Her Only Bad Habit Is Me

—George Strait, 1991

I'm So Miserable Without You, It's Just Like Having You Around

—Billy Walker, 1965

Please Bypass This Heart

—Jimmy Buffett, 1985

She Made Toothpicks Out of The Timber of My Heart

—Homer Haynes and Jethro Burns, 1962

Thank God and Greyhound You're Gone

—Roy Clark, 1970

Whose Bed Have Your Boots Been Under?

—Shania Twain, 1995

You Done Tore Out My Heart and Stomped That Sucker Flat

—Lewis Grizzard, 1987

You're A Hard Dog to Keep Under the Porch

—Gail Davies, 1983

You're the Reason Our Kids Are So Ugly

—Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn, 1978

Who's Gonna Take the Garbage Out (When I'm Dead and Gone?)

—Loretta Lynn and Ernest Tubb, 1969

When You Leave Walk Out Backwards, So I'll Think You're Walking In

—Bill Anderson, 1961

She Got the Ring And I Got The Finger

—Chuck Mead, 2009

Redneck Martians Stole My Baby

—Hank Flamingo, 1994

If the Jukebox Took Teardrops

—Danni Leigh, 1990

Cream rises to the top, but so does scum.

The chapter held a Community Involvement park clean-up day in early October. Volunteer members gathered at Buffalo Bayou Park for a day of cleaning silt off the Houston Police Memorial site.

The chapter celebrated its 2019-2020 Future Leader Program graduates at a drive-by parade in late September. Pictured here is one of the graduates - Myra Santos, ACoM - along with chapter President Kaci Hancock, ACoM, CPM.

Pareena Trochesset.

Do do do Down dooby doo down down Comma, comma, down dooby doo down down Comma, comma, down dooby doo down down Breaking up is hard to do

SUCCESSFULLY NAVIGATING THE COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE MARKET DURING UNCERTAIN TIMES

the Real estate maRket has been completely turned upside down as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. In many cases, what was once Class A property at the beginning of the year is now Class C property. Where there was previously a concerted effort to move to downtown areas of major cities, now Texans are headed for the suburbs and the promise of even more outdoor space and bigger homes to better accommodate their new remote-work lifestyles.

This trend isn’t just affecting residential real estate, but commercial real estate as well. A notable recent example is block 87 in downtown Austin, which was recently put back on the market by Cielo Property Group — who, only months earlier, had been planning a major tower development with residential, office, restaurant and retail use.

As a commercial real estate professional, you’re most likely facing situations you never imagined and dealing with problems you’ve never dealt with before. But in this uncertain environment, one thing is certain: it will require a new, agile approach to survive the changing market. Here’s how to prepare yourself, and your clients, for long-term success:

1. PLAN AHEAD (BUT EXPECT THE UNEXPECTED)

will the population concentration be? (If it’s shifting permanently, does it make more sense to choose office space in the suburbs versus downtown?) Consider all variables and possible outcomes. These factors will have a major impact on the success of businesses down the road.

2. DO YOUR HOMEWORK (STUDY LEASE CONTRACTS CLOSELY)

Whether your client is a tenant or a landlord, it’s important to know if and how the property lease protects them in various situations (such as a global health crisis, for instance). If you’re representing a tenant, it’s critically important they understand what their rights are under the lease agreement.

For example, is there a force majeure clause that protects them during a pandemic? Or, if there isn’t one, what are they required to pay the landlord and when? Having a thorough understanding of the lease from a legal perspective will position you to better advise your client, no matter what situation you’re facing, and negotiate more effectively on their behalf.

3. CONSIDER THE CHARACTERISTICS OF YOUR SPECIFIC CLIENT (AND ADVISE THEM ACCORDINGLY)

It’s always been the case that every client and every deal is different, but this is especially true today — it’s more vital than ever to look at the specific facets of each client. If you’re working with a landlord, how financially strong are they? Did they borrow a lot of money to purchase their building, and are they desperate for cash flow to meet their mortgage? If this is the case, you may need to discuss an exit strategy.

JOHNNY MERRITT JMerritt@legalstrategy.com

Before making any major deals, do your best to plan ahead for what the market will look like in 12-24 months. You can’t predict the future, but the bottom line is that in order to put yourself and your clients in the best possible position to weather risk and come out on top, you have to try.

Ask questions like: What will the rental rate look like in a year or two? How will consumer spending habits change? Where

If it’s a tenant, can they afford to stay in their current building, or will they need to negotiate with a landlord to make rent payments? Research how other landlords are negotiating with tenants and

determine the potential impact of each scenario. Some may forgive payments for several months, while others may agree to a deferral that’s either due in one payment or amortized over a period of time. Help the tenant consider what type of business they have, what their options are and what the repercussions of each choice will be. In lease negotiations, a rent deferral might sound great at first, until they’re left owing four times the amount of rent at once a few months down the road.

4. REMAIN AGILE (AND KNOW WHEN TO PIVOT WHEN NECESSARY)

Across all industries, a willingness and ability to remain agile will be the number one predictor of success during this time and beyond. Knowing what you know about the traits of each client, as well as who they might be negotiating with, how will you shift your strategy based on their needs, the economy and the state of the real estate market — and are you prepared to turn on a dime if necessary?

Perhaps your client owns a gym or a retail clothing store property that was doing well pre-pandemic. Maybe they were even thinking of expanding to a larger space just last year. As a commercial real estate professional, you might advise them that the smart decision would be to sell their building to stop bleeding cash, and fast. On the other hand, for a client that operates a grocery store providing essential goods, you might take a look at the landscape and decide the right move might be to determine a way to keep their current lease going. It all depends on each individual situation — but in this ever-changing environment, only the agile will survive.

The same rules real estate professionals followed previously simply don’t apply in our current climate, and they may continue to change in the future. To ensure your ongoing success, and the success of your clients, it’s essential to plan ahead, get to know your clients and their contracts in-depth, consider all options and potential outcomes, and be prepared to pivot — quickly and often. n

Johnny Merritt is a partner at Hajjar Peters, LLC and fractional legal counsel.

AIA DALLAS BUILT DESIGN AWARDS

aia dallas Built design Award were announced on October 8th to celebrate outstanding achievement in architectural design by AIA Dallas chapter members and AIA Northeast Texas section members. The purpose of the awards program is to honor the architects, clients, and consultants who work together to achieve design excellence, both in the metropolitan area and around the globe, and to elevate the value of architectural practice in the local community. Submissions were judged on the skill, creativity, and thoughtfulness with which they resolve the functional, formal, and technical requirements of the project. Each entry was judged for the success with which it met its individual requirements. All of the entries can be seen here: https://aiadallasdesignawards.com/entries

INNER - HONOR AWARD

HKS, Inc.

Pacific Plaza Pavilion

Small Projects

Photographer: SWA Group, Zahner Metals, HKS Architects

WINNER - HONOR AWARD

WINNER - CRITIC AWARD: BELINDA

TATO AND INGA SAFFRON

Perkins and Will

Pittman Hotel

Large Projects

Photographer: Leonid Furmansky and Chris Molina

WINNER - HONOR AWARD

Beck Architecture, LLC

Estadio Borregos

Large Projects

Photographer: Federico de Jesús Sánchez Gutiérrez; Adrian Llaguno Treviño; The Beck Group

WINNER - HONOR AWARD

Stantec

University of North Texas College of Law

Large Projects

Photographer: Chad M. Davis, Terry Wier, John Forasiepi

WINNER - HONOR AWARD

FAR + DANG

3-Edge Residence

Small Projects

Photographer: Robert Tsai

WINNER - HONOR AWARD

HKS, Inc.

2000 Ross

Large Projects

Photographer: Daryl Shields

WINNER - JUROR CITATION

Marc McCollom Architect

70's Modern Interior Renovation

Small Projects

Photographer: Charles Davis Smith FAIA

WINNER - HONOR AWARD

GFF

Signazon

Small Projects

Photographer: Andrew Adkison, AIA

WINNER - HONOR AWARD

Perkins and Will

Baylor Scott & White Health Administrative Center

Large Projects Photographer: James Steinkamp

WINNER - PEOPLE'S CHOICE

M Gooden Design

Taula House

Small Projects

Photographer: Parrish Ruiz de Velasco

A politician is a fellow who will lay down your life for his country.

INFINITY

designed By Renowned koichi takada Architects and completed in 2019, Infinity has become an architectural treasure in the heart of Sydney, Australia. The 20-story building has 326 premium apartments, a convention center, a retail and dining area with 20 outlets including a supermarket and a 90-room hotel called Skye Suites Green Square. (Sky Suites are known in Australia for being situated in new buildings with iconic architecture.)

With curved façades of subtly patterned glass and aluminum encasing 2 levels of thriving retail and 18 levels of luxurious apartments, it has been named one of the world’s best projects by the Property Council of Australia. The seemingly infinite flow of two concentric loops create the framework for light filled apartments to rise above and away from the energy of the street life below (and provide the basis for the name of the property).

THE FACTOR

The building also offers resort-style amenities including: an Infinity heated pool, spa and sauna; landscaped rooftop gardens (overlooking the Sydney Central Business District); a state-of-the-art gymnasium; a private music room with baby grand piano; a communal function room with kitchen facilities; meeting rooms, a kids’ playroom and a cinema. n

REAL ESTATE F THE FU URE

THE PLUS COMING SOON TO A FOREST NOT NEAR YOU

vestRe is a manuFactuReR of urban furniture in Norway. BIG (Bjarke Ingels Group) is a Copenhagen, New York, London and Barcelona based group of architects, designers, urbanists, landscape professionals, interior and product designers, researchers and inventors. Their work has often been featured in the network. Working together, the two have unveiled The Plus - the world’s most sustainable furniture factory tucked in the heart of the Norwegian forest and surrounded by a 75-acre public park.

Envisioned as a village for a community dedicated to the cleanest, carbon neutral fabrication of urban and social furniture, The Plus aims to be a global destination for sustainable architecture and high-efficiency production. As Norway’s single largest investment in furniture in decades, the 70,000 square feet open production facility will double as a public 300-acre park for hiking and camping while serving as a landmark aligned with the region’s mission to establish a green manufacturing industry. The Plus is set to begin construction this fall. /1/

Jan Christian Vestre, CEO of Vestre, said: “Vestre will be the world’s most sustainable furniture manufacturer. By using cutting-edge technology and Scandinavian collaboration, we can produce faster and greener than ever. In that way we will ensure global competitiveness through our leadership in environmentally-conscious production.”

