6A — December 13 - 26, 2019 — M id A tlantic
Real Estate Journal
www.marej.com
P eople on the M ove
DITIO assoc. receives executive nomination in 48-0 vote Smeltzer appointed to PA Board of Certified Appraisers
LVEDChosts discussionamong Lehigh Valley’s CRE leaders
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assessors. In addition to pass- ing upon the qualifications and fitness of applicants for certifi- cation, the Board's functions include establishing standards of professional appraisal prac- tice and conducting hearings upon complaint.” “We are grateful to Governor Tom Wolf for appointing Mark to this position,” said DITIO president, Ronan Jones. “It is a testament to Mark's lifelong efforts, character and capa- bilities that the Pennsylvania Senate would propel him to this position with such an over- whelming vote!” Throughout hi s di st in- guished 41-year career, Smelt- zer has served in a variety of successful real estate valuation and appraising positions. Since 2011, he has excelled in the position of Director of Opera- tions for DITIO, incorporating quality control initiatives and pursuing diversified prod- ucts of the highest standard. Smeltzer is also a nationally
recognized educator who has taught numerous courses and seminars on real estate and appraisal topics. He earned an MBA from the University of Pittsburgh Katz Graduate School of Business. A longtime member of the Pittsburgh Metropolitan Chapter of the Appraisal Institute , Smeltzer has held several positions of responsibil- ity and he served twice as chap- ter president. In 2014, he was the recipient of the institute’s Barone-Berman Past Presi- dent’s Award and recognized as a Volunteer of Distinction. The appointment of Smelt- zer to the Pennsylvania State Board of Certified Real Estate Appraisers exemplifies DITIO’s leading vision to provide excel- lence in real estate valuation related services. DITIO has a long tradition of offering the best possible solutions for a healthy and successful real estate market throughout the Southwestern PA region. In other Barley Snyder news, attorney Abby Medin Tucker has been named to the board of directors at the Lancaster Housing Opportunity Part- nership (LHOP) . LHOP works to cultivate partnerships and resources to increase the availability of quality, fair and affordable housing in central Pennsylva- nia. It works with partners to help people of the community buy, rent or build a home. In addition to her appoint- ment, she has been named secretary of the board. “I’ve worked with LHOP in the past and it’s an organiza- tion that is always looking for ways to improve the quality of life in Lancaster through its housing initiatives,” Tucker said. “Affordable housing is a vital component of any suc- cessful and vibrant commu- nity, and the work that LHOP does is essential in Lancaster County and beyond. I’m happy to be part of the group that will help guide the organization’s future.” Tucker is part of the firm’s Real Estate and Business practice groups. She also is on the board of SoWe, a com- munity organization supported by LHOP which works to im- prove the Southwest Lancaster neighborhood.
ITTSBURGH, PA — DITIO , a premier provider of real estate
v a l u a t i o n services, is thrilled to an- nounce Mark Sme l t z e r , MAI, SRA, AI-RRS , will lend his ex- pertise to the Pennsylva-
LVEDC hosted a gathering of the region’s commercial and industrial real estate leaders.
Mark Smeltzer
The regional office mar- ket was also discussed. Jill Wheeler, Vice president of sales & marketing with City Center Allentown, noted that younger audiences are increas- ingly seeking smaller spaces in apartments. She stressed that the region should continue to tell and diversity Lehigh Val- ley’s story and draw attention to the urban cores available in the region. One of the ways to do so is through Made Possible in Le- high Valley, a new marketing initiative launched by LVEDC to share the success stories of the people and companies in our region and market Lehigh Valley as an attractive location for businesses and talent Attendees were also provided the first copies of the new Le- high Valley Commercial and Industrial Real Estate Report, which was released Nov. 14. Published by LVEDC, the re- port provides an overview of the region’s industrial, office, and flex markets, as well as major transactions and other economic data. The Lehigh Valley industrial market has grown to 124 mil- lion s/f as of the third quarter of 2019, with 2 million s/f in deliveries in 2019 so far and 6.4 million s/f more under con- struction. The Lehigh Valley office market currently includes 27.37 million s/f, with 629,000 s/f more under construction. Cunningham also highlight- ed recent major industrial and office deliveries in the Lehigh Valley. On the office side, that includes the the 295,000 s/f Five City Center building in Allentown, where ADP recently held a ribbon-cutting for its campus for 1,000 employees. Industrial deliveries include the Park 100 Bldg. A (730,000 s/f) in Upper Macungie Twp., 2900 Brodhead Rd. (515,000 SF) in Bethlehem Twp., Rock- efeller Lehigh Valley Building B (290,000 s/f) near the Lehigh Valley International Airport, and Carson 33 Bldg. A (140,000 s/f) in Palmer Twp.
