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New York People and Company News, Week of July 17, 2026
- PGIM has hired David Blum as managing director overseeing U.S. high-yield real estate credit investments, strengthening the firm’s U.S. real estate debt platform as investor interest in higher-yielding strategies continues to gain momentum. In the newly created role, Blum will focus on high-yield real estate credit, supporting the firm’s ability to deliver flexible, value-driven debt capital solutions for investors and borrowers. He is based in the firm’s New York office.
- Robert Koontz has joined CBRE as Senior Managing Director, Head of Multifamily Debt Capital Markets within its Debt & Structured Finance team. Koontz, based between Washington D.C. and New York, brings more than 25 years of capital markets and structured finance experience. He spent 17 years at Freddie Mac, most recently as Head of Multifamily Capital Markets.
- The Durst Organization has appointed Lucas Durst as the company’s CFO. Lucas began his career at Durst more than a decade ago, starting as a finance associate. Most recently, he led the $1.3-billion CMBS financing of One Five One, the $250 million CMBS financing of 1155 AvE. of the Americas, and the $450-million CMBS financing of SVEN. Lucas Durst previously served as director of finance and is a member of the fourth generation of family leaders at the company.
- Park Madison Partners, a global real estate capital solutions and advisory firm, today announced that Brian Di Salvo, Partner, Head of Capital Advisory, will oversee the continued growth of its Capital Advisory business. A member of the firm’s Executive Committee, Di Salvo will drive this accelerated growth in his expanded role.
- Mack Real Estate Group (MREG) announced a series of leadership transitions designed to position the firm for its next chapter of growth. Priyanka Garg, who most recently served as Managing Director and Head of Credit Strategies, has been named President of MREG. Michael McGillis, who previously served as MREG’s President, has been appointed Vice Chairman of the firm. He will continue to serve as President and Chief Financial Officer of Claros Mortgage Trust, Inc., the publicly traded commercial mortgage REIT managed by an affiliate of Mack Real Estate Credit Strategies (MRECS). Brett Kaplan and Regina Lubin, both Managing Directors at MRECS, have been named Co-Heads of Credit Strategies, jointly succeeding Garg in day-to-day leadership of the credit business.
- Rockefeller Group announced that veteran real estate executive Mitzi Jones has joined the company as Senior Managing Director, Southeast Region, overseeing the company’s development business throughout the Southeast. Jones is based in the company’s Atlanta regional headquarters. She succeeds John Petricola, who plans to leave the company at the end of July.
- SitusAMC announced that Anne Jablonski, Executive Managing Director and Head of Commercial Real Estate, has been named the 2026 recipient of the CRE Finance Council’s (CREFC) Woman of Distinction Award. The award was announced at CREFC’s Annual Conference in New York City and recognizes a leading female professional in commercial real estate finance who demonstrates outstanding leadership, meaningful engagement with CREFC and the broader industry, and a commitment to advancing a more inclusive commercial real estate finance sector.
- Prismera, an artificial intelligence platform focused on critical lease and property data, appointed Jacob Lefkowitz as Senior Advisor. Lefkowitz joins Prismera with more than a decade of experience advising the senior executives, boards, and investment committees behind many of commercial real estate’s most influential institutions. As Managing Director and Head of Real Estate Recruiting at Marcus & Associates, he has built one of the industry’s most extensive executive networks across public REITs, private equity real estate platforms, institutional managers, owner-operators, developers, lenders, and family offices.
- Campbell Global, a leading timberland investment management firm and subsidiary of J.P. Morgan Asset Management, has promoted Michael Barbara to Head of Global Acquisitions, effective immediately. In his new role, Barbara will lead Campbell Global’s timberland investment activities worldwide, including investment origination, due diligence, transaction execution, and divestments. He will also continue his current responsibility as Head of Australasia.
- KBD Group (KBDG), a leading design-build construction firm specializing in commercial interiors, hospitality, manufacturing, mission-critical environments and complex construction projects, appointed Craig Bagnoli as Regional Group Leader for its New York and New Jersey operations. In his new role, Bagnoli will oversee construction and design-build projects throughout New York, New Jersey and the greater New York metropolitan area, leading regional operations, business development, project delivery and client relationships while advancing KBDG’s continued growth in one of the nation’s most competitive construction markets.
- The Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) has named one of New York’s most experienced community development leaders as senior executive director of LISC New York, a statewide community investment program that has delivered more than $4.7 billion to advance housing, businesses, health, education and jobs across the state. Blondel A. Pinnock has spent more than three decades working in community development, finance, and nonprofit management.
- Adirondack Capital Partners announced that Jake Logsdon has joined the firm as Senior Director, a strategic hire that expands the firm’s hospitality capital markets platform while further strengthening its national real estate advisory business. Logsdon will lead ACP’s hospitality initiatives, advising owners, investors and developers on the acquisition and disposition of hotels and resort properties nationwide.
- MONTICELLOAM, LLC, a specialized seniors housing and multifamily bridge lending platform, along with a firm affiliate, announced that Jason Liu will hold the deputy CFO position. Liu joins MONTICELLOAM following his tenure at SHVO Real Estate Group, where he served as Senior Director of Finance and Senior Controller, overseeing financial operations for a multi-billion-dollar real estate portfolio
- EW Howell Construction Group, one of the region’s leading builders, announces the retirement of Executive Chairman Howard Rowland, effective September 30, 2026, after 43 years with the company. Rowland joined EW Howell in 1983 as a Project Manager and has held various roles throughout the last four decades, most notably President, CEO, and Executive Chairman.
- VTS announced a partnership with SwiftConnect, provider of the connected access network for places and spaces, to enhance workplace access across the VTS Activate platform. The integration enables building owners and tenants to deliver secure, frictionless Street-to-Seat experiences while leveraging existing physical access control systems, reducing operational complexity and expanding access across commercial office portfolios, according to VTS.
- BHI, the U.S Branch of Bank Hapoalim, B.M. and a full-service commercial bank, has provided a $100-million capital call line of credit to KRE Capital Management, a newly-launched $42- million credit platform with a lending capacity of more than $1 billion that’s focused on investing in multifamily rental and for-sale condominium projects across the United States, with a geographic emphasis on the New York Tri-State area, Florida, and Texas. The financing will provide KRE Capital with additional liquidity and speed to deploy capital for target investments.