The Plus will be the first industrial building in the Nordic region to achieve BREAM Outstanding, the

highest environmental certification. All materials are carefully chosen by their environmental impact, with the façade constructed from local timber, low-carbon concrete and recycled reinforcement steel. Designed to be a ‘Paris Agreementproof' building, every aspect of the design is based on principles of renewable and clean energy to match Vestre’s eco-friendly production, such as ensuring a minimum of 50% lower greenhouse gas emissions than comparable factories.

Daffynition: Urine –the opposite of ‘you’re out.’

The Plus is in the village of Magnor, midway between Vestre’s headquarters in Oslo and the company’s existing steel factory in Torsby, Sweden. The building is conceived as a radial array of four main production halls – the warehouse, the color factory, the wood factory and the assembly – that connect at the center. The layout enables an efficient, flexible and transparent workflow between the manufacturing units, thus generating the ‘plus’ shape at its intersection.

The Plus will have smart robots, selfdriving trucks, and a tablet to manage the entire factory. Every machine is assigned one of Vestre’s 200 colors, which spill onto the floors and lead back into the central roundabout. This colorful mapping of the machinery lends strong visual cues that help guide and explain the workflow of the Vestre production facility, allowing visitors to easily follow the production process as if touring a museum.

“With Vestre we have imagined a factory that is simultaneously front of house and back of house. The beauty of the factory is the clarity of its organization. Conceived as the intersection of a road and a production line, it forms a large plus connecting everything to everything. The radical transparency invites visitors and hikers to enjoy the whole process of manufacturing while providing the workers the thrill of working in the middle of the forest.” (Bjarke Ingels, Founder & Creative Director, BIG)

/2/ At the center of The Plus is the logistics office and exhibition center with direct connections to all four production halls, allowing Vestre’s employees to process logistical traffic with maximum efficiency. The central hub wraps around a public, circular courtyard where the latest outdoor furniture collections are prominently exhibited with the changing seasons. The outdoor plaza doubles as a place for visitors and staff to experience the factory’s production processes in full transparency.

/3/ Said Ingels, “The entire interior is organized like a flowchart – with the color of each machine overflowing to include the floors. As you explore The Plus, you move through a functional archipelago of colorful islands – overview and experience become one and the same.”

Each factory wing has one alternating ceiling corner lifted to create inclined roofs that allow views inside to the production halls and outside to the forest canopies. Along the color and wood factory, the sloping roofs are extended to form a pathway for visitors and staff to hike up and down the building while following the production processes inside.

/4/ From all four sides of the buildings, visitors and staff are invited to hike around the facility and end up on the green roof terrace, transforming the furniture factory museum into a campus in the woods. An ADA-accessible ramp allows wheelchairs and strollers to meander the serpentine path and enjoy the immersive experience of being among the pine trees.

On the rooftop, 1,200 photovoltaic panels are placed and angled according to optimal solar efficiency. Excess heat from the panels are connected to an ice-water system for cooling, heat and cold storage tanks, heat pumps and energy wells as a storage support system. Overall, the system contributes to at least 90% lower energy demand than that of a similar conventional factory. The Plus has the potential to lead as an example for how advancements in fabrication and manufacturing will shape factories of the future.

See more pictures and schematics of The Plus here: https://big.dk/#projects-vstr n

é Bjarke Ingels.

THE 2020 CTBUH AWARDS OF EXCELLENCE

The Ctbuh Annual Awards program recognizes projects and individuals that have made extraordinary contributions to the advancement of tall buildings and the urban environment, and that achieve sustainability at the highest and broadest level. The objective is to deliver a comprehensive and sophisticated view of these important buildings, spaces, and technologies, while advocating for improvements in every aspect of their performance, especially those that have the greatest impact on the people who use them each day.

Celebration of the award-winning projects is recognized through the annual Tall + Urban Innovation Conference, where Award of Excellence Winners in each award category present their projects to an international audience and live juries. Overall Category

Winners are then selected during the event and awards are conferred at the Dinner & Ceremony held at the close of the event. Projects are judged by live juries during the event itself. Many of these great buildings have been featured in .

BEST TALL BUILDING UNDER 100 METERS

/1/ 25 King

Brisbane, Australia

/2/ 271 Spring Street

Melbourne, Australia

/3/ ARC

Sydney, Australia

/4/ Gala Avenue Westside

Shanghai, China

/5/ River City 3

Toronto, Canada

/6/ U.S. Embassy

London, U.K.

/7/ UTS Central

Sydney, Australia

/8/ White Tree

Montpellier, France

BEST TALL BUILDING

100 - 199 METERS

/09/ 18 Robinson

Singapore

/10/ Changsha Hua Center

Phase II Project

Changsha, China

/11/ EDEN

Singapore

/12/K11 ATELIER King’s Road

Hong Kong, China

/13/Museum Tower Kyobashi

Tokyo, Japan

/14/ OMNITURM

Frankfurt, Germany

/15/Rosewood Bangkok Hotel

Bangkok, Thailand

/16/ Sixty Martin Place

Sydney, Australia

/22/

New

/23/

Philadelphia, PA

/24/ Poly

Guangzhou, China

/25/

Zhuhai, China

BEST TALL BUILDING 200 - 299 METERS

/17/ ARO

New York, NY

/18/ Leeza SOHO

Beijing, China

/19/ Maike Centre

Xi’an, China

/20/ NEMA Chicago Chicago, IL

/21/ One Thousand Museum Miami, FL

BEST TALL BUILDING 300 - 399 METERS

53 West 53

York, NY

Comcast Technology Center

Pazhou

Zhuhai Tower

BEST TALL BUILDING

400 METERS AND ABOVE

/26/ CITIC Tower

Beijing, China

/27/ Lakhta Center

St. Petersburg, Russia

/28/ Suzhou IFS

Suzhou, China

/29/ The Exchange 106

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

/30/ Tianjin CTF Financial Centre

Tianjin, China

RENOVATION AWARD

/31/ Hanwha Headquarters

Seoul, South Korea

/32/ Hudson Commons

New York, NY

/33/ LondonHouse Chicago

Chicago, IL

/34/ Polo DOT Office Park

Building Z

Buenos Aires, Argentina

URBAN

/35/ AND Pastel

Istanbul, Turkey

/36/ Assuta Bauhaus

Village

Tel Aviv, Israel

/37/ DUO Tower

Singapore

/38/ Victoria Dockside

Hong Kong, China

What do you call Santa’s helpers?

Subordinate Clauses.

HABITAT –SINGLE SITE SCALE

URBAN HABITAT – DISTRICT/MASTER PLAN SCALE

/39/ Hudson Yards-Eastern Yards. New York, NY

/40/ Poly Greenland Plaza. Shanghai, China

/41/ Pudong Financial Plaza. Shanghai, China

10 YEAR AWARD

/42/ Burj Khalifa. Dubai, UAE

/43/ Guangzhou International Finance Center.

Guangzhou, China

/44/ International Commerce Centre. Hong Kong, China

/45/ Marina Sands Bay. Singapore

/46/ 0-14. Dubai, UAE

Due to space constraints, these category award winners are not pictured here: Innovation, Interior Space, Construction, Structural Engineering, MEP Engineering, Geotechnical Engineering, Façade Engineering, and Fire & Risk Engineering. See pictures of all of these and much more information about all of the award winners at: https://tallinnovation.com/

é With vast amounts of employees still working from home, secondary cities-such as Sacramento, Nashville, and Salt Lake City--will witness continued population growth, a trend that already began before the pandemic. Meanwhile, employers will continue to weigh the pros and cons of their office spaces — they'll be far more intentional, potentially downsizing or moving to a newer, more open space or embracing more flexible models. "While this might be a bolder prediction, but I think the WeWork model will have a resurgence," noted Joe Muratore, a co-founder of Graceada. "I think they've hit rock bottom and will be able to actually find their niche in the marketplace because of the pandemic. We discuss that further in our forecast." The report also states that with downtown real estate being "undervalued" by previous standards, smaller businesses will invest in these locations to move up the corporate food chain. This will trigger a type of "trickle up" effect, where microbusinesses will find more opportunities and mobility as smaller businesses gain their own traction. To view the full report:  GraceadaPartners.com/ The-Future-of-Work.

THE RES URCE PAGE

é The coronavirus has harmed the construction industry, prompting project delays and cancellations, layoffs and furloughs, yet it remains difficult for a majority of firms to find craft workers to hire, according to the results of a workforce survey conducted by the Associated General Contractors of America and Autodesk. The survey paints a picture of an industry in need of immediate recovery measures and longer-term workforce development support, association officials added. “Few firms have survived unscathed from the pandemic amid widespread project delays and cancellations,” said Ken Simonson, the association’s chief economist. “Ironically, even as the pandemic undermines demand for construction services, it is reinforcing conditions that have historically made it hard for many firms to find qualified craft workers to hire.”See the survey here and watch a live recording here (link is external).

çThe LightBox Market Confidence Index for July reflects prevailing business conditions across the commercial real estate sector and likely developments for the months ahead. The summary is derived from a monthly survey that asks participants for views on the overall market, their own operations in the current month, and expectations about future business activity. July's survey saw an increase in respondents reporting “worsening” conditions in commercial real estate, up from 20% to 25%. Commercial real estate activity improved relative to the prior month for most respondents as real estate firms adjust to remote working environments, new office protocols, and a return to the market by large real estate lenders and investors. There also appears to be a growing sense in July’s responses that the market is bracing for the impact of prolonged unemployment, business closures, and travel restrictions. Forecasts reflect an expectation of an uptick in refinancing, foreclosures, auctions, and default transactions in the fourth quarter, particularly in areas hardest hit by business shutdown related to the pandemic.

é DBRS Morningstar identified the implications of postponed football games and severely restricted attendance at games on hotels surrounding the 65 different colleges that comprise the Power Five Conferences (Power 5). Some $3.98 billion in securitized commercial mortgages on already-struggling hotels in college towns will likely face further revenue declines as COVID-19 forced teams to either postpone games or restrict attendance at games.

