NEW YORK CITY—In keeping with their status as industry movers and shakers—in a field where women often aren't in the C-suite—a panel of leading women of commercial real estate discussed their companies' approach to investment, some of their recent (and, in some cases, headline-making) transactions, and offered up some career advice.
“We're looking for off market more than anything, and the deals do exist,” declared Sara Mirski, COO and chief development officer, Sam Boymelgreen, during a recent CREW New York luncheon in Midtown.
“We're targeting land owners who it seems are disillusioned about what the property can collect three years down the road," she said. "We talk to them and welcome them to come into the deal as a joint venture partner. That's been successful as long as we create the right fundamentals. “We're engaging in both long-term leases and purchases. We haven't been engaging with the broker community much because those deals don't make sense for us.”
Added Lisa Gomez, COO/partner, L+M Development Partners, “It's very hard to compete with spec purchases; people don't realize 421-a is sunsetting and property owners think their land is worth what one would pay for a condominium building. The downtime is coming; this isn't sustainable.”
Panelists were mixed though on whether the end of 421-a was on the horizon. “We'll have to see what happens in the next 90 days,” Gomez cautioned, “but I believe there will be a tax abatement program.”
However, Mirski countered, “I think it's going to go away; we don't make any assumptions it'll be there. So we're back to basics: what is it going to cost to build something and what can I sell it for? We're being conservative and the pro formas still hold.”
Other speakers explained their work on recent projects. Sara Queen, SVP of Brookfield Properties, discussed the recent big debut of Brookfield Place in Lower Manhattan. “We wanted to create more transparency along walls, the World Financial Center had its back to the city. At Brookfield Place, we built the pavilion on West Street to welcome visitors and if you stand on Vesey Street, you can see the whole project.”
Retail guru Laura Pomerantz, vice chairman and head of strategic accounts at Cushman & Wakefield, extolled the virtues of the complex, noting it was a great fit for Saks Fifth Avenue, her client and the tenant she secured to anchor Brookfield Place starting in 2016.
“People don't realize that Downtown is really a city within a city,” she said. “Below Chambers street, there is 110,000 million square feet of office space and 65,000 residents. Before, Downtown workers who wanted to shop had to go to Soho and it took too long so they were underserved. Brookfield Place was designed for workers, residents, tourists, it has all of the components of a successful shopping area and that's why I encouraged Saks Fifth Avenue to look at the complex.”
The business leaders also provided guidance for recent college graduates.
“If there's an opportunity that presents the experience you want, take it. The money will come but you need a break to get that experience,” said Mirski.
Added Pomerantz, “It's important to find the companies that are advocating women and that want to bring women along.”
Focusing on geography, Ann Cole, managing director and portfolio manager, JP Morgan Co., declared, “You can go anywhere, just be sure it's where your passion lies.”
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Rayna Katz
Rayna Katz is a seasoned business journalist whose extensive experience includes coverage of the lodging sector, travel and the culinary space. She was most recently content director for a business-to-business publisher, overseeing four publications. While at Meeting News, a travel trade publication, she received a Best Reporting award for a story on meeting cancellations in New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina.
