The State of Commercial Real Estate

Ben Graff, Quarles & Brady

Ben Graff with Quarles & Brady is an established Arizona land use and zoning attorney with extensive experience in government relations and Arizona politics. Ben authored one of the first Planned Unit Development applications approved by the City of Phoenix and has become one of the preeminent attorneys furthering creative downtown infill development. Ben has not shied away from the more unique land use cases, having secured the necessary approvals for Arizona’s largest utility-scale solar plant. He also played a prominent role in securing the approval for luxury resort, The Ritz Carlton in Paradise Valley, in 2015, and has vast experience zoning and entitling projects throughout the Valley. Luxury multi-family, senior living, affordable housing, single-family, industrial uses, office, mixed-use developments, and securing the approval for Arizona’s most prominent luxury resort are just a few examples of his experience. Ben will focus on expanding and leading the firm’s land use, zoning, and municipal government relations practice.

As an Arizona native with deep roots in local politics and experience influencing strategic decisions related to land use policy, Ben’s successful practice is sustained through his connections with the development community, planning staff, neighborhood leaders, appointed officials, and elected officials in towns, cities, and counties throughout Arizona. In 2004, Ben was appointed by the Governor to serve a two-year term on the Arizona Board of Regents. Ben’s interests in politics ventured beyond advocacy when on November 8, 2016, he was elected by the Maricopa County voters to serve a six-year term on the Central Arizona Water Conservation District (Central Arizona Project) Board of Directors.

His clients benefit from Ben’s extensive development and political networks and his long record of successes in obtaining governmental approvals for rezoning cases, use permits, variances, special use permits, abandonments, certificates of occupancy, site plan approvals, design approvals, and other various administrative cases. From Gilbert to Goodyear and Tucson to Flagstaff, Ben’s practice has contributed to communities throughout Arizona.

To hear more, listen to Ben’s appearance on Valley Business Radio in November 2019.

Connect with Ben Graff on LinkedIn and follow Quarles & Brady on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter.

Jason Wood, Quarles & Brady

Jason F. Wood is the Arizona chair of the Quarles & Brady Real Estate Practice Group, focusing his practice on a wide array of transactional real estate matters locally and throughout the country. In particular, he has significant experience in forming joint ventures, commercial leasing, acquisitions and dispositions, sale leaseback transactions, real estate secured lending, development and redevelopment projects, corporate mergers and acquisitions, construction contracts, condominium and mixed-use CC&Rs, and COREAs.

Jason has assisted his clients in acquiring, financing, developing, restructuring, selling, and leasing shopping centers, automotive dealerships, office buildings, hotels, industrial parks, apartment complexes, and raw land, among others. His real estate practice also includes the preparation and negotiation of joint development, cost-sharing, and construction agreements, as well as restrictive covenants, easements, and related project documents in connection with the development of master-planned communities, shopping centers, and mixed-use developments.

Jason’s banking and finance experience includes the representation of both lending institutions and borrowers in commercial financing transactions, including real estate acquisition, construction and permanent loan facilities, syndicated and structured finance, and the defeasance of CMBS loans.

Jason holds an AV® Preeminent Rating by the Martindale-Hubbell Peer Review Ratings system, and has also been selected for inclusion in Southwest Super Lawyers lists in the area of real estate law. He is actively involved in the Arizona District Council of the Urban Land Institute and the Arizona and New Mexico Operations Committee of the International Council of Shopping Centers.

Connect with Jason Wood on LinkedIn and follow Quarles & Brady on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter.

Storybook Entertainment has been bringing smiles to children and families since 2014. They pride themselves on providing high quality character entertainment, beautiful face painting, and terrific tween theme parties. Their highly-skilled, musical theater performers are considered the highest standard in children’s entertainment! From amazing voices to beautiful costumes, they bring magic to every party.

Learn more at storybookentertainmentaz.com. Connect with Storybook Entertainment on Facebook, and Instagram.

Visit the Scottsdale Children’s Business Fair on Saturday, April 27, from 10 am to 1 pm. Admission is free. Details are available on the website and the Facebook event page.