é The big differentiator for the industrial market this time around will be the growth of eCommerce/logistics space. With the boom of eCommerce, Cushman & Wakefield has seen the industrial market excel in the current expansion, more than almost any other cycle. With the sale of more goods online, there is a need for the logistics space to house the goods outside of a traditional brick and mortar store. Especially in the COVID-19 era, consumers want goods shipped directly to them, cutting out the retail location as the middleman, going straight from business to consumer (B2C). This will drive the need for more industrial inventory in more locations, both for large box warehouse and last mile infill to reach the consumer faster. See the whole report here: https:// www.cushmanwakefield.com/en/united-states/insights/2020-industrial-recession-proof-asset-class

é This annual issue of NTX Magazine explores the growth and strength of North Texas’s suburb cities. They are anchored, of course, by Dallas and Fort Worth, but there are 13 other cities with over 100,000 in population. And did you know that Arlington has more people than St. Louis or Pittsburgh? The area is a magnet for business growth and expansion and this publication shows you how and why

In 2019, the Power 5 drew nearly 60,000 attendees per home game, nearly double that of the American Athletic Conference, the conference with the next-highest homegame attendance. Because of concerns for college athletes amid the pandemic, the Pacific-12 conference cancelled their fall 2020 football season. The Big 12, Southeastern, and Atlantic Coast conferences, are moving ahead with their regular seasons, but several schools plan to limit capacity at their stadiums, ban tailgating, and/or bar spectators from attending games. See the full report here

é In a NAIOP survey tracking the effects of the pandemic on the commercial real estate industry, respondents reported continued gradual improvement in deal activity, but also reported more tenants seeking rent relief, particularly in the office sector. Respondents represent a range of professions, including developers, building owners, building managers, brokers, lenders and investors. Deal activity for industrial, office and multifamily properties has improved substantially since April, when nearly half of respondents reported seeing no industrial deals and two-thirds reported no office or multifamily activity. Survey data also suggest that building owners and managers are fielding more requests for rent relief from non-industrial tenants. Office properties experienced the sharpest increase in rent relief requests, with the ratio of respondents reporting requests from more than 10% of their office tenants increasing from 25.4% in August to 37.7% in September.  Read the full survey analysis and accompanying charts

ç As could reasonably be anticipated, since publishing its Recovery Readiness: A How-to Guide for Opening Your Workplace in April 2020, Cushman & Wakefield has gained new and valuable learnings on the best approaches to returning to the physical workplace. Given the unevenness of the pandemic in the first half of 2020—from country to country, region to region and sometimes even within cities—the recovery path has been equally varied for businesses. As a result, some organizations are far along in their return. Others are still in the early stages. No matter where along the spectrum your organization may fall, the updated Guide is intended to serve as a resource for a range of considerations and options to help owners and occupiers of commercial real estate develop a unique plan that works best for their organizations. See it here

ç CREW Network released its 2020 study measuring progress for women over the last 15 years and benchmarking diversity in commercial real estate. The research, conducted by the MIT Center for Real Estate, indicates that collective efforts to achieve parity in the industry are far from complete—in fact, very little progress has been made in the last five years. CREW Network is a global business network and the leading producer of research on gender and diversity in the industry. ACCESS THE STUDY HERE

My friend has kleptomania but when it gets bad, he takes something for it.

TITLE PROFILES OF SURV VAL

ROXANA TOFAN roxana@clearintegritygroup.com

we aRe ceRtainly living through extraordinary times. The past seven months have been challenging for many businesses. There has not been a pandemic of this size or scope in living memory. The efforts to contain it have crippled our economy. Yet. while some businesses have closed for good, others have looked at opportunities to thrive and come out stronger.

For Michael Watson, a commercial real estate broker for the last 17 years, these times have been an opportunity to branch out, and along with a partner, opened their own commercial brokerage, Independence Commercial Advisors, with offices in San Antonio, Austin, and McAllen focusing on multifamily and self-storage investments. Mike is no stranger to recession, financial crisis or few commercial sales, so I spent some time learning why they started a new brokerage during COVID and how they plan to thrive during these times.

Roxana: Why open a new brokerage during COVID?

Mike: I really wanted to do my own thing. As we came into COVID and things were slowing down, it become evident this is a perfect time to take advantage of a slowdown in the market and create our new company as we had more time away from transactions and able to set up.

Roxana: Why commercial brokerage?

Mike: Part of the fun of brokerage is being on the front lines, interacting with clients. I love the challenges, the game and helping the clients. Brokerage to me is a way to help people, when they have a problem and they don’t see a solution, you can step in and show them how to transact. It is a strategic analysis and approach in helping investors maximize value and doing it at the right time.

Roxana: What sets your new brokerage apart from the competition?

Mike: What we are doing with this firm is creating opportunity for successful brokers to step away from the national brokerage firms and the pressure of quota systems and competitiveness, and being able to treat people the way they want to be treated while they are successful at servicing clients and have an enjoyment factor to business. Looking to take expertise and track record and apply it in a different way by being on a strategic level with clients, educating them. We know what it takes to get a deal done. We look ahead and anticipate what challenges will pop up and be able to have those conversations with the sellers. We know how to get the buyer and seller to agree.

Roxana: How do position your new company during COVID times?

Mike: The basics of our industry have not changed. To position ourselves to get our message across still requires a lot of outreach, a lot of hard work to generate the opportunities with clients. Technology has brought everyone access to information. We have to position ourselves as the service broker. We have to demonstrate a service business above and beyond what other brokers do.

Roxana: What have you seen in the market in 2020 and what do you anticipate ahead?

Mike: When we first got into 2020, we saw that return expectations were starting to compress, and investors were starting to get more competitive. More capital was coming into multifamily and many syndicators were talking about having to reduce the returns as a result. Then we hit COVID and, initially, everyone stopped because

no one knew what to do or what would happen. Investors pulled back for a while and then at some point they realized it may not be as bad as it appeared. There were still many people needing to transact active 1031 exchanges, so they started to look at what transactions made sense in the unknown market. There are many properties that do not make sense such as the deep value add that simply bring too much risk. There are some tough times ahead in owning properties but as we regain confidence, it takes a team of brokers and property managers to transact. There are tons of interest in Texas, interest rates are still at all time low and while COVID is still the unknown, the wild card is the election. As we get past election, investors will adjust, and people will be doing more transactions.

Like Mike said, the basics of our industry have not changed and to separate themselves, their value proposition is that they are much more focused on the service they offer the clients versus having the most listings. As the owner of a commercial brokerage and property management company myself, I can easily see how his new company, Independence Commercial Advisors, will thrive during COVID and going forward. n

Roxana Tofan is a commercial real estate and business broker and the founder and owner of Clear Integrity Group in San Antonio. She is also a Contributing Editor of

Editor’s Note: This is the first in a new series by Contributing Editor Roxana Tofan that will feature individuals and companies that have courageously and successfully battled the coronavirus pandemic’s negative impact on businesses everywhere.

A REAL ROCK OF AGES

sigiRiya (lion Rock) is an ancient rock fortress located in Sri Lanka. The name refers to a site of historical and archaeological significance that is dominated by a massive column of rock nearly 660 feet high.]

According to the Cūḷavaṃsa, in 477 AD, Kashyapa I, the king’s son by a non-royal consort, seized the throne from King Dhatusena by walling him up alive. Expecting an attack by Moggallana, his half-brother and the rightful heir, Kashyapa moved the capital and his residence to Sigiriya. During King Kashyapa’s reign (477 to 495 AD), Sigiriya was developed into a complex city and fortress. He built his palace on the top of this rock and decorated its sides with colorful frescoes. On a small plateau about halfway up the side, he built a gateway in the form of an enormous lion. Most of the elaborate constructions on the rock summit and around it, including defensive structures, palaces, and gardens, date from this period.

The capital and the royal palace were abandoned after the king's death. It was used as a Buddhist monastery until the 14th century. Sigiriya today is a UNESCO listed World Heritage Site and is one of the best preserved examples of ancient urban planning

The earliest evidence of human habitation at Sigiriya is the Aligala rock shelter to the east of Sigiriya rock, indicating that the area was occupied nearly five thousand years ago during the Mesolithic Period.

The Gardens of the Sigiriya city - divided into three distinct but linked forms (water gardens, cave and boulder gardens, and terraced gardens) - are one of the most important aspects of the site, as it is among the oldest landscaped gardens in the world. n

Time flies like an arrow.

Fruit flies like a banana.

é By Bernard Gagnon - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0

é The gardens of Sigiriya, as seen from the summit of the Sigiriya rock.

The Cūḷavaṃsa is a historical chronicle, written in the Pali language, of the monarchs of Sri Lanka; it covers the period from the 4th century to 1815.

THE LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR OF TEXAS MORE POWERFUL THAN THE GOVERNOR

If I were to ask you to name the most powerful governmental position at the state level in Texas, chances are you’d say, ‘The Governor’ And, in most states, you’d be correct. However, in Texas, that’s not the case. In the Lone Star State, the Lieutenant Governor is a more powerful government official than the Governor. But how? And why?

THE POWERS

As outlined in Article IV of the Texas Constitution, the Governor is the Chief Executive Officer of the State, Commander-In-Chief of Military Forces, and may convene the Legislature in the case of a public enemy or disease threat. He or she may also approve, or veto orders, resolutions, or votes made by the Legislature.

On the other hand, the Lieutenant Governor is considered the President of the Senate, which has the right to debate and vote on all questions and s/he has the deciding vote in the case of a tie. The process is similar to the role the served by the Vice President of the United States in the U.S. Senate. Also, the Lieutenant Governor takes over the duties and powers of the Governor if s/he is unable to serve for whatever reason. Under the Texas Constitution, the Governor is considered unable to serve if s/he dies (duh!) or is ill or otherwise incapacitated, impeached, or leaves the state for any significant amount of time.

COMPARING THE POWERS

While at first glance the Lieutenant Governor does not appear more powerful, when looked at more closely it becomes clearer.

JULIA HAMMOCK juliahammock@gmail.com

Julia Hammock is a senior at Smithson Valley High School in Spring Branch, TX and the daughter of Contributing Editor Roxana Tofan.

