On Tuesday we spent the day reviewing the Retail Centers of America portfolio in detail, and also spent an hour with an Executive from the investment banking firm, Robert Stanger and Company, who updated us on trends in both non-traded REITs and BDCs.  On Wednesday, we did an in-depth review of the Realty Finance Trust.  Janice Stanton, the Senior Managing Director of the Capital Markets Group at Cushman and Wakefield, provided an excellent overview of the outlook for US commercial real estate debt markets.

I am pictured with Val Richardson, the Executive Vice President of The Container Store.  You may know that The Container Store replaced Barnes and Noble in the Spectrum Center near Reston Town Center.  Val explained the process by which The Container Store evaluates current and future sites for her firm. Ironically, her previous position was the head of leasing for Barnes and Noble, so she ended up negotiating the lease of the same premises for two different companies.

By Frederick Baerenz
President & CEO