Real Estate Week

Real Estate Week is an opportunity for undergraduate students to learn about different roles in the Real Estate Industry and network with Real Estate professionals. This event is designed to provide a more detailed look at topics that are interesting to students now and to provide students with insight into an area of expertise.

Email corcoran.center@bc.edu for more information.

 2023 Real Estate Week

February 15, 2023- Fulton Hall-511

6 P.M

Perspectives on the Reimagining the Downtown

 

Session Speakers:

  • Mike Nicholas, President of Downtown Boston Business Improvement District
  • Joe Larkin, Principal of Millienium Parners 

 

 Moderator:

  • Jarvis Goosby, BC '24
7 P.M

2023: Boston’s Planning Priorities, Keynote Address: Arthur Jemison; Chief of Planning, Boston Planning and Development Agency

Moderator:

  • Michelle Horning, President of the Undergraduate Real Estate Club BC '23
7:45 P.M
 

 Reception with Invited Guests and the The Real Estate Council of Boston College 

February 16, 2023-Carney Hall 4th Floor

12 P.M 

Women in Real Estate Networking Lunch 

Moderator: 

  • Andy Bonilla-BC '23
6 P.M

Trends in Building Design and Operation to support Sustainability

Session Speakers:

  • John Martin (Elkrus Manfredi
  • Ben Myers (Boston Properties)

Moderator:

  • Robert Wolfe, BC '23
6:45 P.M

Housing - Striking a Balance / Responding to Demand

Session Speakers:

  • Patrick Lee (Trinity Financial)
  • Andy Waxman (TCB Inc)

Moderator:

  • Brigid Hanczor, BC '23
  • Andrew Namkoong, BC '23
6:45 P.M

Real Estate and Life Sciences: A Current Perspective

Session Speakers:

  • Colleen O’Connor (Biomed Realty)
  • Molly Heath (JLL)

Moderator:

  • Jack Greco, BC '23 

 Panelist Bios 

February 15, 2023

Changing Downtowns Panel

Mike Nichols

Mike Nichols

President Downtown Boston Business Improvement District (BID)



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Mike Nichols

Mike Nichols

President Downtown Boston Business Improvement District (BID)

Michael leads a visible, high-impact, 12-year-old organization that provides supplemental services within the 34-block BID to support a clean, safe, and welcoming neighborhood. The Downtown Boston BID works to promote and foster an energetic and thriving business climate in the area and serves as the voice and advocate for the area.  Michael has a long record of serving his community, He is an admitted attorney in Massachusetts with a BA and JD from the University of Connecticut.

Joseph A. Larkin

Joseph A. Larkin

Principal, MP Boston



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Joseph A. Larkin

Joseph A. Larkin

Principal, MP Boston

Joe directs the development activities of Millenium Partners,   MPBoston, including all permitting, planning, commercial leasing, asset management, programming, and more. For the last 20 years, Joe has worked in a changing Boston and seen what makes this city great.

Arthur Jemison

Arthur Jemison

Chief of Planning Boston Planning and Development Agency



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Arthur Jemison

Arthur Jemison

Chief of Planning Boston Planning and Development Agency

Chief of Planning for the City of Boston James Arthur Jemison also serves as the Director of the BPDA. He oversees the agency’s core missions of community-engaged planning, regulation of major real estate development, management of the BPDA’s real estate property (over 20 million square feet), and workforce training programs.

Jemison is a creative public-private development leader with over 28 years of planning and affordable housing expertise, working with community members to create equitable places in Detroit, Washington D.C., and Boston. Prior to joining the City of Boston, Jemison served as Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

Jemison joined HUD from the City of Detroit, where he was Group Executive for Planning, Housing & Development, leading the City’s efforts toward equitable growth, working in partnership with Directors of the Housing & Revitalization Department, the Planning & Development Department, the Detroit Land Bank Authority, Detroit Housing Commission, and the Bridging Neighborhoods program.

