The Future of Beverly Hills

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.

Jason Lewis is CEO of Lazer Properties, Inc., a boutique real estate development firm based in Century City. Founded in 2016, Lazer invests in high-end residential and retail real estate, with an exclusive focus on Los Angeles, and has several holdings in Beverly Hills. In addition to various ongoing developments, Lazer is currently in the initial planning stages for a high-end senior housing project located in Beverly Hills. Jason's real estate career began in the investments group of Los Angeles-based CIM Group, and he later received his MBA from the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania.

Blair Schlecter is the Director of Economic Development and Government Affairs for the Beverly Hills Chamber of Commerce. In this role, Blair advocates for the interests of member businesses, works with businesses and the City of Beverly Hills on a number of economic development initiatives, and runs the Chamber’s prestigious Economic Development Council that addresses important policy and economic issues in the City of Beverly Hills and greater Los Angeles region. Blair is passionate about connecting people and his involvement in civic affairs, including transportation, technology and urban planning issues. He is a graduate of the Team Beverly Hills and New Leaders Project both of which engage leaders in local civic government and policy issues. Prior to his current role, Blair practiced as an attorney, first for a law firm representing primarily government agencies such as the County and City of Los Angeles and then in his own private practice handling appeals of civil lawsuits in a wide variety of legal subjects including real estate and business matters.

Mr. Paul Daneshrad is the founder and Chief Executive Officer of StarPoint Properties, a private real estate investment firm, specializing in both commercial and multi-family properties. The firm’s expertise and niche is acquiring under-valued and mismanaged assets and dramatically increasing the value of these properties through repositioning, strategic leasing, rehabilitation and professional management. Mr. Daneshrad’s experience in the real estate field has been broad and deep, having been involved in the development, management and ownership of real estate since 1990. After graduating from California State University Northridge, Mr. Daneshrad founded StarPoint Properties, growing the company steadily over the years to include large apartment complexes, retail centers and office buildings as well as establishing a fully integrated property management division. Since its inception, StarPoint has acquired over 8,000 apartment units and 2.5 million square feet of commercial properties, totaling in excess of $1 billion worth of real estate. The company currently has a portfolio of approximately 2,800 apartment units and 2 million square feet of commercial properties. StarPoint was built on the foundation that property operations, management and a proprietary, disciplined acquisition strategy are the core competency of the business and Mr. Daneshrad has built a vertical firm whose management and departments excel at real estate execution. This is best exemplified by the firm’s track record and historical performance, which is 3rd party reviewed and published, delivering investors returns that far exceed most industry averages and alternate investment strategies. Mr. Daneshrad is considered an expert in the real estate investment community. He speaks at national conferences, is frequently quoted by and has written articles for several real estate publications including: Net Lease Forum, Multi-Family Executive, California Real Estate Journal, Multi-Housing News, National Real Estate Investor, Real Estate Southern California, and Commercial Property

Bryan Lewitt is a Managing Director for JLL in the Downtown Los Angeles office. He serves as JLL’s Southern California Practice Leader for the Healthcare Services Group in Greater Los Angeles and Orange County. He leads a team of three professionals with over 50 years of combined real estate experience. Bryan’s broad range of healthcare expertise spans the areas of assignments with hospitals or owners of medical office buildings, representing healthcare tenants or buyers, as well as development and investments in the healthcare field. With his legal background, Bryan structures joint venture real estate syndications, tenancy in common, leases with equity and other complex transactions. Currently, Bryan’s healthcare transaction volume is over 15 million square feet of healthcare related real estate valued in excess of $1.5 billion. Professional Involvement and Education Bryan has been involved in healthcare and commercial real estate since graduating law school in 1988. He has been a licensed Real Estate Broker in the State of California since 1989. Bryan has a Bachelor of Science degree in Political Science from St. Mary’s College of California and a Juris Doctorate degree from McGeorge/Pacific School of Law. Bryan has been a member of Providence Tarzana Medical Center’s Foundation Board of Governors and Providence Health’s Board of Directors for the Valley Service Area. Currently, Bryan serves on California Hospital’s Medical Centers Foundation Board of Directors and the Finance Committee. Speaking Engagements Bryan’s recent healthcare real estate speaking appearances include: American Healthcare Lawyers Association (AHLA), Building Owners Management Association (BOMA), CBRE Americas Summit, Interface Healthcare West Conference, Southern California Development Forum, Association for Corporate Growth (ACG), Beverly Hills Bar Association, American of Institute Architects (AIA), Revista Medical Conference, Urban Land Institute (ULI) and the Bisnow Medical Conferences.

Spencer B. Kallick transacts land use entitlements and California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) compliance for large scale development projects, employing an astute combination of legal, policy, and practical knowledge. His experience entitling all real estate products is matched only by his long-standing city, county, and state relationships. A former assistant city attorney handling land use matters for a number of California cities, including Beverly Hills, Manhattan Beach, South El Monte, and Indio, Spencer’s shared understanding of the process gives him an advantage when advocating on behalf of his clients’ projects. Problems get resolved faster, and entitlements go smoother when all parties speak the same language and understand each other’s point of view.