Chicagoland Property Management & Tech Outlook

Ralph Zucker is President of Somerset Development, one of the New York Metropolitan region’s foremost pioneers of New Urbanism and Traditional Neighborhood Design development. Throughout his career, Zucker has worked hands-on in every facet of the building and development process, and has demonstrated a commitment to working with municipalities to create innovative communities based on the principles of New Urbanism. Zucker is perhaps best known for Bell Works, the two-million-square-foot redevelopment of the former Bell Labs property in Holmdel, N.J., where he and the Somerset Development team successfully transformed the iconic Saarinen-designed research facility into a “metroburb,” a term that Somerset coined to describe the suburban building’s revival into a blossoming, downtown-style ecosystem of technology, traditional office, retail, dining and hospitality. Today, Zucker and his team are in the midst of redeveloping The Ameritech Center in Hoffman Estates, Illinois, originally built as the former AT&T research facility, into Bell Works Chicagoland. The 1.65-million square foot building, which has already welcomed retail and office tenants, is quickly transforming into another successful metroburb. Under Zucker’s leadership, Somerset and its projects have earned numerous industry awards and recognition for their contributions to furthering responsible development practices, including the New Jersey Future Smart Growth Award for Wesmont Station, Somerset's 70-acre transit-oriented mixed-use redevelopment located in Wood-Ridge, N.J., where Somerset partnered with NJ TRANSIT to build a brand new train station that provides access to Manhattan.

As president of Becovic, Sal oversees all aspects of the business – operations, development, management, brokerage, construction, deal sourcing and capital raising – focusing primarily on efficiency and growth, where he has a strong track record. Since taking the reins in 2003, Sal has shepherded Becovic through expontential growth, taking the company from a portfolio of 400 units to now more than 2,000 with a growing team of 50 employees. Commitment to community is at the heart of Becovic because it is deeply rooted in Sal’s DNA. As the US-born child of immigrants, Sal learned the importance of dedication, hard work and leaving a positive impact on everything you do. His parents started the multifamily business in 1973, and Sal saw firsthand the value of reinvesting in buildings and neighborhoods. Sal is a member of several industry organizations, including Edgewater Uptown Builders Association, Neighborhood Building Owners Alliance, the Chicago Apartment Association (CAA) and Rogers Park Builders Group, where he currently serves as director. Sal attended Northern Illinois University. He lives in Chicago with his wife and young son.

Mary grew up in Park Ridge, Illinois. Mary stayed in Chicago for college and attended DePaul University. Mary comes from a family background in Real Estate Development and Property Management, and she knew from a young age she wanted to be in Real Estate in some fashion. Before starting with 33 in 2010, Mary worked as a property manager/ insurance coordinator for a Real Estate Developer in Chicago. Mary's knowledge of property management is rooted in years of experience. She has literally “touched” every aspect of property management, from handling late-night maintenance calls to entering and paying bills and even offering invaluable advice on the handling of complex issues with an increasingly sophisticated group of clients. Mary is currently on her SIXTH promotion at 33. She currently oversees the operations and growth of the entire property management division. Mary lives and breathes the #OWNIT mission and loves every day she gets to be part of the 33 families. When not at work, Mary enjoys spending time with her husband and two children. She lives a very active lifestyle and loves running, biking with her family, and water sports in the summer. Mary Irish danced as a child. You can still catch her showing off her dancing skills if you catch her on the right day.

Geoff oversees CRG’s national accounts and leads all client-related initiatives for the company’s expanding industrial, office and data center project delivery platform. Geoff also provides clients with strategy for the future of their workplace and technology in real estate. Geoff joined the company in 2019. In his previous role as Executive Managing Director and National Industrial Practice Group Leader at Newmark Knight Frank, Geoff oversaw substantial growth of the group while also completing several notable transactions around the U.S. including a 1.1 million square foot e-commerce facility in Atlanta for ASOS and a 617,000 square foot omni-channel build-to-suit facility near Cincinnati for DWR, a Herman Miller company. Over his distinguished career, Kasselman has completed more than 1,000 transactions worth more than $1 billion of aggregate value. Geoff is also known for his volunteer role as the 2017 Global President of the Society of Industrial and Office Realtors (SIOR), the largest non-profit trade organization of its kind, and for his keen business-futurist persona. Geoff has given several high-profile keynote speeches on an array of forward-looking disruptive technology topics to industry and business audiences around the world. Geoff also sits on various tech Advisory Boards, provides mentoring to select “proptech” start-ups, and owns an energy procurement firm.