The Lieutenant Governor has the power to appoint any and all chairs of committees within the State Senate. S/he also determines when and to which committees’ bills are sent and (since timing is very important in lawmaking) this can have an enormous impact, since it effectively can dictate when – and even whether - bills make it out of committee and to a vote. Even if a bill does make it out of committee, the Lieutenant Governor still has power over it, since s/he decides when a bill may be brought up for a vote and when senators may be recognized for floor action.

These powers actually make the Lieutenant Governor more influential than the Governor, specifically because they are related to the legislative branch of the government. This means that the Lieutenant Governor actually has more power over what laws are and aren’t passed and all the Governor can do is sign or veto them – and, even in that event, the Senate can overturn a veto with a two-thirds majority vote.

Since the Lieutenant Governor is also the Governor’s “Just in Case” replacement, s/ he also has the potential to take over the Governor’s executive branch powers as well. This creates the possibility of a Governor who returns to his/her position with major changes having been made in his/ her absence.

who had been part of the Confederacy were removed from office, and new judges, prosecutors, and officals were appointed. Understandably, those who had supported the Confederacy during the war didn’t like this as it allowed for the federal government to push more of its Reconstruction policies on them. When the time came, this led to the writers of the revised Texas Constitution dispersing powers between the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, and the Speaker. They also revised many positions to become elected ones as opposed to being appointed by the Governor. This weakened the state’s executive branch, opening the way for the Lieutenant Governor to become more powerful through the legislative branch.

WHAT THIS MEANS FOR TEXAS

The power of the Lieutenant Governor is not an inherently good or bad thing. It all depends on who is wielding it. S/he can either use her/his power to push forward bills that will help Texas citizens, or use it to block them. It’s up to the citizens of Texas to elect a Lieutenant Governor that they trust to properly serve and respond to their needs.

Sources Used:

tlc.texas.gov/docs/legref/TxConst.pdf

www.kut.org/post/why-lieutenantGovernor-most-powerful-office-texasand-who-wants-power

www.texasobserver.org/who-runs-texas n

THE ORIGIN OF THESE POWERS

During the Reconstruction Period in the United States following the Civil War, Texas was under the control of a Governor. Because of this, many local elected officials

ROSE-MARY RUMBLEY rosetalksdallas@aol.com

Rose-Mary Rumbley has written three books about her native city – Dallas. She has also written “WHAT! NO CHILI!” and a book about the 300th anniversary of the invention of the piano. She has appeared on the stage at the

THEIR FINEST HOUR

Dallas Summer Musicals and at Casa Mañana and was head of the drama department at Dallas Baptist University for 12 years. Today she is on the speaking circuit and teaches drama classes at Providence Christian School. Her loving views of Texas history appear in every issue of

The Children. Some kids were sent to the country, but, if there was a sponsor, some children were sent to the US.

on sePtemBeR 1, 1939, I was enrolling in the second grade, but that wasn't the big news of the day. The headline in the NY Times read, GERMAN ARMY ATTACKS POLAND: CITIES BOMBED. It was the beginning of World War II. My mother often said, "Rose-Mary marched into the second grade, and Hitler marched into Poland." I always thought it was odd to give your child something in common with Adolf Hitler, but, actually, my mother sensed that the rest of my childhood would be affected by the war. How true that was!

had visited with Hitler and when he returned exclaimed, "Isn't it marvelous? We got what we wanted." He meant ‘peace,’ of course, but the Nazi leader had no plans whatsoever for a peaceful solution.

The first lord of the Admiralty was sixty-five-year-old Winston Churchill. He had held that post during World War I. In May 1940, there was a rebellion in the House of Commons which, to say the least, left Chamberlain in disfavor. Many thought he was not up to the task of managing a war. By this time the German forces had invaded Norway, and all of Europe knew that there was no stopping Hitler. The English leaders demanded the removal of Chamberlain. "Winston Churchill will be our Prime Minister!" they declared. Churchill was elated. He had lived his whole life for this moment.

should I?" was the boy’s reply. Winston had an ability to turn bad humor into mirth. He thought to himself, "Why should I?" and then he thought of the boy's other retort - "You can shut your ears, can't you?" Winston laughed out loud. And he used this episode to make a promise to himself that with him as Prime Minister of England, the nation could and will be triumphant!

I was at Alex W. Spence Middle School when a charming English girl was enrolled in our class. Her name was Zenia Michell and we loved her and she loved us. We soon realized that she was smarter than we were, which tells you a little about the English school system. Nevertheless, we embraced Zenia.

The war dragged on. Everything we loved, chocolate included, was rationed, but we made it. The great day came, May 8, 1945 - VE Day, Victory in Europe!

Adolph Hitler

Britain declared war against Germany on September 3, 1939, and the country prepared for the bombing and invasion that were sure to follow. The code word for the coming attacks was "Cromwell." Good old Oliver Cromwell, the Prime Minister who had King Charles I beheaded because he was a Presbyterian. That wasn't very nice! Nevertheless, Cromwell once again had come to the forefront.

German forces occupied Holland, Belgium, and Luxembourg. England awaited its fate under the guidance of Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain, who only a year before (in 1938)

Winston Churchill

Erik Larson, a fine writer, has a new book entitled The Splendid and the Vile, The Saga of Churchill, Family, and Defiance during the Blitz He tells of Churchill walking toward 10 Downing Street. A newsboy, maybe 13 years old, was coming down the street whistling a song Churchill hated to hear. And, by the way, Hitler also hated whistling. "Stop that whistling," the Prime Minster snarled. "Why

The frontispiece photograph in Mr. Larson's book, speaks a million words about how the British people handled the bombings that occurred during 1939, 1940, and 1941. The scene is a London library which has been attacked. The ceiling is gone, but there are bookshelves remaining. A couple of gentlemen are looking and selecting books from those shelves as though all is normal. No wonder Churchill declared on June 18, 1940, "Let us brace ourselves to do our duties and so bear ourselves that if the British Empire and its Commonwealth last for a thousand years men will still say, 'This was their finest hour!'"

That Monday morning, we were told that Zenia was going home. She had spent her formative years with us, and she was faced with a big adjustment. We were too! She knew her parents were living, but what about her home? What did London look like?

We were all in tears when we said goodbye to Zenia. The class kept up with her for some time, but as time passed, so did our thoughts of Zenia. I have often wondered about her. A friend of mine punched a few buttons on the computer and thought she had found Zenia. I didn't follow up. She's older, like I am, so I thought I'd keep her as a cherished memory.

Yes, the bombs continued with some relief coming in December 1941, when the United States (having itself been bombed at Pearl Harbor) declared war on Japan and Germany. But the British were concerned about their children. They created a plan - Save

As Winston Churchill said concerning the blitz, "It would be foolish to disguise the gravity of the hour, but it would be more foolish to lose heart, faith, and courage." That's true in war and peace. It's true of life itself. n

“Marriage is more than two people turning out the lights and not going to sleep.” (Edith Bunker)

Neville Chamberlain

é Winston Churchill waving to crowds on May 8th celebrating the end of the war.

Heck is where people go who don’t believe in Gosh.

lucRezia BoRgia (1480 – 1519) was a Italian noblewoman who was the daughter of (future) Pope Alexander VI and Vannozza dei Cattanei (his chief mistress). She is inextricably - but perhaps unfairly - linked to the crimes and debauchery of her family.

Her family arranged several marriages for her that advanced their own political fortune. Rumors about her and her family cast Lucrezia as a femme fatale, a role in which she has been portrayed in many artworks, novels and films.

Unlike most educated women of her time, for whom convents were the primary source of knowledge, her education came from within the sphere of intellectuals in the court and close relatives, and it included a solid grounding in the Humanities. She was fluent in Spanish, Catalan, Italian, and French, and literate in both Latin and Greek. She was also proficient in the lute, poetry, and oration.

In 1491 (at the age of 11), a matrimonial arrangement was drawn up between Lucrezia and the Lord of Val D'Ayora Cherubino Joan de Centelles; it was annulled less than two months later in favor of a new contract engaging her to Count Don Gaspare Aversa. When Rodrigo became Pope Alexander VI, he sought to be allied with powerful princely families and founding dynasties of Italy, so he called off Lucrezia's previous engagements and arranged for her to marry Count Giovanni Sforza in 1493.

Before long, the Borgia family no longer needed the Sforzas. The Pope needed

LUCREZIA BORGIA

new, more advantageous political alliances, so he might have covertly ordered the execution of Giovanni. Another version is that Lucrezia was informed of this by Cesare, and warned her husband, who fled Rome.

Alexander had asked Giovanni's uncle, Cardinal Ascanio Sforza, to persuade Giovanni to agree to an annulment of the marriage, but Giovanni refused and accused Lucrezia of paternal incest. The pope asserted that his daughter's marriage had not been consummated and was thus invalid. Giovanni was offered her dowry in return for his cooperation. The Sforza family threatened to withdraw their protection should he refuse. Giovanni finally signed confessions of impotence and documents of annulment before witnesses.

There has been speculation that during the prolonged process of the annulment, Lucrezia consummated a relationship with someone else, perhaps Pedro Calderon, also named Perotto. Or perhaps Alexander, her own father. Families hostile to the Borgias would later accuse her of being pregnant at the time her marriage was annulled for non-consummation.

Following her annulment from Sforza, Lucrezia was married to Alfonso of Aragon, the half-brother of the wife of Lucrezia's brother Gioffre Borgia. The marriage was a short one. In 1499, Lucrezia was appointed governor of Spoleto (a position usually held by Cardinals). Alfonso fled Rome shortly afterwards but returned at Lucrezia's request, only to be murdered in 1500. It was widely rumored that Lucrezia's brother Cesare was responsible for Alfonso's death, as he had recently allied himself (through marriage) with France against Naples. Lucrezia and Alfonso had one child, Rodrigo of Aragon, who was born in 1499 and predeceased his mother in 1512 at the age of 12.

After the death of Lucrezia's second husband, her father, Pope Alexander VI, arranged a third marriage – to Duke Alfonso I d'Este, Duke of Ferrara in early 1502. She had eight children during this marriage and was considered a respectable and accomplished Renaissance duchess, effectively rising above her previous reputation and surviving the fall of the Borgias following her father's death. Neither partner was faithful. Beginning in 1503, Lucrezia enjoyed a long relationship with her brother-in-law. The affair was more sexual than sentimental, as can be attested in the fevered love letters the pair wrote one another.

