​

agenda

​

​

Wednesday, September 11

 

​

Investment manager-only session

Location: CBRE Office, 500 W 2nd St, Suite 1700, Austin, TX 78701

Please note this session is open only to real estate investment managers. All attendees are invited to the networking reception from 6pm.

 

12.45pm: Light lunch networking & drinks

 

1.30pm: Welcome comments

• Co-chair: Jenalyn Groeschel, Property Risk Consultant, Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company

• Co-chair: Ty Barker, Vice President, Real Estate Services, Unico Properties

 

1.35pm: Update from the NAREIM Sustainability Meeting 

Member update from the NAREIM Sustainability meeting, which took place in Atlanta in March, led by:​

​

• Session leader:

  • Matt Christy, Senior Vice President, AEW Capital Management

​​

1.45pm: Contingency risk: What is acceptable in 2024/25?

What is an acceptable construction risk contingency for your firm? How much risk are you truly willing to accept as an investment manager? During this manager-only discussion, NAREIM members share insights into contingency funds for hard and soft costs, as well discuss in groups:

• How managers navigate key risks in today's inflationary and high rate market

• Strategies for Architecture, Engineering & Development leaders in communicating contingency risk to deal teams and portfolio managers.

​​

• Session leaders:

  • Paul D'Alto, Managing Architect, Real Estate, MetLife Investment Management

  • Jenalyn Groeschel, Property Risk Consultant, Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company

​​

2.35pm: Break

​

2.45pm: The use of consultants: Who, what and how do you utilize them?

How are managers best utilizing consultants for current and future deals? With transaction volume set to grow in 2025, members focus on open discussions around the competencies of consultants and internal strategies for successfully recruiting and selecting new providers. Key questions include:

• Who are your traditional and specialty consultants and what are the primary scopes of work bring utilized?

• What are manager approaches to finding new consultants/specialty consultants?

• How do you maximize and communicate the value of consultants in an era when every cost is being counted?​

 

Session leaders:

• Belinda Bail, Managing Director, Development/US Environmental Officer, BGO

• Joel Villamil, Director, UBS Realty Investors​

​

3.20pm: Break

 

3.30pm: Professional development: How to influence alpha personality types to reduce and resolve conflicts

​In this professional development workshop with Toastmaster and executive coach Bart Loeser, members work on techniques for reducing and resolving potential conflicts with executives, investment teams and on-site development teams, as well as learning how to influence strong personality types through body language, active listening, acknowledgement and validation. The session will also teach members how to immediately spot and resolve miscommunication and tension - before they build into challenging conflicts.

​

Session leaders:

• Jenalyn Groeschel, Property Risk Consultant, Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company

• Kerem Kuroglu, Development Manager, Prologis

Speaker:

• Bart Loeser, Toastmaster and Owner JBL Events and training

​​

5pm: End of Day One

​

6pm: Networking reception at Il Bruto, 1601 E 6th St, Austin, TX 78702. All attendees are welcome

 

​

​

Thursday, September 12

​​

​

Location: Hotel Magdalena, 1101 Music Lane, Austin, TX 78704

 

8am: Breakfast

8.50am: Welcome comments

• Co-chair: Jenalyn Groeschel, Property Risk Consultant, Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company

• Co-chair: Ty Barker, Vice President, Real Estate Services, Unico Properties

 

9am: Construction estimating: Have you got a handle on estimating escalating costs?

How are you planning for and handling escalating costs in a world of inflation and high rates? Together with Cumming Corporation, NAREIM members discuss current market conditions as well as how investment managers are looking and allocating risks across different delivery models, geographies and property types.

Session leaders: ​

• Tom Griesbach, Director of Business Development, ECS Limited 

• Jenalyn Groeschel, Property Risk Consultant, Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company

Speaker:

• Mark Fergus, Executive Vice President, Cumming Group

10am: Break

 

10.15am: GC bond insurance push-back and underwriting GCs 

Managers are increasingly being pushed to forgo GC bond insurance - but what does that mean for due diligence pros in architecture, engineering and development groups? How do managers manage risk without GC bonds and what metrics do they need to consider to consider doing their due diligence? During this expert-led session, members discuss the following issues:

• How does the GC bond work, what metrics are surety firms using to underwrite the GC business and what’s the likelihood of failure? 

