The Future of Downtown Los Angeles

Mr. Witte is Chairman and CEO of Related California, one of the largest developers of urban and multifamily housing in the state, overseeing both the affordable and market rate divisions. For the past 33 years, and since the founding of Related California, he has been responsible for the strategic direction of the company, overall management of the firm, pursuit of new development opportunities and oversight of planning, financing and construction of a development portfolio of over 18,000 residential units completed or under construction totaling more than $8.3 billion in assets, and over 5,200 affordable and 7,600 market rate units in pre-development. Prior to founding Related California in 1989, Mr. Witte served as Deputy Mayor for Housing and Neighborhoods under Mayor Art Agnos where he oversaw all housing, development and redevelopment activities for the City of San Francisco. He was Director of Housing and Economic Development under Mayor Dianne Feinstein and served as an appointed Commissioner of the San Francisco Housing Authority. Mr. Witte previously served as Executive Assistant to Assistant Secretary for Housing/Federal Housing Commissioner Lawrence B. Simons at HUD in Washington, as Legislative Director for the National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials and with the Philadelphia Office of Housing and Community Development. Mr. Witte graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a bachelor’s degree in Urban Studies and a Master in City Planning. He is Chairman of the Lusk Center for Real Estate Advisory Board at University of Southern California and was a nine year member of the Board of Overseers of the Graduate School of Design at University of Pennsylvania. Mr. Witte serves on the Advisory Boards of the Fisher Center for Real Estate and Urban Economics Policy at the Haas School of Business at University of California at Berkeley and the Orange County Human Relations Community Partners. In addition, Mr. Witte sits on the board of the Shelter Partnership in Los Angeles.

Tom Gilmore is a downtown Los Angeles-based developer of residential and commercial properties whose early projects in the city's historic core led to the largest resurgence of real estate investment and development the city has experienced in nearly a century. Gilmore began his career by building a small architectural firm in New York and eventually relocated to Los Angeles, leading to his partnership with Jerri Perrone. In 1998, Gilmore and Perrone formed an independent development firm, Gilmore Associates, to embark upon the redevelopment of the Historic Core of Downtown Los Angeles. His vision for Downtown Los Angeles as a thriving, self-sustaining urban community led him to purchase four abandoned historic buildings: the Continental, the Hellman, the San Fernando, and the Farmers and Merchants National Bank—all of which are located in Downtown Los Angeles and collectively renamed by Gilmore and Perrone as the “Old Bank District.” Gilmore was the first developer to utilize the newly minted Adaptive Reuse Ordinance of 1999, which enabled him to convert historic commercial buildings into mixed- use residences, ultimately catalyzing the widespread redevelopment and revival of Downtown. His ingenuity and tenacity has been recognized through major projects he has spearheaded— notably— Vibiana, a development of the former St. Vibiana’s Cathedral as a performing arts center and event facility that also houses the renowned restaurant, Redbird. Gilmore’s most recent ongoing projects include mixed-use redevelopment in Los Angeles' Chinatown and the transformation of the historic spaces within the Hellman Building and the former Farmers and Merchants National Bank into a contemporary museum showcasing Los Angeles based art on S Main St in Downtown, aptly named the Main Museum. Since Gilmore's first historic building opened to residents in 2000, more than 60,000 new residents now call downtown Los Angeles home and more than $5 billion in residential, business, entertainment and arts projects have been introduced to the city center. Tom Gilmore's commitment to the civic identity of Los Angeles is evident in his roles as the former Commissioner Chair for the LA Homeless Services Authority, Chairman of Southern California Institute of Architecture (SCI-Arc), Mayoral- appointee as Chairman of Sister Cities of Los Angeles, Executive Committee member of Central City Association, Executive Committee member of Los Angeles Tourism and Convention Bureau, and Board member of Los Angeles Parks Foundation.

