Tucson Association of REALTORS® - Tucson, Arizona - Oct. 2019

Challenge: Downtown Tucson has seen significant rental housing and commercial development in recent years, but limited growth in for-sale housing options. Tucson Association of REALTORS® (TAR) members indicated that they had heard anecdotally of demand for new owner-occupied attached housing in proximity to transit, culture, restaurants, and other services. TAR requested the CRE Consulting Corps analyze demand, identify barriers hindering a market response to assumed demand, and recommend action steps to foster increased downtown for-sale housing production. Read more

Agricenter International – Memphis, Tennessee 

Challenge: While it had a high-level strategic business and conceptual master plan, Agricenter requested the CRE Consulting Corps help it identify tangible action steps to implement one component of that plan—the Innovation District, a 40-acre development site that is the centerpiece of the campus’s research effort. Agricenter officials expressed the need to create synergies and catalysts for additional community involvement and economic development on the property. Read More

St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church – West University Place, Texas

Challenge: With strong community presence and active outreach and youth programming, the leadership was seeking strategic guidance on the best use of its land and facilities. In addition to Sunday services, St. Andrew’s provides a burgeoning early childhood education and childcare program, as well as group and private music and arts classes. Considering space utilization and optimization for these schools was part of the charge. Unlike the City of Houston, which is known for having no zoning, West University Place does have regulation, so church leaders asked the Consulting Corps to evaluate the effect of municipal zoning related to signage and facilities. The request was for the team to develop a strategic plan for the church’s real estate assets, consider how the congregation could address future needs, and plan for predictable financial stability. Read More

Catholic Diocese of Brownsville, Texas – McAllen, Texas

Challenge: Conduct an assessment of the Office of Buildings and Properties, review current staffing and operations and make recommendations to streamline operations and improve efficiency; develop strategy for creating an inventory of real estate assets held by the Diocese; recommend strategies for strategic growth and utilization of assets to monetize that growth; review the mission and vision of real estate planning to ensure it aligns with the mission and vision of the Diocese. Read More

Challenge: To assist with development of a strategic plan related to plans to vacate the St. Michael School facilities and help the church leadership plan for the current and future needs of the Church property. Read More

City of Chicago Heights - Chicago Heights, Illinois

Challenge: To partner with the City of Chicago Heights to develop a strategic master plan to repurpose portions of the Franciscan St. James Hospital freed up in the reorganization of its operations, taking into account objectives of all key stakeholders; develop a viable strategy that repositions the property for the needs of new users and also creates synergies to serve as catalysts for additional community and economic development. Read More

City of Thomasville — Thomasville, Georgia

Challenge: To provide assistance to the City of Thomasville leadership in defining a vision for the vacated Southwestern State Hospital property; and to develop a strategic plan, with action steps, that focuses on identifying the highest and best use for the property, creating a vision for the property compatible with the city’s other initiatives, recommending marketing strategies to promote the property, and addressing strategies to control, buy and/or finance the carrying costs of the property until the final re-development or adaptive re-use of the property is accomplished. Read More

City of Fairborn – Fairborn, Ohio
Challenge: To assist the city leadership with clarification of an overall real estate direction and process to strengthen the city and set it on a path aligned with its vision; to frame a redevelopment direction for a specific site—the Skyway Redevelopment—by analyzing its potential, defining the options, and providing short and long-term action steps for the recommended option(s). Read More

New Jersey Future – Trenton, New Jersey
Challenge: To partner with the client in development of a strategy for revitalizing the downtown area of Oxford Township in New Jersey; evaluate the downtown area’s development potential, help the township articulate and define its vision of a vibrant community center, and identify strategies and actions to achieve that vision; assist in development of a template to document the process. Read More

Challenge: To clarify realistic and attainable economic development goals and objectives for the 390-acre former campus of the Norwich State Hospital in Preston; assess potential ownership/risk structures for development; assess the Agency’s current organizational structure and marketing strategies; develop criteria to screen, evaluate and prioritize opportunities; and create a strategic action plan to attain the Agency’s vision for the property. Read More

Challenge: To assist in the development of an attainable vision for the adaptive reuse and redevelopment of the vacated Central State Hospital campus (approximately 2,000 acres and 200+ buildings) with a focus on job creation; to identify credible reuse options based on a SWOT analysis; and to prepare a strategic agenda for action to attain the vision, including a road map outlining the sequence of appropriate steps necessary to successfully implement the agenda. Read More

Challenge: To establish a strategic framework for managing existing Diocesan real estate holdings, provide an action plan for implementation, develop short term and long term strategies for expansion, and provide a “best practices” road map to accomplish strategies. Read More