Los Angeles Construction and Development

Daniel Atwater is the Senior Manager of Public Relations for Oceanwide Plaza LLC, where he oversees PR strategy for Oceanwide Holdings’ U.S. real estate flagship, an over $1 billion-dollar project with nearly 1.5 million square feet of mix-used development. In this capacity, Daniel manages representation of corporate affairs, community relations and retail for Oceanwide Plaza’s residential and commercial offerings. Daniel’s passion for inclusive economic development includes 12 years of operations and business development experience representing clients and organizational portfolios in public, private, nonprofit and academic sectors. Before joining Oceanwide Plaza, Daniel founded Atwater Strategies, a public relations, marketing and diversity consulting firm for clients in real estate, financial services and technology. Prior experience includes positions at The Pollack PR Marketing Group, the University of Southern California, Combined Properties, the City of Los Angeles’ Asset Management Division, Sentient Communications, and Pat Tobin and Associates.

Sonnet currently serves as Vice President and General Manager for Project Management Advisors, Inc. (PMA), a national real estate advisory firm specializing in Development Management, Project Management, Investor Representation and Program Management services. She has spent the bulk of her 30-plus year career as an architect, developer, business strategist and planner working for both national and international firms. As general manager, Sonnet oversees projects across multiple sectors, including high-rise and multifamily residential, entertainment, healthcare, educational, and commercial. Prior to joining PMA, Sonnet was Vice President, Design and Construction at NBC Universal, where she was responsible for developing and leading design, construction and related capital planning services for NBCUniversal and DreamWork’s West Coast Studio Operations. In this role, she managed the planning and execution of construction projects at the iconic 400 + acre Universal Lot in Studio City. She was honored in 2016 and 2017 by Bisnow as one of “Los Angeles’ Power Women.” In the past year, Sonnet has been recognized by the Los Angeles Business Journal as part of their Women’s Leadership Series, the 2020 class of Thriving in Their 40s, and as a Women of Influence in Construction and Design. Sonnet Hui is a Trustee of the Charles Drew University of Medicine and Science (CDU).

Geene Alhady began his career with McCarthy Building Companies holding various roles including managing large construction projects in the healthcare and high-tech industries. In the years that followed, Geene served as president of Meridian Systems, a plan-build-operate technology solutions company, and then as general manager of Trimble Buildings’ Real Estate and Workplace Solutions Division. Geene joined Clark Pacific in 2016 bringing his organizational and marketing expertise and now serves as Clark Pacific’s president.

Stephen Achorn joined Rising Realty Partners in July 2014 in the position of Construction Manager. He is responsible for management of long term capital projects, building upgrades and Tenant Improvements. Prior to joining Rising he has 25 years experience managing and opening multi million square feet of Class A office and retail space in Downtown Los Angeles and the surrounding areas. Stephen was with Maguire Thomas Partners and Maguire Partners from 1989 – 2004 in the position of Senior Operations and Tenant Improvement Manager. He served with Thomas Properties Group at City National Plaza from 2005 -2013 as Senior Operations and Tenant Improvement Manager during the $278,000,000 upgrade of the Property. Stephen received a Bachelor of Science degree in Marine Engineering, Maine Maritime Academy in 1976. When Stephen is outside of the office, he enjoys both snow and water skiing, kayaking, woodworking, and landscaping.

Christopher J. Smith is a Principal in ARG’s Pasadena office with over 25 years of experience in design, project management, construction administration and business development. His project work includes the seismic upgrade and rehabilitation of Pasadena City Hall and the rehabilitation study for the Broadway Building at Baldwin Hills Crenshaw in Los Angles. He is currently serving as the principal-in-charge for ARG’s work on the Title Insurance & Trust Company Building at 433 Spring Street for Rising Realty, Los Angeles Union Station restoration and upgrades and the new J Brand Jeans Headquarters at ROW-DTLA. He was a member of the City of LA Historic Commercial Reuse Guidelines Task Force. Christopher received a graduate certificate in historic preservation from the University of Southern California and a bachelor of arts in urban studies from California State University, Northridge.

