This week's People of Note includes the following markets: Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Chicago, Denver, Houston, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Phoenix, San Antonio, San Diego, San Francisco and South Bay.
LOS ANGELES
Griffin Capital Taps Sales Veteran as Pres. of Capital Markets
By Laurie Forbes
Griffin Capital Securities hired Jeffery Schwaber as president of capital markets and to oversee the distribution of Griffin Capital Net Lease REIT and Griffin-American Healthcare REIT II. He will be based at the company’s corporate office in El Segundo, CA.
Schwaber is a veteran sales leader with more than 27 years in the financial services industry. He formerly served as executive vice president and national sales director at Behringer Harvard Real Estate Investments, where he assembled and managed a sales group that raised more than $5.5 billion in less than nine years. His specialty is training, educating and operating wholesaling and national accounts teams.
“Jeff is one of the most recognized and respected securities executives in the financial services industry,” said Kevin Shields, chief executive officer of Griffin Capital Securities and Griffin Capital Corp. “You can count on one hand the senior distribution executives that have built an organization to Tier 1 industry-leading status, compiled a selling group of several hundred prestigious broker-dealer partners and raised billions of dollars through multiple economic cycles, and Jeff Schwaber is certainly one of them.”
Schwaber is a top broker-dealer and securities industry expert. He is a sought-after keynote speaker and a regularly featured guest on CNBC.
Griffin Capital Corp. and American Healthcare Investors were named co-sponsors of Griffin-American Healthcare REIT II (formerly known as Grubb & Ellis Healthcare REIT II) in November. Griffin Capital Securities was selected to serve as the dealer manager of the healthcare REIT’s offering.
Editor's Note: CoStar's People of Note is published each Friday covering the latest commercial real estate executive level promotions and new hires. Click on the headline of each article to jump to full coverage. Follow the news on Twitter @LaurieForbes and @TheCoStarGroup.
SAN FRANCISCO
Feldman To Lead Local Multifamily Team for Colliers
By Laurie Forbes
Colliers International recruited Mark Feldman as head of its San Francisco multifamily team. He assumed the role of senior vice president after more than a decade at Hendricks & Partners, most recently as an associate partner.
Feldman is a 23-year veteran of the commercial real estate consulting and brokerage business. He has closed more than $900 million in apartment sales and commercial deals and has a client list that includes Equity Residential Property Trust, BRE Properties, Archstone, Prudential Real Estate Investors and Northwestern Mutual.
ATLANTA
O'Neill Named Head of C&W Atlanta
By Brandon Young
John O'Neill III was promoted to lead Cushman & Wakefield's Atlanta office. He has been at Cushman since 2003 where he co-led a group of top brokers.
As head of the local office, he will be in charge of day-to-day operations, business objectives and ensure the growth of the organization.
“We scoured the market to find the right person to lead Cushman & Wakefield’s Atlanta office and John kept resurfacing throughout our search as the most talented and obvious choice,” said William Magner, executive vice president and area leader for Cushman’s offices in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeast. “John has a long track record of success in delivering value for our clients in Atlanta and we are confident in his ability to continue the advancement of an industry leading enterprise in the market.”
LAS VEGAS, SAN FRANCISCO, SOUTH BAY
Colliers Names New Leadership for Expanded U.S. Hotels Group
By Justin Sumner
Colliers International has promoted Mike Mixer and Dharmesh Patel to executive managing directors to lead Colliers International Hotels | USA, specializing in hospitality real estate investment advisory services.
The team was created to provide brokerage services to hospitality owners and investors, financial institutions, funds and REITS in what is expected to be a growing demand in the lodging investment segment of its commercial real estate business.
Mixer, an expert in the resort and gaming market, is the managing partner and founder of the Colliers International Las Vegas office. He said that his team is proficient in all aspects of hotel services for independent, economy and upper midscale properties in his mid-tier market.
Patel, based in the San Francisco/South Bay area has experience as a hotel owner-operator with a diverse background in investment, development and finance of hospitality properties. He served as a panelist at The Americas Lodging Investment Summit, and expects REITs to continue active investing in hotel properties in 2012 as occupancy and RevPar numbers improve.
HOUSTON
Hines Promotes 2 in Houston
By Laurie Forbes
Hines promoted two veteran employees in its Houston headquarters. Steve Dolman ( far left) was named senior vice president and Jesse Carrillo (left) was appointed senior vice president/chief information officer.
Dolman has more than 20 years with the commercial real estate firm, most recently as vice president. He spent his first seven years on the team managing the company’s Three First National Plaza in Chicago before relocating to South America to help form operations for Hines in Brazil. Dolman later returned to Houston to serve as fund manager for the Hines/CalPERS funds in Brazil and Mexico. Since 2010 he’s negotiated more than $360 million in new development capital for the Brazil platform.
Carrillo is a nearly 18-year veteran of the company. He assumed his latest role after serving as vice president/chief information officer for more than two years.
PHOENIX
Tucker-Gasser Promoted at Sperry Van Ness
By Kenneth Arnold
Shari Tucker-Gasser was promoted to national director of retail properties for Sperry Van Ness International, where she will serve as a liaison between the organization's retail affiliates located in 145 national markets.
"Shari lives and breathes retail. It’s part of her personal brand. As a result, she has distinguished herself as a retail expert among her peers at SVNI and within the industry," said Kevin Maggiacomo, chief executive officer and president of Sperry Van Ness International. "Retail has always been a top-performing sector for SVNI and we are now looking to Shari to take our retail platform to an even higher level."
