Southeast Multifamily Summit

As managing partner of Columbia Ventures, Dillon Baynes has primary operational and managerial responsibilities for the firm. Dillon applies his entrepreneurial style, community relationship values, and business experience towards creative solutions throughout all phases of the real estate development process, from acquisition to design, entitlement, construction, marketing, lease-up, and operations. Khalil and Baynes have an eight year relationship spanning several joint venture development projects and other investments. His experience varies from multifamily (both for rent and for sale) to single family and land lot/subdivisions, to retail and office and mixed-use, and land conservation. With a successful track record as an entrepreneur, Baynes founded and ultimately sold a restaurant group in Virginia in the 1990s immediately following college. Bringing the commercial renovation experience from the restaurant business, he embarked on a career in commercial real estate which includes over 1,200 residential units developed in addition to over a million feet of commercial space, while separately operating a property management firm. Baynes brings seventeen years of commercial real estate development and investment experience to Columbia Ventures. Examples of recent work include Studioplex, a mixed-use, mixed-income phased redevelopment in the heart of Atlanta’s Old Fourth Ward, on the Beltline, where he serves as managing partner; and Village Place Brookhaven, a premier retail, office and residential condominium project at the heart of Brookhaven’s urban core, successfully completed and sold in 2012. A committed entrepreneur, he served as CEO of musictoday.com prior to its sale to Live Nation, and has had an active role in several startups as advisor and private equity investor in fields as disparate as insurance, technology and risk management. Dillon is actively involved in the Congress for the New Urbanism and the Urban Land Institute, and volunteers for Atlanta’s Beltline. He attended Georgetown University, holding a bachelor’s degree in History.

Patrick Chesser serves as the Senior Managing Director of Mill Creek’s Atlanta office, and his responsibilities include sourcing, entitling, and overseeing the development of the Mill Creek multifamily communities in the Atlanta region. During his career, Mr. Chesser has been involved with the acquisition, entitlement, financing, and development of over $1.5 billion of commercial and residential real estate. Prior to joining Mill Creek, Mr. Chesser was a partner at South City Partners developing multifamily, mixed-use, and student communities in the Atlanta and South Carolina markets, including the multi-use $350 million West Edge District in Charleston, South Carolina. Prior to South City, he served as a Senior Vice President at Ackerman & Co. for 15 years and led development, acquisition, and asset management of industrial mixed-use, office and medical office assets throughout Atlanta. Prior to Ackerman & Co., he worked in preconstruction and project management with R.J. Griffin & Co. (now JEDunn) estimating and managing several projects throughout the southeast. Mr. Chesser received a Bachelor of Science from the University of Florida in Building Construction an MBA in Finance from Georgia State University. His professional affiliations include the National Association of Industrial and Office Parks (NAIOP), National Multifamily Housing Council (NMHC), and International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC); and serves on behalf of the City of Sandy Springs on the Board of Directors for the Perimeter Community Improvement District along with several other non-profit boards and committees.

Palmer McArthur is Managing Director of Development for the Carolinas and Tennessee at RangeWater Real Estate. Since his arrival in 2014, Palmer has closed eight projects totaling 2,500 units. He led the expansion of RangeWater Real Estate into North Carolina and South Carolina developing several projects of note including the Penrose, winner of Top Apartment Development at the 2019 Charlotte Business Journal Heavy Hitters Awards. In his role at RangeWater Real Estate, Palmer is responsible for identifying and analyzing development opportunities in the Carolinas and Tennessee, raising debt and equity capital, and managing project execution. Palmer oversees the development of midrise and garden multifamily projects and manages multiple teams of architects, engineers, attorneys and contractors. As an expert in the commercial real estate industry, Palmer speaks frequently at conferences and industry forums. Palmer was previously an assistant vice president at an American international banking and financial services company, where he underwrote CMBS loans for the real estate capital markets group. Palmer holds an MBA from Columbia Business School and a BSBA with distinction from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He was an active member of the real estate clubs at both institutions. He is also a member of the Urban Land Institute (ULI) and sits on the Carolina Trends Council. Palmer lives in Atlanta with his wife and three children, and enjoys golf, hunting and spending time with his family and friends.

