By Tobias Bloom ’16 and Francis Smyth ’16

On Friday, February 27, the Real Estate Association spent the afternoon with the Related Companies, listening to insights from executives and touring existing properties and developments. The group of over 20 MBA students first toured the Shops at Columbus Circle at Time Warner Center, where the assistant general manager, Lauren Hammer, gave an overview of the tenant mix and shared some interesting facts about the property.  

Next, the group toured the Related Companies’s headquarters at Time Warner Center and met with Josh Young, SVP of Development, who discussed a proposed 10 million square foot, $8B development site in Santa Clara, California next to the new Levi’s Stadium. Josh helped students understand how Related plans to translate its expertise in developing mixed-use communities in New York (Columbus Circle and Hudson Yards) to the West Coast market.

Finally, the group visited the Hudson Yards development site, where they were able to view live construction of the 10 Hudson Yards tower from the newest section of the High Line. Geoff Butler of Tishman Construction discussed the complexities of building a platform over the existing rail yard and showed the group the location of the future Coach headquarters. In all, Related and its development partner, Oxford Properties, will develop more than 17 million square feet of commercial and residential space, to be completed in phases through 2024. The site will include 5 state-of-the-art office towers, more than 100 shops, a collection of restaurants, approximately 5,000 residences, a luxury hotel, and 14 acres of open public space.

Tobias Bloom ’16 is the AVP of Site Tours for the Real Estate Association at Columbia Business School. He is a first-year student focusing on real estate finance and investments.  Tobias previously worked for Swiss Re in Zurich and New York.

Francis Smyth ’16 is the AVP of Careers for the Real Estate Association at Columbia Business School.  He is a first-year student focusing on real estate investments and development.  Francis previously worked for First Annapolis Consulting | M&A Advisory in Baltimore, MD.