Rising stars in the industry

Real Estate Weekly, April 26, 2006

JAMES C. ACKERSON CB RICHARD ELLIS

Responsible for more than 275,000 s/f in lease transactions in 2005 alone, James C. Ackerson has demonstrated a unique ability to initiate, arrange and close some of New York City's most impressive deals. As a member of CBRE's brokerage team, Mr. Ackerson has participated in dispositions totaling more than $1 billion including the sale of Barneys New York retail stores in New York City, Chicago and Beverly Hills, 666 Fifth Avenue and 7 West 34th Street. Most recently, he completed a 162,000 s/f lease renewal and expansion for the international law firm Simpson Thacher & Bartlett at 425 Lexington Avenue after representing the firm in a 50,000 s/f acquisition in Palo Alto, CA.

A real estate professional with more than six years of experience, Ackerson is a senior associate of brokerage services at CB Richard Ellis' Midtown Manhattan headquarters where he specializes in tenant and agency representation.

Prior to joining the brokerage division of the firm, Ackerson worked in market research as an information management coordinator for the New York City and San Diego Central offices.

A specialist in corporate expansion, he now works closely with his clients to determine their future occupancy strategies and develop individualized plans to meet those requirements.

He is involved with a number of civic organizations, including the Mental Health Association of New York City and the Achilles Foundation. Ackerson earned a Bachelor's degree in speech communication with a minor in business administration from the University of San Diego.

BRAD ARMSTRONG EQUIS CORPORATION

Brad Armstrong, one of the top producers of Equis Corporation, a major national real estate services firm, this year arranged an 80,000 s/f expand and extend lease for Bayer in Tarrytown, N.Y., which saved $100,000 in costs. He is one of the top "rising stars" in the U.S. in meeting the real estate needs of Fortune 500 clients such as Citibank/Travelers and Cingular.

At Equis, Armstrong has completed large and complicated transactions, including lease restructurings, headquarters relocations, build-to-suits, purchases, and municipal incentive negotiations, totaling over 90 transactions worth more than $250 million.

Transactions of note have included a 35,000 s/f lease at 1500 Broadway for Video Monitoring Services, enabling VMS to relocate from Class B to Class A space without any addition to its costs, two leases totaling 130,000 s/f in Pennsylvania and Wisconsin for New York-based Pharmaceutical Product and Development Corp. (PPD), and an 80,000 s/f office space expansion at Two Penn Plaza in New York for Madison Square Garden. Prior to joining Equis, Armstrong was director of leasing for Helmsley Spear Inc., managing over 2 million rentable s/f.

Armstrong holds a B.A. degree in Sociology from Gettysburg College and a membership on the Real Estate Board of New York.

ALIZA AVITAL EASTERN CONSOLIDATED

Aliza represented the seller, Alfred Caiola of B&L Management, in the $17 million sale of the 60,000 s/f development site at 604-612 Tenth Avenue at 44th Street. The site is vacant land zoned for residential condominium development. Aliza was able to swiftly bring this site to market, selling it an excellent market price for her client.

Born and raised in Jerusalem, Israel, Aliza, who arrived in the United States eight years ago, comes to real estate sales with all the qualities necessary to succeed. Dedication, focus, and endurance were required when she served as a personal fitness trainer for soldiers in the Israeli army. And, the pursuit of excellence was necessary earlier when she competed in rhythm gymnastics and as a jazz dancer.

She started in commercial real estate sales four years ago and joined Eastern Consolidated two and a half years ago, and survived the first year by working literally seven days a week at two jobs.

Since her tenure with Eastern, Aliza has arranged 15 deals valued at over $140 million in the past two and a half years representing numerous property types including development sites, office properties, retail properties, co-op packages, and apartment buildings. In part, she owes her success to relationship building. Tenacious and conscientious, the sellers she represents give her repeat business because of the level of service she provides, and the results she gets.

ELIF A. BALI LOEWS HOTELS

Bali was recently appointed vice president of development of Loews Hotels. She also served served as the treasurer of NYCREW Network, Inc. for several years, and is a founding member of Women's Hospitality Investment Network.

In her new roleat Loews, Bali will continue to play an important role in the 18-property hotel chain's ambitious expansion, the largest in its 60-year history.

Bali joined Loews Hotels in 2003 as director of hotel development. Prior to this, she served as a vice president of Sonnenblick-Goldman Company, a real estate investment banking firm where she specialized in marketing, structuring and closings. During her five-year tenure, she participated in $2.2 billion in hotel capital transactions. Earlier in her career, she worked at HVS International, a private hospitality consulting firm, where she conducted hotel appraisals and feasibility studies. She started her hospitality industry career with Hyatt Hotels in Chicago. A graduate of Cornell University's School of Hotel Administration, Bali is currently serving in her fourth term as a board member of New York Commercial Real Estate Women (NYCREW).