Jim Lott is the National Director of Development for Waypoint and is responsible for overseeing Waypoint’s development sourcing, strategies and activities for future growth within the Company. Mr. Lott has over 15 years of experience in real estate finance and development. Prior to joining Waypoint, Mr. Lott was Vice President at SunTrust Bank – Commercial Real Estate. Mr. Lott holds a B.B.A. from the University of Georgia Terry College of Business.

Rocky Horde is a Partner in the firm's Real Estate practice group where he focuses on real estate development and finance. Within his real estate practice, Rocky serves his clients through acquisition, finance, leasing, development, redevelopment, operation and disposition in a number of areas, including hotels, office buildings, multi-family developments, resorts, golf courses, country clubs, stadiums, and marinas. In addition to his real estate development and finance practice, Rocky has more than 18 years of commercial mortgage-backed securities loan origination experience. He received his undergraduate degree from Vanderbilt University and his J.D. from Vanderbilt University Law School.

Shaun has over 25 years of experience in the Real Estate Development and Property Management business as a Principal and CEO. Over the past 17 years, as Founding Principal of CMC Development Group he has developed more than 500 residential units, including Tax Exempt Bond and Low-Income Housing Tax Credits financed, Supportive Veterans and Senior Housing, Luxury Rental and Condominium developments. Shaun also spreadheads CMC’s NYC, North Carolina, and Atlanta development pipeline of additional 500 planned units including the company’s first Shipping Container designed multifamily live work building. Throughout his career, Shaun has been a leader in the development of state- of-the-art Green and Sustainable Design building techniques and has developed several Commercial, Public facilities and Adaptive Use developments. He is also a pioneer in the utilization of New Markets Tax Credit financing and an innovator in the redevelopment of under- performing Church and private properties. He is a Board Member of the Primary Care Development Corporation’s (PCDC) National Capital Advisory Board, National Development Council (NDC) New Markets Tax Credit Advisory Board and advisor to several public and private organizations. Shaun is also the former NYC Broadband Advisory Board Chairperson, appointed by Mayor Michael Bloomberg. Shaun holds a degree in Economics and Business Management from Howard University. He is a graduate of the Columbia University Institute for Non- Profit Management and has served as Alumni Speaker (1997 & 1998, 2007) and Program Advisor. Shaun has also completed the Harvard University Graduate School of Business Executive Education Program.

As Director of the City of Atlanta’s Housing Innovation Lab, Matt leads a talented team of designers, architects, finance, and housing professionals tasked with building innovative development models to increase affordable housing in Atlanta. The Lab is responsible for aggressively redeveloping Atlanta’s public land portfolio for new mixed-income housing and coordinating action across major public agencies, including the recently created Atlanta Urban Development Corporation.

Bill Brading, Senior Vice President, covers the Southeast region of the United States for AHIB, Inc. Bill has over 4 years of commercial real estate experience ranging from a small family office to CBRE, a publicly traded company. In addition, Bill is on the Board of a related group of non-profit corporations that own or serve as the general partner in affordable housing apartments and senior living facilities. Bill earned his BS in Business Management from Terry College of Business at the University of Georgia in Athens, GA. In 2016, he received his Master’s in Business Administration (MBA) with a focus on Entrepreneurship from the Acton School of Business. Acton has been ranked by Princeton Review as a top 10 Best MBA Programs and #1 Most Competitive Students since 2013.

Tyler Epps is the American South Real Estate Fund’s lead originator and is based out of the fund’s Metro Atlanta office. Mr. Epps is responsible for sourcing new affordable and workforce housing equity investment opportunities across the fund’s 10-state southern footprint, as well as building and maintaining relationships with our sponsor and development partners. He has led the deployment of more than $125M of equity capital for ASREF I & II and has been involved in more than $1B of real estate transactions across his career. Tyler is an Atlanta native and graduated with an undergraduate degree from Georgia State University and with an MBA from Georgia Tech.

