Commercial Real Estate Finance

Archive for the ‘Executive Interviews’ Category

Loren M. Balsam, CFA

Managing Director

PRP LLC

At PRP Real Estate Investment LLC, Mr. Balsam is charged sourcing and closing the firm’s US opportunity fund investments.  In addition, he serves on the firm’s investment committee and in integrally involved with the creation of the firms other investment initiatives.

Prior to joining PRP Real Estate Investment LLC in 2008, Mr. Balsam was a senior investment officer in the real estate group at Pyramis Global Advisors, a unit of Fidelity Investments. In this role, he is responsible for the sourcing, underwriting, closing and management of private real estate investments. Prior to joining Fidelity in 1997, Mr. Balsam worked in the Kenneth Leventhal Real Estate Group of Ernst & Young where he consulted on a variety of valuation assignments including appraisals, loan portfolio pricings, underwriting analyses, and lease structuring. Prior to Ernst & Young Kenneth Leventhal, Mr. Balsam was a senior associate at Coopers & Lybrand where he performed audits and reviews on the venture capital and real estate industries.

Mr. Balsam earned a B.S. from the Cornell University School of Hotel Administration and a M.B.A. from Cornell University’s Johnson School. He is a CFA Charterholder.

Q: How has your strategy changed as a result of the credit crisis?  Have you expanded/narrowed your acquisition criteria? If so, to what, and why?

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Jim Burnett

Executive Director

West Philadelphia Financial Service Institution

Mr. Burnett is the Executive Director of the West Philadelphia Financial Services Institution (WPFSI). He has worked in the financial services industry for over 22 years, beginning his career with Fidelity Bank 1988. Over the past ten years Mr. Burnett has added real estate development to his expertise and has recently developed a solar design, development and generation firm.

In addition to his professional focus, Mr. Burnett has served diligently on various community and professional boards and is committed to the promotion of financial education and access to capital.

As Executive Director for WPFSI, a ten year old non-profit, Community Development Lending Institution, located in the West Philadelphia, Mr. Burnett is responsible for managing a $4,300,000 and growing commercial loan portfolio, a $9,500,000 capital fund and a $500,000 operating budget. WPFSI’s mission is to provide capital, real estate development services and technical assistance to businesses and residents who have been underserved by traditional financing and development organizations.

Mr. Burnett’s career in financial services began in 1988 while studying finance at LaSalle University. He received credit training while working for First Fidelity Bank and subsequently worked as a relationship manager in the small business division. Mr. Burnett rose to the level of Assistant Vice President before taking the position of Program Loan Officer for WPFSI in 1999. Mr. Burnett is currently a Masters of Community Economic Development candidate at the Southern New Hampshire University.

Mr. Burnett is also the chairman of WesGold, LLC a partnership of WPFSI and The Goldenberg Group the entity that developed and is operating the Park West Town Center retail development.

In June of 2008 Mr. Burnett worked with three former employees of The Goldenberg Group to create Mosaic Development Partners, LLC. The firm is focused on becoming a major player in the development of retail and mixed use projects within the tri-state area.

In May of 2009 Mr. Burnett created Thru Energy, LLC. Thru Energy is a solar design, development and energy generation company located in Philadelphia. Thru is focused on medium to large scale solar projects that generate a minimum of 350,000 kilo watts.

Mr. Burnett has also served on the national board of the Urban Financial Services Coalition and has served twice as the president of the Philadelphia Chapter. He has been asked and sits on various other community and professional boards, is a frequent speaker on issues surrounding lending and community economic development and hosted a monthly radio program on WDAS 1480 AM on finance and business development for over 10 years.

Q: As a company, tell me about the niche you have carved out for yourself and how you feel you are different from the competition. Why do you find this product type more appealing than alternative real estate asset classes?

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Jeff Rotter

Rotter Realty Group

Founder

Jeff Rotter has been married twenty years, with three kids ,and a golden retriever. He received his undergraduate and graduate degrees from University of Wisconsin-Madison in finance, economics, real estate appraisal and investment analysis. His first job ever was waiting tables at a family restaurant. However, his first “real” job in real estate was with Joe Pasquarella, a local real estate appraiser. He then took a job with Strouse Greenberg. After which he worked at CMS Companies for twelve years where he was a principal and director of real estate investments. In 2005, he went off on his own to form Rotter Realty Group, which he is building with the help of good partners, a solid investor base and the support of his wife Julie.