Lucrezia also had an affair with the poet Pietro Bembo during her third marriage. Their love letters were deemed "The prettiest love letters in the world" by the poet Lord Byron when he saw them in the Ambrosian Library of Milan in 1816.

After a long history of complicated pregnancies and miscarriages, in 1519 Lucrezia gave birth to her tenth child. She became very weak during the pregnancy and fell seriously ill after the birth; she died two weeks later.

Borgia has primarily been remembered as a member of the scandalous Borgia family — the daughter of the corrupt and scheming Pope Alexander VI and the sister of the immoral and most likely murderous Cesare Borgia. Rumors of incest with Cesare have followed her through the centuries, and events such as the birth of a mysterious baby, the death of her second husband at the hands of assassins (perhaps her brother), and her attendance of the Banquet of Chestnuts (an orgy hosted by Cesare Borgia involving 50 prostitutes and countless members of the clergy) have only added to the persona.

But history has recently been kinder

Pope Alexander VI, born Rodrigo de Borja into the prominent Borgia family in Aragon (now Spain), Rodrigo studied law at the University of Bologna. He was ordained deacon and made a cardinal in 1456 after the election of his uncle as Pope Callistus III He was elected Pope himself (taking the name Alexander VI) in 1492 and served until his death in 1503.

His papal bulls of 1493 confirmed or reconfirmed the rights of the Spanish crown in the New World following the finds of Christopher Columbus in 1492 and his foreign policy was to gain the most advantageous terms for his family.

Alexander is considered one of the most controversial of the Renaissance popes, partly because he acknowledged fathering several children by his mistresses. As a result, his Italianized Valencian surname, Borgia, became a byword for libertinism and nepotism, which are traditionally considered as characterizing his pontificate.

to Borgia, and she is now increasingly viewed as more of a pawn in the wicked games of her family than as a real participant. While she may have accepted the fruits of her family’s schemes, it is likely that her father and brother merely used her to advance their own political agendas. Borgia may have been as much a casualty of her family's machinations as anyone else who fell victim to them. n

YOU NEED (OR MIGHT WANT) TO KNOW EGAL VIEW

ANTHONY J. BARBIERI ajb@kesslercollins.com

FINDERS KEEPERS, LOSERS WEEPERS ABANDONED PROPERTY – WHAT’S THE LAW?

this old PRoveRB tells us that if something is abandoned, whoever finds it can keep it. This adage dates back to ancient Roman law and has been applied to various circumstances throughout history. For example, in maritime law, for shipwrecks of a certain age, whoever finds the wreck can claim ownership if they file a proper claim. If you aren’t into shipwrecks, perhaps you can relate to Elvis Presley’s 1965 song, “Finders Keepers, Losers Weepers”, where The King sings about finding the love of his life after someone else “lost” her. But what about finding personal property that your tenants “leave behind”? Can you just keep it? Well, just like shipwrecks and love, determining if something is unowned or abandoned often leads to legal or ethical disputes... in other words, just because your tenant “has left the building”, doesn’t mean you can just keep their stuff!

Texas Property Code Section 93.002(d) states that “a tenant is presumed to have abandoned the premises if goods, equipment, or other property in an amount substantial enough to indicate a probable intent to abandon the premise and is not within the tenant’s normal course of business.” The Texas legislature didn’t do landlords any favors when they wrote that law because it is full of ambiguities; and one of the biggest hurdles for landlords to prove is the tenant’s “intent” to abandon the premises. In a court of law, proving “intent” is never an easy task.

Another provision of the Texas Property Code, Section 72.101, says that, under certain circumstances, personal property can be presumed abandoned if it is left on the premises for three years. However, the three (3) year waiting period makes this law impractical.

Aside from Section 72.101, Texas’ law does not provide a clear-cut definition of “abandon-

ment”, and for several decades Texas courts have held that the mere passage of time and non-use of a premises does not constitute intent to abandon. The determination of “abandonment” is typically a factual one that a jury decides during a trial. Some landlords try to put language in their leases to define “abandonment”, however, if not properly drafted, these definitions could be harmful. Other leases try to “back door” the issue – for example, some retail leases require the tenant to “continuously occupy” the premises, and that the tenant’s business must be open during stated business hours. Other leases will place the tenant in default if they are not “conducting business” for a fixed period of time, such as 30 days. But even these provisions have a certain amount of ambiguity. For example, if a retail tenant goes on holiday for a month, they may be in default of the “continuous occupancy” requirement and thus liable to the landlord for damages, but their intentions to return after the holiday would not constitute abandonment.

PROVING ABANDONMENT

Nevertheless, if you want to prove abandonment, you have to put your private investigator hat on and do some digging. It is helpful to take pictures of the space and make a list of personal property left behind. Clever landlords will also look for tale tell signs of abandonment – for example, in this digital age, most office tenants are more likely to leave

behind tables and chairs but remove their computer servers and other IT equipment if they have no intention of returning to the premises. Be sure to check the tenant’s website for any new locations, and also check relevant social-media sites to see what your tenants are up to. Care should be taken during your investigation to maintain a record of your findings. It is a good idea to consult with counsel during this process to help preserve evidence and avoid pitfalls.

Assuming you can establish that the tenant abandoned the premises, how do you sell or dispose of all their abandoned property? The answer depends on a couple of factors. For example, if landlord has already commenced the eviction process, then the court may order the personal property to be kept in a separate, offsite warehouse, which may have to be insured or bonded. Once the property is stored, the tenant has up to thirty (30) days to claim the seized property. At that time, the tenant may have to pay storage fees to get their personal property back.

Regardless of whether or not an eviction is occurring, before disposing of tenant’s personal property, a landlord must first understand and follow the applicable lien laws. The Texas Property Code gives all landlords a lien against the tenant’s personal property in the premises in order to secure the tenant’s payment of past-due rent (a “statutory lien”). The statutory lien has preference over tenant’s non-secured creditors, but in most circumstances, the statutory lien is only good for up to six (6) months’ worth of past-due rent, unless the landlord files a sworn statement with the county clerk. However, if there is any unpaid rent, the statutory lien forbids the tenant from removing any personal property from the premises. The statutory lien exists while the tenant occupies the building and until one month after the day that the tenant abandons the building.

In addition to the statutory lien, some leases also create a lien against tenant’s personal property kept at the premises (a “contractual

Warning: dates in calendars are much closer than they appear.

Anthony J. Barbieri is a shareholder of Kessler Collins, PC in Dallas, Texas. He is a Fellow of the Litigation Counsel of America and a member of the State Bar of Texas, Dallas Bar Association and the American Bar Association. He is also a Contributing Editor of

lien”). The contractual lien typically covers all past due rent, not just for six (6) months. However, landlords need to be careful because some tenants will try and add language in their leases to waive these lien rights. Additionally, tenant’s lenders will typically ask the landlord to waive or subordinate the statutory lien and the contractual lien. Before agreeing to these concessions, the landlord should make sure they are satisfied with the tenant’s overall creditworthiness.

Both the statutory and contractual liens attach to tenant’s personal property in the space only if the tenant hasn’t paid rent. Further, unless the lease has very good “self-help” language, in order for a landlord to exercise its rights under the statutory lien, it has to initiate a lawsuit and obtain what is called a “distress warrant”, which allows the landlord to foreclose on the tenant’s personal property. By comparison, most contractual liens allow for the landlord to sell the tenant’s personal property without first initiating a lawsuit.

If there is no lien on the tenant’s personal property to foreclose upon, then you have to resort to the Texas Property Code for guidance on disposing the property. The Texas Property Code requires a landlord to deliver a notice by certified mail to the tenant’s last known address stating that after sixty (60) days, any abandoned property may be disposed of or sold. But aside from the notice requirement, the Property Code does not dictate the sales process, which can create a risky proposition for the landlord because, as discussed above, the landlord can be liable if the sale is not properly conducted. However, the UCC can be helpful because it provides guidelines for what is and is not a “commercially reasonable” sale; for example, the UCC has rules about the auction and bid process that should be followed.

LIEN ON ME

In conclusion, before disposing a tenant’s personal property, all landlords need to look before they leap. If the tenant has not actually abandoned the premises, or if you sell property that is subject to any third-parties’ rights, then you can be liable for damages. But if the coast is clear, you can dispose of the property properly and keep all the proceeds that you are legally entitled to keep. Or, as Elvis puts it: “I'm not the kind to play for fun... I only play for keeps and I'm keeping all the love I won.” n Ed. Note: This piece originally appeared in the December 2015 issue of . Tony Barbieri’s article on tortious interference with contracts will appear in the next issue.

THE FACTOR

TOUJOURS SENSATIONNEL

This, the most significant work by Jean Renaudie (1925-1981), is in the city of Ivry outside of Paris, France. He has left his mark with this architectural marvel which colonizes the territory like tree roots grown wild. The oblique angles and the green element shaped the strategy to lighten the presence of concrete.

IT DEPENDS

If the tenant has truly abandoned the premises and left behind property, and landlord has a valid lien against the personal property, then it can follow the required procedure for foreclosing on the lien and disposing of the property. But be careful because this legal process requires certain requirements to be satisfied, such as proper written notices to the tenant and any other junior creditors. Additionally, a provision in the Texas Business & Commerce Code (known as the “UCC” or “Uniform Commercial Code”), provides some reasonable procedures for selling personal property, and most lawyers recommend that landlords follow these procedures. Landlords need to be careful when selling property because if it is conducted in an “unreasonable” manner, then the landlord can be exposed to lawsuits from the tenant, any guarantor, or any junior lienholders. Typically, these lawsuits will accuse the landlord of not obtaining sufficient proceeds from the sale of the property because the landlord allegedly didn’t conduct a proper sale.

Before the property can be sold (regardless of the method), the landlord needs to conduct a lien search to see if there are any junior liens on the property, or any so-called “purchase-money liens”. Additionally, some personal property left in the premises might belong to third parties (i.e. goods on consignment, leased equipment, pre-paid inventory, etc.). A Landlord is not authorized to sell personal property belonging to third parties, and a landlord has a duty to investigate the ownership of the personal property.

