In episode # 30 of Industry Insights podcast, Christian Salaman returns to join host Joel Simon to provide insights on the current recovery of the hospitality industry, the latest trends for owners and managers and the impact across other asset classes like senior residences and student housing.
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The Real Estate and Construction industry may be huge, but ultimately, as with all industries, it comes down to the people who help make it all come together. From time to time, we like to profile some of those people.
Nik Bandak is the president of Bandak Project Management, a company he started in June of 2020 after a good deal of external pressure from friends, clients and his network. Nik’s career path began not long after graduating from Saint Mary’s College of California in 2008 with a degree in financial services. Nik worked in the Bay Area as a laborer, carpenter, project manager and then estimator with a concrete subcontractor. Realizing he wanted international experience, Nik moved to the United Arab Emirates to work for Bechtel on the Khalifa Port and Industrial Zone. After getting engaged, Nik and his future wife, Kelly, decided to move back to Southern California where he was hired in the Construction Management division of a small San Diego-based commercial real estate firm. Nik, Kelly and their twin sons currently live in Southern California.
In episode #29 of Industry Insights podcast, Andrew Weiner joins host Joel Simon for the second episode of our two-part examination of the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA). In this episode, Weiner turns his attention to the unanswered questions and ambiguity underlying phrases like “beneficial owner” and “substantial control.”
The Real Estate and Construction industry may be huge, but ultimately, as with all industries, it comes down to the people who help make it all come together. From time to time, we like to profile some of those people.
Ryley Poblete is a Senior Designer with global design and architecture firm Gensler, having spent the better part of the last decade working in the company’s Sciences Practice developing a portfolio of work centered around life sciences. An avid runner, urbanist, photographer, artist and policy enthusiast, Ryley can be found, in his spare time, “reading the newest Economist or digging into a project’s context to really define a new piece of architecture in the cities” in which he works. Asked how he’d describe his job to a layperson, Ryley adds, “I work with developers and biotech clients in planning and structuring developments to best suit their situation.”
Hydrogen is the new buzzword in every industry, and real estate is no exception. Hydrogen does not emit carbon dioxide when burnt and could therefore help reduce the climate impact of buildings, which in aggregate represent one of the biggest emitters of greenhouse gases after industry and surface transport. To the extent that hydrogen is to become an important power source globally, it will need to enter the domestic power market. The first step appears to be the development of pilot villages.
Outfitting a commercial real estate space with smart technology can be a significant cost. While the long-term benefits and strategic improvements we’ve discussed previously can make that investment worthwhile, the evaluation period is critical to ensure an impactful ROI. Property developers, owners, and managers should undertake a rigorous evaluation process to ensure the technology procurement aligns with the project’s overall financial plan. And this is not just about getting the cost right. If the technology does not meet the needs of the space, then all the smart technology in the world will not prevent the project from being a sunk cost.
One year into the pandemic, courts have almost uniformly found that COVID-19 does not permit commercial tenants to avoid their rent payment obligations. In this case, the court continued that trend, ruling that the pandemic was not a “casualty” that permits a tenant to abate its rent payments or cancel its lease. Authors Patrick J. Potter, Christian A. Buerger, Hugh M. McDonald, Patrick E. Fitzmaurice, and Jonathan Doolittle discuss a new case from the Southern District of New York that extends the trend of courts enforcing leases against tenants forced to close due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in “Court Finds Pandemic Does Not Satisfy Lease’s Casualty Clause.”
The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 permits Shuttered Venue Operators to apply for both Paycheck Protection Program loans and Shuttered Venue Operator Grants. The American Rescue Plan Act, signed into law on March 11, 2021 and summarized here, includes a brief but important section that will permit the recipients of Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans issued after December 27, 2020 to remain eligible for grants under the “Grants for Shuttered Venue Operators” (Grants) program, which the Small Business Administration (SBA) has yet to launch. Cecilia C. Wang, Jenny Y. Liu provide additional insights in “Congress Appropriates New Funds, Extends Eligibility for Shuttered Venue Operator Grants.”
Gravel2Gavel Construction & Real Estate Law Blog