Mar 11, 2004

NAIOP

The Girl Scouts presented the Totem Sculpture Award to the Washington chapter of the National Association of Industrial and Office Properties. The award recognizes NAIOP for choosing the Girl Scout Totem Council as the beneficiary of its Community Enhancement Project. NAIOP raised $60,000 for design and construction of seven Conestoga wagons at the scouts' Camp River Ranch in Carnation. The wagons include bunk beds for campers. Last September, 300 NAIOP volunteers and their families built the wagons, painted camp buildings and cleared three trails. The scouts presented the award to NAIOP Community Enhancement Chairs Jay Pickering, Bryce Taylor and Lori Hill.

Merit Real Estate Services

Kirkland-based Merit Financial, a provider of residential financing, has expanded its offerings with the launch of Merit Real Estate Services, which will cater to home buyers and sellers. Merit will offer centralized mortgage brokering, internal bank lines and real estate services, and escrow and title provisions through its affiliation with Platinum Escrow. Ryan Kadletz, formerly of GVA Kidder Mathews, is managing broker. The team also includes partner Shaker Culpepper, a past top producer with Coldwell Banker; Tamara Dean and Randy Dean, formerly among the top 2 percent of Coldwell Banker agents nationally; and Kelly Engel and Mark Rockwell, who were with Windermere Real Estate.

Bedford Property Investors

LaFayette, Calif.-based Bedford Property Investors President and Chief Operating Officer James R. Moore will retire in July 2005. Company officials say starting in the third quarter of this year, Stephen M. Silla, senior vice president of acquisitions, will begin to take over Moore's responsibilities. Rod Diehl, a vice president and regional manager for the real estate investment trust, will start taking over Silla's current acquisition and disposition duties. Bedford owns five office properties in the Puget Sound region, according to its Web site.

Windsor Hospitality Group

Charles Holt of Windsor Hospitality Group's Embassy Suites Portland was nominated Director of Sales of the Year at a recent conference. He led Embassy Suites Portland's sales team, which increased the hotel's annual occupancy rate by 12 percent in 2003. Windsor Hospitality Group is the hotel division of Windsor Capital Group, a California-based real estate acquisition, development and management firm. The group is the largest private franchisee of Embassy Suites.

Washington Land Use Law

Washington Land Use Law is the title of an April 15 - 16 seminar at the Renaissance Seattle Hotel. Among the topics experts will address are the new Shoreline Master Program, Growth Management Act updates and wetlands. Law Seminars International is targeting real estate professionals, lawyers, planners, consultants and engineers. Continuing education credits are available. Rates range from $347.50 to $695. For information call (206) 567-4490, (800) 854-8009 or write registrar@lawseminars.com.

Mar 04, 2004

Capstone Partners

Hubbard

Mike Hubbard has joined Capstone Partners as a principal in the Seattle office. He will focus on corporate, health care and investment clients. He was a managing director with Trammell Crow Co., where he executed transactions valued at more than $1 billion, and advised clients such as Boeing, Microsoft, AMB and Lend Lease on properties worth more than $3 billion. Capstone plans, finances, implements and manages real estate investments for investors and organizations in the Northwest and Nevada.

ERA Care Communities

Flaherty

Brian Flaherty is the new chief operations officer of ERA Care Communities, a Seattle developer and operator of independent and assisted-living retirement communities. He will oversee operations and play a key role in facilitating the company's expansion. Flaherty was general manager of the Four Seasons Olympic Hotel in Seattle.

Coldwell Banker Bain

Coldwell Banker Bain Associates had a blockbuster 2003. The Seattle company and Coldwell Banker Barbara Sue Seal of Portland comprise one company. It is one of three Coldwell Banker affiliates that generated the highest adjusted closed gross commission revenue last year. The Northwest company, which has 24 offices and more than 1,250 sales associates, exceeded $136 million in 2003, when it sold 18,145 homes and had a hand in 53 percent of all the million-dollar-plus home sales in metro Seattle. Jerry F. Galloway has been named to Coldwell Banker Bain's International Diamond Society. His 2003 sales total was $4.5 million. Galloway works in the Westlake office.

