Meet the Speakers

Lisa Middleton is a neighborhood advocate and City Councilmember who has delivered pragmatic, common-sense solutions to some of our region’s greatest challenges. She’s an Independent Democrat with a track record of working with Republicans and Independents to get things done. Now Lisa is running for State Senate to advocate for hard-working families across Riverside and San Bernardino Counties, defend reproductive freedom, rebuild our roads and bridges, and demand accountability on California’s homelessness spending.

Lisa grew up in a working-class community and understands the challenges that families are facing from inflation and rising housing costs. She comes from a family of union members and went on to become the first in her family to graduate from college and earn a Master’s in Public Administration.

After graduation, Lisa worked as an auditor for California’s State Compensation Insurance Fund, where she helped investigate fraud and waste. She worked her way up to becoming Senior Vice President of Internal Affairs and served as Chair of California’s Fraud Assessment Commission. In the Legislature, Lisa will use this expertise to eliminate wasteful spending of our tax dollars.

In 2017, Lisa was elected to the Palm Springs City Council, where she has helped improve local transportation and infrastructure, combat climate change, build more affordable housing, invest in public safety, and address our homelessness crisis. As Mayor of Palm Springs in 2022, Lisa led the City’s economic recovery from the pandemic — helping small businesses reopen and create good-paying jobs.

Lisa also represents Palm Springs on the Riverside County Transportation Commission, where she is known as a hard-working, nonpartisan leader who invests in rebuilding roads, bridges and public transportation throughout Riverside and San Bernardino Counties, while creating good-paying, middle-class jobs.

In April 2019, Lisa was appointed to the Board of Administrators of the California Public Employees Retirement System (CalPERS), which helps build retirement and health security for 2 million California state and local school employees, retirees, and their families. She serves as Chair of the Finance & Administration Committee and the Vice-Chair of the Risk & Audit Committee.

​Lisa Middleton has long been a leader in the LGBTQ+ community for decades, working to protect and advance civil rights. She serves on Equality California Institute’s Board of Directors and will be the first out transgender person to serve in the California Legislature if elected.

Together since 2000, Lisa and her wife Cheryl married in 2013 shortly after they moved to Palm Springs. Lisa is also the proud parent of two accomplished educators.

Mike Gatto, a former California State Assembly Member and current overseer of LACERA's $75 billion retirement fund, boasts a career marked by legislative prowess and legal victories. With eight successful elections and four terms in the Assembly, he chaired influential committees, shaping policy in consumer protection, privacy, and utilities. Gatto authored 55 laws, including significant legislation, showcasing expertise in government finance, technology, and cybersecurity.

Gatto's commitment to public service extends to various roles in congressional and mayoral administrations, alongside active participation in boards and educational institutions. Mike also remains dedicated to community and family life in Southern California.

As global co‐head of research and strategy of real estate private markets, Erin is responsible for developing and executing the real estate platform’s overall research strategy and house view, leveraging predictive analytics and proprietary modeling that guide the acquisition and asset management real estate lifecycle. She works closely with the regional chief investment officers and functional teams in these efforts, contributing investment decision‐making insight and working toward an increasing level of sophistication and quality with regard to evaluating and advancing the investment thesis. In her role, Erin sits on the global real estate leadership team.

Previously, Erin was director of real estate research and strategy at Wafra Real Estate, responsible for executing and maintaining a research and strategy platform in support of the Wafra real estate team, fund, and portfolio investments. Before that, Erin was a senior vice president at JLL, where she led and managed engagements with major global corporate occupiers in various real estate portfolio and organizational transformation strategies. She also managed principal and investor‐side engagements that included real estate investment/portfolio strategy, feasibility analysis, and market impact studies. Prior to that, Erin worked at DWS, where she was responsible for leading research and strategy for office investments across the United States.

Sean Burton co-founded Cityview in 2003. Prior to joining Cityview, Sean was vice president of corporate business development and strategy at Warner Bros. Before that, he was an attorney in the real estate and corporate groups at O’Melveny & Myers, LLP and also served in the White House during the Clinton Administration. In 2022, Burton was appointed by the President and confirmed by the U.S. Senate as the federal nominee on the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority Board of Directors, which oversees Washington Dulles and Reagan National airports.