I am a personable, intelligent, and result-oriented leader who understands the importance of each member of my team and have a unique ability to harness and leverage every person's strengths to get remarkable results. I am a high-energy individual with strategic planning, coaching and facilitation, marketing/business development, urban design, and management expertise with over 40 years of experience in Architecture, Engineering, Planning, and Development including a focus on sustainability and resiliency. A licensed Architect from 1982, I have Master’s Degrees in Architecture and Civil Engineering including course work in community, regional and transportation planning. My experience has been mostly at senior management levels; in large, medium, and small firms at local, regional, and national levels. I have been successfully responsible for managing regional programs and teams; planning and leading strategic marketing/business development plans and pursuits; planning, managing, and delivering large projects; extensive internal and external relationship development, team-building and partnership-forming; and growing staff and new offerings across multiple businesses lines in new and multiple locations to meet our clients’ needs and expectations. My experience includes 4 years as Planning Director for the City of Omaha, NE; over 4 years as the Deputy Director for Development Services for DeKalb County, GA; and currently the Southeast Region Senior Public Relations and Development Manager for LDG Development, LLC. My diverse list of clients includes federal, state, regional, county and municipal agencies and private organizations. I have served as coach, facilitator, project principal, project manager, and project architect on a range of projects which have included project planning and programming, new, renovation and retrofit construction. Projects include a full range of vertical projects and infrastructure projects (transportation, water, wastewater, and natural resources) accomplished under various contract vehicles – Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity, Open-End, General, direct and as a sub-consultant.

Catherine Pfeiffenberger is a Managing Director, Head of Development & Construction at Jamestown. Ms. Pfeiffenberger joined Jamestown in 2019 to head up the development and construction unit. She works with the team to expand the brand by focusing on development opportunities, either adaptive re-use or ground up developing, where Jamestown can deliver its unique approach to creating new, vibrant mixed-use communities. In her previous role at Skanska, Ms. Pfeiffenberger was a founding member of the development group where she helped to establish the brand and grow the platform throughout the United States. Prior to her time at Skanska she held a number of positions in finance, public-private partnerships, and economic development, including Managing Director at Lehman Brothers. Ms. Pfeiffenberger is the past Chairman of the Board of the Association of Foreign Investors in Real Estate, and has been involved with the Urban Land Institute Responsible Property Investing Council and the Green Building Advisory Committee for the New York Academy of Sciences. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from the State University of New York at Albany and completed an executive leadership program at IMD in Switzerland.

At Portman Residential, Marc is responsible for managing and executing our development activities nationwide. Marc’s career spans more than two decades, during which he has overseen the development of more than 11,000 apartment and condominium residences in markets throughout the country, valued at more than $4 billion. Marc previously served as the southeast regional development partner for Fairfield Residential, and prior to that as Senior Vice President of Novare Group. He currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Atlanta Apartment Association and the Atlanta chapter of the Urban Land Institute.

Jessica Barnes leads client relations and advisory services for Bozzuto Management Company in growth markets across the southeast. As Vice President of Client Services, she collaborates with real estate leaders to leverage Bozzuto’s strategic insights and decades of experience to deliver transformative places with enduring value. Before her return to Bozzuto in 2023, Jessica spent more than four years with Strategic Property Partners, the private development firm behind Water Street Tampa, a transformative $4B, 56-acre mixed-use development. As Vice President of Asset Management and Vice President of Marketing, she played a critical role in successfully bringing one of the nation’s largest and most ambitious projects to market. Prior to SPP, Jessica held several leadership roles at Bozzuto, most recently overseeing the brand development and go-to-market strategies for more than 15,000 units across the country as the Senior Director of Brand Development. Jessica’s unique perspective at the intersection of real estate brand strategy, development and asset management allows her to see projects through the lens of a consumer, an operator, and an owner throughout the entire development lifecycle. With a strong track record of success in her 10+ years of experience in multifamily and mixed-use real estate, she is a trusted strategic advisor to developers, investors and asset managers across the country.

Tim is the Chief Development Officer of Placemakr. Prior to Placemakr, Tim was the President of Graduate Hotels, one of the fastest growing non-franchised hotel brand in the U.S. Over his six year tenure, Tim was integrally involved in the creation and exponential growth of Graduate Hotels from inception and business plan authorship to now ownership of 35 properties. Tim lives with his family outside of Chicago, IL.

