The Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce is proud to announce the winners of its second annual South Florida Real Estate Achievers and Leaders (R.E.A.L.) Awards. The awards program presented today at Jungle Island honored individuals, institutions, professionals, students and volunteers in the Real Estate sector who have achieved success during the previous year while also being leaders in the community. In addition, the Chamber presented the Lifetime Achievement Award posthumously to Theodore J. Pappas, Chairman of The Keyes Company.
The 2012 South Florida R.E.A.L. Awards recipients are (by category):
Commercial Real Estate – Office: Tere Blanca is president and CEO of Blanca Commercial Real Estate, Inc., a brokerage and advisory firm servicing owners and users of commercial real estate. The Firm is currently charged with the leasing of nearly 1.5 million square-feet of office space, including trophy office properties 1450 Brickell, 396 Alhambra and One Park Square at Doral. In addition, the Firm has been engaged by multiple corporate users as exclusive tenant representative advisor for more than 600,000 square feet of space requirements. Ms. Blanca is active in the Young Presidents´ Organization (YPO) and CREW-Miami (Commercial Real Estate Women). She is a past chair of The Beacon Council, a member of the Board of Directors of City Year and the World Presidents´ Organization (WPO), a member of the University of Miami´s President´s Council, and the University´s School of Business Real Estate Advisory Board. She also sits on the ULI SE Florida/Caribbean Advisory Board.
Commercial Real Estate – Industrial: Malcolm Butters is president and co-founder of Butters Construction & Development, Inc., a privately held real estate firm engaged in construction, development, investment, management and leasing of office, industrial and retail properties. Over the past 22 years, Butters Construction & Development has built over 10 million square feet. Malcolm and his brother Mark, currently own commercial space in several cities in Florida and Georgia, including Boca Raton, Miami, Fort Myers and Atlanta. Malcolm Butters is considered one of the most innovative and creative developers in the state. He was one of the pioneers in elevating the architectural standards for industrial buildings resulting in aesthetically pleasing, award winning facilities. He has directed his company to design all future buildings to ´LEED Certification´ standards, so that all future buildings will be ´green buildings´, which will benefit its occupants, and the surrounding communities and have minimal effect on the environment. Butters earned a Master´s Degree in Real Estate from Florida International University in 1983, and a bachelor of finance from the University of Miami.
Commercial Real Estate – Retail: Adam L. Greenberg CCIM led BayBridge Real Estate Group to a 202% growth in revenue in 2011. As an affiliate of the counting and advisory firm Berkowitz Dick Pollack & Brant, BayBridge provides helps clients buy and sell properties by taking a creative approach to financing and deal-making. The firm´s growth is a result of flexibility, finding opportunities and understanding client needs. A majority of projects come from referrals and previous clients. The firm sold one building, ICE condo tower near downtown Miami, three different times. Adam is a member of the Florida Association of Realtors, the Realtor Association of Greater Miami and the Beaches, International Council of Shopping Centers and the Urban Land Institute. He holds an MBA from University of Miami and a bachelor”e;s in accounting from Florida Atlantic University. An avid dog lover, Adam is a founding member of the UnderDog Foundation, a not-for-profit organization that rescues, rehabilitates and secures adoptions for dogs, cats, horses and birds. He is also involved with Young President´s Club of Mount Sinai and Big Brothers & Big Sisters of South Florida.
Residential Real Estate – Condo/Townhouse: Gil Dezer, with an unprecedented $328 million in sales during 2011, President of Dezer Properties, is one of the youngest and most successful luxury high-rise developers in the U.S. Dezer, along with partners Donald J. Trump and father Michael Dezer, are credited with the development of six individual Trump-branded towers in Sunny Isles Beach. With a now-established track record of success in leveraging luxury brand partnerships within the real estate arena, Dezer recently announced a master licensing agreement with Germany´s Porsche Design Group to design a 57-story ultra-luxury tower in Sunny Isles, showcasing a one-of-a-kind robotic parking system which allows owners to park in ´sky garages´ directly next to their units.
