Jacksonville State of the Market

Bryan Moll is the CEO of Gateway Jax in Jacksonville, a local real estate investment and development company. Bryan has nearly 20 years of real estate development experience across multiple asset classes, specializing in large-scale, mixed-use projects. He has entitled, designed, capitalized and/or constructed over $6 billion in stabilized value in multiple jurisdictions, including in the Tampa, FL and Washington, DC metro areas. Prior to Gateway Jax, Bryan was an Executive Vice President for JBG Smith where he led a team overseeing numerous mixed-use development projects in the Washington, DC area. He was primarily focused on National Landing in Arlington County, VA, adjacent to Amazon’s HQ2. When fully built out, JBG Smith’s portfolio in National Landing will include over 5,000 multifamily units, 200,000 square feet of retail and more than 500,000 square feet of trophy, class-A office space. In addition to National Landing, Bryan also oversaw the master planning, entitlement, and design of the Gallaudet project in Washington, DC’s Union Market submarket. This approximately $700 million project will deliver over 1,500 multifamily units and 100,000 square feet of retail across three city blocks in a unique partnership with Gallaudet University, the nation’s largest deaf and hard-of-hearing university. Prior to JBG Smith, Bryan was the Executive Vice President for SPP in Tampa, FL. SPP is the owner and developer of Water Street Tampa, a $3.5 billion development in downtown Tampa. Bryan assembled and managed a team responsible for the entitlement, design, capitalization, and construction of its first phase, including 1,325 units in four buildings, 360,000 square feet of trophy office space, 175,000 square feet of retail, restaurant, and amenity space, and 800, 4- and 5-star hotel keys in two separately flagged buildings. Bryan received his bachelor's degree in Planning and Environmental Design at the University of Colorado in Boulder, and he remains an avid Buffs fan. He and his husband, Matt, have been married for over 6 years. Together they reside with their dog Bailey, whom they rescued 10 years ago. Bryan and Matt actively support Feeding America programs, along with Habitat for Humanity and other local community programs focused on improving people’s lives via the built environment.

With 14 years of experience working in Northeast Florida, Billy provides high-quality, hands-on program planning and management services. His expertise includes strong analytical and organizational abilities, building long-lasting relationships, and project management. Billy is a graduate of the University of Central Florida, with a degree in International Relations and a focus on Ecology. He is also Co-Founder and Vice President of Keepers of the Coast, a non-profit organization seeking to create an active community working towards maintaining St. Johns County's local environment. When he's not at work you can find him coaching girls basketball, surfing, on a bicycle, or spending time with his amazing family.

Ken Thomas is a Project Executive at Catamount Constructors with over a decade of experience in construction management. Specializing in managing complex projects across industrial, manufacturing, government, and education sectors, Ken has played a pivotal role in Catamount’s success in Florida’s competitive industrial market. His strategic leadership positions Catamount’s new Tampa office to capitalize on the region’s low vacancy rates and increased demand. Ken’s commitment to excellence ensures Catamount remains a trusted partner, empowering clients to navigate and thrive in Florida’s booming industrial landscape.

Julia Holden Davis is a trial lawyer who serves on Gunster’s board of directors. She focuses her practice on the construction and transportation sectors. Having served as the chief operating officer of a large regional firm, Julia is dedicated to bringing a practical understanding of the realities facing businesses. She strives to assist her clients with the constant balance between managing risks and solving problems while pursuing opportunities and growth in today’s competitive market. The combination of Julia’s trial work and business experience is instrumental in advising on risk management and business-related issues for clients. In addition to her trial experience, she assists clients in drafting and negotiating construction and design contracts. Julia advises clients regarding federal, state and local government issues, including evaluating requests for proposal/invitations to bid to establish risk profiles, as well as in complying with a broad variety of regulations such as subcontracting plans, wage requirements, joint venture limitations, licensing issues and ethics related matters. Julia also provides counsel on industry-specific due diligence in support of merger and acquisition transactions within the construction, transportation, and government contracting sectors.

Mr. Altman is an entrepreneur and real estate investor with experience in identifying, buying and selling real estate. As a founder and Managing Member of KABR, he is instrumental in fundraising, structuring JV partnerships, sourcing and acquiring real property and debt. To date, Adam has participated in transactions totaling approximately four million square feet of commercial properties, as well as thousands of residential units, hotels and new development land with over 3000 units of entitlements. Prior to joining KABR, he focused on acquisition, development, management and disposition of real estate for a multi-billion dollar healthcare company.

