SoCal CRE Power Players Discuss Goals at Connect LA

The Connect LA event at the Indigo Hotel produced some thought-provoking discussion, not the least of which was a panel of CRE “Power Players” that wrapped up the afternoon. David Waite, partner at the Cox, Castle & Nicholson law firm moderated the conversation, that also featured Chris Cooper, Principal Managing Director at Avison Young, Clare De Briere, Executive VP at Skanska USA, and Carl Muhlstein, Executive Managing Director at JLL.

Waite opened the discussion simply asking for comments on current deals, and the responses quickly turned to the economic climate. Muhlstein said that JLL is in the middle of “the great reset”, with transactions going sideways as debt deals fall through. Cooper echoed the sentiment, calling it “the great pivot”, telling the audience it’s time to be creative. De Briere said the pandemic has caused a “flight to quality”, and that new office projects must be thoughtful, with an emphasis on workers and community. 

The office sector struggles came up often throughout the Connect LA event, and Waite asked the power players, why is the return to office important? De Briere quoted a New York Times article describing the need to be together, and creative collaboration is very difficult to achieve with Zoom calls. Muhlstein added that more needs to be done to incentivize the return to the office, such as cheaper parking and De Briere laid out other specifics such as sustainable and healthy buildings offering plenty of amenities with density on transit lines. 

The conversation then turned to retail and how the future will shake out. Muhlstein said matter-of-factly “say goodbye to Big Box” and with so much retail, landlords have been piggish. Cooper claimed the post-pandemic focus has been open-air shopping centers with services of necessity, while De Briere said mixed-use properties must offer good food options, because “a good environment at the ground floor will attract people to the building.”

The housing situation closed the discussion, and the panelists weren’t shy about what needs to be done. “Get out and vote” was the exclamation from Cooper who said it’s time to hold city politicians accountable to make changes, as the homeless situation is heartbreaking. All three emphasized the need for adaptive reuse, specifically, office-to-multifamily. Muhlstein said there’s simply too many vacant Class B and C office buildings, and government must make it easier for repurposing those assets to apartments. The JLL exec put the capper on the afternoon, exclaiming, “How are office buildings going to function if nobody can afford to live here?”

The “Power Player” panel provided some lively give-and-take for the audience to discuss at the cocktail reception that immediately followed at the Connect Los Angeles event, the first in-person conference in LA for ConnectCRE since 2019. 

Pictured left to right: David Waite, Carl Muhlstein, Clare De Briere, Chris Cooper