Once the abandoned property is sold, the landlord needs to determine what to do with the proceeds. It is rare that the value of the sold property will cover all the pastdue rent and other charges owed by the tenant, but if the sales proceeds exceed such amounts, the landlord cannot just pocket the excess. Further, landlord should know to whom he/she should distribute the sales proceeds to. For example, if there are junior lienholders, the UCC requires the excess sales proceeds to first be distributed to those creditors and then to the tenant. But landlords need to be aware of other creditors’ rights because if the landlord does not conduct a proper sale, or if the landlord does not provide the excess sales proceeds (if any) to the other creditors, then the landlord can be liable for damages.

It is comprised of 40 dwellings, offices and stores which are mixed on different levels and which link both sides of an old avenue. The term brutalist, which has been used to describe the work of Renuadie, may be a bit harsh to define the urban richness which this project harbors. Nearly forty years after its construction, it creative freshness remains intact.

Daffynition:

é Jean Renaudie.

ARTCH TECTURE

THE SECRET IS OUT!

ED WHEELER IS SANTA CLAUS

Ed Wheeler was born into a real estate family on the Main Line outside Philadelphia. Despite being educated in private schools and the Wharton School of Business, his love was always photography. He began his professional career in 1975 and traveled the world shooting for Fortune 500 companies. There was always a personal project to keep his creativity fresh. In 2014 he began working on the Santa Classics. It melded his digital painting skills with his love for the classic painters of history. He continues to execute different approaches to photo based art, but the Santa Classics are his gem.

in this humoRous seRies of self-portraits, American artist Ed Wheeler steps into classic masterworks of art dressed as Santa Claus. Paying homage to the original paintings, the Santa Classics offer art lovers an additional reason to smile during the holiday season.

For the past 40 years Ed Wheeler’s professional photography has taken him to 35 countries on five continents for some of the largest corporations in America. Each year, dressed as Santa, he would create a humorous card for his clients. In 2011 he decided Santa should intervene in his first painting, Washington Crossing the Delaware, by Emmanuel Leutze. Thus, the genesis of the collection.

The Santa Classics have a universal appeal. They have appeared in exhibition halls in Rome, Hong Kong, Moscow - as well as museums in Florida, Texas, Ohio and Pennsylvania, and magazines like Esquire Spain and PhotoWorld China. In 2015, the image inspired by Monet’s The Japanese Footbridge and the Water Lily Pool, Giverny,

was chosen to be the Christmas card for the Foundation Claude Monet, in Giverny, France.

Wheeler’s self-portraits are an expression of his love of wit and whimsy, a statement of subtle yet intelligent humor. Dressed as Santa, he becomes one with a classical masterpiece. His goal is to morph a veiled interpretation of himself into a character in a classical painting - not as a digital rendition of himself, but as a digitally painted reconstruction consistent with the look and style of the original. Why Santa Claus? He’s a universal icon that is cherished worldwide. His footprint transcends politics, religion and culture.

Wheeler wants to be part of the paintings he loves - not to defame them, but to touch people’s hearts as well as their minds. Like Sesame Street, where a child experiences joy and wonder, in these pictures, an adult sees the wit and humor. n

It was 1815 and a grenade fell on the floor of a kitchen in France. It resulted in linoleum blown apart.

Website: santaclassics.com

Instagram: instagram.com/wheelerphoto Facebook: facebook.com/SantaClassics

Notecards can be purchased on the website. To purchase prints, for size and cost, contact Ed at ed@santaclassics.com

WHY ARTCH TECTURE ?

Great art is among the most sublime, meaningful, and redeeming creations of all civilization. Few endeavors can equal the power of great artwork to capture aesthetic beauty, to move and inspire, to change perceptions, and to communicate the nature of human experience. Great art is also complex, mysterious, and challenging. Filled with symbolism, cultural and historical references, and often visionary imagery, great artworks oblige us to reckon with their many meanings.

Architects and designers (many of our readers) have a lot of influence on the way we perceive the world. A structure often plays a significant part in how we experience a place. (Think of a restaurant, a museum, an arena, a stadium... even an office building - virtually anywhere!) The interior design impacts our sensory perception, our comfort, and our physical connection and there is also artistry in the exterior design. (That’s why we call it artchitecture.)

GREET™PERSONALIZED GREETINGS, FRICTIONLESS ENTRY

SCOTT KOENIG scott.koenig@greetsolutions.com

Scott Koenig is the spokesperson for Greet Solutions.

Dale Carnegie said, “A person's name is to that person, the sweetest, most important sound in any language.” Remembering names of customers, prospects, networking contacts, and colleagues is critical to your ongoing professional success.

gReet solutions, a tech startup, is introducing a patented solution that enables building managers and their retail tenants to identify and greet customers or tenants by name as they enter the premises and to pass through security smoothly without showing ID.

building or store management and security permissions regulating access can be triggered. The technology therefore enables entirely new capabilities such as personalized greetings and can also replace older and less efficient security measures such as ID cards. GREET™ can also track employees and/or tenants or visitors’ movements in public areas or restricted areas of the premises through scanners installed throughout the building, not only at the entrances. Said co-founder Russ Wenger, “People forget their ID all the time, but they rarely forget their phones.”

THE CONCEPT

GREET™ is a system that senses cell phone signals, enabling recognition of registered users. The GREET™ scanner is easily mounted above door entrances like a Ring device, and it senses cell phone signals of registered users. As a tenant or customer user approaches and their phone signal is recognized by the system, automatic instant messaging can be sent to both the tenant and

Co-founder Giovanni Jimenez remarked, “This innovation wasn’t our idea. It came from a whiteboard session with one of the largest retail banks in the country. They were looking for a way to identify VIPs in a friction-less way as they entered bank branches so that they could give them enhanced services. Banking is a commodity business in terms of rates and products, so they were trying to differentiate themselves based on hospitality. The bank sought to create a relationship with its customers and instructed their employees to use each customer’s name at least three times in each visit. (“Hello Mr. Johnson.” Etc.) - but remembering names is hard. They were looking for a technology to identify customers and were considering facial identification but had gotten pushback on biometrics for social and technology reasons.

We were exploring alternatives when I thought, ‘What if we could identify people not by who they are but by what they’re carrying?' It turns out almost all of their customers had mobile phones. And so, we began investigating how we could enable the banks to register

the phones of their users so they could recognize the phones when they approached the entrance to the bank and instantly message both the customer and the bank representatives of the customer’s arrival. The bank quickly agreed that the program needed to be 100% opt-in to address privacy concerns. We also came up with a clever way to automatically open the client bank’s app on their customers’ phones enabling personalized messaging and also dramatically increasing app usage (which the IT guys loved)! It turns out that low app usage is also a problem that we addressed by automatically activating our client’s app when end users approach the premises.”

CUSTOMER FEEDBACK

Greet Solutions’ VP of Marketing, Karina Perez, added, “Reaction from proof-of-concept test-users has been positive. Customers who opted into the service really like being greeted by name, which they regard as ‘VIP treatment’. A tester told us, ‘I’ve worked in this building for 12 years. Everybody was polite but nobody knew my name. After they introduced GREET™, the first few times I walked in they would glance at their phone to note my name, but over time they learned it and now I know their names, too. It may sound silly, but it just makes me feel more at home to be greeted warmly by my name when I arrive and depart.’ That was music to our ears!”

FRICTIONLESS ENTRY

Potential uses of customer recognition technology are broad and Greet Solutions is seeking partners to exploit this capability. For example, secure entry into and within buildings can be more efficient and cheaper than prevailing card technologies. Company spokesman Scott Koenig noted,

“We’re looking to partner with tech-savvy property managers interested in a proof-of-concept to integrate GREET™ with their security systems to trigger entry permission. GREET™ also enables companies to monitor employee arrival and departure and to send general or targeted messages to employees as they arrive. It’s a tool and how companies use it is limited only by their imagination. For example, at my health club up to 40% of members forget to bring their cards... but they always have their phones!”

RETAIL –PERSONALIZED MESSAGING AND PRE-ORDERING

Retailers know a lot about their customers but make surprisingly little use of that knowledge at the point of sale. At a supermarket, for example, a regular shopper will do their shopping and then swipe their customer number at checkout, after it is too late to influence their purchases. GREET™ enables retailers of all kinds to send personalized promotions in real-time to customers as they arrive at the store to begin shopping. Wenger added, “A supermarket can promote food products based on its understanding of a customer’s recent purchases - baby products, cat food, vegetarian fare, etc. Such targeted promotion can take place in any setting, not just retail. Libraries can promote new book titles based on past checkouts, likewise with clothing retailers, cosmetic shops, sporting goods retailers. The sky is the limit.”

Daffynition: Foreploy: any misrepresentation about yourself for the purpose of obtaining sex.

RETAIL –PRE-ORDERING

Wenger added, “One of the cleverer uses of our technology came from a leading coffee chain looking to speed its ordering process. They already had an app that has been downloaded by many customers but was rarely used and usually not open on their customers’ phones. They offered customers an upgrade asking permission to ping the customer’s phone as they approached their usual retail location in order to automatically open the app for pre-ordering. Since over 90% of their regular customers ordered the same thing daily, they offered a one-button solution to order and pay for whatever was the customer’s ‘usual’. Customers loved it because it allowed them with one touch to bypass the line at the register and to go straight to the pickup area. From the coffee shop’s standpoint, a win - reduced labor cost at the register, a much better customer experience and a nice differentiator in the cutthroat world of fast food. A win for customers, too, who get to skip

the line, get their morning coffee and pastry quickly, and even get greeted by name. Everybody wins with better service. Well, except maybe competitors that don’t have GREET™…”

FACIAL AUTHENTICATION, CUSTOMER ONBOARDING

GREET™ offers two add-on optional features. The first, is a third-party dual-factor authentication solution currently live in 45 banks. Selphi is the marketleading facial authentication solution in the financial services

sector. Selphi Facial authentication enables companies to confirm user identity matching a selfie against a registered image of a customer’s face. Greet Solutions can deploy on a stand-alone basis or as a second factor to confirm users. Retailers and banks, for example, can use this to doublecheck identity before transactions. To date, this facial authentication tool has been used in over one billion transactions confirming user ID with zero reported false positives. The second technology, document onboarding and customer authentication, enables customers to confirm their identity during the registration process by taking a selfie and a photo of a government-issued ID such as a driver’s license or a passport. The technology confirms the authenticity of the ID and matches the selfie against the ID to confirm the user’s identity.