Dorian L. Carter is CEO of Advanced Wealth Education Corporation. Dorian has extensive ex- perience as a Developer, Wealth Coach, Investor, Real Estate Broker, Property Manager and Consultant in Commercial Real Estate for the past 18 years. His experience includes projects in mixed use, retail, industrial, historical properties, multifamily, affordable housing, and land de- velopment. He has had an active lead role in over a three million square feet of real estate trans- actions. Dorian started in real estate as a buy and hold investor where he gained a strong desire to see change in communities. His goal is to educate 10,000 individuals on investing, wealth build- ing strategies and redevelopment initiatives that bring stronger places to live. Mr. Carter is a Veteran of the United States Air Force. He holds Certification as a Certified Commercial Investment Member (CCIM) and Certified in Transportation, Logistics and Distri- bution. Additionally he holds a Bachelors in Real Estate from Georgia State University and Masters in Supply Chain Management from Embry Riddle. In his spare time, Mr. Carter enjoys traveling, watching airplanes, attending sporting events and spending time with family. Dorian uses his extensive experience to Coach and Mentor others in Commercial Real Estate. His advanced training techniques teaches individuals the necessary skills that lead to life-long wealth building.

Mr. Bicho is the President and Founder of The Landings Real Estate Group. The Landings Real Estate Group is an owner and operator of commercial real estate executing development, construction, and property management functions in the residential multi-family, single-family, office, and retail sector. Landings Real Estate Group is headquartered in Newport, RI with over 100 employees and operates more than 1,900 multi-family residential units Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, and Florida with an asset value more than $350 million and owns and operates commercial retail and office properties located in Newport, Rhode Island. In addition to the multi-family portfolio, Landings Real Estate Group has developed a boutique luxury lodging portfolio with an estimated value of $50m in Newport Rhode Island comprised of 27 properties and 168 rooms and is developing a one-hundred-acre site in Portsmouth, Rhode Island with 91 single – family homes and a 48 unit Assisted care facility. LREG also executes approximately $10M of construction and is a registered General Contractor in the State of Florida and Rhode Island. Currently, LREG is developing 270 units in Jacksonville, Florida, 104 Units in Tampa, Florida and has two developments in the approval stage in St Petersburgh, Florida. Over the past 17 years, Landings Real Estate Group has delivered above market returns to of more than 20% to its investors. At its founding back in 2007, our capital base started with institutional investors and has migrated towards high-net-worth individuals as the company has purchased the interests from original institutional investors and has supplemented the capital stack with high-net-worth investors in some assets. The future of LREG is setup to leverage the democratization of real estate investing. In 2016, we launched the investor platform IMS that allows the accredited investor to take advantage of no fee and transparent real estate investments in the multi-family sector without the middleman advisors taking a portion of the investors returns. Prior to founding the Landings Real Estate Group in January 2006, Mr. Bicho was a real estate development and financial professional and served as Chief Financial Officer for Picerne Military Housing a/k/a Corvias from 1992 to 2005. In 1993, he initiated a new multi-family housing business in the Northeast region for Picerne targeting the development of affordable housing utilizing Low Income Housing Tax Credits and 1997, he founded a new division to acquire, develop, construct, and manage family housing for the US Army under the Military Housing Privatization Initiative. As one of the founders of the military housing division, he developed and executed a business plan that achieved the initial goal to acquire 20,000 homes two years ahead of schedule and created an organization that expanded from four employees to 500 employees located across the country. Mr. Bicho lives Portsmouth, RI with his family and holds an M.B.A. in Corporate Finance from Boston College (1992) and B.S. in Business Administration from University of Rhode Island (1989).

