Chicago State of the Market

John is the Founder, President and CEO of Oxford Capital Group, LLC, a national real estate investment and development firm focusing on large scale hospitality, mixed-use, senior housing, multifamily, urban retail, parking, and other operationally intensive forms of real estate. Oxford Hotels & Resorts, LLC, its wholly owned management affiliate, specializes in developing, operating and branding distinctive, high design lifestyle hotels, rooftops and other food & beverage venues around the country. Oxford, its affiliates and principals have been involved in approximately $3 billion of transactions, including approximately 13,000 hotel rooms. Noted national projects include Godfrey Hotel-Hollywood, Godfrey Hotel-Boston, Metropolitan Hotel and Lexington Hotel – New York City, National Conference Center-Lansdowne, VA, Residence Inn and Spring Hill Suites in Charleston, SC, and Godfrey Hotel & Cabanas-Tampa Bay. Included in his 17 Chicago area projects (13 of which are hotels) are the recently topped off 56 story Essex on the Park luxury apartment building, and his soon to open Hotel Julian-Millennium Park. Other Chicago projects include Langham Chicago, LondonHouse Chicago, Godfrey Chicago, Hotel Essex, Hotel Felix, Hotel Cass, Hotel Versey, Claridge House, Hyatt Magnificent Mile, Renaissance North Shore, Doubletree North Shore, and Hyatt House Northwest. Additional rooftop and food and beverage venues include IO, LH, SX-Sky Bar, ALK, WTR and Spa Boutique. John and/or Oxford have been nominated for and/or won numerous awards including: Anti-Defamation League (ADL) Arthur Rubloff Humanitarian Award, Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year, Crain’s “40 under 40” and Who’s Who, Developer of the Year, Development of the Year, Redevelopment of the Year, National Hotel Transaction of the Year, Historic Redevelopment of the Year and the Top Hotel in the Continental US. He earned a BA from The University of Michigan and an MBA from University of Chicago. He also studied at Northwestern University, Harvard Business School (YPO’s Presidents’ Program) and Oxford University (Christ Church).

Dinesh Chandiramani serves as Vice President, Development, Americas for Radisson Hotel Group (formerly Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group). Chandiramani is responsible for the development of Radisson Hotel Group brands in the Western region of the U.S. and Canada. He reports to Terry Sanders, Chief Development Officer, Americas. Chandiramani brings more than 29 years of senior level leadership in the Construction and Real Estate Development industries. Prior to joining Radisson Hotel Group, Chandiramani founded America TMC, a non-institutional, boutique private equity firm and leading capital provider to the real estate industry across all categories, including residential, commercial, retail and industrial. He also served as CEO of Hyphen Construction Group and President of Response Remediation Services. Chandiramani attended Texas Tech University. Throughout his career he has been very involved in the community serving as a Board Member and Advisor for organizations such as Hope for the Silent Voices, which brings attention and resources to severely disadvantaged and abused children around the world.

im leads Skender’s team of architects and designers—bringing his passion for integrating the design and construction process to the firm’s clients. In his former position of Chicago office director at CannonDesign, he was the youngest office leader in the history of the century-old firm. Throughout his decade there, Tim oversaw a team of more than 200 architecture, engineering, and planning experts. He also led its City Design practice, a national group focused on helping cities around the world grow and prosper. Having lived in Abu Dhabi, rural India and major American cities like New York and Chicago, Tim brings a unique, global perspective to his design work. He is an advocate for smart growth and sustainable development, working with leaders at the intersection of urban planning, public health, and education. Tim earned a Master of Architecture with a specialization in urban development and infill from the University of Illinois at Chicago, and undergraduate degrees in fine arts and economics from Colgate University.

Chris Thomas has over 20 years of experience in telecommunications. Over those 20+ years, Chris has gained vast experience as a technologist and currently serves as the Regional Sales Manager for SOLiD, a leading provider of distributed antenna system equipment (DAS). This equipment enables the major wireless providers to enhance their cellular networks inside buildings and improve their customer’s experience. Chris has worked with DAS for the past 15 years and has held roles including sales, engineering, contract negotiation, and operations. He has a keen understanding on what building owners need to improve their tenant’s satisfaction with their rented space.