UPPER SAUCON TWP., PA — The Lehigh Valley Economic Development Corporation (LVEDC) hosted a gathering of the region’s real estate leaders on Nov. 14 for a discussion about economic de- velopment and insights about the regional commercial and industrial real estate markets. “We wanted to sit down with some of you who are out on the front lines to understand what you see going on out there in the Lehigh Valley market,” said LVEDC president & CEO Don Cunningham . “We want to understand the challenges you’ve faced, the strengths you’ve seen in the market, and hear your thoughts on what we as an economic develop- ment organization ought to be focused on.” More than two dozen people attended the gathering at Melt in the Promenade Shops in Upper Saucon Twp., where Cunningham led a discussion among the real estate pro- fessionals, and provided an overview of the Lehigh Valley economy and trends in regional development. Cunningham said 16 of 38 currently active LVEDC proj- ects fall within the manufac- turing industry. This reflects a high demand for small-foot- print manufacturing and flex space in the 40,000 to 100,000 s/f range, for which there is currently a shortage in Lehigh Valley. “The number of people we have looking for this size range greatly exceeds the number of end users we have looking for 1 million s/f,” Cunningham said. “But right now, we don’t have the product to do that. What- ever can be done to create more speculative industrial flex, it can be met.” Brian Knowles , principal with Lee & Associates , said he has been using surveys to track industrial projects for 10 years, and that for the first time in that time, Lehigh Valley has more active projects than the Central Pennsylvania region.
nia State Board of Certified Real Estate Appraisers . The Pennsylvania State Senate confirmed Smeltzer’s executive nomination in an impressive 48-0 vote on October 23. In this role, Smeltzer will lend his long career of exper- tise to assist the certification of real estate appraisers and as- sessors in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As stated by the PA Department of State, “…the Board examines for, denies, approves, issues, re- vokes, suspends and renews certificates of appraisers and
Barley Snyder elects Lobach to fourth term as managing partner & Tucker named to LHOP BOD
fices has helped Barley Snyder increase its level of service to both existing and new clients, Lobach said. “ I t w a s
LANCASTER/YORK, PA — Barley Snyder announced the firm’s partnership has reelected
Jeff Lobach as its manag- ing partner and chief ex- ecutive officer for a two-year term starting in 2020. L o b a c h ’ s fourth term as managing
h u m b l i n g w h e n o u r partnership e l ec t ed me as the firm’s m a n a g i n g partner six years ago,” he said. “To earn
Jeff Lobach
AbbyMedin Tucker
their trust for a fourth term suggests their approval of the course we have charted these last few years. The partners and our entire teamhave stead- fastly supported our regional model of practice to ensure sustainability and success in our markets – and our future markets. I am grateful our partnership continues to have the confidence in me to lead the firm into the future.” Lobach is a member of the firm’s Business, Finance & Creditors’ Rights, Real Estate and Education practice groups, as well as the Construction, Health Law, Banking and Hos- pitality industry Groups. He has been named to “The Best Lawyers in America” list each year between 2013 and 2020 for his work in the Commercial Litigation and Corporate Law practice areas.
partner starts Jan. 1. The po- sition entails the oversight of operations and the long-term planning for the firm. In his six years in this role, he has witnessed the exciting growth of the firm from about 55 at- torneys in 2014 to more than 100 attorneys currently. The firm has opened five of- fices during Lobach’s managing partner tenure, in Harrisburg, Gettysburg and Schuylkill Haven in Pennsylvania, and in Hunt Valley and Columbia in Maryland. It has tripled the size of its existing Hanover of- fice and has moved its Malvern office to a technologically ad- vanced location that will allow for current and future growth. The firmhas heavily invested in its technological infrastructure and has implemented addition- al employee reward programs. Adding new attorneys and of-
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