Mr. Keller is the Vice Chairman of MREG and a member of MREG’s Investment Committee. He also serves as the Chairman of MRED, MREG’s development subsidiary, and Senior Adviser to the MRECS Investment Committee with respect to construction and other heavy transitional loans. Mr. Keller has over 40 years of experience in real estate investment, development, and construction, formerly leading Mack Urban, LLC, Urban Partners, LLC, Keller Equity Group, Inc., Keller CMS, Inc., and Keller Construction Company, LTD. Mr. Keller currently holds many board and community leadership roles, including Vice Chair of the Land Use Leadership Committee and Member of the Advisory Board of ULI (Urban Land Institute) Los Angeles, Board Member of the Central City Association of Los Angeles (CCA), Board Member of the UCLA Health System, and member of The Los Angeles Coalition for the Economy and Jobs (The L.A. Coalition). Mr. Keller previously held leadership roles as Chairman of Eimago (formerly Union Rescue Mission Foundation), Chairman of the Board of Directors at Seven Arrows Elementary School in Pacific Palisades, California, Board Member of the L.A. Streetcar Initiative (LASI), member of the stakeholders group board of the DTLA South Park Business Improvement District (BID), Board Member of Friends of Waterfront, Seattle, and Board Member of Friends of the LA River (FoLAR). Mr. Keller attended the California State Polytechnic University, Pomona.

Tom Warren currently oversees The Holland Partner Group’s Southern California operations, and has been directly responsible for the development of over 2,500 units in 12 projects and a total transaction volume of more than $1 billion since he joined Clyde in launching Holland Development in 2001. Holland’s Southern California development pipeline includes more than 2,000 units in Los Angeles, Orange County, and San Diego. During the 14 years that he has been involved in the multi-family industry, Tom has conceived and executed a wide variety of multi-family product types – ranging from mixed-use high-rise and mid-rise buildings in urban locations to townhome communities in neo-traditional neighborhoods. All of the projects he has sponsored reflect his passion for designing quality living space that is tailored to enhance the experience of its residents, the character of the community and the economic viability of the asset. By focusing on creating value in every aspect of a project, Tom configures each deal to ensure a profitable venture for our partners and investors. Prior to joining Holland Partner Group, Tom served as Development Partner for Trammell Crow Residential (TCR). During his tenure with TCR, he was responsible for land acquisition, financing, and entitlements for the company’s development operations in Seattle. His contributions at TCR were instrumental in the delivery of more than 2,000 units in eight individual communities. He has been active in the real estate industry since 1994, when he worked as a development consultant for BSW International in Tulsa, Oklahoma.Tom graduated from the University of California, Berkeley with an Architectural degree and a minor in Structural Engineering.

In March 2017, Doane Liu was appointed by Mayor Eric Garcetti as the Executive Director of the Los Angeles Department of Convention and Tourism Development (CTD), with the goal to further enhance and increase Los Angeles’ prominence and attraction as a world class tourist and convention destination. Liu joined the CTD after serving as Deputy Executive Director and Chief of Staff at the Port of Los Angeles, where he was the second in command at the busiest container port in North America and head of the Port’s External Affairs Bureau. Before the Port, Liu was Deputy Mayor for the City of Los Angeles. He managed the Mayor's Office of City Services and helped the Mayor oversee 15 City Departments, including the Los Angeles Department Water and Power, Public Works, Transportation, Recreation and Parks, Public Library, and LA Zoo. He also established the Great Streets Studio and LA RiverWorks in the Mayor’s Office. A first-generation Korean- American, Liu also was a liaison in the Mayor’s Office to the Korean-American community in Los Angeles. Liu was previously Chief of Staff for Councilman Joe Buscaino and served as Chief of Staff for Councilwoman Janice Hahn, Deputy Mayor for Mayor James K. Hahn and District Director for Congresswoman Jane Harman. He was also Senior Vice President of Government Banking at JP Morgan Chase and Vice President in the Real Estate Industries Group at Security Pacific National Bank. Liu currently serves on the boards of AltaSea at the Port of Los Angeles, the Los Angeles Fleet Week Foundation, and Sister Cities of Los Angeles. He has previously served on the boards of LA24 Olympic Bid Committee, Los Angeles County Business Federation, Harbor Interfaith Shelter, Palos Verdes Peninsula Land Conservancy, Los Angeles Neighborhood Initiative, Los Angeles Regional Food Bank, Mary Star of the Sea High School, and Holy Trinity School. Liu graduated from the Wharton School at University of Pennsylvania and received an MBA from University of Southern California. He and his wife have four adult children and have lived in San Pedro for nearly 30 years.

