Emerging Issues and Trends in Real Estate Forum

The 2008 Emerging Issues & Trends in Real Estate Forum transpired once again last April to be a premier event for both students and professionals concerned with the commercial real estate industry.  The forum was hosted by the Jeffrey E. Smith Institute of Real Estate and took place April 4, 2008 on the University of Missouri campus.  The purpose of the annual forum is to “[create] an environment that allows students to meet business professionals and discuss current events.”
 
Approximately 500 people attended the forum last year, with about half being students and the other half comprising the spectrum of real estate professionals from brokers and bankers to architects and developers.  The forum was so well-attended that there was standing room only in all four of the morning and afternoon break-out sessions.
 
The morning session began with an address by Dean Schwanke, Senior Vice President of Publication and Awards in the Information Group at the Urban Land Institute in Washington, DC.  He, followed by Bill Emmons, Senior Economist and Manager for the Division of Banking Supervision and Regulation at the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, spoke on emerging trends in real estate based on perspectives derived from their own experience and position.
 
The morning addresses were followed by four concurrent break-out sessions that were repeated in the afternoon.  Sam Goldman, former Director of the Smith Institute of Real Estate, states that even after six months, he still receives phone calls from attendees praising the forum and saying how “incredibly impressed they were by the quality of the speakers and the insightfulness of the break-out sessions.”  The hour-long sessions offered participants the opportunity to attend two of the four addresses on compelling current affairs in real estate. 
 
The first break-out session on outsourcing real estate services was led by Alex Cannon, Director of Sales for Buxton Company; Brian Ungles, Senior Vice President for Colliers Turley Martin Tucker; Keith Politte, Senior Vice President, Principal, for Colliers Turley Martin Tucker; and Mark Mundahl, Senior Vice President for United Properties.  The panel spoke on the value added through outsourcing real estate functions and the service outside companies can provide, in addition to the largest obstacles in overcoming internal resistance to outsourcing.
 
The second break-out session addressed public incentives available for private development along with the critical path for a complex public/private development project, including key specifics that should be addressed in the project documentation.  This session was lead by Jenny Marler, Partner of Sonnenschein Real Estate Practice Group; Marian Nunn, Chief Operating Officer for THF Realty; Karen Jordan, Associate for Sonnenschein Corporate Practice; and Laura Mirkin Radcliff, Director for the Public Finance Department of Wachovia Securities.
 
Charles Zimmerman, Vice President of Prototype and New Format Development for Wal-Mart; Leanne Tobias, Principal for Malachite LLC; Teresa Bridges, Senior Sustainable Designer for HOK Atlanta; and Tim Gaidis, Senior Designer for HOK St. Louis led the third break-out session addressing how sustainability pays.  They spoke about the “why,” “how” and “what” of adding value through the use of functional buildings and landscapes while attempting to enhance the condition of the environment.
 
The final break-out session concentrated on the hot topic of eminent domain, the specifics of the Missouri legislation surrounding it and the need for additional research on the issue to be reported to the legislature.  Speakers in this session included Bryan Pratt, Speaker ProTem of the Missouri House of Representatives; Anthony Martin, Ombudsman for the State of Missouri Government; Dale Whitman, Professor of Law at the University of Missouri; and Sam Goldman, former Director of the Smith Institute of Real Estate.
 
The day ended with a live video conference with the world-renowned Chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, Warren Buffet.  During this session, fifteen University of Missouri students had the opportunity to ask Buffet their own questions.  Of this video conference, Sam Goldman states that he “was truly amazed at how perceptive our students were in asking their questions and at Warren Buffet’s astute answers.”   This final session with Buffet only added to an already successful and full day.  Both organizers and attendees were highly satisfied with the success of the forum and look forward to future events.

Last Edited: 4/22/2009