Larry oversees the company’s multifamily development activities throughout the western United States. Larry has 27 years in the residential investment industry, including extensive development, acquisition and asset management experience of multifamily rental and for-sale communities. Prior to joining Fairfield Residential in 2011, he was managing director of Urban Housing Group (a subsidiary of The Marcus & Millichap Company) overseeing development in the western United States. Previously, he was a senior vice president for AvalonBay Communities Inc., where he led the company’s residential development efforts throughout southern California and was responsible for developing over 2,400 apartment homes. Larry has also held senior officer positions for Archstone Communities Trust and Lincoln Property Company where he was involved in developing and acquiring over 10,000 multifamily units. Larry received his BA in accounting from California State University, Fullerton. He is a Certified Public Accountant (inactive) and a licensed California real estate broker. His professional affiliations include the Urban Land Institute and the National Multi-Housing Council.

Michael joined CityView in February 2015 as Vice President of Development to oversee all new southern California development opportunities. For three and a half years prior to this position, he was based in Los Angeles at CIM Group as Vice President, Development, running mixed-use development projects in Los Angeles, Washington, DC, Chicago, Miami, Las Vegas and other US locations. He representing office tenants throughout the metropolitan Washington, DC region at Grubb & Ellis, Washington, DC office, as a commercial broker for approximately one year. Michael worked for six years from 2004 to 2010 at ROSS Development & Investment as Vice President and Director of Development. From 2001 to 2004, Michael was Director of Development at Washington Real Estate Investment Trust (WRIT). Prior to WRIT, Michael was a Development Manager for the Kaempfer Company and a REIT Analyst for the investment bank, Friedman, Billings, Ramsey & Co., Inc. Michael also ran his own design/build company, HMS Designs, for five years where he specialized in luxury residential design and construction. Michael is a licensed architect in the State of Maryland and an Advisory Board Member and an Adjunct Professor at the Johns Hopkins University Carey Business School, Edward St. John Program of Real Estate, where he is a thesis advisor for students completing their practicum project for graduation. He earned a Bachelor and a Master of Architecture from Tulane University and a Master of Science in Real Estate Finance from Johns Hopkins University. Michael has served as a judge for various industry award programs and has lectured on various real estate topics such as development and real estate financial analysis for ULI and NAIOP Md/DC chapter, for example.

Nathan Arnold is a construction professional experienced in diverse building types, functions and size, as well as in various segments of the project delivery "pie". His projects include residential, healthcare, transportation/aviation, heavy civil, education, and commercial, and have ranged in size from $500mm+ to $50,000. Forest City Enterprises, Inc., is an NYSE-listed national real estate company with $10.6 billion in total assets. The Company is principally engaged in the ownership, development, management and acquisition of commercial and residential real estate and land throughout the United States. In this role, Mr. Arnold is a member of the development team with primary responsibilities to bring product to market in an expeditous and high quality manner.

Laurie Lustig-Bower began her career in commercial real estate 29 years ago with CBRE and now holds the title of Executive Vice President. For many years, she ranked as the #1 producer for CBRE’s Private Capital Group nationally and has ranked nationally in the top 2% for CBRE for nearly two decades. As a leading multi-family professional, Ms. Lustig-Bower has handled approximately $9 billion in multi-family property sales in the Los Angeles area within the past ten years. She is the founder and leader of Team Lustig-Bower, a team of nine professionals who specialize in the marketing and sale of multi-family properties in the greater Los Angeles area, specifically focusing on the sale of apartment buildings, condominium conversions/reversions and land for apartment and condominium development. Ms. Lustig-Bower has been rated one of the top brokers in the United States for the past 20 years. As one of the first brokers to focus on marketing Los Angeles properties to the international market, Ms. Lustig-Bower is known for selling the eight acre Robinsons May development site at 9900 Wilshire Blvd., Beverly Hills for $500 million in 2007 to a London based buyer and then again in 2014, to a China based buyer.