Mr. McElroy founded Level-1 Global Solutions, LLC in 2001-present and is a member of the Mayor’s Office of Technology Advisors and The Chicago Community Trust. Level-1 is a Minority Business Enterprise (MBE) licensed, certified, and registered in the City of Chicago, County of Cook, and State of Illinois. Thomas McElroy is the founder and president of Level-1 Global Solutions, LLC. Since the firm’s first project at the New Cook County Hospital in 2001, Level-1 has been a timely, reliable, and costeffective resource in meeting the City of Chicago’s infrastructure needs. Mr. McElroy prides himself and his company on building and maintaining stellar relationships with Level-1 customers and team members – relationships built on mutual respect, trust, open communication, and the successful meeting of shared goals. Mr. McElroy and his executive administrative, program management, and technology officers remain involved in each and every Level-1 project. Maintaining a complete open-door policy, they are available and accessible to clients and technical teams leads alike to provide executive guidance, decision-making, and escalation services as needed. Level-1 is a Technology Systems Integrator with a wealth of experience embedded in our core capabilities of providing technology systems integration and the design, implementation, and management of interoperable technology infrastructure, communications, security and audio-visual systems. We offer successful project experience within the federal, local and private industry sectors. Level-1 has received numerous accolades regarding our project performance via client reference letters. Key Clients Chicago Public Schools: Data Center Move and Relocations services for the Board of Education; Network and Security Camera Infrastructure support; Local Area Network System Improvement; Audio Visual Equipment and Installation services; Web Filtering services City Colleges of Chicago: Audio Visual Equipment and Installation services; Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) Services; City of Chicago: Department of Aviation & City of Chicago O’Hare Modernization project (OMP) United Airlines, Willis Tower: Operations Center Power Protection and AV Infrastructure project Cook County/Department of Homeland Security: Power Protection for County-Wide Security Camera Installation Cook County Juvenile Detention Center: Telecommunication Infrastructure support State of Illinois: Statewide Unified Communications Implementation.

As a partner at The X Company, Andrew Kerr has worked in several roles since joining the company in 2015, including overseeing the acquisitions department and the asset management department of the business. Andrew is responsible for building out and executing X Co's current pipeline of over 6,000 beds across seven US markets and growing. He is at the forefront of X Co's efforts to design, build, and operate the 'X'-branded portfolio of customer-oriented multifamily assets, delivering best-in-class apartments and membership clubs to key urban markets at an attainable value. Andrew is a New York native and graduated from the University of Michigan Ross School of Business.

Larry Woodard is an experienced attorney who focuses his practice on real estate law. He represents Fortune 500 companies, developers, regional and national banks, institutional investors, special servicers, institutions of higher education, units of local government, REITs, contractors, subcontractors, material suppliers, landlords, tenants, condominium associations, property managers, receivers and real estate brokers in the development, management, financing, construction, leasing, zoning, acquisition and disposal of their real estate interests, across all asset classes. Clients engage Larry to handle complex matters, involving multiple parties, properties and sources of capital, encompassing multiple states or countries. As complementary components to his real estate practice, Larry has significant experience structuring investment entities, joint ventures and syndications, loan workouts and foreclosures, as well as tactical oversight of litigation strategy for mechanics lien, construction defect and real estate litigation. Larry has been on all sides of the deal, handling every stage of the life span of a real estate development: from concept and capital stack, to land use and economic incentives, through due diligence, financing and acquisition, during construction or redevelopment, to lease-up and disposition.