• What happens when a GC fails? Is bond insurance worth the investment and time needed to make a claim? What are alternative solutions to GC bonds? 

• Members are also asked: What are current policies on having or forgoing GC bond insurance? 

• What is the process for approving or forgoing GC bond insurance?

 

Session leader:

• Nick Brinker, Senior Vice President, Construction Services, Heitman

Speaker:

• Kevin Claborn, Bond Manager, Liberty Mutual Surety

 

11.15am: Break​

​

11.30am: Solar: The realities of execution and the cost of future proofing solar

​From leveraging scale to rapidly achieving portfolio goals, how do you think through the realities of installing solar? This session dives into executing installing solar at your assets, and most importantly, how do you future-proof that investment? Through speaker-led whole room Q&A, NAREIM members lessons learned from installing solar at properties – particularly multi-unit residential – and asks the burning question on managers’ minds: What is the real cost of future proofing the renewable technology?

 

Session leader: 

• Matt Christy, Senior Vice President, AEW Capital Management

Speakers:​

• Drew Carney, Head of Construction, Black Bear Energy

• Ric SanDoval, Co-Founder, Executive Vice President, Green Generation

• George Stefan, Founder, Natemax

 

12.30pm: Lunch

 

1.30pm: Emerging fire risks of battery and energy storage systems

There doesn’t seem to be a day when we don’t hear about the precautions needed to deal with fires fueled by EV and electric batteries. But what does that mean for CRE? How are you thinking through space requirements and accessibility, especially in existing assets and for stacked mechanical parking; what is the impact of ADA and building codes on installations and what are your strategies relating to fire separations and suppression? NAREIM members review current strategies on managing EVs and battery storage as well as debunk some myths. 

​

Session leaders:

• Joel Villamil, Director, UBS Realty Investors

• Ty Barker, Vice President, Real Estate Services, Unico Properties

Speakers:​​

• Samir Mokashi, Global Service Line Leader, Building Codes & Performance-Based Design, Jensen Hughes​

• Joshua Klyber, Principal of Accessibility & Universal Design, Jensen Hughes​

• Steve Schneider, Senior Associate, Director of Fire Protection/Life Safety, Marx|Okubo 

 

2.30pm: Break

 

2.45pm: Indoor air quality: Red-flag tenants and the realities of IAQ strategies in a post-Covid world

Post-Covid all tenants are keenly focused on indoor air quality – but what are current best practices for real estate investment managers in terms of indoor air quality (IAQ)? What strategies can be implemented that balance IAQ with sustainability initiatives and energy efficiency? This session will focus on operational strategies and HVAC system and control technologies being implemented today to maximize IAQ without sacrificing energy efficiency. Additionally, we'll cover common low cost IAQ measures and modifications to existing operations, best practices for assessing the capabilities and limitations of existing HVAC systems and controls, and the applicability of each technology and control strategy based on building and HVAC system type. 

 

Session leader:

• Andrew Coats, Managing Director, Head of US Real Estate Engineering & Development, Barings Real Estate Advisors

Speaker:​​

• Nathanael Benton, Managing Director of Mechanical Engineering Solutions, Partner Engineering & Science 

​

3.30pm: Break

 

3.45pm: Hot topic environmental risks: What you need to pay attention to

NAREIM members walk through three key areas of environmental risk and emerging contaminants: PFAs, gas bans and water scarcity. With real-world examples and expert-led Q&A discussion, members will delve into the legal consequences of the EPA's listing of nine per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) as hazardous and discuss how managers are managing the risk of PFAs in assets, and the reality of deals failing. Members will also dive into the emerging challenges posed by local and state gas bans as well as the emergence of local code requirements limiting water use, and commercial and residential development.

 

Session leaders:

• Anne Faeth-Boyd, Director, Environmental & Engineering Services, Aegon Asset Management

• David Ridley, Global Real Assets Development & Engineering, JPMorgan Asset Management

Speaker:​​​

• Danny Worrell, Senior Counsel, Baker Botts LLP

​

4.45pm: End of meeting

​

Please note this agenda is subject to change at any time. Please check back regularly for updates.