NEW YORK CITY-In an inspiring and passionate speech, MaryAnne Gilmartin, EVP of Forest City Ratner Cos. addressed a riveted full-house of AREW members and guests during a luncheon Tuesday in Midtown. The developer, who said she started in the industry about 25 years ago, detailed the marquee projects she's worked on, what she's focused on today and some issues that the city must contend with now to create a brighter future.

“I started out learning development from the public side; I was asked to look at the West Side and come up with ideas,” she said.  “I realized it'd be an awesome thing to be in an environment where if you can dream it, you can test it and see how it turns out.”

At FCR, Gimartin noted both seriously and tongue-in-cheek, “The things we do usually are big, complicated and difficult. If a project is not those things, we're probably not interested.”

She talked about 8 Spruce St. (formerly Beekman), the 76-story tower built by famed architect Frank Gehry. The project was going well until FCR closed the property's loan in 2008, just before the market collapse. The company had to circle back to the then 80-year-old Gehry—whom they had courted for the project—with the intent to cut him loose due to high fees associated with him. Gehry told her, “I will babysit for people at the top of the building if I have to, just get me my building.” He also renegotiated his fee.

She spoke of her experience working on the New York Times building and Barclays Center.  The former gave Gilmartin new respect for the importance of architects, while the latter appears to have ensured Gilmartin's legacy. “If you can build one of these buildings in a lifetime, it's a great feat. Barclays Center will continue to be one of the great icons of our city.”

But the arena is “just the cornerstone of something far bigger,” she said, as her focus today is on B2, the first residential tower at Atlantic Yards, and one that is being built entirely from modular construction. “It's quality control, if you build in a factory, you can do things right. It's a way to take 60% off of the cost of construction by doing the labor in a site that's tempered, safer, more efficient—and therefore cheaper—than standard construction, and the sustainability is off the charts.

"When you walk into the buiding," she continued, "you won't be able to tell it's done any differently than a standard New York City rental building, except that it'll be more beautiful. These methods could have far reaching implications for bringing housing to the market quickly and efficiently.

As for the NYC of tomorrow, she noted, the three biggest issues are: “First, we need to keep up Mayor Michael Bloomberg's work. Whether it's the technology jobs, the safety and security he brought to the city or other initiatives, we have to maintain a lot of the mojo we have under our belt. The second issue is the creation of affordable housing. It has to exist near the dense urban core. Three, our airports need to be better .When I travel, I see what other terminals look like and, when I get home, I feel cheated. We deserve beautiful airports.”