Lori Boyer is the Downtown Investment Authority’s Chief Executive Officer. She began this role in July of 2019 following a career as an attorney, business owner, and City Council member. Under Lori’s leadership, the DIA continues to drive growth in business and investment, support the creation of a vibrant urban living environment, and enhance quality of life in Downtown Jacksonville through the transparent and responsible leveraging of public investments, assets, infrastructure, and policy. A graduate of Georgetown University and University of Florida Law, Lori established a successful legal career representing such clients as Arvida and Barnett Bank. Her legal practice concentrated in areas of land use and environmental permitting, including substantial practice in Development of Regional Impact approvals, as well as general real estate finance, leasing, and transactions. In 1985, Lori became a principal in several real estate investment and property management companies with property holdings across the eastern U.S. In 2011, she entered public service and was elected twice to Jacksonville City Council serving as Council President in 2017. Married to recently retired, former Circuit Judge Tyrie Boyer, Lori enjoys travel, cooking, and the outdoors.

Laura has over twenty-five years of expertise in Commercial Real Estate Lending and Capital Markets, covering diverse lending categories including non-profits, for-profit businesses, and investment loans such as acquisition, construction, bridge, renovation, tax credits and stabilized loans. Previously, Laura served as a Commercial Real Estate (CRE) Manager/Lender/CRA Officer for two decades, primarily at Compass Bank/BBVA Compass and Bank of America. Transitioning to Franklin Street in December 2019, she assumed roles including Director of Capital Markets and later Regional Managing Director of the Jacksonville full-service brokerage team. In January 2023, Laura led the opening of the Jacksonville office for Matthews Real Estate Investment Services, expanding the team and focusing on debt and equity origination. In October 2023, she founded Ahead Consulting Solutions, LLC, operating as Ahead CRE, to solely concentrate on debt and equity origination. Leveraging her extensive lending and brokerage background, Laura is committed to addressing clients' financing needs in commercial real estate. She holds a bachelor's degree in finance and management from Florida State University and earned her M.B.A. from the University of North Florida. Actively engaged in the industry, Laura is a member of ULI, CREW, ICSC, and NAIOP. Laura's contributions have been recognized with awards including ULI "Member of the Year" (2016), CREW National "Member to Member Award" (2019), CRE Connect "Women in Real Estate" National Winner (2020), and Jacksonville Business Journal's "Women of Influence" (2021). She was recognized by the Connect CRE (2022) "Top Mortgage Broker & Lender Award" for the Franklin Street Capital Advisory team and the "Florida-Gulf Coast Connect CRE’s (2023) Women in Real Estate Award." Laura is involved in Leadership Jacksonville, PACE Center for Girls and serves on the City of Jacksonville (COJ) Resiliency Committee. She resides in Saint Johns and is a proud mother of two daughters.

Dr. Irvin PeDro Cohen is the Executive Director of LISC (Local Initiatives Support Corporation) Jacksonville. Dr. Cohen is a Jacksonville, FL native and he received his bachelor’s degree in Sociology from the University of North Florida, an MBA in Marketing from Pfeiffer University and a Doctorate in Organizational Leadership and Urban Education from Nova Southeastern University. His research is centered on the social well-being of the African American community (education, healthcare and economics) and particularly the role the African American church plays within that space. Dr. Cohen serves on the advisory boards of the University of Florida’s Clinical Translation Science Institute and Vanderbilt University’s Recruitment Innovation Center, the Health Planning Council, Leadership Jax, IDEA Schools and Changing Homeless Coalition. He is a member of the Jacksonville Chapter NAACP, Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Incorporated and a member of Leadership Jax Class of 2014.

Shannon Nazworth is President and CEO of Ability Housing, a position she has held since 2003. Ability Housing is dedicated to building strong communities where everyone has a home. Its vision is a society where housing is a right, not a privilege, and all individuals have safe, affordable housing in vibrant communities. Nazworth brings more than 20 years of experience in the affordable housing sector. In addition to leading Ability Housing, Nazworth is Chair of the State of Florida Council on Homelessness, immediate past president of the Florida Supportive Housing Coalition, and was a gubernatorial appointee to both the Florida Affordable Housing Workgroup and Affordable Housing Study Commission. She also serves on the Chase Community Advisory Board, National Low Income Housing Coalition Policy Committee, and many other state and national organizations, such as the Advisory Council of the Florida Chamber of Commerce Foundation’s Prosperity Initiative. In 2020, she earned national recognition as Multifamily Executive Magazine’s “Executive of the Year.” Nazworth is a native of Massachusetts, but has resided in Northeast Florida for over 20 years. She has a B.S. in Political Science, having graduated magna cum laude from Boston College; a Certificate in Executive Leadership from Harvard Business School; and a Certificate in Nonprofit Management from Duke University.