Founded by Jennifer Crosby in 2000, Crosby Design Group has been a trusted name in the multifamily community for over 23 years. Her love of taking on new challenges and passion for every part of design has cemented her place in the market as a go-to partner for developers looking to increase value and set themselves apart as creative leaders in the industry. CDG commercial studio emphasis on multifamily, Jennifer's team has completed hundreds of projects throughout the country. With the best of the best design talents on board, our culture of collaborative approach ensures every square inch of your space functions beautifully for your target demographic. As a relationship driven leader with a work hard, play hard mentality, Jennifer enjoys creating opportunities for fun and connection among her curated design team. When she is not working, you can find her sipping on Tito's with ginger beer and lime on a date night with her husband or enjoying lake life with her family and fur babies.

Mark is a Principal at Smallwood, an international design firm that provides architecture, interior design, landscape architecture, and experiential graphic design services. For over 35 years, Mark has successfully designed and managed projects in the Multifamily, Hospitality, Mixed-use, Office, Retail and Institutional sectors. He has a strong focus on Multifamily and Hospitality projects and through design creates memorable experiences for residents and guests. In Nashville, Mark was involved in the design of the SkyHouse, Viridian and Encore residential projects, as well as the JW Marriott hotel. Recent Multifamily projects of his include Vireo in Atlanta, and Icon Harbour Island in Tampa Bay. Mark also designed the Thompson Savannah and The Cherokee, Harrah’s Cherokee Hotel. Mark holds an Undergraduate degree from the University of Florida and a Graduate degree from Rice University.

Tracy Burton, CPA, is a Director in Moore Colson’s Tax Practice and a member of the firm’s Real Estate group. Tracy’s primary focus is tax compliance and planning for real estate funds and managers. She is responsible for planning and organizing client engagements, developing tax strategies for clients, providing tax consulting and projections, developing and mentoring staff, and monitoring firm performance goals. Tracy’s professional background in public accounting includes more than 14 years serving clients in the real estate and financial services industries, including the multi-family, hospitality and commercial real estate industry sectors. She has extensive experience with private equity funds, REIT tax structuring and compliance, and complex partnership tax issues. At Moore Colson, Tracy advises her clients on federal, state and local tax planning strategies, compliance and reporting matters. She also has experience in transaction consulting. Before joining Moore Colson in 2019, Tracy worked as a senior manager for PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP in Atlanta, Georgia. She was responsible for serving publicly and privately held clients, primarily in the real estate and financial services industries.

Max Sharkansky, co-founder of Trion Properties, oversees all aspects of acquisition, disposition, and property analysis for Trion Properties. Since founding Trion Properties, Max has led the acquisition, renovation and disposition of over $300,000,000 in mismanaged and distressed assets, primarily in multifamily, yielding an average IRR in excess of 30%. Max launched the foray into investments with two acquisitions of value-add multifamily properties in 2005. Following the first two closings, Max, along with partner Mitch Paskover, created the platform and formed the Company in 2006 to execute a business plan of acquiring mispriced and mismanaged properties throughout Los Angeles. Max led Trion in the execution of several acquisitions in its first two years of existence and exiting the portfolio prior to the economic crisis. With cash on hand and no resources tied up in workouts, Max assisted in implementing an acquisition strategy of targeting distressed debt secured by multifamily, and distressed multifamily REO's, which led to the ultra-successful campaign of the acquisition of 20 properties throughout the downturn. Since the recovery and the clearing of distress from the marketplace, Max has shifted strategies to the acquisition of value-add properties where value can be created through extensive renovations, hands-on management, and improvement of operating efficiencies. Prior to co-founding Trion Properties, Max was a Senior Associate at Marcus & Millichap from 2002 through 2006. While at Marcus & Millichap, Max managed the sale of several million dollars in real estate throughout the continental United States, specifically in the multifamily arena, elevating him to one of the top-ranking brokers in Los Angeles, California. His ability to seek out and acquire distressed multifamily properties and his expertise of the marketplace has been instrumental in the success of Trion Properties. He graduated from Loyola Marymount University where he earned a Bachelor's degree in Business Administration with an emphasis on Finance.

Cristina Istrate leads the firm’s multifamily asset management efforts in Atlanta, GA. In her role, Cristina is responsible for asset strategy and business plan execution to maximize performance for FCP’s investments. With over 10 years of experience in the real estate industry, Cristina brings a wealth of knowledge focused on value-add and revenue growth, property management, creative marketing strategies, and development of highly effective teams. Cristina has several industry certifications and awards and is an active member of the National Apartment Association and Institute of Real Estate Management. She is a graduate of Technical University of Moldova.

