Contributed by UCLA Ziman Center for Real Estate
A multidisciplinary team of UCLA graduate students won the 2016 NAIOP SoCal Real Estate Challenge held on November 17 at Carnesale Commons on the UCLA campus against formidable rival USC. Claiming the coveted Silver Shovel, the UCLA team consisted of second-year (Class of 2017) UCLA Anderson MBA students Joseph M. Pfeiffer, Scotty Weber, Nora K. Collins and Daniel Q. Gates, and UCLA School of the Arts and Architecture student Alyssa Koehn (M.Arch. ’17).
The annual event, sponsored by the National Association of Industrial and Office Properties (NAIOP), presents a specific real estate case challenge to a team of students at UCLA and USC. In addition to providing a rich learning experience that requires participating students to produce high-quality professional work within a limited timeframe, the competition is designed to showcase the talents and creativity of the next generation of real estate professionals.
This year, the Challenge involved a 5.07-acre parcel of land located at 10126 Prairie Avenue in Inglewood. The site, which is owned by the City of Inglewood, is adjacent to City of Champions redevelopment site, which includes the new NFL stadium for the Los Angeles Rams, a casino, 800,000 square feet of office development, 2,900 residential units, a 300-room hotel and park space. The teams were challenged to create and present the highest and best use for redevelopment of the site.
UCLA’s team proposed a project they titled Tribute. Inspired by locally-driven projects like the Platform dining and shopping development in Culver City, innovative food producers like Denver’s Source, and the sense of community at Arts District Brewery, Tribute aims to create a distinctive place for Inglewood. Tribute will deliver 41,000 square feet of light manufacturing in the form of “maker space” — an emerging movement of customer-facing production space — as well as 22,000 square feet of local restaurants and service retail and a 150-key lifestyle hotel.
“The team was presented with a tough site overshadowed by the adjacent mega-project, yet one that provided a unique opportunity to the emerging creative class within the City of Inglewood,” said Paul Habibi, UCLA Anderson lecturer and team advisor. “They crafted and proposed a thoughtful program backed by extensive market research, and through the introduction of a focused-service hotel, lively maker space and local retail, curated an optimal product mix that aligns with the demands and preferences of travelers and locals alike.”
“I am immensely proud of our NAIOP Challenge team,” said Tim Kawahara, executive director of the Richard S. Ziman Center for Real Estate at UCLA. “Our students came up with a very thoughtful project honoring Inglewood’s history and residents while also delivering commercial value.”
In its 19th year, the NAIOP USC vs. UCLA Real Estate Challenge celebrates the rivalry between the two schools and illustrates the robust real estate programs at both universities. The winning team is awarded the Silver Shovel, inscribed with all past winners. In addition, a $5,000 contribution is made in the name of the winning school to the Challenge for Charity (C4C) benefiting the Special Olympics.
The Ziman Center’s student competitions are generously funded by philanthropist Steven C. Gordon and the center’s Steven C. Gordon Real Estate Student Endowment. “I am extremely proud of the Bruin team but not the least bit surprised that they won. I wish them all the best on their adventures in our industry,” said Gordon, chairman and principal owner of Domino Realty Management Company.
Great, UCLA is about having another success. There’s your reward for all the hard work you put in. Enjoy every bit of it.
Posted by: Michele Cooper | 01/11/2017 at 04:12 AM