Q: As a company, tell me about the niche you have carved out for yourself and how you feel you are different from the competition. Why do you find this product type more appealing than alternative real estate asset classes?

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After reading an article on Bloomberg discussing Obama’s plan to “overhaul” our nations immigration laws it got me thinking about how immigration, most notable illegal immigration, affects commercial real estate.  I personally view illegal immigration as a serious crime.  Not only are illegal immigrants eating up hard earned American tax dollars while giving nothing back, crowding our public schools, and stealing jobs from American citizens, but they are making a mockery out of those those immigrants trying to become legal citizens.  Alas my opinion and the opinions of so many other red blooded Americans are neither here nor there.  On this blog we are here to talk about commercial real estate, and as far as commercial real estate is concerned its pretty OK with illegal immigration. Read the rest of this entry »

John Mershon

President

Westrum Development Co.

Established in 1987 as a single family homebuilder in the Philadelphia suburbs John Westrum, CEO of Westrum Development Company, continues to apply a proven platform for success: determining under-served market niches, while simultaneously creating growth opportunities.

Westrum Development Company creates communities that are the cornerstone of today’s lifestyles. Situated in the most desirable locations, and appointed with world class amenities and dramatic designs, a Westrum home is where special family memories begin.

A dynamic and visionary market leader, Westrum is on the forefront of the real estate industry. Best known for initiating innovative approaches to the changing requirements of today’s sophisticated buyer, John Westrum and his team of professionals believe in the Philadelphia market place– one neighborhood at a time.

Westrum has sold almost 3,000 homes and several large tracts of land both approved and improved to local and national builders. The Westrum team includes Approval, Site Improvement, Construction Management, Sales Management and Senior Managers with an average of 20 years of real estate development and homebuilding experience.

Q: How has your strategy changed as a result of the credit crisis? 

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Kevin J. Silverang

Principal

Silverang Hallowell Development Company

Kevin J. Silverang is a principal and founding partner of Silverang Hallowell Development Company, LLC, a development company specializing in acquiring and developing value added real estate. Mr. Silverang is an entrepreneur who has personally developed over $250 million of property and co-founded three multi-million dollar real estate equity funds: Intrepid Real Estate Opportunity Fund II, L.P., Intrepid Real Estate Opportunity Fund I, L.P. and Corvest Real Estate Opportunity Fund I, L.P. Mr. Silverang is also a co-founding partner of the law firm of Silverang & Donohoe, LLC, which provides legal services for lenders, borrowers, developers and investors in various real estate acquisition, leasing, construction, development, financing, workout, restructuring and disposition transactions.  Prior to formation of Silverang Hallowell and Silverang & Donohoe, LLC, he served as Executive Vice President and General Counsel of O’Neill Properties Group where he oversaw a portfolio of real estate with a retail value of over $4 billion. Prior to joining O’Neill Properties Group, Mr. Silverang served as Managing Partner of law firm Buchanan Ingersoll’s Philadelphia office, Vice Chairman of the firm’s real estate and banking practice, and a member of the executive committee and board of directors.

Mr. Silverang holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Franklin & Marshall College, and obtained his law degree, cum laude, from Villanova University. He is a frequent lecturer on real estate subjects at seminars sponsored by the Philadelphia Bar Association and the Pennsylvania Bar Institute.

Q: As a company, tell me about the niche you have carved out for yourself and how you feel you are different from the competition. Why do you find this product type more appealing than alternative real estate asset classes?

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Doug McBrearty

Gulph Creek Development

Doug McBrearty attended Penn State and graduated in 1973. He was a hotel major. After he graduated he went to work for the Sheraton. After which he worked for Bill Rouse. He headed up acquisitions for GF management. After which he started Gulph Creek Hotels. Gulph Creek Hotels is broken up into two parts: Management and Development. His partner Clark Blynn and he decided to split away and head up the Gulph Creek Development part of the company.

Q: As a company, tell me about the niche you have carved out for yourself and how you feel you are different from the competition. Why do you find this product type more appealing than alternative real estate asset classes?

