Chicago Public-Private Partnerships

A building or development doesn’t emerge fully formed—there are countless steps from a concept to construction and, finally, to occupancy. Suzanne Kahle is the Farpoint managing director who ensures that every one of these steps progresses, whether the effort is relatively straightforward or something as monumental as our Bronzeville Lakefront 100-acre megadevelopment on Chicago’s South Side. Suzanne proved her dexterity and diligence before joining Farpoint in early 2022 by overseeing such noteworthy projects as Steppenwolf Theatre’s expansion, a University of Chicago dormitory complex and the Gensler-designed addition to the Fourth Presbyterian Church of Chicago. There’s a common thread in these and the other projects she’s brought to completion: a commitment to creating places and space where people want to be and can thrive. Today, she’s directly managing the relocation of the Chicago Transit Authority’s control center to a new 150,000-square-foot combined control and training complex in Garfield Park as well as the redevelopment of its current campus in the West Loop. Suzanne has a master’s degree in urban planning and policy from the University of Illinois-Chicago, as well as a bachelor’s degree in history from Tufts University. Fittingly, she and her family live in suburban Riverside, a community designed by Frederick Law Olmsted in the 1860s. She currently is a member of the Urban Land Institute where she sits on the Chicago Product Council, as well as Riverside’s Community and Sustainability Planning Initiative, the Cross Community Climate Collaborative (C4).

Jessica Caffrey brings more than two decades of Real Estate leadership and hands-on experience to her role at Cook County Land Bank Authority. After holding a series of progressive leadership roles within the County Government, she became Executive Director of CCLBA with dynamism and innovative intention. Under Caffrey’s leadership, the Land Bank continues to demonstrate its mission that there is a robust market for naturally occurring affordable housing in every community. Before leading the CCLBA, Caffrey led the Real Estate portfolio for Cook County’s Offices under the President, which included 234 unique properties that covered over 19 million square feet. Caffrey spearheaded the redevelopment and rehabilitation of the historically significant Old Cook County Hospital which was transformed into offices and a hotel and helped bring the Cook County Board of Commissioners vision into reality. Caffrey managed and executed real estate acquisitions and dispositions on behalf of the County, which included negotiations, procurement, and executing all aspects of transitions from valuation to long-term strategic planning. Before joining Cook County Government in 2012, Caffrey worked for the Chicago Housing Authority where among other responsibilities, she strategically planned and coordinated the redevelopment process for the Oakwood Shores community. During this time, she managed a $200M redevelopment program to create a mixed-income community at the former Madden Park/Ida B. Wells site, and Altgeld Gardens creating more than 11,800 housing units in the process. As a widely respected real estate leader, Caffrey has a proven track record in successfully managing complex real estate initiatives and devising and implementing comprehensive strategic plans for property development. Having now led the CCLBA for over a year Caffrey’s diligence has made an ineffaceable mark on the County. Under Caffrey’s leadership, CCLBA has preserved and increased home values, helped return approximately $5M annually in property tax revenue to Cook County, and induced upwards of $14M in private sector investment in tax-distressed properties. The result is an estimated $10.02 to $15.86 in economic impact to Cook County during FY 23, for every dollar from the Land Bank’s budget. Caffrey received her bachelor’s degree from DePaul University and her Master of Science in Real Estate from Roosevelt University. Caffrey is also an alumni fellow of the University of Chicago’s Harris School of Public Policy’s prestigious Civic Leadership Academy. Most importantly, she is a proud mom to two and resides in the City of Chicago.

Manuel (Manny) Pérez serves as Senior Vice President at Cabrera Capital Markets, a leading Latino-owned investment bank and institutional brokerage, where he focuses on real estate and public finance. Prior to joining Cabrera, Pérez served as Deputy Mayor at the City of Chicago, leading Mayor Lightfoot’s legislative agenda at the local, state and federal level. During his tenure, Pérez shepherded thousands of legislative items at the city, including Chicago’s first-ever casino, civilian oversight of police, and operating budgets totaling over $40 billion. Before joining City Hall, Pérez was the campaign manager for Mayor Lightfoot and served as the Intergovernmental Affairs Director for the transition. He has led a variety of campaigns at the local, state, and federal level, including Congressman Jesús “Chuy” García’s first successful run for Congress in 2018 and his run for Mayor in 2015. In Cook County government, Pérez has served as Special Assistant to the President of the County Board, Chief of Staff to the County Clerk, and Chief of Staff to then-Commissioner García. He graduated from Princeton University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in history and resides in the Pilsen neighborhood of Chicago.

