Shown (from left) are: Ralph Benzakein, SIOR Downstate N.Y. chapter president; Bruce Wettenstein, SIOR, CT/Western Mass. chapter president; Gabriel Silverstein, SIOR, Downstate N.Y. chapter vice president; Angel Silverstein, SIOR; and Steve Perfit, SIOR.
Sponsored by Merritt 7, chapter members and guests recently gathered for a chapter meeting, networking, and dinner at 301 Merritt 7. Joining approximately 25 chapter members were 4 guests from the New York State Downstate SIOR chapter. The guests from New York participated in our regular chapter meeting, had comments about the semi-annual Chapter Market Report, and all agreed that future joint events involving the two chapters could be beneficial in growing collaboration between its members and their clients.
Our guest speaker for the evening was Craig Tagen, Clarion Partners' managing director. Clarion Partners is the asset manager for Merritt 7 Corporate Park. They have been the Merritt 7 asset manager for a number of years, along with Marcus Partners who is the property manager. Tagen spoke of his firm's position in the various real estate markets. Currently they have approximately $28 billion in real estate holdings in the U.S. across all asset types including office, industrial, retail, hotels, and multifamily. The company's holdings and focus are primarily in growth markets.