From the dean >
BBA program soars >
Bonding on the slopes >
Meet the professor >
Inquiring minds >
Alumni, faculty maintain worldwide connections >
Making diversity count >
Program spurs entrepreneur >
GMSC presentations >
Building alliances >
What ever happened to...>
In the news >
Doctoral student "inspires" >
Kudos >
K@Emory celebrates fifth year >
New faculty releases >
Park project aid city of Atlanta >
BBAs mine information gold >
Real deal on work/life balance >


Real estate careers >


Alumni news >
Mentors meet ‘mentees’ >
First international board >
2006 class gifts >
Muta Issa ’04EMBA >
Class Notes >
Igor Saveliev ’94MBA >
WEMBA class endows
nonprofit scholarship
>
Marc Forest ’85BBA >
Intercontinental Hotels Group >
Remembering
Bart Herbert ’92EMBA >

Library fills research gap >
Art and business merge
at Goizueta>


Archived issues >

 
Atlantic Station sits on 138-acres and is the nation’s largest mixed-use urban redevelopment effort. The site features shopping, residential dwellings, and office space.

Real estate careers
Yield great return on investment

—Myra A. Thomas

It was a picture-perfect fall day in Atlanta in October 2005, and the excitement was almost palpable at the opening of the retail and entertainment portions of Atlantic Station, one of the nation’s largest mixed-use urban redevelopment efforts. The shopping, residential, and office project took the place of the former Atlantic Steel mill, turning what was once a fallow, contaminated 138-acre site into a thriving location. Bringing a real estate venture of this size to fruition required the work of countless investors, developers, construction experts, and more. At the helm of Atlantic Station’s project management are two Goizueta graduates—Bill Morrison ’99EvMBA and Patti Vogel Neal ’00EvMBA.

As vice president of development for Carter, an Atlanta-based commercial real estate firm, Morrison describes Atlantic Station (pictured here) as “the second largest private real estate development deal in the country behind the World Trade Center.” The development, when fully complete, will represent a $3 billion investment in the Atlanta real estate market by AIG and Jacoby Development. Carter currently handles leasing and management of office space at Atlantic Station, in addition to providing project management services for the office towers, open-air retail, restaurant, and entertainment venues there.

Harmoniously orchestrating all of the divergent real estate partners can be difficult work, especially when so much money is on the table. Investors and developers run a financial risk until the enterprise is off the ground and profitable. Retailers initially must take a chance on an untested location. But, when it all works out, says Morrison, “the visible and very tangible result is unmistakable.” Besides the economic impact in the way of jobs and commerce, he credits the project for giving people the option to “live, work, and play” in one location. And, as real estate professionals become even more attuned to the demand for smart growth, says Morrison, urban redevelopment efforts like Atlantic Station are even more crucial.

Morrison, a Decatur native, has spent seventeen years in the real estate field, including management spots in commercial construction, institutional investing, and program management. Morrison advanced through the Carter ranks, starting as a senior project manager in 1999 and taking over his current post in 2004. While he admits that his real estate experience initially got him in the door at Carter, Morrison’s Goizueta background helped seal the deal. Now, he leads the firm’s mixed-use, life science and technology, and sports facilities development areas, overseeing other recent efforts such as the USF Research Park in Tampa, Fla. and a minor-league stadium for the Atlanta Braves.

In 2000, after networking with classmate Morrison, Neal garnered a position at Carter. She currently serves as senior project manager for the company and was the senior person for the $215 million Atlantic Station town center portion of the development. Her interest in real estate goes back to her days at Purdue University, graduating in 1995 with a B.S. in construction engineering and management. After holding positions in construction management, development, and real estate financial consulting, Neal came to Goizueta’s Evening MBA Program to build on her financial skills. Today, the real estate arena is a much more financially astute one, and the image of the industry’s handshake deal is a myth, she says. Consequently, business school becomes a much-needed step on the way to a long-term career in the field. Now more than ever, business school graduates are in demand in real estate development and acquisition, engineering, property management, lending, and brokerage areas of the industry.

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5

 


^ top