Sara Bernstein, Storybook Entertainment

Sara Bernstein, Owner and Queen of Storybook Entertainment, has been to countless birthday parties. Sara is a mom of two boys and while attending a party in May 2013 with both of them, experienced a wonderful party. The aunt of the birthday girl wore a gown and called herself Princess Fluffernutter. There was tea, crown and sword decorating, dancing, princess training, and of course, face painting. Sara and her children had so much fun that she decided to begin this new adventure of Storybook Entertainment. In her previous profession, Sara worked in theater for youth and arts education for over 10 years serving as Arizona Theater Company’s Education Manager. Sara is also an award winning director, earning two Arizoni awards for I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change (2008) and Les Miserables School Edition (2012) and two additional nominations for other productions of Seussical Jr. and Sweeney Todd School Edition. In Chicago, Sara has directed youth theatre productions including Really Rosie, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, The Sound of Music, and Flapper. As an actor, Sara has played Amy in Company, the Witch in Into the Woods, and Tzeitel in Fiddler on the Roof. Sara received a Bachelor of Music Degree in Musical Production and Direction from Northwestern University.

Connect with Sara Bernstein on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram.

The Research & Development Tax Credit

The R&D Tax Credit provides federal and, in most cases, state tax credits for efforts centered around developing new and improved products, processes, techniques, software, formulas or inventions. The new permanent research tax credit provides new opportunities for small businesses to reduce or eliminate Alternative Minimum Tax. Listen to this conversation to learn just how impactful this credit can be for your business — or, if you’re a CPA, Enrolled Agent, or other tax professional, for your clients’ businesses.

Tiffany Bisconer

Tiffany Bisconer, CPA is a Specialty Tax Incentive Consultant with Acena Consulting, a multi-dimensional tax and accounting services company supporting both public and privately held companies. While their roots stem from major national accounting firms, their client approach is more hands-on, conservative, and technically driven. Acena Consulting’s goal is pretty simple; they want to help their clients reduce their taxes and operating expenses to increase cash flow and drive overall business growth. At Acena Consulting, they still think a handshake goes a long way. Some might call it old school to believe that a handshake and long-standing relationships matter, but to them, they are part of their business foundation. Trust, ethics, and simply doing the right thing for their clients, team members, CPA firms, and alliances are the core values that have been a critical part of their continued success as an organization.

Tiffany Bisconer has over 20 years of experience in both private industry and public accounting, in both tax and accounting. She has worked with one of the top 10 Certified Public Accounting and Consulting Firms in the nation and is currently focusing on providing specialty tax consulting services. Tiffany works with CPA firms, and directly with business owners, to help educate and identify opportunities for tax savings based on these tax incentives. She is passionate about helping businesses thrive by bringing awareness to highly under-utilized tax credits and getting cash back into organizations so that they can continue to push forward their growth strategies.

Tiffany holds a Master’s Degree in Accounting and Financial Management, a Master’s Degree in Psychology, and a Bachelor’s Degree in Theatre Arts and Anthropology. Her desire to give back to the community and humanity as a whole has manifested in many ways, but has always been a driving force in her path of life. Tiffany’s personal accomplishments include being a three-time Ironman triathlon finisher, two-time Boston Marathon qualifier, international dance performer and instructor, published writer and photographer, a Ju Jutsu Blue Belt, and a 200-hour certified yoga instructor. She is highly self-motivated, enjoys the process of learning and refining skills, is passionate about cultivating growth within herself and others, and believes that true innovation is cultivated at the intersection of creativity and technical expertise.

Connect with Tiffany Bisconer on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram, and follow Acena Consulting on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter.

Software Development for Entrepreneurs

Vincent Serpico

Vincent Serpico is the founder and CEO of SerpicoDEV. The company has a single mission — to enthusiastically and expertly build great software for entrepreneurs, start-ups, and small businesses. Vincent has over 20 years’ experience as a software developer, AI data scientist, VP of Dev, CTO, business owner, start-up entrepreneur, and angel investor. Over his 20+ year career in tech, he has crafted a disciplined, methodical and repeatable process for implementing software projects that successfully make it to market on-time and in-budget. SerpicoDEV has been in business for over a decade and has helped over 100 businesses with their software development needs. He recently published Ready to Launch: An Entrepreneur’s Guide to Developing Software On-time and In-Budget.

Connect with Vincent Serpico on LinkedIn. Learn more about the AZ Founders Guild.

Jennifer Columbe

Jennifer Columbe is Director of Operations at SerpicoDEV. Her specialty is bridging the communication gap: between production and operation; between needs and resources; between multiple departments and stakeholders; between stated and unstated objectives; and–most importantly–between technology and the end user.

Connect with Jennifer Columbe on LinkedIn.

