The Sunshine State's commercial real estate business has long had an international feel, and with a new wave of development on the horizon, the future looks bright. However, Florida's success in this arena wouldn't be possible without the efforts of individuals who have helped shape—and many of whom continue to influence—the market. Here's a look at some of the people who have become household names in the regional industry.

They don't call him the "ultimate CEO" for nothing. Stephen Bittel has been making his mark on management, leasing, financing, development and sales of major real estate assets in Florida since 1980, when he founded Terranova Corp. With his unique blend of legal and real estate savvy—he's a member of the Florida Bar Association and the Mortgage Bankers Association, as well as a licensed real estate broker and a member of the International Council of Shopping Centers—Bittel has personally been responsible for more than $2 billion in transactions, and Terranova operates nearly $1 billion worth of real estate assets. He's also president of Petroleum Realty Investment Partners, a venture launched in April 1999 to invest in the gas station and convenience store industry.

Malcolm Butters is one industry icon who shows no signs of slowing down. As president of Butters Construction & Development, the veteran developer last year facilitated one of the largest land transactions in terms of acreage. The move allowed his firm to take control of one of the last remaining major development sites in western Miami-Dade County, putting Butters and partner Liberty Property Trust in the front seat of Miami's industrial building boom in advance of the Panama Canal and Port of Miami expansions. The 125-acre site, a former limestone pit along Florida's Turnpike just south of Okeechobee Road, is being repositioned as a 1.6-million-squarefoot business park and is expected to pump $125 million and 4,000 jobs into the local economy. With this and two other land deals, the firm is overseeing construction of more than two million square feet of class A industrial product in the years to come.