Shari has more than 12 years of commercial real estate experience as a broker with the Sperry Van Ness office in Phoenix, AZ, specializing in retail sales and leasing. She has completed well over $1 billion in retail transactions and her clients include CW Capital, Wells Fargo, Standard Insurance and Peoples Bank. She is also an active member of the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) and the Sperry Van Ness Asset Recovery Team.
SAN ANTONIO
USAA Real Estate Names Global Head of Research
By Laurie Forbes
USAA Real Estate Co. recruited Will McIntosh, Ph.D. as global head of research. The investment management specialist will provide research on markets and properties and provide recommendations and direction on market and asset selection.
McIntosh was most recently the head of global research for Abu Dhabi Investment Authority’s real estate department in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
The 20-year industry veteran was dean of the University of Cincinnati’s College of Business and also served as managing director for ING Real Estate Investment Management, AIG Global Real Estate Investment Corp. and Prudential Global Asset Management Group.
The San Antonio, TX-headquartered USAA Real Estate manages a multi-billion dollar portfolio of commercial properties and investments in real estate operating firms. The organization provides co-investment asset management services to pension funds and institutional investors and provides capital to partners for development. USAA Real Estate’s parent company, USAA, is a financial services company that serves military families.
CHICAGO
Transwestern Promotes Becker and Serota to SVP
By Laurie Forbes
The Chicago office of Transwestern promoted Scott Becker and Larry Serota. The former vice presidents are now senior VPs in the company’s tenant advisory services group and were named to the Midwest region’s executive committee.
Becker joined the firm nearly a decade ago and has been recognized as a top producer and dealmaker for the last three years. Serota will celebrate his sixth anniversary with Transwestern this year and also achieved honors for his service and successful transactions.
BOSTON
Butler & St. John Re-Join CBRE/New England
By Michelle Sonn
Simon Butler and Biria St. John have re-joined the CBRE/New England office as executive vice presidents and partners.
Butler and St. John will lead CBRE's Multi-Housing Group in New England. They are 18-plus-year veterans of the business specializing in multi-housing investment sales. Since 2000, the two have sold and arranged transactions totaling more than $6.4 billion in gross consideration. They will join forces with Bill Moylan and Chris Angelone who currently lead the CBRE/New England Capital Markets in Boston.
Butler and St. John were previously executive directors with Cushman & Wakefield’s Capital Markets Group. Prior to being a part of the Cushman team in 2006, the duo were both members of the CBRE/New England
Investment Properties Multi-Housing Group.
AUSTIN
Carrington Steps Down from Reznick Group
By CoStar Research
Edwina Carrington announced her retirement from Reznick Group but will continue to work with the firm and its clients in the Texas market through a newly launched consulting practice, CHK Enterprises LLC.
Carrington established Reznick Group’s Austin office in April 2006 after joining the firm from the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs where she served as executive director. At Reznick, she attracted a diversified client base in such areas as affordable housing, commercial real estate, nonprofits and renewable energy.
"Edwina Carrington is an outstanding leader and a consummate business professional," said Ken Baggett, Reznick Group’s managing principal and CEO. "Her stewardship of the Austin office, knowledge of the Texas business community, and contributions to our national affordable housing practice are widely recognized and appreciated. I’m delighted that she will be continuing her work with us in a consulting capacity."
BOSTON
Klemmer Associates Joins NAI Hunneman
By Michelle Sonn
Greg Klemmer, along with his brokerage team, joined NAI Hunneman. Klemmer will now serve as executive vice president and become a member of the firm’s management committee.
He will primarily focus on the leasing and sale of office as well as industrial properties in the suburban Boston markets. Klemmer has been an active broker for more than 24 years with 8.9 million square feet in transactions totaling in excess of $491 million over the past 12 years. He is a member of the New England Chapter of SIOR and was previously president. Klemmer serves on the boards of the North Shore Chamber of Commerce as well as the Commercial Broker’s Association where he was named CBA Broker of the Year in 2009, along with being recipient of the Industrial Deal of the Year in 1994 and 2009.
Tim Brodigan, formerly a senior vice president at Klemmer Associates, will also join NAI Hunneman. Brodigan has more than eight years of experience, and is also a member of CBA and SIOR.
DENVER
Grooters and Hashimoto Join CBRE in Denver
By Matthew Myers
Dan Grooters and Riki Hashimoto joined the CBRE Investment Properties team in the downtown Denver office. The investment sales professionals, both senior vice presidents, specialize in the acquisition and disposition of office, retail and industrial investment properties. They joined First Vice President Geoff Baukol in handling institutional and private equity investment sales throughout Colorado.
Hashimoto and Grooters most recently served at Grubb & Ellis where they consistently ranked among the firm's top producing brokers nationally. They have closed approximately $1 billion in sales and more than 150 transactions, including the recent sale of the Denver Club Building at 518 17th St.
SAN DIEGO
Tenant Rep Firm Takes on New SVP
By Kerry Post
Jim Hollis, with more than 27 year of sales and leasing experience, has joined The Irving Group as senior vice president.
Prior to joining The Irving Group, Hollis was president and founder of tenant representation company Kenyon Hollis Partners, Inc., in Missouri. Hollis has also previously specialized in office sales and leasing for the downtown San Diego office of Coldwell Banker Commercial Real Estate Service, now CBRE.
The Irving Group was founded in 1989 by Craig Irving and has been one of San Diego County’s premier tenant representation firms. Their specialties include new leases, renewals, and expansions, acquisitions including built-to-suit facilities, project management, site selection and financial consulting, competitive market analysis, and sustainability planning.
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