As Executive Vice President, Eric leads the Building Construction operations in Southern California for AECOM Hunt. With over 30 years of experience, he brings leadership and expertise in preconstruction services, cost control, client relationships, project delivery, and efficient management of complex projects. Within the past few years, AECOM Hunt has become a leader in studio construction in the Los Angeles market. In addition to working for AECOM Hunt for more than 25 years, Eric also served for five years as President of Construction and Development for a national real estate development company. Throughout his career, he has been an integral part of developing and building several billion dollars’ worth of large, iconic structures across the country. In addition to studio campuses, his experience has encompassed multiple building types including sports, entertainment and convention facilities, luxury residential, hospitality, multi-family, office, and mixed-use.

Marc Kersey is a Senior Vice President at Clark Construction who partners with clients to realize their vision. After spending more than three decades working for Clark, Marc knows what it takes to deliver high-profile, high-value projects. He is a seasoned contractor who understands industry trends and the issues that affect project cost and schedule. His breadth of experience includes office, residential, entertainment, government, and mixed-use projects. Marc’s portfolio includes award-winning work such as the United States Courthouse, Los Angeles, Caltran’s District 7 Headquarters, LA Live and Microsoft Theater, and the LA Convention Center expansion. In addition to his extensive experience working in LA County, Marc is well-versed in design-build and public-private partnership (P3) delivery methods. He is currently providing executive oversight for the $400 million design-build contract for the Long Beach Civic Center. This massive undertaking is being delivered under the P3 model and will revitalize 22 acres of downtown Long Beach. Marc Kersey has a bachelor’s degree in Building Construction from the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University.

Investments of CIM Group. Ms. Wenger has management responsibility for broker relations, and also sources real estate investments across CIM Group’s platforms. Prior to joining CIM in 2009, Ms. Wenger had an extensive career in real estate investments at firms such as Arden Realty under General Electric in the Western United States, Equity Office Properties, and MacFarlane Partners. Earlier in her career she was a Certified Public Accountant. Ms. Wenger earned a B.S. degree in Business with an emphasis in Accounting, graduating with honors from the University of California Riverside. She is a member of the Urban Land Institute, serves on the Executive Board for the Urban Mixed Use Development Council (Gold Flight), and is a mentor for the young leader partnership program.

Kent Handleman oversees all leasing activity for LPC West Los Angeles. With over 28 years of transactional experience encompassing over 10 million square feet of space, he manages a portfolio with 4+ million square feet of office projects, and represents ownerships that include LPC West partnerships, associated capital partners, and third-party owners throughout the South Bay, Playa Vista, Culver City, Santa Monica, downtown Los Angeles, Tri-Cities, and the San Fernando Valley. Prior to joining LPC West, Kent led leasing efforts for Thomas Properties Group in Southern California. This included City National Plaza, a 2.6-million square foot premier office complex in downtown Los Angeles, where he successfully leased approximately 2 million square feet as the project was repositioned in the market. Prior to this, Kent worked at CBRE where he represented tenants and landlords in the leasing, disposition and/or marketing of commercial office property. Kent’s tenure in the industry began in real estate acquisitions and financial analysis for a pension fund advisor. After completing his MBA at the USC Marshall School of Business, he joined MetLife Real Estate Investments and, in addition to hotel and multi-family projects, he oversaw leasing and asset management for a 3.5-million square foot office building portfolio, with 2.5 million square feet in downtown Los Angeles. In his capacity as an asset manager, Kent also directed property management, and was responsible for business/investment decisions regarding these office, hotel, and multi-family projects as owner’s representative.

