Atlanta 2024 CRE Forecast

Mr. Bhoopathy is a managing principal and head of capital markets responsible for debt relationships, asset dispositions, and transaction management. In addition, he leads contract documentation and closings related to new acquisitions, development, and financing for all investments. Mr. Bhoopathy has more than 23 years of hospitality industry experience and has participated in more than $4.5 billion worth of real estate transactions for the Noble organization since joining the firm in 1999. He became a partner in 2006 and is a regular panelist at lodging, investment, and financing conferences. Mr. Bhoopathy earned a BS from the Cornell University School of Hospitality and is a past-president of the Cornell Georgia Chapter and the Atlanta Hospitality Alliance. He is also a member of the Atlanta Capital Markets Council for the Urban Land Institute.

Rahim B. Charania is a business leader with over 20 years of experience, acquiring and reorganizing business operations into efficient, highly profitable businesses. He has used his expertise in business management, strategic planning, finance and sales to distinguish himself as a leader and an innovator. Rahim’s entrepreneurial skills and creativity have shaped his vision into several successful businesses. Rahim serves as Founder and Managing Director of Woodvale, a leading alternative investment firm providing solutions for clients along with strong and consistent returns for investors. Woodvale’s deep experience in special purpose real estate development, equity capitalization and debt re-structuring creates a single source solutions provider for the needs of today’s commercial real estate market. In addition to Woodvale, Rahim has founded two other successful business that continue to make a measurable impact in the industries the serve. In 2011, Rahim founded American Fueling Systems (AFS) a national leader in the fueling industry, providing gasoline, diesel, compressed natural gas and Liquefied Natural Gas to the transportation and energy sectors. He has taken AFS from an idea to a nationally recognized leader in the energy and fuels marketplace. In 2016, Rahim created Three Ring Studios (TRS) and is now the Chairman of one of the largest Studio production campuses in Georgia’s growing film and TV production industry. With over 250,000 square feet of sound stages space and over 100,000 square feet of office space. TRS has positioned itself to be a premier facility for film and television productions of all types, offering an impressive array of sound stages, state-of-the-art post-production facilities and world-class support services amid an inspiring, historical setting. These successful businesses have afforded Rahim many opportunities to be recognized for his efforts by industry and civic leaders across the U.S. In 2011, Rahim was named one of Atlanta Business Chronicle’s Top 40 Executives under 40 and in 2012 Georgia State University honored him with the Outstanding Young Alumnus Award. In 2015, he was recognized as the Businessperson of the Year from the largest Chamber organization in the South East, the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce. Rahim has been published in many publications including Forbes and Success magazines, sharing his business insights. He received his Bachelor of Business Administration Degree and Executive MBA from the J. Mack Robinson College of Business at Georgia State University.

Alex Bertles joined Slate in 2021 and is based in Dallas TX, where he leads Texas and Southeastern investments for Slate Real Estate Capital. Before joining Slate, Alex was on the New York-based Commercial Real Estate team at Annaly Capital Management focusing on new deal origination throughout the Southeast. Alex has also held roles at Morgan Stanley and Credit Suisse with a primary focus on trading and client management. He holds a Masters of Business Administration from Darden School of Business at UVA and a Bachelor of Arts from Trinity College in Connecticut.

Jeff Garrison’s passion is to create dynamic, community-changing retail centers that encompass connection, walkability and activation. He believes development should drive neighborhood engagement and bring people together for experiential shopping and dining. His key strengths lie in shaping the future of a community layout and thoughtfully converting urban infill into thriving neighborhoods that benefit residents in meaningful ways. Jeff is a partner at S.J. Collins Enterprises and has been with the company since its 2007 inception. He handles the intricate mechanics that bring a vibrant development property together – from locating new sites, building tenant relationships and communicating with neighborhood groups to hiring contractors and shepherding the project to its final phases. Over the past decade, he has developed more than 5 million square feet of retail and mixed-use space across the country. Current projects include The Interlock, an award-winning $450 million mixed-use center rising in Atlanta’s West Midtown neighborhood, and Southern Post, a multi-use property soon to transform a much-needed section of Roswell, Georgia. Jeff graduated magna cum laude with degrees in real estate and speculative finance from the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania. He holds a Georgia real estate license and is a member of the International Council of Shopping Centers. He currently serves on the board Mount Vernon Presbyterian School, where his children attend school. Jeff lives in Atlanta with his wife Jennie. The two have three children.

Shelby Morris is Studio Practice Leader, Commercial/Mixed Use and a Principal at HKS. As the Studio Practice Leader, Commercial/Mixed Use r in Atlanta, Shelby works with real estate leaders to create places that transform communities. Shelby has been recognized with multiple awards, including Atlanta Business Chronicle’s Real Estate Deal of the Year two consecutive years.