Residential Real Estate – Single Family: As a Miami native, Ashley Cusack has been selling real estate in her hometown for the past 23 years. Her career began at Ross & Associates when she was 22 years old. Currently with EWM Realtors, she is consistently ranked among the top agents companywide. One of the reasons for Ashley´s success is her consistent presence and volunteering in the community. Ashley has always taken a very active role in the community, chairing and sponsoring important events for the Junior League of Miami, Beaux Arts, St. Thomas Church and School, the Race for the Cure, and many other charities close to her heart.
Real Estate Finance: Charles Foschini has led CBRE as its Vice Chairman in the capital markets division, dominating the state´s loan activities and defining their presence in Florida. He is responsible for business development and the structuring of complex debt and equity investments throughout the region. Since opening the office, Charles has been involved in the sale and financing of more than 300 investment properties totaling over $8 billion in value, including several landmark single asset transactions in excess of $200 million dollars. For the CBRE Americas region, Charles ranked among the Top 225 Sales Professionals of 2011. His team was recognized at the NAIOP SFL 2011 Awards of Excellence for both Industrial Sale of the Year and Creative Transaction of the Year. His team was named a finalist for Office Sale of the Year. And he ranks among SFBJ´s second annual 100 Power Leaders. A nationally recognized speaker, Charles has spoken before the ULI, ICSC, MBA, NAIOP, IMN, and RealShare. He is an adjunct professor at University of Miami School of Law.
Affordable/Workforce Housing: Stephanie Berman, President of Carrfour Supportive Housing, Stephanie Berman has devoted her professional life to working on behalf of the homeless and underserved populations of the community. Since becoming president of Carrfour in 2005, she has overseen the development and management of more than 20 affordable and supportive housing projects in Miami-Dade. In total, these projects have provided homes for more than 1,300 people. In addition to overseeing Carrfour´s current inventory of more than 1,140 supportive housing units, she has also lead the effort to assemble more than $200 million in funding to develop more than 500 additional units over the next three years. According to Stephanie, putting a roof over someone”e;s head and knowing you are changing their lives forever is a very powerful, priceless feeling. She was initially attracted to Carrfour because of the social work aspect of the job, however, soon realized that real estate was a vehicle for improving lives, giving people a fresh start and helping people escape homelessness.
Trend Setter: By using the power of Cloud Computing, Venturian is blazing a trail into the future of real estate. They will forever change the way buildings are imagined and designed. Venturian built the infrastructure of the first building in the world to be ISO 27001 certified, representing the pinnacle of information security. With the Cisco Connected Real Estate framework and a host of Cisco infrastructure solutions throughout the building, tenants can scale from T1 connectivity to 400 Gbps at a moments notice. And they can tap virtually any cloud service, from Venturian´s VMware-based services to hosting services from any preferred provider. Venturian was founded with the goal of helping companies build a strong IT infrastructure without the administrative and financial burden. They focus on your company’s technology, so you can focus on your company. Their commitment to unconditional customer satisfaction has launched us to the forefront of the Cloud Computing revolution.
The 2012 South Florida R.E.A.L. Awards were presented by MIAMI Association of Realtors and made possible by: award sponsors: Gibraltar Private Bank and Trust; Goldstein Schechter Koch; The Miami Herald/El Nuevo Herald; sponsored by: Blue Wave Communications/Check Point Technologies; Leblon Caipirinhas; in collaboration with: Commercial Industrial Association of South Florida; Womens Association of Commercial Real Estate; table sponsors: BDO USA, LLP; Bilzin Sumberg Baena Price & Axelrod; EWM Realtors; Habitat for Humanity of Greater Miami; The Butters Group; The Keyes Company.
About the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce
The Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce is the voice of business in South Florida, representing more than 400,000 employees of member companies. To carry out its mission, the Chamber involves the private sector in community leadership. For more than a century, the Chamber has been widely recognized and respected for its extraordinary record of economic development and community improvement. The Greater Miami Chamber is a proactive chamber, regularly getting engaged in issues important to its member companies and individuals. Its program of work is organized in five areas: Domestic Business Development, Governmental Affairs, International Business Development, Leadership Programs and Marketing & Member Services. The Chamber is nationally recognized as one of the Top 10 Executive Speaking Forums in America.