Cortney Newmans serves as Lima One’s Head of National Accounts. In this role, he is charged with managing large, institutional-scale accounts for the company. His product focus includes multifamily properties and single-family portfolios for Lima One. Additionally, Cortney leads the expansion and optimization of Lima One’s national partnerships and strategic relationships across the Company’s lending network. In his role as Director of Business Development starting in 2014, Cortney oversaw development of sales operations into 42 states including the District of Columbia. His responsibilities included providing senior-level management to business development teams. Cortney has personally originated over $275MM in SFR and Multifamily assets and overseen the production of over $375MM. Cortney is also a real estate investor with nearly 10 years of real estate ownership and management experience, with a strong track record of executed value-add deals. He currently owns over 65 doors.

Taylor Pike is a Senior Vice President at Peachtree Group. Before joining Stonehill, he was an executive director at a large private equity firm, where he originated debt investments and oversaw the Self-Storage Development Fund. Prior to that, Taylor worked as an analyst at Rialto Capital, where his primary responsibilities included loan asset management and underwriting. He is a graduate of the Terry School of Business at the University of Georgia, receiving a bachelor’s in Finance and Economics.

Mr. Trahan is a Director at KE Andrews, a 45-year old property tax and valuation firm located in Dallas, Texas with more than 170 professionals. Mr. Trahan also runs a family office with assets and properties across the state of Texas. Mr. Trahan also sits on the board of HomeBank, a regional bank located in DFW with 4 locations, as well as sits on the board of NAIOP here in North Texas. Mr. Trahan has most recently spoken at the 2022 BisNow Multi-Family Conference in Dallas and has spoken at numerous other events. Mr. Trahan leads KE Andrews’ development efforts, helping scale the practice to managing more than $250 billion in assets nationally for clients. Mr. Trahan played football at Texas Tech and resides in Dallas with his wife Axie and 2 kids.

Mr. Robinson is a corporate and commercial real estate attorney whose practice includes representing lenders, real estate investors and middle-market companies in a variety of corporate and commercial real estate matters including the purchase and sale of commercial real estate, mixed-use developments, acquisition, construction and mezzanine financing projects, commercial leasing, and real estate-related loan sales and purchases. Mr. Robinson's clients range from Fortune 500 companies to small businesses and include private equity real estate funds, family offices national REITs, construction companies, national real estate and asset management companies, community banks, hedge funds, and medical practices. Robinson Franzman LLP is based in Atlanta, Georgia and serves clients across the United States in the multifamily acquisitions and development, commercial real estate finance, private equity, financial services, commercial real estate development and investment. Robinson Franzman is committed to providing the highest quality work product in the industry and immediate responsiveness to its clients’ needs. With a focus on practice areas such as multifamily finance transactions and syndications, commercial real estate development, commercial lending, and general corporate and business law, Robinson Franzman is able to provide a full suite of legal services to clients from all sides of the deal – whether buying, selling, or financing. Robinson Franzman also specializes in structuring and negotiating private equity real estate investment deals on behalf of multifamily sponsors and investors, which includes negotiating waterfalls, preferred returns, and handling securities filings on behalf of its clients. Robinson Franzman’s clients include multifamily investment firms, family offices, commercial real estate developers, community and regional banks, institutional non-bank lenders, investment and asset managers, national REITs, commercial real estate investors, and small business owners. It is Robinson Franzman’s commitment to client services and success that has enabled the firm to develop long-standing professional relationships with each client. Robinson Franzman strives to become an integral strategic partner with all of its clients and to add value through high quality and efficient legal services.