John R. Barganski is Senior Vice President - Leasing for the Western Region of Brookfield Property Partners (NYSE: BPY), a multi-billion dollar, publicly-traded commercial real estate corporation that owns, manages and develops premier assets in the world’s most dynamic domestic and international markets. Barganski’s responsibilities include marketing and leasing activities within the Western Region, which encompasses more than 10 million square feet of Class-A office and retail properties. Brookfield’s signature assets in the Western Region are strategically located in the heart of downtown Los Angeles, West Los Angeles/Marina del Rey and San Francisco. Barganski is responsible for the regional leasing efforts and oversees a team of leasing professionals and exclusive listing brokerage teams. Barganski has more than thirty (30) years of commercial real estate experience, including comprehensive leasing, asset management and development responsibilities with renowned public and private organizations including Trizec Properties, C.J. Segerstorm & Sons, PacTen Partners (in joint ventures with Morgan Stanley and MetLife), Cushman & Wakefield and Prudential’s Premisys Real Estate Services. He has actively led negotiations for millions of square feet of office space leases with prominent international, national and local firms. Barganski holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Real Estate Finance from the University of Southern California, where he was also a member in USC’s inaugural Real Estate Development Program. He is actively involved in CoreNet, the Urban Land Institute (ULI), National Association of Industrial and Office Parks (NAIOP) and the Los Angeles Commercial Real Estate Association (LACRA), where he has held board positions within each of these industry groups. Barganski is also a frequent speaker and panelist with Bisnow, RenTV, BOMA, and RealShare conferences. John is an active board member at the Ketchum YMCA of Downtown Los Angeles, Rosary Academy and Servite High School.

Practicing as part of the firm's Real Estate group, Max Shapiro helps clients analyze risk, understand the market and close deals. He enjoys working on complex deals, relying on his propensity for overcoming roadblocks and his passion for rigorous negotiation. His work includes commercial leasing and acquisitions and dispositions for clients ranging from institutional real estate investors to small companies and individuals. Max represents both landlords and tenants in office, recreational, retail, industrial, medical, shopping center and mixed-use projects both in California, and in Arizona, Colorado, Illinois, Texas, and other parts of the United States. Notably, Max was the lead attorney representing Brookfield Property Partners in its lease of over 107,000 rentable square feet to Cost Plus Inc. for its headquarters at Marina Village in Alameda, California. He began his legal career as a Judicial Extern for the Honorable Berle M. Schiller, United States District Court, Eastern District of Pennsylvania, and also participated in the Summer Associate program at Allen Matkins. Max’s community involvement includes serving on the firm's Community Outreach Committee and participating in the Los Angeles Food Bank’s Food from the Bar program. He is also involved in the Urban Land Institute, the Harvard-Westlake Real Estate Alumni Association, and the Landau Lawyers softball league.

As the Downtown Los Angeles Alliance's Executive Director, Nicholas ‘Nick’ Griffin spearheads the organization’s efforts to attract new businesses, retailers, investors and residents to what has grown to become one of the nation’s most dynamic urban centers. Hailed the “next great American City,” by GQ Magazine, Downtown LA has experienced unprecedented growth over the past 16-years, in large part due to the efforts of the DTLA Alliance's economic development team. Prior to the DTLA Alliance, Nick spent more than 25 years in business development in the real estate, media/entertainment and technology industries. For the previous 10 years, Nick was a leading commercial leasing and sales broker in New York City, where he was responsible for more than $100M in transactions. Prior to his rise in real estate, Nick spent a decade as a marketing and sales executive in the creative media and technology industries. Nick is a graduate of UCLA and holds an MBA from Ohio State University.