Learn more at www.serpicodev.com. Connect with SerpicoDEV on LinkedIn, and Twitter.

María Tomás-Keegan

María Tomás-Keegan is the founder & CEO of Transition & Thrive with María, a private coaching practice focused on helping women face major career and life transitions move through and beyond them with resiliency and grace.

María specializes in transitions—what she calls “the Upside Downs of Life.” A successful transition is grounded in the deep understanding of personal core values, a crystal-clear vision of the future and a passion for taking meaningful action to move forward. Her 30-year career in corporate management, coupled with her experience with life-changing events along the way, has evolved into compassion for women who feel they need to be super-human. Family, friends, community, and career make for a very full plate, and many women feel the need to be perfect at all of it, all the time. You’re not alone!

When life events turn a woman upside down, there is an alternative to putting on a mask, pretending they are just fine, while they are crumbling inside. Having tools in their treasure chest, and putting strategies into practice, can prepare them for any major life event. When they stumble, they can make it part of their dance.

Connect with María Tomás-Keegan on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Rawa Awad

Rawa Awad is the Creative Director and CEO of Ethár Collection, a luxury eveningwear line that focuses on creating high quality and classically designed modest garments for sophisticated women. Long sleeves, maxi length, fully lined garments made of exquisite fibers and detail construction helps meet faith based requirements of dress while promoting women of dignity.

A graduate of ASU, Rawa earned dual degrees in design and business management with a minor in architecture. Committed to her community, Rawa has found her love in nonprofit work. Combining this with her devotion to her faith, Rawa has grown into many leadership roles within the Muslim Community in Arizona. Her passion for design, business and community, beautiful intersect with the launch of Ethár Collection, a brand aimed to celebrate selfless women causing an impact.

Connect with Rawa Awad on on LinkedIn, and follow Ethár Collection on Facebook and Instagram.

Buying & Selling Businesses in Arizona

Do you want to sell your business but are unclear of the process? This is where the experience and expertise of LINK Business-Phoenix will help you with a clear plan of action to sell your business (with its Commercial Real Estate, if any) for the maximum amount of money in your pocket. They always have a list of qualified buyers looking for businesses and a proven proactive marketing approach for selling your business. LINK-Phoenix is committed to the successful sale of their clients’ businesses.

Selling or buying a business is time consuming and very difficult at times. LINK-Phoenix provides insight on valuations, market condition, and manage the due diligence process. This helps to remove the stress and anxiety for you, the business owner, and allows you to keep successfully operating your business.

LINK-Phoenix is part of the LINK family that started in 1996 in New Zealand, and grew internationally into Australia, the United States, and the Philippines. LINK is the most innovative and fastest growing international business brokerage in the world. They have world class IT Cloud based custom developed business systems, their own award-winning valuation tool to ensure accurate pricing of businesses, meaningful marketing tools and materials to get businesses sold.

Lisa Riley, LINK Business

Lisa Riley, Owner and Business Intermediary at LINK Business-Phoenix, has been serving clients in the Phoenix metro area as well as across the country. She has been engaged by a wide variety of buyers and sellers and provides a higher closing rate than the national average. Having earned the prestigious designations of CBI (Certified Business Intermediary) and CCB (Certified Business Broker), Ms. Riley is skilled in negotiations and is an experienced adviser and a key member of any business transaction team.

An active resident of Maricopa County, Ms. Riley is involved in both the local business and philanthropic communities. She is a member of the Arizona Business Brokers Association (AZBBA- Current Board Member and past chair), the International Business Brokers Association (IBBA-Current Board Member), Market Pulse Chair (a quarterly survey/report on Main Street and Lower M&A markets), M&A Source, and has been involved with several local non-profits since moving to Arizona. Working the last 10 years in the Phoenix metro area, she has access to a broad spectrum of business types and sizes. Additionally, she heads a team of agents specializing in various industries.

Ms. Riley holds a Ph.D. from the University of Notre Dame. She enjoys spending time with her husband, as well as traveling, hiking, wine, music, and enjoys helping others transition to the next phase in their lives.

To hear more, listen to Lisa’s appearance on Valley Business Radio in August 2019.

Connect with Lisa Riley on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter.

Violins of Hope

Violins of Hope tells the remarkable stories of violins played by Jewish musicians during the Holocaust. Today these instruments serve not only as powerful reminders of an unimaginable experience but also reinforce key lessons of tolerance, inclusion, and diversity that are pertinent now as well as for future generations.