Laura Phillips Edgecombe is the Principal, Downtown Public Spaces for the Jessie Bal duPont Fund, a Jacksonville-based private foundation that seeks to create communities of belonging for the people, institutions and communities that its founder Jessie Ball duPont knew and loved. She is an Executive on Loan to the City of Jacksonville, responsible for facilitating the activation of Downtown public spaces for the benefit of all Jaxsons. With a degree from The University of Florida, Laura's career in community development, advocacy and large-scale event production spans almost two decades. As a creative and versatile leader, her success is directly attributable to her ability to conceptualize the “big picture.” She brings a wide range of professional and community experiences, and takes pride in delivering the intended results to the satisfaction of all stakeholders. Named a Business Journal Jacksonville Woman of Influence in 2024, her demonstrated professional history includes: Cultivating relationships with senior leadership of Jacksonville’s business, civic and philanthropic communities; Collaborating with clients and other stakeholders to create successful programs, events and projects; Effectively communicating with all levels of client management and their customers, guests and beneficiaries; Civic and philanthropic engagement; and Successfully managing projects of all sizes and budgets, including development, planning, marketing, production and execution, post-event analysis and post-planning. The Jacksonville business community is a very important focus for Laura, and she serves as a JAX Chamber Downtown Council Board Member and as the organization’s current President and former Speaker Programming & Engagement Liaison. She is in Leadership Jacksonville Class of 2024, a JAX Chamber Hightower Emerging Leaders Fellow Class V (2021), a member of the Jacksonville Women’s Network, an Urban Land Institute UrbanPlan Facilitator and a University of North Florida Taylor Institute of Leadership Mentor. Laura is an actively engaged member of Northeast Florida Builders Association, Urban Land Institute (Advisory Board) and Gator Bowl Sports (Green Jacket). A third generation Jaxson, the community overall is an equally important priority. Laura currently donates her time and expertise to local organizations such as Friends of James Weldon Johnson Park, Painting of the PawPrints, United Way of Northeast Florida, The Florida Theatre (Board of Directors), The American Cancer Society, UF Health, READ USA, Inc., Pink Ribbon Jax, The Cultural Council of Greater Jacksonville, Ritz Chambers Players, Downtown Vision, Inc., Riverfront Parks Now, Jacksonville Venture Competition, Epping Forest Yacht Club (Board of Governors) and her son's school parent association. She chooses these organizations specifically as their successes are pivotal to equitable quality of life opportunities for all populations. Her equally community-active husband and sixteen-year-old son are her biggest cheerleaders and foundation of support.

As Development Manager and Partner, Ryan is responsible for the end-to-end management of the development lifecycle for multiple Columbia Ventures projects, from acquisition through disposition. This includes, in close collaboration with the Columbia Ventures team, the assembly and orchestration of the professionals for due diligence, design, financing, construction, marketing, and property management while serving in whatever capacity is necessary along the way. He leads the development of Union Terminal Warehouse in the Eastside neighborhood of Downtown Jacksonville, as well as the other deals in the Jacksonville pipeline of Columbia Ventures. Ryan grew up in Florida and holds engineering degrees from the University of Florida (BSME) and Georgia Tech (MSME). He is a graduate of the 2023 class of the ULI Atlanta Center for Leadership and holds a certificate in Commercial Real Estate Finance and Development from MIT. Ryan and his family live in the Old Fourth Ward neighborhood of Atlanta. He serves on the board of Noble Clay Fitness, a local Atlanta non-profit gym. Ryan enjoys learning new skills, building relationships, adding value through driving processes, financial modeling, and collaborating with experts in their respective fields throughout each project lifecycle.

Craig Emmanuel is at the forefront of revolutionizing commercial loan origination & commercial brokerage through his work with the companies he founded, Commerial Realty Advisors & Investment Group, LLC & Capital Realty Advisors & Investment Group, LlC. With nearly 30 years of experience in the Florida and Georgia real estate markets, Craig holds multiple professional licenses and leads with a focus on integrity and excellence in real estate investment & community development. Mr. Emmanuel is deeply committed to supporting affordable housing initiatives, small scale development & assisting non-profit organizations gain equity and equality in the real estate market. Leveraging his expertise to make a significant impact in the community, Craig's dedication to innovation and community service makes him a visionary leader in real estate and finance.