6th Annual Construction & Development Update

David is a sales and marketing professional in the field of critical energy infrastructure and energy efficiency. In his current position with Con Edison, as Business Development Manager of Commercial and Industrial Energy Efficiency Programs, he is responsible for helping customers meet energy efficiency improvements within the commercial portfolio which is supported by a network of over 700 market partners. David, who has been with Con Edison since 2008, worked in a variety of business development, sales management, marketing and external affairs positions for Johnson Controls, Public Service Enterprise Group, Pennsylvania Power & Light and the Trane Company. His major focus has been on clients with critical energy needs in the fields of commercial real estate, healthcare and data center operations. David has a BS in Marketing and an MBA in Finance, both from Montclair State University. He is a Certified Energy Manager, and an active member of the Association of Energy Engineers, the New York Building Congress, the Manhattan Chamber of Commerce Green Business committee, American Institute of Architects (AIANY) and Urban Green Council. David is an officer of the New York City chapter of the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating & Air Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE).

Nolan, EBI Consulting's CEO, joined EBI Consulting in 1991 after receiving a Bachelor of Science in biology and an MBA from Boston College. Nolan possesses over 28 years of experience in environmental and property condition due diligence, energy and sustainability, CMBS, construction consulting, and agency lending. He has successfully recruited and managed a national sales force, while creating successful partnerships with the most prominent real estate finance, global investment, and commercial banking companies in the United States. Nolan resides with his family in Massachusetts and operates out of EBI’s corporate headquarters in Burlington, MA.

As Partner and Director of Virtual Design and Construction (VDC), Michael brings together design and construction teams to proactively solve the unique challenges facing large developments. Michael has led the VDC process for 50+60 Binney Street in Kendall Square, Autodesk’s BUILD Space and Two Drydock Avenue in Boston. Prior to SGA, Michael was a strategic consultant to well-known international clients such as The Royal Commission of Saudi Arabia and Skanska USA. With a background in architecture and software engineering, his skills blend the boundary between architectural design processes, computer programming and building construction. He was also a lecturer at Harvard University, where he explored topics in parametric design and taught courses on Building Information Modeling.

After graduating from Worcester Polytechnic Institute with a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering, Brian began his career with Turner as a field engineer in 1982. His subsequent roles in superintending, purchasing, estimating, and project management would lead him to his current position as construction executive. With experience in healthcare, higher education, pharmaceutical and laboratory construction, Brian has developed a comprehensive skill set managing large, complex and logistically challenging projects on active institutional campuses. He understands the intricacies required while working in sensitive environments such as hospitals and state-of-the-art lab facilities. Notable projects in Brian’s construction management portfolio include the Massachusetts General Hospital Lunder Building and Proton, the UMass Memorial Medical Center’s Clinton Hospital and Lakeside Addition, the Newton Wellesley Hospital Expansion, Alexandria Real Estate Equity’s 50+60 Binney Street, and most recently, the Harvard University Science and Engineering Complex. In his personal time, Brian enjoys enjoy playing soccer, skiing and working on projects around his home in Wayland, MA.

Aaron Appel is a Vice Chairman and Heads the JLL Capital Markets Debt & Equity team in New York, where he oversees a team of 40 professionals responsible for arranging debt and equity for institutional and private commercial property owners, sells loans on behalf of financial institutions and special servicers, and provides strategic advisory services for lending institutions and borrowers. Aaron has 11 years of commercial real estate experience, having directly originated and executed on more than $18 Billion of debt and equity transactions. Prior to joining JLL in 2014, Aaron was a Managing Director with Meridian Capital where he played a key role structuring debt and equity transactions for clients nationwide. In 2015 & 2017 Aaron was named JLL MVP. He has been named to the Commercial Observer’s 50 Most Powerful People in Commercial Real Estate Finance each year from 2015 to 2019.