Michael Kitchen serves as the Vice President of Acquisitions P Development for the Aparium Hotel Group. After graduating from Michigan State University's Hospitality Business Real Estate and Development program, Michael moved to the British Virgin Islands to work hands-on in the industry as Biras Creek Resort's Assistant General Manager. He then spent six years in a consulting capacity focusing primarily on luxury and boutique hotels and resorts before joining the Aparium team 2012. Michael has played a role in each Aparium project from concept construtoon,spanning the gamut of everything from raising capital to securing local artisans for collaborations. He enjoys exploring new pbces and restaurants, and believes a weekend in Traverse City, MI cant be beat.

Lawrence Eppley is a partner in the Corporate Practice Group and Office Managing Partner of the firm's Chicago office. He is also Co-Team Leader of the firm's Hospitality team. Areas of Practice Mr. Eppley concentrates his practice in acquisition, real estate finance, development, public and private finance, joint ventures and raising equity particularly in the hospitality sector. He was general counsel to Potbelly Sandwich Works, one of Chicago's fastest growing companies, and his clients rely on him as their principal outside legal counsel. He has considerable experience with middle market and emerging growth companies, including those in the hospitality and restaurant sectors, and with structured and institutional finance. Mr. Eppley was named as one of Law360's Hospitality MVPs in both 2013 and 2016 for his extensive work in major transactions geared towards hotel development.

Mr. Mutchler joined Harrison Street in 2008 and serves on the firm’s Executive Committee. Among his responsibilities as Managing Director, he is responsible for sourcing new and augmenting existing Harrison Street health system relationships within the real property, operations, infrastructure, and technology segments of the US healthcare market which will serve to both enhance Harrison Street’s existing healthcare investment platform and create new business opportunities and operational enhancements for the firm. Prior to his current role, Mr. Mutchler was co-Head of the firm’s Asset Management department overseeing the asset management of all senior housing and medical investments. Prior to joining Harrison Street, MR. Mutchler was a Director at TIAA-CREF Global Real Estate where he was responsible for the asset management of a portfolio of institutional-grade office and industrial properties throughout the west coast. Before joining TIAA-CREF, Brian was an Underwriting Manager at KBS Realty Advisors where he was responsible for underwriting office and industrial acquisitions. Brian received a BBA with a double-major in Real Estate & Urban Land Economics and Marketing from the University of Wisconsin – Madison.

James A Pape for the past two years has been Senior Vice President, Commercial Real Estate Market Manager of Lakeshore (consists of Illinois and Wisconsin) for TCF Financial Corporation. Jim has over 25 years of experience in Banking and 20 years in commercial real estate financing. Prior to joining TCF Bank, Jim worked at several Banks in Chicago, including Associated Bank, Private Bank and LaSalle Bank. Jim has been involved in the financing of many commercial real estate deals in Chicago and nationally ant the properties have included industrial, multi-family, residential and retail properties. Jim received his undergraduate degree from Elmhurst College with a major in finance. In addition, Jim holds a Masters of Management degree from Keller School of Management with concentrations in financing and accounting.

Neil Beldock has over 30 years of experience as a real estate finance professional. Over those 30+ years Neil has held positions at Citigroup, Coast Federal Bank of California, Independence Bank of Los Angeles, Family Savings Bank of Los Angeles, Hamburg Savings Bank of New York, Interbay Funding and Velocity Commercial Capital. Neil has held executive and senior level management positions covering loan originations, loan operations, loan servicing, secondary marketing, loan securitization and joint venture operations. Neil is also a published author having written articles for numerous mortgage industry publications including the Scotsman Guide, Commercial Mortgage Insight, The Mortgage Press and National Mortgage Broker Magazine. Currently, Neil serves as a Senior Executive at Pender Capital Funding in Dallas, Texas.

Eugene "Gene" J.M. Leone is a Partner in the Global M&A Practice Group and a member of the Real Estate Industry Group, based in the Chicago and New York offices. Gene represents some of the most recognizable names in real estate and has a track record of leading, structuring and executing complicated deal transactions for a broad universe of investors, including private equity, entrepreneurs and public companies. His practice focuses on all aspects of commercial real estate, including joint ventures, acquisitions, dispositions, leasing, financings and workouts. A highly rated lawyer and sought-after speaker, Gene is a member of the American College of Real Estate Lawyers and the Real Estate Roundtable and frequently speaks on a variety of real estate topics at conferences around the country.