SEEKING PARTNERS

Jimenez pointed to an autographed photo behind his desk in Rockefeller Center in New York City. It was a photo of George Wendt, who

played Norm on Cheers. The theme song lyrics underneath:

Sometimes you wanna go

Where everybody knows your name

And they're always glad you came

You wanna be where you can see (ah-ah)

Our troubles are all the same (ah-ah)

You wanna be where everybody knows your name

He said, “That’s what we enable! Actually, names are only part of what we do... we love to brainstorm with creative people, to find new and interesting ways to integrate our tool into their business workflows. Imagine what a company can do with our ability to identify and alert registered customers and company employees in real-time! Together we can make a difference, improving service, increasing efficiency and enhancing security.”

The company website: www.greetsolutions.com

Email: scott.koenig@greetsolutions.com n

DIVERSI NS THE LIGHTER SIDE OF THE PANDEMIC – PART 5

Misery doesn’t love company. Nowadays, it insists upon it.

01/ Congratulations! Lee Associates named Roland Weathers of Houston to its inaugural advisory board. Weathers has over a decade of experience in the IT field, and oversees the Office 365 Tenant, as well as sets IT direction for future deployments and adoption on a corporate level.

02/ A bow down to Alfredo Gutierrez of SparrowHawk Real Estate Strategists in Houston for being inducted into the Midwest Commercial Real Estate Hall of Fame, Gutierrez founded SparrowHawk in 2011 to provide preservation of its investment partners’ capital through the purchase of properties with proven occupancy and immediate yield.

03/ Three cheers for Lisa Wallace who recently celebrated her 20th year of service to BOMA Greater Dallas. Never seeking the spotlight, but always giving her very best, she has been instrumental

SH UT-OUTS

in the growth of the chapter and the key to the success of its annual tradeshow.

04/ Kudos to Jackie Marshall! A Senior Vice President with CBRE’s office investor leasing team in DFW, Marshall is responsible for the marketing and leasing of over four million square feet of office space across the urban and suburban Dallas submarkets. Over her career, she has worked on a total of 549 deals encompassing 4.8 million sq. ft. for a total consideration of $2.1 billion. In 2019 alone, Jackie brokered 72 transactions for a total consideration of $154.6 million. She was recognized as a Power Broker by D CEO and has now been selected as one of the Texas 2020 Next Generation Award winners by Connect Media. These awards recognize young leaders in the commercial real estate industry who are likely to be influential for years to come.

05/ Congratulations to B+E CEO Camille Renshaw, whose article appeared in the July-August issue of , for receiving the 2020 Entrepreneurial Spirit Award from CREW Network. With offices in New York, Chicago, San Francisco, Atlanta, Denver and Tampa, B+E boasts the first NNN trading platform consisting of user-friendly dashboards, real-time predictive pricing and an AI-driven exchange -- all leveraging the largest data set in the triple net sector of the industry.

06/ Three CallisonRTKL projects—The Northside Bridge in Atlanta, Albuquerque Performing Arts Center and Fetch House in Dallas—were selected as exhibitions in AIA Dallas Latinos in Architecture (LiA) ENLACES showcase. ENLACES showcases the design skills of Latino architects in AIA Dallas while also promoting their projects within

the community and beyond to help build and strengthen relationships with other design professionals. A tip of the hat to Eduardo Castañeda Assoc. AIA, Hector Zumalacarregui, Hernan Molina AIA, and Edison Calvopina who were honored.

07/ Congratulations to Jessica Warrior, CPM, RPA. She has a long history of service to the real estate industry and was a finalist for IREM’s CPM of the Year award. She has been an IREM Dallas member since 2008 and served as the chapter president in 2014. She has also served as an Executive Council Advisor – all while ascending the corporate ladder to become the Director of Property Management for Granite Properties. And, by the way, we are very proud of her and the fact that she serves on the Advisory Board of . n

YOU NEED (OR MIGHT WANT) TO KNOW IN THE N WS

01/ With mortgage rates hitting record lows but consumers struggling financially due to COVID-19, the personal-finance website WalletHub released a report on 2020’s Best Real-Estate Markets, as well as accompanying videos. They compared 300 cities across 24 key metrics ranging from median home-price appreciation to home sales turnover rate to job growth. Kudos to Frisco (#3), Austin (#7) and Denton (#9) all of which were in the top ten! And Fort Worth – which came in 8th among large cities. To view the full report and your city’s rank, visit: wallethub.com/edu/best-real-estatemarkets/14889

02/ WalletHub released a report on 2020's Best & Worst Cities to Drive in, as well as accompanying videos. To determine the most driverfriendly places in the U.S., they compared the 100 largest cities across 31 key metrics, ranging from average gas prices to annual hours in traffic congestion per auto commuter to auto-repair shops per capita. Kudos to Corpus Christi for coming in 3rd, behind on Lincoln, NE and Raleigh, NC.

03/ To re-envision the Philip Johnson-designed Thanks-Giving Square in downtown Dallas, global architecture, planning and design

firm CallisonRTKL is providing pro-bono design services to the non-profit Thanks-Giving Foundation. Created in the 1970s to be a place of serenity and gratitude, a 100-foot bridge spans the Great Fountain and leads to the iconic interfaith Chapel of Thanksgiving with its mesmerizing stained-glass spire. CallisonRTKL has been working closely with The Thanks-Giving Foundation, which owns and operates the Square, discussing the non-profit’s goals and direction, organizing a day-long design charrette and sketching a series of thoughts to visualize the newly imagined space. n

drink to make other people interesting.

ç Corpus Christi.

YOU NEED (OR MIGHT WANT) TO KNOW PROFESSIONALS ON THE

JULIE BRAND LYNCH julie@LYNOUS.com

of LYNOUS, a talent

1 and 2/ Plano headquartered ResMan announced the addition of Gayle Crowell (based in San Francisco) and Jeffrey Stone (based in Austin) to its Board of Directors.

3/ Midway promoted Anna Deans to Vice President for Investment and Development in Houston.

4/ Bryan Bishop joined Lee & Associates in Dallas as an Associate.

5/ United Properties hired Brenda Studt as Development Manager for Austin.

6/ Daniel Lorimer was named Senior Vice President of Business Development at Title Partners in Dallas.

7/ Michael Haas was named Senior Vice President of Business Development at Title Partners in Dallas.

8/ Christine Krueger was promoted to Director of Property management for the San Antonio office of Weitzman.

9/ Jordan Wade was promoted to Senior Vice President for occupier Solutions at Transwestern in Dallas.

10/ Bob Acuff joined Younger Partners in Dallas as the head of the new Corporate services Division.

11/ Tiffany Lauchlan joined Equitable commercial Realty (ECR) in Austin as Director of property Management Services.

12/ José Lopez joined Rockspring in Houston as National Director of Sales.

13/ Trademark Property Co. named Amanda Sanchez as General Manager of La Palmera, a million square foot mall in Corpus Christi.

14/ Sara Terry joined Colliers International to head up its DFW leasing group.

15/ Blake Steele joined Avison Young Partners as an Associate in its Houston office.

16/ Will Haynes was promoted to Managing Director for Office Occupier Services for Colliers International in North Texas.

17/ Conor Kenny joined Civiltude as Director of Public Affairs.

18/ Doug Prickett, CRE was named Senior Managing Director of Investments & Analytics at Transwestern in Houston.

19/ Dawson Smith joined Avison Young in Houston as a Financial Analyst.

20/ Lynn Clarke joined RealNex in Houston as Executive Vice President.

21/ Lyle Patman joined Landry Commercial in Dallas as Vice President.

22/ Aaron Johnson joined SRS Real Estate Partners as Managing Principal with its Investment Properties Group.

23/ Justin Kennedy joined Berkadia’s mortgage banking team in Dallas.

24/ Matt Waldon joined Reserve Capital Partners in Dallas.

25/ Luke Caden joined Bearden Management in Houston as a Property Manager.

26/ Holley Higgins joined Method Architecture in Austin as a Designer.

27/ Michael Buckner joined Foresite Commercial Real Estate in San Antonio as Senior Vice President of Investment Sales.

28/ Jordan Robinson was named Vice President of Economic Development by the Round Rock Chamber.

29/ Eric Anderson joined Alliance National Title Company in Dallas as Assistant Vice President.

30/ Russell Gonzales joined Alliance National Title Company in Houston as Assistant Vice President.

31/ Andy Goldston, CCIM was promoted to Market Principal in Citadel Partners’ Fort Worth office.

32/ Robert Williamson was promoted to Senior Vice President of Investment Management at Midway in Houston.

Julie Lynch is the principal

management firm that provides recruiting, interim staffing and training to the real estate industry. She is also a contributing editor of

So far, this is the oldest I’ve been.

the tRust FoR PuBlic land works to protect the places people care about and to create closeto-home parks — particularly in and near cities, where 80 percent of Americans live. Its goal is to ensure that every child has easy access to a safe place to play in nature. They also conserve working farms, ranches, and forests; lands of historical and cultural importance; rivers, streams, coasts, and watersheds; and other special places where people can experience nature close at hand.

Founded in 1972 with the goal of protecting land in and around cities and pioneering new

land conservation techniques, its work has expanded to include projects from the inner city to the wilderness. In cities, they’re turning vacant lots into community-designed parks and playgrounds. And we’re addressing the looming climate crisis with strategies to help reduce greenhouse gasses, promote climate adaptation, and create park-rich, climatesmart cities.

The Trust for Public Land’s ParkScore® index is the most comprehensive tool available for evaluating park access and quality in the 100 largest U.S. cities. With the

permission of and thanks to The Trust for Public Land, this is the seventh of thirteen installments of the results of that study. For Arlington, Austin, Corpus Christi, Dallas, El Paso, Fort Worth, Garland, Houston and Irving, please see our archived editions at www.crestnetwork.com. In the issues ahead, look for Lubbock, Plano and San Antonio. If you can’t wait to see all of the results – or want to see where your or another city rates, go to: www.tpl.org/node/110916 n

Daffynition: Circumvent: The opening in a pair of boxer shorts.

YOU NEED (OR MIGHT WANT) TO KNOW LINK : MARKET PLACE AND DIRECTORY

CARPET CLEANING: LEGAL:

EXECUTIVE SEARCH, INTERIM PLACEMENTS & TRAINING:

PAVINGS:

EXTERIOR WALL CONSULTING:

JANITORIAL SERVICES:

Daffynition: Oyster: a person who sprinkles her conversation with Yiddish expressions.