Forsythe Appraisals

St. Paul, Minn.-based Forsythe Appraisals LLC has opened a Puget Sound-area branch in Bellevue. Brian Smith is branch manager. It's the company's 19th U.S. office and its fifth new branch in the last six months. President John Forsythe says the company is one of the largest independent providers of residential real estate appraisal services in the United States. Hillcrest Capital Partners is the primary owner of the company.

Local Initiatives Support Corp.

The Seattle office of the Local Initiatives Support Corp., a nonprofit community development organization, provided more than $10.8 million in new market tax credits to U.S. Bancorp Community Development Corp. to finance redevelopment of the Albers Mill on Tacoma's waterfront. The project was to be done last week, according to officials of Heritage Properties, the Anchorage-based developer that is rehabbing the mill into 36 apartment lofts plus retail. Absher Construction Co., of Puyallup is the contractor, and Architects BCRA Tsang of Tacoma is the designer. The credits are aimed at stimulating economic development in low-income communities.

Kiel Mortgage

Kiel Mortgage President Laura Kiel has been appointed to the state Mortgage Broker Commission. The commission advises the state Department of Financial Institutions.

Windermere Real Estate

Ryan Shaffer has joined Windermere Real Estate's Wall Street office in Seattle as a sales associate. Previously, he was a sales engineer. Robert J. Calnan has joined Windermere's Ballard office as a sales associate. He was a freelance director and cameraman.

Appraisers' Coalition of Washington meeting

Labor economists Roberta Pauer and Chris Johnson will speak at the Appraisers' Coalition of Washington meeting on "Out of Recession - What's Ahead for Puget Sound and How to Track It." The event is from 11:30 a.m. to 4:15 p.m. March 10 at the Tacoma Elks Club, 1965 Union Ave. Cost is $65 and includes lunch. To register, telephone (206) 622-8425 or e-mail seaop@qwest.net

CREW's Annual Economic Forecast Luncheon

Michael J. Parks of Marple's Pacific Northwest Letter will speak at CREW's Annual Economic Forecast Luncheon at noon March 11 at the Washington Athletic Club, 1325 Sixth Ave., Seattle. Tickets are $29.50 for members of Commercial Real Estate Women and $45 for nonmembers. For reservations, call (206) 361-6859 by noon March 8.

Network of Executive Women in Hospitality

Network of Executive Women in Hospitality will host a panel discussion, "A Player's Guide for Hotels" at 3:30 p.m. March 15 at Cedarbrook, the Washington Mutual leadership center at 18525 36th Ave. S., SeaTac. George Duff of Cairncross & Hempelmann is the moderator. Panelists are Zahoor Ahmed of R.C. Hedreen Co.; Patty Davis of Nootka Hotels; Doug Dreher of The Hotel Group; Frank Finneran of Finneran & Co., Bret Matteson of Columbia Hospitality; and Marc Pujalet of Nobel House Hotels & Resorts. Cost is $35. RSVP by March 8 to Julia Davis c/o Picture Source, 5961 Corson Ave. S., Seattle, 98108.

Breakfast with Transnation Title

Lawyer Douglas Lawrence will discuss the state bar association's real property probate and trust section's Web site and listserv at the March 18 Breakfast with Transnation Title at 7:30 a.m. at the Washington Athletic Club, 1325 Sixth Ave., Seattle. Cost is $15. Reservations are due by March 15 and can be made by calling (206) 628-4650 or e-mailing kdean@landam.com.

Rental housing seminar

Koss Property Management and the Rental Housing Association of Puget Sound will sponsor a three-hour seminar, "Screen for Success: Strategies for Attracting, Screening and Selecting Good Tenants" at 1 p.m. March 20 at Ivar's Salmon House, 401 N.E. Northlake Way in Seattle. Cost is $75 for association members and $100 for others. To register, telephone (206) 729-3630 or write kosspm@earthlink.net.