The Violins of Hope have been played in concert halls and exhibited in museums throughout the world. They have been featured in books, print, film and television. They have been used in lectures and educational programs and their stories and messages have impacted hundreds of thousands of individuals.

In February and March 2019, Violins of Hope traveled throughout Arizona, visiting Tucson, Flagstaff, Sedona, and more than 30 sites here in the greater Phoenix area.

For more information, visit the Violins of Hope Phoenix website and Facebook page

Julee Landau Shahon

Julee Landau Shahon is co-chair of Violins of Hope as well as a Vice Chair of the Jewish Federation Board and the Annual Campaign Chair, a position she has held for four years during two different terms. She also serves as an advisor to the Women’s Philanthropy Board, having previously served as Board Chair and Executive Committee member. Julee also serves on the Board of the Jewish Community Foundation of Greater Phoenix, JFNA’s National Women’s Philanthropy Board and is a member of the Phoenix Steering Committee for Technion. A graduate of the University of Michigan and a member of Congregation Beth Tefillah, Julee lives in Scottsdale with her husband, Dr. Robert Shahon. When she is not working for the Jewish Community, Julee is a real estate agent with Realty One.

Rachel Hoffer

Rachel Hoffer, co-chair of Violins of Hope, is very active in the Jewish community locally and globally. She is the Jewish Federation NowGen board advisor and serves on the Federation’s National Young Leadership Cabinet. In addition, she is North America board chair for Youth Futures, a program of the Federation’s overseas partner, JAFI. Rachel has chaired numerous events and galas for the JCC, Pardes and Federation. She was co-chair of the capital campaign to move Pardes to the Ina Levine Jewish Community campus and co-chair for the capital campaign for Congregation Beth Tefillah’s new synagogue. In addition to her leadership roles in the community, Rachel is married to Jonathan Hoffer, mother of three girls and co-founder of Fanny and Martha, an apparel company that empowers women of all ages.

Stuart Gethner

Stuart Gethner is President of Gethner Education, Coaching & Consulting. GECC was founded on the principle of helping others attain financial security through investing in real estate. Regardless if you’re trying to create immediate cash or long-term cash flow, they show you the step-by-step principles, strategies and secrets to create success. They provide a community that focuses on positive & prosperous outcomes regardless of past challenges.

GECC believes, supports and teaches the various strategies of investing in real estate, including wholesaling, flipping, buying & holding, and short-term lending. Creative financing is their specialty, and they teach how to purchase property with little or no money down to create long-term wealth.

They start by creating clarity on your goals and then creating a plan to achieve them. They begin with the basic principles followed by producing solutions for the most common problems many struggle with: finding, evaluating, financing and crafting defined and flexible exit strategies. GECC has coached hundreds of students on how to successfully invest with tremendous results. Whether you want to invest in single-family residences, commercial properties, industrial complexes, land opportunities, and more, they are passionate about showing you how to achieve the freedom and lifestyle you deserve.

As a successful real estate investor, Stuart Gethner realized many people would like to invest in real estate for yield & protection: against swings in the stock market & the constant movement towards increased inflation in addition to increasing their monthly cash flow. They would like to be in personal control of their financial future. As a result, Stuart began assisting these individuals — from young people who would like to make their fortune, to those who would like to be personally responsible for their retirement regardless of what happens to Social Security, Medicare, or the Stock Market.

Stuart started by sharing his knowledge with others by starting a local networking community that meets monthly called Networking REI (Real Estate Investing) and hosts various educational classes and seminars. In addition, he started teaching real estate investment courses for the state association, Arizona Real Estate Investors Association and 12 courses for the National REIA. Stuart is also lead editor to the Phoenix Real Estate Agent magazine & National REIA Journal. He is a Senior Instructor at the Commercial Real Estate Institute where he has taught workshops on 10 different topics that over 10,000 students have attended.

Stuart was born in Chicago to a family of real estate professionals. His undergraduate degree and graduate degree were in the field of Business and Pharmacology. He moved to Phoenix, Arizona over 30 years ago and as a true entrepreneur, started three different and very profitable independent pharmacies. He sold all three companies, which are still in business today, and has focused all his attention on his Real Estate investment practice. Stuart and his wife Stephanie live in Scottsdale, Arizona with two daughters, one son, four dogs and a head of horses.