PAVINGS:

REACH YOUR FOR LESS

ROOFING:

Links listings require a 4-issue (non-cancellable) commitment

1” Full Color ad .............. $138 per issue

2” Full Color ad .............. $193 per issue

3” Full Color ad .............. $275 per issue

Medical daffynition: Artery –the study of fine paintings.

Give your client/friend the gift of smiles – smiles that keep on giving. J A handsome, artbook-style, personalized volume (with your dedication page) with the best Diversions to appear in over the last decade. A waiting room or coffee table book (s)he will treasure for years to come.

Call today for pricing and requirements: The CREST Publications Group: 682-224-5855

THE BACK PAGE

ANSWERS FROM THE SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER CONTEST – GONE BUT NOT FORGOTTEN

Editor’s Note: There are hundreds of right answers here. This is just a smattering:

Automobiles: Oldsmobile, DeLorean, Plymouth, Pontiac, Saab, Mercury, Hummer, Suzuki, Saturn, Packard, DeSoto, Checker, Studebaker, Isuzu, AMC.

Airlines: TWA, Pan Am, Eastern, AirTran, Continental, US Airways.

Magazines: National Lampoon, McCall’s, Popular Electronics, U.S. News and World Report.

Cigarettes: Viceroy, Salem, Belair, Kool, Tareyton, Virginia Slims, Merit, Vantage, Benson & Hedges, Chesterfield.

Toothpaste: Pepsodent, Cue, Rembrandt, Promise, Ultra Brite.

Cereals: Rainbow Brite, Banana Frosted Flakes, Choco Donuts, French Toast Crunch, Sprinkle Spangles, Sugar Smacks, Wheat Chex.

Professional/Brokerage Services: Arthur Anderson, PaineWebber, Bear Stearns, Dean, Witter, Shearson, Salomon Brothers.

Chain Stores : Borders, Woolworth’s, Tower Records, Sharper Image, Waldenbooks, Mervyn’s, Zayre’s, A&P, Sports Authority, Dart Drugs, Korvette’s, Two Guys, Levitz.

Cameras : Konica, Revere, Olympus (Kodak and Polaroid went bankrupt and the remnants are mere shadows of what they once were.)

Soft Drinks: Quirst, Aspen, Coke Zero, Pepsi Light, Crystal Pepsi, Tab Clear, Slice.

DIVERSI NS POLITICAL CORNER

Give your client/friend the gift of smiles – smiles that keep on giving. J A handsome, artbook-style, personalized volume (with your dedication page) with the best Diversions to appear in over the last decade. A waiting room or coffee table book (s)he will treasure for years to come.

Call today for pricing and requirements: The CREST Publications Group: 682-224-5855

CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL OF OUR CONTEST WINNERS!

Karen Hall of Beaumont, TX won a Bluetooth DVD & TV boombox.

Lynda Cotugno of New Orleans, LA won a portable sanitizing UV wand.

Brendon Cooperman of Temple, TX won video recording night vision binoculars.

Olivia Fallon of Oklahoma City, OK won TV headphones. Emily Stronham of Arlington, TX won a Coolibar gaiter.

Juan Soto-Rios of San Marcos, TX won ChargeHub home base.

Randall Wolfson of Atlanta, GA won a copy of The Reinventionist Mindset.

BOLO (BE ON THE LOOK OUT FOR WHAT'S COMING NEXT) sician, natural theologian and lexicographer who created and released the thesaurus in 1852.

Contributing Editor Angela O’Byrne’s Amazing Buildings will look at the stunning Grand Egyptian Museum in Cairo, which is set to open in 2021 after nearly a decade of delays and a cost of approximately $1billion. And Contributing Editor Tony Barbieri’s Legal View will examine legal issues involving tortious interference with contracts. And, with permission from and thanks to The Trust for Public Land, we will continue to present the results of their study on parks for the sixth of thirteen Texas cities – this time for Lubbock.

In Herstory, Contributing Editor Rose-Mary Rumbley demonstrates that Necessity is the Mother of Invention. The church was running out scribes, so Gutenberg invented the printing press; Carrier's wife needed to be kept cool to live... so he invented the air conditioner; we needed to confer with each other...so Eric Luan invented Zoom! Not completely unrelated, our History Page will help you come to know Peter Mark Roget (1779–1869), the British phy-

Contributing Editor Roxana Tofan’ Profiles of Survival will look at a property management company that is forging ahead in the era of COVID-19. And, though, as we go to press, we don’t know what it will be yet, we do know that in You Need to Know, we’ll look at something(s) about the 2020 election. The word unprecedented has been used so often in the last four years, there is almost guaranteed to be a wealth of important ‘need-to-knowables’.

We will present a list (and explanation for the selection) of America’s Best Big Cities and its Best Small Cities. And (for our international buffs, we’ll present The 100 Smallest Countries in the World by area. (Spoiler Alert: Vatican City, at .19 square miles, is the smallest.) And, on the light side, What’s in a Name will look at the mottoes of all of the states.

We’ll present a pictorial tribute to the architectural designs of Viñoly Architects, who (already with an amazing portfolio of worldwide stunning buildings, are now designing the National Medal of Honor Museum in Arlington. We’ll continue our look at the architectural treasures of American cities, this time of Boston, Massachusetts and we’ll do the same for Budapest, Hungary –the new world and the old.

Specially contributed articles from various industry segments will continue to discuss issues presented by COVID-19 and, of course, we will have our affiliates’ awards and special events, the Wow Factor, Diversions, By the Numbers, True Dat, You Need to Know, Political Corner, Professionals on the Move, The Resource Page, Shout- Outs, Call Me What?, Real Estate of the Future, and much MUCH more. We get a lot into 64 pages!

C NTEST: PET FRIENDLY (TV PETS)

Sixty-seven percent of U.S. households, or about 85 million families, own a pet, according to the 2019-2020 National Pet Owners Survey conducted by the American Pet Products Association (APPA). This is up from 56 percent of U.S. households in 1988, the first year the survey was conducted. It’s not surprising, then, that so many popular TV shows feature a family pet.

So, here’s the test. These are pretty strong clues, especially the pictures, and some of them couldn’t be easier. Not all of them – just some. You

complete the clue with the name of the TV show. If you don’t know, there’s enough here so you can look it up. Write the names in the spaces provided.

Then, scan or copy this page and send your entry to editor@crestnetwork.com or fax it to 817.924.7116 on or before December 1st for a chance to win a valuable prize. (The answers will appear in our January-February issue.)

1/ Lassie (with Tommy Rettig) on .

2/ Buck, The Bundy household’s Briard, might have been the most intelligent member of the family on .

3/ Astro is the ____________ family pet.

4/ Santa’s Little Helper is the pet greyhound of (and on) .

5/ Elvis – Sonny Crockett’s “watch gator” on

6/ Spot is the family dragon on .

7/ Chief Warden Kelly and Flipper, his dolphin companion, on .

8/ Tweety Bird and Granny were from (and other Warner Bros cartoons).

9/ Rin Tin tin was Rusty’s trusted companion on (and then had his own show, too).

10/ Dreyfus, a St. Bernard/Golden Retriever mix, featured prominently on .

11/ Murray (a collie mix) was the Buchman’s dog on .

12/ Comet was an important member of the family on

13/ Brian is the Griffin’s walking, talking, sophisticated and intelligent pet on .

14/ Bamboo Harvester was the real name of Wilber’s talking horse and best friend, .

15/ Marcel is Ross’ capuchin monkey on

16/ The Ziffle’s Arnold the pig is treated like he a human by the residents of Hooterville on

17/ Dino is a loyal and protective dogasaurus to Pebbles on .

18/ Eddie is the stubborn Jack Russell Terrier who only listened to Martin on .

19/ Charlie Brown’s pooch Snoopy is probably to best known member of the gang.

20/ Great Dane Scooby Doo is the faithful companion of Shaggy on

Lassie

...BECAUSE SOMETIMES IS WHAT YOU KNOW

We Speak Real Estate

The Arsenal Companies are a diversified consulting, educational and publishing group, dedicated to service in the real estate industry. With national reach, regional strength and local sensibilities, we serve and service large and small companies as well as governmental entities in acquisitions, dispositions, leasing, licensing, contracting, procurement, insurance certificate tracking, educational program development, mediation services and collections.

Our Contracts and Procurement Services Division provides solutions and services that help real estate owners and companies effectively manage their contractual needs and commitments. We provide industry knowledge and we practice deal facilitation rather than obstruction. Whether you are a property, facility or asset manager, your functions are integrally related to real estate contracts. Quality management is all about contracts.

Leasing

Acquisitions, dispositions, renewals, surrenders, amendments, abstracting, administration, interpretation – our professionals are experienced in residential, commercial, industrial, professional and retail leasing issues of all kinds.

Procurement

Supply Chain Management

Procurement Administration

Supplier Recognition Programs

RFI, RFP, RFQ Administration

Vendor/Supplier Resourcing

Vendor Reduction Programs

Customized Purchase Orders

Are the contracts for services and supplies which your organization uses prepared for your organization – or are they the vendor’s or contractor’s agreement forms? Wouldn’t you be better off if those agreements and purchase orders were revisited from your perspective? Isn’t it time you fortified your real estate related contracts?

Contract Negotiation and Drafting Services

Anyone with experience.

Don’t assume that problems won’t occur. Plan what you can do to avoid them. A small reduction in costs can be the equivalent of a substantial increase in value. We suggest ‘refinements’ to improve language and reduce direct and indirect costs. Our attorneys have successfully resolved leasing issues for both small and Fortune 100 corporations – effectuating $millions in savings.

Do you have contract issues that call out for review, interpretation and the advice of a specialist? Do you have a service contract which is about to expire and will need to be renewed or replaced? Do you have oversight of a real estate or facilities function which has been given savings targets? Have you considered ‘outsourcing’ this part of your real estate function but fear a loss of control?

We analyze the details of your proposed service contracts before they begin - while you still have leverage. Or, we can review your existing service contracts, help reveal cost efficiencies and/or savings opportunities. We look for pragmatic solutions that are sensitive to your business interests, anticipating issues that may arise, and we assist in minimizing those risks that cannot be avoided.

Leases are highly specialized documents. A few words can make a world of difference.