Top Story
Congratulations to the 2020 Urban Open Space Award Finalists!
Eight finalists were selected for the Urban Land Institute's Urban Open Space Award, including San Francisco's very own Salesforce Park!
From Our Members: Observations & Opportunities
May 28, 2020
Join us every other week as ULI San Francisco leaders and members share their experiences and perspectives in this ever-changing world. Their views represent various real estate industry segments and delve into both professional and personal thoughts and ideas in this snapshot in time, and what positive opportunities can be found today, and in the future.
This time, we’ve asked our contributors to share their thoughts around three questions.
Meet this week’s contributors:
Savlan Hauser
Executive Director, Jack London Improvement District
Q: After two months of sheltering in place, what have you reflected on, both personally and professionally?
I am reminded it is a privilege to be able to shelter-in-place, keep working and avoid the level of risk our essential workers are exposed to every day. I am reminded we must prioritize safe, dignified work conditions for everyone, the inequitable distribution of which this pandemic has revealed. We’ve got to reevaluate the impulse to travel for a myriad of functions — not just because of the massive carbon footprint, for equity too. When no one can travel, we do things in a way that everyone can “be there” — it levels the playing field. Work events like conferences are less limited to those who have the personal and professional privilege to get there. As a Business Improvement District Director (and former kid street musician) I adore people-watching, busy streets, and public gatherings, so I think a lot about what defines a vibrant neighborhood, if today we should discourage crowds.
Q: What has surprised you during this time?
I’ve been amazed by the nimble, generous, and responsive pivots by many small businesses to meet totally new needs under unprecedented restrictions. I was surprised at how nonrestrictive the sheltering-in-place actually has felt. My normal geographic orbit and pace — what seemed far or near — is all relative. Despite the sadness, loss and sacrifice that is being experienced globally, I was surprised to feel a satisfying sense of teamwork in the collective, orchestrated effort towards the common goal of flattening the curve in our region. It shows we are capable of doing hard things and hope it means we might work better together on the next hard thing, climate change.
Q: Where do you see the opportunities as we look to the future?
I see opportunity in insistence on local sourcing, eating, doing commerce at a neighborhood scale, resilience-building of hyperlocal economies and reinvigoration of small-scale manufacturing. I see opportunity in resurrecting our secondary, tertiary and teeny tiny commercial districts because everyone should be able to walk to get the basic things they need. There’s a serious questioning of commutes and I hope that leads to more housing being built where people don’t have to commute long distances by car to work or for any of their daily needs.
I see opportunity in insistence on local sourcing, eating, doing commerce at a neighborhood scale, resilience-building of hyperlocal economies and reinvigoration of small-scale manufacturing. I see opportunity in resurrecting our secondary, tertiary and teeny tiny commercial districts because everyone should be able to walk to get the basic things they need. There’s a serious questioning of commutes and I hope that leads to more housing being built where people don’t have to commute long distances by car to work or for any of their daily needs.
Michael Yarne
Cofounder, Social Construct Company
Q: After two months of sheltering in place, what have you reflected on, both personally and professionally?
Being single and sheltering in place (SIP) has been both challenging and rewarding. Over the past several months, I have learned to embrace “the Great Pause,” my affectionate term for SIP. As someone privileged enough to be employed in a good job where I can work remotely, the biggest opportunity in this crisis has been the opportunity to slow down, get quiet and pay attention. With the myriad urban distractions and social busyness gone, SIP has been an opportunity to look inward and cultivate gratitude. I recognize that this particular opportunity is unique to being at home alone; my married friends with families are keen to remind me of this. But the lesson is, nevertheless, the same: embrace what is, don’t pine for what’s “missing.” I could be lonely during SIP, or I can love my solitude. I have chosen the latter.
Q: What has surprised you during this time?
On a professional level, my co-founder and I had to make some quick and difficult choices at the outset of SIP. As cofounders of a relatively young, venture-backed construction tech company with a prototype manufacturing facility, the sudden (albeit temporary) SIP closure of first proof-of-concept project in Oakland and our San Francisco warehouse upset our well-made plans. Out-of-the-blue, our product engineers and shop-floor fabricators had to learn how to collaborate and work remotely. Deadlines had to be adjusted. Our pending Series B raise had to be rescheduled. While I expected our team to be resilient, I was surprised by how SIP actually strengthened our morale. My sense is that when things return to “normal,” everyone will be personally closer, and our company will be even more focused on serving our customers by reducing the cost of building multifamily housing.
Q: Where do you see the opportunities as we look to the future?
The greatest opportunity is that a sizable majority of this country finally sees that we are, fundamentally, in this thing together. The last three decades of hyper-polarization and excessive “me-first” individualism (right and left) need to a major course-correction. As someone once said, there is no opportunity like a crisis. I’m confident that our cities will bounce back, because the logic of thick labor markets and human capital agglomeration is only growing stronger. Instead, my hope is that a new administration in Washington and a new Senate majority will prioritize massive reinvestment in transportation and energy infrastructure, universal health care and educational opportunity. If such a change is the outcome of this crisis, it could unleash a new wave of middle-class prosperity. I’d like our company to be part of that success story.
The greatest opportunity is that a sizable majority of this country finally sees that we are, fundamentally, in this thing together. The last three decades of hyper-polarization and excessive “me-first” individualism (right and left) need to a major course-correction. As someone once said, there is no opportunity like a crisis. I’m confident that our cities will bounce back, because the logic of thick labor markets and human capital agglomeration is only growing stronger. Instead, my hope is that a new administration in Washington and a new Senate majority will prioritize massive reinvestment in transportation and energy infrastructure, universal health care and educational opportunity. If such a change is the outcome of this crisis, it could unleash a new wave of middle-class prosperity. I’d like our company to be part of that success story.