Ashley Peterson is a Partner with Proffitt Dixon Partners, specializing in complex multifamily and mixed-use development throughout the southeast. With more than a decade of commercial real estate experience, Ashley has been involved with the successful entitlement, financing, design, construction, lease-up, and disposition of thirteen multifamily and mixed-use communities, totaling more than 3,000 units and 50K sf of retail in North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee. She has led and contributed to projects totaling nearly $1.0 billion in capital investment throughout the southeastern U.S., while simultaneously maintaining an ongoing active pipeline. Early in her career Ashley managed the deployment of over $2 billion in media advertising for a top ten Fortune 500 client at a tier-1 agency in New York City. After leaving New York and returning to her hometown of Charlotte, Ashley joined Proffitt Dixon Partners where she focused on ground-up multifamily development, serving in roles from Development Associate to Director of Development. She was then recruited to nationally acclaimed Crescent Communities as Director of Development where she was promoted to Managing Director and led numerous simultaneously executed complex mixed-use projects in the greater Charlotte and Raleigh-Durham region. In 2022 Ashley had an opportunity to rejoin Proffitt Dixon Partners as a Partner where she is currently responsible for sourcing and leading notable southeastern multifamily and mixed-use developments. Active in the community and industry, Ashley sits on the Development Committee of the Board of Directors of the Bechtler Museum of Modern Art. Ashley is also a member of professional associations such as the Urban Land Institute and the Greater Charlotte Apartment Association and frequently serves as a speaker at notable industry conferences. She volunteers and contributes regularly as a member of Myers Park Presbyterian Church, as well as with other not-for-profit organizations such as Habitat for Humanity, Second Harvest Food Bank, and Junior Achievement. Ashley graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and is married to her husband, Matt, with whom she has a son, Henry, and daughter, Campbell.

As Area Marketing Manager at Morgan Properties, Jamal develops and executes targeted marketing and advertising initiatives to assist with resident lead generation and retention across multiple properties located in the Midwest, Northeast and South-Southeast Regions of the United States. He manages a team of Marketing Managers who oversee regional and local marketing efforts in 16 states, where he aims to create brand operational consistency by developing marketing and advertising plans, driving initiatives, streamlining processes, and maximizing ROI across his portfolios. Jamal joined Morgan Properties in 2015 as a Regional Marketing Manager, with over 15 years of experience in multifamily marketing and sales. Prior to joining Morgan Properties, he was a Marketing and Sales Director at Berkshire Communities, where he was responsible for the management of all marketing and advertising budget line items, as well as overseeing the marketing and sales team. Here, Jamal developed, implemented, and monitored programs to maximize traffic and marketing collateral along with other communications to distribute to internal and external clients. Jamal regularly volunteers with various food banks in Virginia, Maryland, and Washington D.C., and the American Red Cross Fire Campaign. He graduated with a Bachelor’s in Music Education from the University of Maryland Eastern Shore. Jamal is a lover of the arts, music, travel and data. He spends his free time volunteering, traveling, conducting music ensembles, and visiting escape rooms.

Scott D. Greenwald, Esquire, Senior Vice President, is a licensed attorney in Louisiana and Wisconsin who has been involved in the evaluation, negotiation, and consultation of insurance claims for over fifteen years. Scott graduated with distinction from the University of Wisconsin with degrees in History and Political Science, and obtained his Juris Doctorate from the Emory University School of Law. Upon graduation from law school, Scott served a one-year clerkship for Judge Nadine Ramsey, Civil District, Orleans Parish in New Orleans, Louisiana, where he assisted Judge Ramsey in making various rulings on the permissibility of asbestos, mold, and other toxin exclusions within Louisiana insurance forms. Prior to joining GGG/AI, Scott practiced law in New Orleans in the insurance field with the firm of Galloway Johnson Tompkins Burr and Smith, whose client list included CNA, Chubb, Great American, and Scottsdale Insurance Companies. Mr. Greenwald is a frequent speaker/presenter to business owners, insurance brokers, real estate brokers, and property managers regarding the measuring of damages and the processing and handling of insurance claims, and recently gave a presentation on “Disaster Preparedness” at the Southeastern Affordable Management Housing Association’s (SAMHA) annual conference in Savannah, Georgia and on “Changes To Property Insurance In The Post Hurricane Sandy Era” at the Counsel For Affordable and Rural Housing’s annual conference in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Preston Grutzmacher leads SALTO Systems’ multifamily and residential solutions business practice. His focus is on aligning SALTO’s innovative access control technology and hardware with the evolving needs of North American residential real estate markets. Preston is a multifamily expert who is passionate about creating more effective, efficient and profitable access control solutions for owners, operators and developers. Together with SALTO, he is on a mission to bring new technologies and products to market that keep people and property safe while enhancing the resident experience.