Before going to Detroit, Jemison served as Deputy Undersecretary and Deputy Director for the Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts under Governor Deval Patrick. Prior to that, he held a variety of public and private-sector positions, all related to city planning and urban development, primarily in Massachusetts and the District of Columbia. This includes service at the Massachusetts Port Authority, Boston Housing Authority, the then-Boston Redevelopment Authority, and in private development work at GLC Development Resources.

Jemison has a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and a Master of City Planning degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he was a Public Policy and International Affairs (PPIA) Fellow. Jemison is also a 2021 Spirit of Detroit Award winner, a 2016 Michigan Chronicle Men / Women of Excellence awardee, and a member of the team recognized with the 2013 Robert Larson Public Policy Award for Workforce Housing from the Urban Land Institute, on behalf of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

 

February 16, 2023

Sustainability Panel

John Martin

John Martin

President Elkus Manfredi



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John Martin

John Martin

President Elkus Manfredi

John H. Martin is an architect, industry leader and mentor.   His involvement with the design direction and intent on projects, his shared stewardship of the firm and his role in mentoring the next generation of industry professionals has garnered John respect and recognition from colleagues and peers.

As a Principal at Elkus Manfredi Architects, John works at the forefront of design for science & technology and higher education projects across the country.  Focused on high performance and sustainable design, his work is informed by his unique combination of technical precision, appreciation of context, and broad understanding of real estate issues. He emphasizes a holistic approach that synthesizes his training in both architecture and engineering.

John builds and facilitates strong design teams with his singular combination of experience, rigor, and approachability, and is committed to the idea that good planning and design can drive innovation and break down barriers to achieve inclusive environments.

John is a guest columnist for Fast Company, CoreNet’s The Leader, Banker & Tradesman and University World News.  He is often invited to moderate and speak at industry conferences on long range planning, sustainable building, interdisciplinary scientific research, and public-private partnerships for higher education institutions.  John received a Bachelor of Environmental Design in Architecture and a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from North Carolina State University, and a Master of Architecture from Harvard University Graduate School of Design.

Ben Myers

Ben Myers

Vice President, Sustainability, Boston Properties



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Ben Myers

Ben Myers

Vice President, Sustainability, Boston Properties

Ben Myers serves as Vice President, Sustainability, where he is responsible for sustainability and ESG strategy, implementation, reporting, and stakeholder engagement. He has a genuine passion for sustainable real estate and is committed to disrupting the status quo as an industry leader on climate action, resilience, green building, renewable energy, healthy workspaces, and urban ecosystems. Prior to being appointed to the role in 2015, Mr. Myers held positions in construction management at the Company, as well as green building services at Harvard University. Mr. Myers holds an MA in Urban Environmental Leadership from Lesley University and a BS in Civil & Environmental Engineering from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst.

Housing Panel

Patrick Lee

Patrick Lee

Trinity Financial, Principal



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Patrick Lee

Patrick Lee

Trinity Financial, Principal

Patrick Lee is one of the founders and owners of Trinity Financial, Inc. and Trinity Management, LLC.  Trinity Financial is a 32-year old development company, and with its management affiliate, Trinity Management, the two Trinity companies have more than 250 employees and central offices in Manhattan and Boston.  The companies’ experience includes work developing more than 9,500 units of housing and 600,000 sf of commercial space, at a cost of over $3 billion.  The two Trinity companies develop and manage affordable and market rate housing communities throughout the Northeast, from Massachusetts to New York.