Matt Chin
Senior Vice President of Acquisitions, Sares Regis
Q: After two months of sheltering in place, what have you reflected on, both personally and professionally?
The fragility of society and importance of gratitude. The day before San Francisco enacted shelter-in-place, I returned from a group ski trip in Park City, Utah. Little did I know, but that weekend would be my final days on the mountain this season and the last time I would see most of those friends in person. Covid-19 will ultimately be one of the defining events in modern society. Never before, has the world been so rapidly disrupted in such an absolute way. In a matter of weeks, the global economy shut down, consumer supply chains broke, healthcare systems were pushed to the limit, and our way of life as we knew it changed forever. Frankly, I’m still shocked by how quickly everything unraveled. Going forward, we will find a “new normal”, but this experience will forever serve as a reminder to be present and appreciate the moment because you never know when it can be taken away.
Q: What has surprised you during this time?
How completely oversocialized I was after the first month. Going into quarantine, I took every opportunity to connect with others. Standing virtual happy hours, check-ins with my entire rolodex of professional contacts, and catch-ups with long lost friends, my attitude was “more, more, more” to avoid the boredom of social distancing. At peak, I was on Zoom for over 10 hours a day. Ironically, in an attempt to escape the isolation of my apartment, I found myself trapped in an even smaller four-sided space: my laptop screen. I’ve since changed course and my daily goal is to do less, slow down, and focus on the fundamental activities and people in my life that bring me happiness. It’s helped immensely.
Q: Where do you see the opportunities as we look to the future?
From a real estate perspective, residential is a big winner. The safety, comfort, and convenience of a residence has never been of higher value. Going forward, housing costs will be prioritized and comprise a larger percentage of an individual’s monthly budget. More generally, it’s likely that a vaccine will eventually be developed and the health risk for most of the population will be very low. When that happens, the return to normal life will be entirely psychological. The companies who truly understand the dynamic between the demand for their product and the risk tolerance profile of their consumers will be the ones who succeed long-term. The real estate industry has historically been slow to adopt change, but here we have a great opportunity for those who dare to try.
From a real estate perspective, residential is a big winner. The safety, comfort, and convenience of a residence has never been of higher value. Going forward, housing costs will be prioritized and comprise a larger percentage of an individual’s monthly budget. More generally, it’s likely that a vaccine will eventually be developed and the health risk for most of the population will be very low. When that happens, the return to normal life will be entirely psychological. The companies who truly understand the dynamic between the demand for their product and the risk tolerance profile of their consumers will be the ones who succeed long-term. The real estate industry has historically been slow to adopt change, but here we have a great opportunity for those who dare to try.
Mary Corley
SVP, Director of Business Development, Rosen Consulting Group
Q: After two months of sheltering in place, what have you reflected on, both personally and professionally?
Working from home in the time of Covid-19 is not ideal, of course, but for those of us who thrive on the social aspect of the business of real estate, like me, it’s profoundly hard. What has also come into sharp focus, is my need to have a purpose, to contribute something, to complete something, to solve a problem. For me, the day’s and week’s value is measured by what is accomplished. In the age of Covid, getting things done seems to forever. While I am impatient for the re-opening of the economy I will continue to look for ways to connect with others and get things done until it is safe to do so in person.
Q: What has surprised you during this time?
During the Covid-19 pandemic I have to say our California governor has surprised me. I was acquainted with him when were both in our twenties and, frankly, not impressed. Over the years I watched his career with mild interest, tracking his personal disasters and political successes. I don’t think I took him seriously as a political leader, until now. After all, Jerry Brown is a tough act to follow. Newsom has become a true leader in this crisis. In the early days of the shutdown I would watch Newsom and marvel. He had such stamina and if not an eloquent speaker definitely a compelling one, addressing the science, economics, and social challenges of the Covid-19 crisis. In late March he concluded one press conference saying something like, “in the end, we all just want to love and be loved,” conveying a profound humanity I had not attributed to that pretty face. While we do not know when and if things will ever get back to normal, I feel hopeful about California’s future.
Q: Where do you see the opportunities as we look to the future?
Who can say where and when the opportunity will be? I know this much, however. California will always draw the problem-solvers, and the dreamers and schemers and those that provide them capital and real estate. In our world, the most successful providers of real estate in commercial and residential space are the ones who pay very close attention to the way people use space and then work extremely hard to translate that to physical space. I think of the industry folks from an earlier generation that have done this well and to name drop only a few: Art Gensler, Ned Spieker, Gerson Bakar, Steve Chamberlin. Yes, they have more in common than I believe our future industry leaders will have. And I have reason for hope. I have been associated with the Masters in Real Estate Development + Design at U.C. Berkeley. Given the outstanding work I’ve seen produced by some of the current graduates, I am incredibly encouraged and am hopeful they will stay in the Bay Area to plan, design, finance, and build the future we need.
Who can say where and when the opportunity will be? I know this much, however. California will always draw the problem-solvers, and the dreamers and schemers and those that provide them capital and real estate. In our world, the most successful providers of real estate in commercial and residential space are the ones who pay very close attention to the way people use space and then work extremely hard to translate that to physical space. I think of the industry folks from an earlier generation that have done this well and to name drop only a few: Art Gensler, Ned Spieker, Gerson Bakar, Steve Chamberlin. Yes, they have more in common than I believe our future industry leaders will have. And I have reason for hope. I have been associated with the Masters in Real Estate Development + Design at U.C. Berkeley. Given the outstanding work I’ve seen produced by some of the current graduates, I am incredibly encouraged and am hopeful they will stay in the Bay Area to plan, design, finance, and build the future we need.