Dawn M. Lurie is recognized in the legal community as a sophisticated and forward thinking immigration compliance authority and EB-5 investment strategist. She focuses on visa, workforce, and global mobility issues. Dawn is proud to be considered a trusted partner to corporate clients and is relied on for her ability to spot impending government enforcement trends. Her deftness in balancing business necessity with regulatory reality is also highly valued. When advising clients, Dawn presents creative, yet compliant, solutions and identifies issues long before they become problematic. Her practice includes a range of cases, from routine to the most complex, involving: Visa processing (including naturalization, residency and security issues) Immigration compliance (including Form I-9 and E-Verify related matters) EB-5 foreign investment (including representation of regional centers, investors, project developers, overseas agent as well as targeted due diligence services) Dawn has represented clients in the EB-5 program since the early years of the program’s inception, in the 1990s. Her experience has evolved over the last two decades as the EB-5 program progressed from an obscure means of obtaining U.S. residency, to a viable mechanism of funding a significant portion of the capital stack for large-scale projects and infrastructure building across industries. Attending EB-5 Board Hearings in D.C. and participating in the stakeholder conversation process with the agencies for many years, provides her clients with a unique Washington perspective. Dawn’s Form I-9 and E-Verify experience is nationally recognized. By developing and managing corporate immigration compliance programs, including training and internal audit components, she minimizes exposure and liability, saving her clients millions of dollars. Dawn assists federal government contractors in meeting the FAR mandatory E-Verify compliance rules and flow-down clause. In addition, she regularly advises on immigration compliance issues in mergers, acquisitions, and contracting relationships. She represents companies in Immigration and Customs Enforcement matters and defends those facing government investigations including ones initiated by the DOL or DOS. Her experience also includes representing colleges and universities with SEVIS related issues as well as with routine compliance planning. Dawn is consistently able to negotiate favorable settlements and resolve even the most adversarial of matters because of her solution oriented approach and her ability to work cohesively with government agencies.

Helen Hwang is Senior Executive Managing Director at Meridian Investment Sales, LLC and is head of the Institutional Investment Sales Group. Ms. Hwang has executed over 85 institutional sales and recapitalization transactions exceeding $26 billion in value. Prior to joining Meridian, Ms. Hwang spent 16 years at Cushman & Wakefield as an Executive Vice President, as the head of NYC Investment Sales. Ms. Hwang has worked on numerous prestigious sales assignments throughout her career, including 1865 Broadway, 220 East 72nd Street, 22 River Terrace, 101 Murray Street, 400 Madison Avenue, One Court Square, 60 East 12th Street, 510 Madison Avenue, 511 Fifth Avenue, Glenn Gardens, the MetLife Building at 200 Park Avenue, 666 Fifth Avenue, the portfolio sale of Park Avenue and 850 Third Avenue, and the ground leases under 625 Madison Avenue, 2 Herald Square and 75 Rockefeller Center. For the sale of 88 Leonard Street, Ms. Hwang was honored with the Real Estate Board of New York’s highest achievement, the 2012 Most Ingenious Sales Deal of the Year (Robert T. Lawrence Memorial Award). Ms. Hwang has marketed significant New York assets for clients such as Africa Israel Investments, Ashkenazy Acquisitions, Capmark Financial, Daishin Securities, Dermot Company, Epic UK, Five Mile Capital, Istithmar, J.E. Robert Companies, Paramount Group, Park Tower Group, Rockrose Development Corp, SL Green, Spitzer Enterprises, Vornado Realty Trust, and Macklowe Properties. She has been a trusted strategic advisor to numerous domestic and international family offices, institutions and not-for-profits, including American Bible Society, Archdiocese of New York, Children’s Aid Society, MTA, New York University, St. John’s University, and Watchtower Bible and Tract Society of New York, and Fortune 50 Corporations such as Bank of America and Verizon. Ms. Hwang has been presented with numerous awards over her career for both her professional achievements and charitable contributions, including the Top Broker of the Year by Real Estate Forum Magazine, a leading trade publication, CoStar’s prestigious Power Broker of the Year award, Bisnow’s New York Power Women award, Rebuilding Together NYC ‘s Patty Johnson Outstanding Leadership Award, and Friendship Circle’s Humanitarian Award. She was also named one of the 50 Outstanding Asian Americans in Business by the Asian American Business Development Center. Ms. Hwang serves as Chair of the Membership Committee and member of the Executive and Advisory Committees for the Urban Land Institute’s New York City Chapter and as an industry expert guest speaker for numerous conferences and some of the top REIT equity research teams in the nation, including Bank of America Merrill Lynch, ISI Group, FBR Capital Markets & Co, JMP Securities, and UBS. Ms. Hwang received her Bachelor of Science degree from the Cornell University School of Hotel Administration (Real Estate Finance), where she graduated “With Distinction.” She also holds a Master’s degree in Real Estate Investment and Development from New York University. Ms. Hwang is a New York State Certified Real Estate Appraiser and is a New York and New Jersey Licensed Salesperson.

Steve Kirn is a partner in RSM’s Stamford office and leads the Real Estate practice in Connecticut and Westchester. He has over 20 years of experience and has been involved in all facets of client service including audit, tax and financial consulting. Steve has significant experience serving both public and private clients in real estate, construction, manufacturing, wholesale, distribution and professional services firms. Steve is a CPA, licensed in Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts and Vermont. He is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the Connecticut Society of Certified Public Accountants. Steve earned a BS in accounting from Northeastern University, and completed a graduate-level CFO advisory program at the University of Minnesota’s Carlson School of Management.