Schick

Schick's optimistic view continued on through the next session titled: "Town Hall Meeting: State of the Downtown Market," where leading industry experts and key Downtown players were also bullish about Downtown's future. Lois Weiss, columnist for the New York Post, moderated the panel, which included: Larry Silverstein, president and CEO of Silverstein Properties Inc.; Steven Spinola, president of the Real Estate Board of New York; David Arena, president of Grubb & Ellis New York Inc.; Robert Freedman, president & CEO of GVA Williams; Dennis Friedrich, president & COO of Brookfield Properties; and Alan Gerson, City Council Member of the 1st District of the New York City Council. Gerson began the discussion assuring the audience that as far as gubernatorial presence goes, "we have a team who is committed to Downtown." Silverstein agreed that Gov. Paterson is "determined to advance Downtown."

Spinola said that "everybody is pretty optimistic about how things are going here." He also pointed to "phenomenal" vacancy rates as a sign of confidence.


Town Hall Meeting

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Natalie Dolce

Natalie Dolce, editor-in-chief of GlobeSt.com, is responsible for working with editorial staff, freelancers and senior management to help plan the overarching vision that encompasses GlobeSt.com, including short-term and long-term goals for the website, how content integrates through the company’s other product lines and the overall quality of content. Previously she served as national executive editor and editor of the West Coast region for GlobeSt.com and Real Estate Forum, and was responsible for coverage of news and information pertaining to that vital real estate region. Prior to moving out to the Southern California office, she was Northeast bureau chief, covering New York City for GlobeSt.com. Her background includes a stint at InStyle Magazine, and as managing editor with New York Press, an alternative weekly New York City paper. In her career, she has also covered a variety of beats for M magazine, Arthur Frommer's Budget Travel, FashionLedge.com, and Co-Ed magazine. Dolce has also freelanced for a number of publications, including MSNBC.com and Museums New York magazine.