Shvo, president of the residential marketing firm that bears his name, was one of a trio of panelists discussing the city's real estate for an audience that included international attendees along with those from outside the New York region. Notwithstanding the nationwide economic downturn that has reduced deal velocity locally, panelist Lois Weiss said, "We continue to go strong here. There is still a sense that New York is a good investment."

Titled "Exploring the Epicentre--New York, New York: Future Vision," the late-afternoon panel session Tuesday at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center here portrayed a market that has stood up to the challenges even if it hasn't been completely impervious to them. Weiss, real estate columnist for the New York Post, noted that in the office sector, landlord concessions are up, but not by much, while vacancy remains tight. Downtown retail spaces that once went for $75 per sf now command $400, she noted, especially as foreign retailers come in. Meanwhile, the hotel sector remains strong: Weiss said the only reports she's heard of softening in hotels is that rooms are not oversold as heavily as before.

Dan Biederman, who co-founded the Grand Central Partnership, 34th Street Partnership and Bryant Park Corp., offered panelists one reason for Manhattan's allure: public-private partnerships in the form of business improvement districts that have cleaned up neighborhoods. In the early 1980s, Biederman said, Bryant Park was largely deserted except for drug dealers; today, after $20 million in capital improvements paid for mostly by the private sector, it's a magnet for tourists, area residents and a lunchtime crowd of nearby office workers.