Connect with Stuart Gethner on LinkedIn and Instagram, and follow Gethner Education, Coaching & Consulting on LinkedIn and Facebook.

Gelie Akhenblit

Gelie Akhenblit is CEO/Founder of NetworkingPhoenix, the largest professional community of entrepreneurs, business owners and various industry professionals in the Valley. The mission and focus of NetworkingPhoenix is to help others meet their goals by building impactful relationships — online and in person through mixers, business events, and local educational partners. With over 40,000 profiles created on the website since it was launched in 2008, the membership keeps growing as professionals are drawn to the website because of the comprehensive calendar that lists majority of the networking events in the Valley.

In addition to running NetworkingPhoenix, Gelie works with clients and companies on a consulting basis in helping them grow — her specialty is marketing with a focus on relationship marketing. She is who you engage with
when you understand the value of that “one connection” that can change the trajectory of everything. As her tagline goes “Who do you want to meet? I’ll introduce you.”

As a seasoned presenter, Gelie has been on many stages and media platforms speaking on the importance of having a winning strategy when engaging in face-to-face networking and the power of building and maintaining strategic
relationships. In 2015, she was invited to deliver a TEDx talk on the topic of freedom. In her message, she shared her story of being a political refugee from the former Soviet Union and how her journey to freedom has evolved and led her to, relentlessly, chase after her dreams and happiness. When she’s not working on conquering the world she’s spending time with her young daughter, working out and enjoying the guilty pleasure of lounging in bed.

Connect with Gelie Akhenblit on on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram, and follow NetworkingPhoenix on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Southwest Behavioral & Health Services

Southwest Behavioral & Health Services is 501(c)3 non-profit that has been serving the Phoenix metropolitan area, rural Maricopa County, Gila, Pinal, Mohave, Coconino, and Yavapai Counties since 1974. They employ over 1,000 full-time staff, in addition to many contract positions and volunteers. Over the years, Southwest B&H has developed a reputation as an innovative leader in behavioral health. Their services are client directed, outcome informed, evidence-based and include treatment of co-occurring disorders, the FAST model in prevention services, the Arizona Treatment Initiative for children and families, and the Recovery Model for persons with serious mental illness.

Mental Health First Aid Training

Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) is a training created in 2001 by Betty Kitchener and Anthony Jorm, who recognized the need for first aid training in the area of mental health. Just as people must learn the basics to help someone in need when they have a physical issue, someone with a mental health issue can benefit from first aid care. The National Council for Behavioral Health was given permission to reproduce and update this copyrighted material to train MHFA instructors in the U.S. to spread this knowledge to anyone interested. The course is designed for ages 18+ because it teaches adults how to provide mental health first aid to both adults and children. There is an adult course, where one can learn how to help adults, and a separate Youth MHFA course where one can learn how to help youth and adolescents ages 12-18.

Peer Support Specialist Training

A Peer Support Specialist (PSS) is an individual who can offer help to a consumer based on their own shared experience of being in recovery. This can range from a mental or substance use disorder, or being the family member of a person with a behavioral health condition. Their job can include advocacy, sharing resources, sharing their own experience, mentoring, goal setting, etc.

Learn more about these programs at www.sbhservices.org. Connect with Southwest Behavioral & Health Services on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter.

Lynda Riford

Lynda Riford is the marketing director at Southwest Behavioral & Health Services and has been with the organization for 18+ years. She earned her Bachelor’s in Business Management at Western International University in 2009. She is passionate about the Mental Health First Aid program and sharing this important training.

Connect with Lynda Riford on LinkedIn.

Nicole Hein

Nicole Hein is a licensed, master level social worker (LMSW) with an additional Masters in Public Administration (MPA). She has been with Southwest Behavioral & Health Services for about 7 years and currently manages training, professional development, and evaluation for the company. She is committed to serving the public and helping people foster their talent and passions. She favors relational and transformational leadership and strives to emulate this style when working with clientele and colleagues.

Connect with Nicole Hein on LinkedIn.

Cindy Webb

Cindy Webb is the Coordinator of Learning and Development and Program Administrator for the Peer Support program and has been with Southwest Behavioral & Health Services for 6.5 years. She earned her Bachelor’s in Technical Management with an emphasis in Project Management at DeVry University in 2014. In her role as coordinator, she enjoys collaborating with both staff and consumers.

Connect with Cindy Webb on LinkedIn.

Learn more about Southwest Behavioral & Health Services.