Clayton McCaffery leads and is responsible for the identification and coordination of strategic acquisitions in alignment with the company’s goals. With a real estate career spanning more than 21 years, Mr. McCaffery previously led the firm’s leasing and development teams for more than 15 years; prior experience included tenant and landlord representation work with Mid-America Real Estate Group in Chicago and Liberty Greenfield in Denver. He is a licensed real estate broker in Illinois, Maryland, South Carolina, Virginia, and the District of Columbia. Clayton holds an MBA in Real Estate and Finance from the University of Colorado, Boulder and a B.A. from Colgate University.

Barry is part of the third generation of TMG ownership and brings more than 30 years of industry experience to his role as CEO of The Missner Group. As CEO he leads TMG’s real estate operations including investment and disposition strategy. During his career, Barry has facilitated the development of award-winning real estate valued at more than $500 million. Barry is an active NAIOP National Forum Member and is affiliated with the Association of Industrial Real Estate Brokers (AIRE).

For more than 30 years at ESD, Kurt Karnatz has provided leadership in guiding the company in becoming a world-recognized consulting practice. As a strategic leader, consultant and engineer, he has developed long-term relationships with corporate real estate clients in finance, high-tech, medical, energy and beyond, while establishing ESD’s expertise in building sciences, intelligent buildings and smart cities. As President, he works to foster global thinkers who are admired for their innovative approach in creating sustainable solutions. ESD’s teams of professionals focus on solutions that maximize efficiency, reliability, flexibility, longevity and marketability – resulting in competitive advantage and enterprise value for its clients.

Adam Semel is highly experienced with navigating complex public agency approvals, zoning regulations, and community engagement processes. As a Director and project manager in SOM’s Chicago office, his strength lies in his ability to work collaboratively with institutional clients and complex constituencies to develop fresh and innovative ideas during the design and planning phases that lead to holistic project success. Consistent with SOM's design ethos and values, his work as an architect has always been geared toward providing inspirational, sustainable design solutions that not only solve the client's objectives, but also provide healthy, stimulating, functional environments for live, work, learn, and play. Semel joined SOM New York in 2005, relocating to SOM Chicago in 2013. His focus has been to develop SOM’s work in Chicago and the region. With extensive experience in several practice areas, including K-12, higher education, residential, commercial, cultural, and urban design, the core functions of his role are to build consensus among diverse stakeholders, navigate the public agency and approvals processes, and work with the communities in which SOM practices. Semel is passionate in his engagement with local communities, consistently seeking out opportunities for civic engagement and exchange. Leadership Greater Chicago named him a Class of 2016 Fellow to recognize his accomplishments and commitment to the city and its communities. In all of his work, both professional and civic, he strives to foster a highly collaborative design process that focuses on the potential to contribute to a more positive, sustainable, and inclusive public realm.

Wesley Prato, CPA, is an audit partner in the Firm’s Commercial Real Estate Industry Practice and leads the Southwest Region in this area. Based in CohnReznick’s Chicago office, he has 16 years of experience in public accounting, providing client services in the areas of audit, review, and other financial reporting needs. This experience includes working with developers, hospitality owners and private equity investors of companies in the commercial real estate industry. Wes specializes in the commercial real estate and hospitality industries serving both real estate operators and real estate investment funds. He is responsible for planning the engagements, supervising staff, and coordinating all fieldwork. Other responsibilities on these engagements include determining audit scope, selecting procedures to be applied, establishing budgets, reviewing work papers, identifying audit issues, communicating with clients, and preparing financial statements or reports. In addition, Wes takes an active role in working with his clients to plan and brainstorm on ways to get the next project from concept to development. Wes has participated nationally within the Firm in developing audit programs and techniques specifically tailored to auditing commercial real estate and hospitality entities. He has also leads internal training classes on commercial real estate and often speaks on panels focused in the industry.