Prior to co-founding Trinity Financial, Inc. in 1987, Mr. Lee served as Special Assistant to the Secretary of Administration and Finance for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Mr. Lee was the Secretary’s representative on a number of State boards and agencies including the Massachusetts Housing Finance Agency, Community Development Finance Corporation, Massachusetts Industrial Finance Agency, and the State’s Public Auditorium and Civic Center Grant Program. Mr. Lee has served as a member of the Board of Directors of the Massachusetts Government Land Bank, the Roxbury Neighborhood Council, the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce, the Boston Center for the Arts, and Federated Dorchester Neighborhood Houses. He is currently a member of the Board of Trustees of Wellesley College and the Board of Overseers for the Boys and Girls Clubs of Boston.  Mr. Lee holds a Bachelor’s degree from Harvard University and is a Massachusetts Institute of Technology-trained city planner.

 

Andy Waxman

Andy Waxman

TCB, Regional Vice President for Community Builders, New England



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Andy Waxman

Andy Waxman

TCB, Regional Vice President for Community Builders, New England

Andy Waxman serves as the regional vice president for real estate development, where he directs real estate development activities in New England for The Community Builders, Inc. He joined TCB in 2018. Waxman has been in the community development field for over 25 years.Prior to working at TCB, Waxman was the director of real estate at the Dorchester Bay Economic Development Corporation (DBEDC) for seven years. At DBEDC, Waxman oversaw a team which developed hundreds of units of affordable and mixed income housing, as well as community oriented commercial space. During this time, Waxman led DBEDC’s successful Choice Neighborhood funded Quincy Heights and Pearl Food Production Center developments. The Pearl project resulted in the creation of over 150 jobs, more than half of which have been filled by local residents. These projects were also recognized for their outstanding performance on employing local and minority residents, as well as contracting to minority and women owned businesses.

Waxman also worked for eight years at the Jamaica Plain Neighborhood Development Corporation (JPNDC), first focusing exclusively on commercial redevelopment efforts, and later as the associate director of real estate. Waxman was the project manager for the award-winning redevelopment of the Brewery Small Business Complex, a 160,000 square foot neighborhood center that is home to over 50 small businesses and employs more than 500 individuals. 

Additionally, Waxman worked at the City of Boston’s Department of Neighborhood Development, and at a small CDC in Washington DC called Washington Innercity Self Help. (WISH). He has served on the boards of JPNDC and Hyde Jackson Square Main Streets.

Waxman holds a master’s degree in city planning from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he won the Outstanding Thesis Award for his work on urban commercial

Life Sciences Panel

Colleen O'Connor

Colleen O'Connor

BioMed Realty Senior Vice President, Leasing, East Coast and U.K. Markets



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Colleen O'Connor

Colleen O'Connor

BioMed Realty Senior Vice President, Leasing, East Coast and U.K. Markets

Colleen O’Connor is currently Senior Vice President, Leasing, East Coast and U.K. markets after serving as Vice President, Leasing, East Coast and U.K. markets. Ms. O’Connor’s expanded role encompasses the management of six million square feet on two continents, and oversight of the leasing team in these markets. Since joining BioMed Realty’s team in 2014, Ms. O’Connor has elevated the company’s profile by establishing trusting relationships in the real estate, venture capital and science communities. Prior to her time at BioMed Realty, Ms. O’Connor worked in finance and accounting roles, most recently at Fidelity Investments in Boston, MA.

Molly Heath

Molly Heath

JLL, Senior Managing Director



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Molly Heath

Molly Heath

JLL, Senior Managing Director

Managing Director on the Cambridge team within the Leasing practice at JLL’s Boston office. Molly has over 13 years of experience as a strategic real estate advisor to investors and users within varied industry sectors, with a special focus in the technology and life sciences sectors in the Cambridge, Boston, and Inner Suburban markets.  

Molly joined JLL from Trammell Crow Company, where she worked with tenants and corporate clients in the Greater Boston market and nationwide. Prior to Trammell Crow Company, Molly spent three years working under former Lieutenant Governor Thomas P. O’Neill III at O’Neill and Associates, LLC. She provided community relations services for local and national development firms including community outreach; permitting, zoning and licensing services; and local government relations.  Molly was also recently selected for and is participating in JLL’s National Leadership Council Advisory Board.