Over the past 15 years, Leon I. Walker, Esq. has spearheaded cutting-edge community development projects that have generated thousands of new jobs, and brought grocery stores and health care services into the food and health care deserts on Chicago’s south side. Mr. Walker is an innovator who continues to be at the forefront of utilizing new financing tools and blending funding streams. During his career, Mr. Walker has structured more than $100 million in New Markets Tax Credits (NMTCs), including at the award-winning Roseland Medical Center, which was the first project to finance new construction with NMTCs in Chicago. He was also the first Chicago developer to use crowdfunding for new construction, raising $500,000 in two days from 61 investors in 26 states as part of the $20 million capital stack for the nationally recognized Englewood Square retail center, anchored by Whole-Foods. As the Managing Partner of DL3 Realty, Mr. Walker works closely with municipalities, anchor institutions, and Fortune 500 companies to implement projects that are sensitive to a neighborhood’s character while creating economic opportunities for those who live there. Mr. Walker’s projects are more than just bricks and mortar. They are designed to provide a stimulus that ultimately lifts economic prospects and quality-of-life for local residents. He calls his work “Venture Development,” as described in a recently released discussion paper that can be downloaded at dl3realty.com/venturedevelopment. Current projects include a new Jewel-Osco that will be the first grocery store to come to the Woodlawn community in over 40 years, helping to accelerate local revitalization efforts underway through the University of Chicago, Obama Presidential Center and local neighborhood organizations. He recently opened the new UI Mile Square Health Center in the South Shore neighborhood, collaborating with the YWCA to creatively co-locate critical health care and child care services at one site to better support the needs of families. He is also collaborating with Central City Productions to develop the nation’s first National Museum of Gospel Music, a highly inspirational project in the historic Bronzeville community on the site once occupied by Pilgrim Baptist Church, known as the birthplace of gospel. Mr. Walker is also leading the effort to develop social innovation hubs in Woodlawn, Chatham and Morgan Park. These new developments are anchored by some of Chicago’s most seasoned non-profit tenants including a Lighthouse call center providing 400 new jobs, a new Gift of Hope training center designed to prepare new candidates for medical careers, and University of Chicago sponsored co-working space for social enterprises. Given his catalytic projects and investment philosophy, Mr. Walker is often invited to speak to local and national organizations regarding economic development, Venture Development, and his experience with crowdfunding. Audiences have included the Chicago Bar Association, Urban Land Institute, American Planning Association, American Bankers Association, Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, International Council of Shopping Centers, and the Entrepreneur Podcast Network. Mr. Walker serves as a Board member of the Greater Chicago Food Depository, the Marshall Bennett Institute of Real Estate at Roosevelt University and as a Commissioner of the Roseland Community Medical District. He is a member of the Economic Club of Chicago, Realty Club of Chicago, International Council of Shopping Centers Government Relations Committee, and The Business Leadership Council. Prior to taking on the leadership of DL3 Realty, Mr. Walker worked in corporate real estate services at Jones Lang LaSalle, and in real estate capital markets at Citicorp Securities. He is a graduate of the University of Chicago’s Law School and Booth School of Business, and received his Bachelor’s degree from the University of Michigan. He lives with his wife and two children in the Kenwood historic district on Chicago’s south side.

Celadon Partners, LLC (“Celadon”) Celadon Partners was formed in 2020 as a joint venture between Scott Henry and Aron Weisner for the development of affordable housing. The entity evolved from Celadon Holdings, LLC, a company previously founded and operated by Mr. Henry, a former executive from JPMorgan Chase’s LIHTC investment group, since 2008. Based in Chicago, the company is active as a developer in multiple markets throughout the United States. The team brings significant affordable housing development and finance experience based on experience from a diverse set of backgrounds. The firm has completed affordable housing redevelopments in seven states totaling over 1,600 units. Overview of Project Experience & Approach The color “celadon” that combines the balance of blue’s essence of tranquility and serenity with green’s essence of growth and renewal. To us, this balance symbolizes our commitment to an environmentally sensitive approach to our work to create healthy, efficient, and affordable communities. The end goal for all of Celadon’s properties, whether they are newly constructed or redeveloped, is to be the preferred place to live in the market during the entire investment horizon and beyond. We prioritize building healthy, energy-efficient, and service-enriched living environments for our residents and the communities we work in. This requires us to carefully select the best locations and provide an attractive amenities/services and quality environment that meets the needs of the community in which it is based. We prioritize property management and are active owners to assure partners and investors that the asset will be well-maintained, while also being attentive to the needs of our resident population. Our core principles are: Reliability: Celadon Partners is proud of our commitment to deliver on promises by playing our role in meeting the housing needs of community residents throughout the construction and management periods. Creativity: Celadon uses open-minded and innovative thinking and close collaboration with community and public and private partners to find solutions to development challenges where others are unable. Experience: We have the experience to develop projects of significant scale and complexity having completed numerous affordable housing developments, building trust with our partners through transparency and collaboration, successfully utilizing tax credits and other financial products, and being a pre-qualified developer of choice for many municipal programs.

Len is currently the Economic Development Director for the Village of Wheeling. Prior to his appointment in Wheeling last summer, he led the Village of Skokie’s economic development efforts by building additional real estate capacity, spearheadingredevelopment efforts, expanding capital investment, growing employment and regional presence, all of which enhanced municipal revenues. His efforts led to the approval of multiple Tax Increment Financing agreements, and Property Tax incentive projects. These efforts yielded over $300 million in capital investment and over 1500 new jobs. Prior to relocating back home to Illinois, Len worked for Buckeye, Arizona as Economic Development Director, Vice President of the Greater Phoenix Chamber of Commerce, Economic Development Director for the Downtown Phoenix Partnership as well as Economic Development Director for the Tucson Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce to name a few. Over his career, his efforts led to the attraction of hundreds of new businesses, over 20,000 new jobs, and development of millions of square feet of new and redeveloped commercial space resulting in significant economic impacts. He has a demonstrated track record of success in germinating and leading creative and innovative strategic economic development and business development initiatives on behalf of organizations and stakeholders. Len is a member of numerous business and professional organizations and currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Chicago North Shore Convention and Visitors Bureau as well as the Greater Wheeling Area Chamber of Commerce.