The Future of Chicago Suburbs 2019

Bob Burk is a co-founder of UrbanStreet Group. Bob has over 27 years of real estate development, construction design, construction management and general contracting experience. He is primarily responsible for managing all aspects of the entitlement, planning and construction processes for all projects and developments undertaken by the company. He has a degree in Business and Marketing from Miami University (Ohio).

As President, Jason is directly responsible for the development and implementation of Albion’s business strategy, portfolio composition and capital allocation. His oversight includes the development, acquisition, project financing, and asset management for the company’s portfolio of owned assets as well as maintaining and managing relationships with construction lenders, equity partners, and permanent mortgage lenders to maximize the profitability of each individual asset. Since 2011, Jason has been a member of the Board of Directors of Village Green and also served as the Chief Investment Officer of Village Green. Prior to joining Village Green, Jason was a Director of Structured Equity Investments for GE Capital. Earlier in his career, he was also employed by McShane Corporation, Equity Office Properties Trust and served as an officer in the United States Army.

As Managing Principal of Wright Heerema Architects, Roger Heerema has a proven track record of designing highly successful buildings and interiors throughout Chicagoland and across the country. His portfolio of award-winning work includes redevelopment projects, ground-up buildings, build-to-suits, and master plans. He has worked closely with investors, developers and property managers for over 30 years with a long-lasting goal of designing outstanding work spaces that excite and impress tenants. Roger received his Master of Architecture from the University of Illinois. He has provided leadership to the WHA project team since joining the firm in 1996 and continues to implement a comprehensive architectural and design approach that integrates functionality and client needs. He is active in professional affiliations and supports various local non-profit organizations including the Greater Chicago Food Depository.

Jason Simon is a principal at Colliers International. He and his team specialize in tenant representation, landlord representation and corporate solutions. His team creates recurring competitive advantages for clients and carefully develops real estate strategies that promote flexibility, efficiency, increased productivity and greater profitability within the work space.

Brian joined Essex Realty Group, Inc. in 2014 and focuses on the sale of multifamily investment properties throughout the Chicagoland area. Brian prides himself on building long-lasting relationships with clients by tailoring to their individual goals. Prior to joining Essex, Brian worked as a Senior Advisor for the Chicago office of Sperry Van Ness, LLC as well as the southwest suburban office of Network Commercial Real Estate where he specialized in the suburban retail representation of multiple sale, lease, and development transactions. Brian graduated from Columbia College in 2001 with a degree in Business Management.

Rand is a co-founder of GlenStar Properties. He leads the firm’s asset management business. Further, Mr. Diamond shares responsibility for acquisitions, dispositions and project financing and serves on the investment committee.

Elizabeth (Liz) Holland is the Chief Executive Officer of Abbell Associates, an eighty- year old private real estate investment, development and management company with an approximately 5.5 million/sf portfolio, comprised of shopping center, office, and enclosed mall properties. Liz is responsible for overseeing all business and legal matters, including development, financing, leasing, capital and construction projects, and investor and tenant relations. Active in the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC), Liz served as the worldwide Chairman (2016- 17). In addition to ICSC, Liz is also a member of the Urban Land Institute (ULI) - Commercial & Retail Council - Blue. Liz is a Trustee of Federal Realty Investment Trust (FRT) and a board member of: VICI Properties, Inc. (VICI); Village Bank & Trust; and The James Campbell Company, LLC. Prior to joining Abbell, Liz was a Senior Staff Attorney with the National Bankruptcy Review Commission, a Congressional commission charged with making recommendations to amend the Bankruptcy Code. Previously, Liz was a restructuring and business reorganization attorney with the law firm of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom in New York. Prior to becoming an attorney, Liz was a fixed income portfolio manager at Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. in New York. Liz currently serves on the board of The Primo Center for Women & Children. She also served for many years on the boards of Lighthouse Academies; Uptown United; and 1,000 Friends of Iowa.

Christine Torres began her career in commercial real estate as a tenant rep broker for Colliers International and MB Real Estate. There, she saw tenants’ connectivity requirements become increasingly sophisticated and leasing teams struggling to effectively communicate how their buildings stacked up in response. As Head of Chicago for WiredScore, Christine leads the adoption of Wired Certification in the Chicago market to solve this issue for tenants and property owners.

Janet Lougee leads the corporate interiors practice at Wight & Company. Janet understands that appealing, versatile spaces are the life-blood of organizations, encouraging productivity, enhancing employee retention, and ensuring attraction of the best and brightest of the future workforce. As an accomplished architect and workplace strategist with more than 35 years of experience, Janet provides strategic oversight on every project, driving client business results. She holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Syracuse University and has received numerous awards from AIA. She is active in many industry organizations, and served as AIA Illinois’ first female president.

In his role, he is responsible for planning, lease negotiations, on-boarding new tenants, and development throughout the company's 4 million sf portfolio. Throughout his three years at Somerset, he has served as a lead liaison between design, engineering, and legal teams for the company's signature projects, including the monumental two-million-square-foot adaptive reuse of the former Bell Labs facility in Holmdel, now known as Bell Works. Today, Ken is the development lead on Somerset's second adaptive reuse initiative in Hoffman Estates, where the company is applying its innovative 'metroburb' concept in transforming a former AT&T facility into a self-contained mixed-use hub, complete with a mix of office, residential, retail, dining, and hospitality components.