Forest City EVP Moves to Paragon Real Estate Equity

CLEVELAND-Real estate veteran Jack Kuhn has left Forest City Enterprises for another locally based, publicly traded firm, Paragon Real Estate Equity and Investment Trust. Kuhn, , most recently Forest City Enterprises’ executive vice president responsible for operations, and asset and property management, is now senior vice president and chief property management and development officer for Paragon Real Estate Equity, responsible for overseeing, managing and directing all property management and development activities.Paragon’s management team and board consider Kuhn’s appointment a boon to the company’s implementation of its value-added business plan to acquire well-located, under-performing, multi-family residential properties. Kuhn will be directly responsible for repositioning property acquisitions through renovation, leasing, management and branding strategies.Prior to Paragon’s restructuring in 2003, prevailing low interest rates made it a seller’s market for under-performing apartment properties. Paragon chief executive and president James Mastandrea says that with interest rates rising, he is seeing more reasonable pricing for these properties. “We have been actively investigating acquisitions including several portfolios of apartment properties in the Southeast, Southwest, and Midwest, and are continuing dialogues with several sellers,” says Mastandrea. Before assuming the role of Forest City’s EVP responsible for operations, and asset and property management, Kuhn was president of Forest City Commercial Management, responsible for the management of the office and mixed-use properties in the group, where he gained experience in adaptive reuse projects that entailed conversion of real estate properties for alternate single- or mixed-use purposes.”When we reach terms on acquisitions that will add value for our shareholders, we expect Paragon’s momentum to shift with announcements of acquisitions,” says Mastandrea. “(Kuhn’s) addition to our team is in anticipation and preparation for these acquisitions.”Regarding Kuhn’s compensation, Mastandrea says each member of Paragon’s senior executive team has agreed to receive comparably low base salaries, along with the potential for “significant” rewards through share ownership, linked directly to increasing the value of the company for shareholders.As a material inducement for Kuhn joining Paragon, the firm’s independent Management, Organization and Compensation Committee approved a restricted stock grant of 1 million shares. The initial grant of 500,000 restricted shares will vest half of the shares in four years and the second half in five years. Additional grants of 125,000 restricted common shares will be distributed annually for the next four years beginning on the anniversary date of his employment with vesting effective four years after each grant date.