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Jim Paterno

Founder

Stockton Real Estate Advisors

Stockton Real Estate Advisors, LLC was founded by James L. Paterno in January of 2005. In addition to the firm’s acquisition initiatives, Mr. Paterno and his Stockton colleagues are presently providing senior-level advisory and transaction services for several institutional and corporate clients. In that regard, Stockton recently completed more than 1 million square feet of new, expansion and renewal leases in Radnor, Pennsylvania on behalf of a publicly traded real estate investment trust. Prior to establishing Stockton Real Estate Advisors, Mr. Paterno was a partner at The Rubenstein Company where he served as President of The Rubenstein Brokerage Group and oversaw leasing and management the company’s 6.5 million square foot class “A” office building portfolio. Before joining The Rubenstein Company, Mr. Paterno served as Managing Director and Regional Leasing Manager at Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL), a multi-national real estate investment and consulting company. While at JLL, Mr. Paterno was responsible for overseeing the company’s growth in Pennsylvania, Delaware, Washington, DC, Virginia, Maryland, and Southern New Jersey. He also supervised leasing, property management, and asset management of the region’s 14 million square foot portfolio for a vast array of national and international clients, such as TIAA-CREF, the University of Pennsylvania, General Electric, Royal Bank of Scotland, and RREEF. Prior to joining Jones Lang LaSalle, Mr. Paterno was a partner at The Rubin Organization, where he served as Senior Vice President of PREIT-Rubin, the leasing and management affiliate of The Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust and The Rubin Organization.

Q: As a company, tell me about the niche you have carved out for yourself and how you feel you are different from the competition. Why do you find this product type more appealing than alternative real estate asset classes?

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Chuck Bragitikos

Principle and Co-Founder

Vibrant Development Group

Chuck Bragitikos has more than 20 years of experience working with developers, professional sports teams, gaming companies and the public sector on conceiving and developing unique dining, entertainment and retail destinations. He has consulted with major brands and entrepreneurs on creating individual tenants. His passion lies in working with a team to develop the strategy for a given project and then creating strategic relationships and creative financing for the implementation of the destination.

Chuck and his partner Jason are currently developing the strategy, concept and program for the retail, dining and entertainment uses at Revel, a $2.6 billion resort destination in Atlantic City. As strategic advisor and owner’s representative for Aztar, the parent company of the Tropicana Casinos, Chuck worked on the $300 million expansion of the company’s flagship Atlantic City property, the Quarter. He similarly led a team charged with developing the concept, program and business strategy for the podium of a $1 billion redevelopment planned for the Tropicana Casino and Resort in Las Vegas.

He also had key responsibility for negotiating the agreement for a $40 million expansion and privatization of the New Jersey State Aquarium and securing master development rights for 30 acres of adjacent land along the Camden waterfront an urban mixed-used project. Chuck has also worked with companies such as Simon Property Group, Hillwood Development, Palladium and Steiner + Associates on forging public-private partnerships.Chuck is co-founder and former principal at MRA International. Chuck is a graduate of the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania.

Q: As a company, tell me about the niche you have carved out for yourself and how you feel you are different from the competition. Why do you find this product type more appealing than alternative real estate asset classes?

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Jim Petrucci

Founder

JG Petrucci & Co.

Jim Petrucci founded JGPCO in 1987. As president of the Company, he has guided the JGPCO team through a program of measured growth with a focus on providing complete accountability and total client satisfaction.

J .G. Petrucci Co., Inc. (JGPCO) is a privately-held, full service design/build specialist, owner and developer of industrial, office, retail and other commercial properties. Having developed and built more than six million square feet of space for a highly diverse corporate clientele, JGPCO has become widely known for its assurance of total client satisfaction, as well as for taking full, single-point accountability on each project.

Jim attended Delbarton School in Morristown, NJ, and graduated Magna Cum Laude with a degree in American History from Princeton University, where he also Co-Captained the Varsity Football Team. He served two terms as Chairman of the Raritan Township, Hunterdon County Planning Board and is a Director of HealthQuest, a family health fitness and recreation center in Flemington designed and built by JGPCO, as well as a Founding Director and Vice Chairman of Team Capital Bank and a Trustee for Delbarton School. Jim has also been honored by numerous times for community service by organizations such as The March of Dimes, Boy Scouts of America, Arc of Union County and others.

Q: As a company, tell me about the niche you have carved out for yourself and how you feel you are different from the competition. Why do you find this product type more appealing than alternative real estate asset classes?

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