From 2013 to 2021, Sean oversaw the $20B modernization of LAX as President of the Los Angeles Board of Airport Commissioners. He also served as an intelligence officer in the United States Navy Reserve, as the co-chair of the Los Angeles Coalition, a coalition of business leaders for the economy and jobs in LA, and will chair the Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce in 2027. Sean holds a B.A. from the University of California, Irvine and a JD from New York University School of Law.

Dara Friedman is a Managing Director and Co-Portfolio Manager of the BGO U.S. Core Plus Fund. In addition to her portfolio management responsibilities, she focuses on new product development efforts and U.S. acquisition strategies throughout the platform.

Dara joined the firm as Senior Vice President and Co-Portfolio Manager of the U.S. Strategic Value Fund from Morgan Stanley Real Estate Advisors in 2017. At Morgan Stanley, Dara executed over $2 billion of real estate acquisitions through various asset classes, including office, multifamily, nonperforming loans, land development, and hospitality.

Prior to Morgan Stanley, Dara was an investment associate within the Structured Finance Group at CapitalSource Finance and an analyst in the Real Estate Investment Banking Group at Banc of America Securities.

Dara holds an MBA from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School and a bachelor’s degree in philosophy, politics, and economics from the University of Pennsylvania.

Jonathan is a Managing Partner at BGO responsible for BGO’s temperature-controlled logistics investments, globally, in addition to responsibility for the firm’s US Core Plus investing platform.

Prior to the merger of Bentall Kennedy and GreenOak Real Estate in 2019, Jonathan was a Partner of GreenOak. Mr. Epstein led the firm’s investment efforts in the Western U.S. and was responsible for the firm’s investment strategy, sourcing, structuring and asset management for the Western region.

Jonathan has over 30 years of experience in a broad range of real estate activities, including principal investing, finance and Investment Banking. During his career, he has been responsible for the acquisition, development, financing and management of over $70 billion of commercial real estate assets and companies, representing all asset classes, in the United States, Asia and Europe.

Jonathan is a current member of Urban Land Institute (ULI), International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) and the Pension Real Estate Association (PREA) and is a past member of the Policy Advisory Board of the Fisher School of Real Estate at the University of California, Berkeley, and past Vice Chairman of ULI in Japan. He is a Professional Advisory Board Member of the Rett Syndrome Research Trust.

Jonathan is a graduate of the School of Management at Boston University.

Sabeen is a Vice President on the Real Estate Investment team, where she is responsible for the evaluation and due diligence of real estate investment opportunities. 

Prior to joining Hamilton Lane in 2020, Sabeen worked at Pathway Capital Management on their investment team. Previously, she worked at Real Asset Portfolio Management where she was responsible for conducting due diligence across real assets opportunities, as well as client reporting. 

Sabeen received a B.S. in Business Administration with a concentration in Finance from the University of Oregon.

Alex Bhathal is Founder of RAJ Capital, the Bhathal family’s investment office including its Revitate investment management platform, leading the firm’s activities in the sports ecosystem and real estate. Since 2013, Alex has served as co-owner and Executive Director of Sacramento Basketball Holdings, which owns the Sacramento Kings of the NBA, the Stockton Kings of the G-League, MiLB’s River Cats, Golden 1 Center and Downtown Commons entertainment and sports district. In 2024, he led the acquisitions of Portland Thorns (NWSL) and the WNBA Portland expansion team which represent a milestone for the city of Portland and places it at the epicenter of growth for women’s sports. Alex serves as Alternate Governor for both teams. Alex was honored with the Orange County Business Journal’s “Businessperson of the Year” in 2025 and “Excellence in Entrepreneurship” Award in 2023. In 2019, Globe St.com named him “Opportunity Zone Investor of the Year”. He serves as Board Director for Compass Diversified (NYSE: CODI) and Mark IV Capital and is Chair of the California Coast Chapter of YPO. He is an alum of the University of California Los Angeles (B.A.), the University of Southern California (M.B.A.) and Harvard Business School (P.P.L.).

Jennifer Halvas is managing director of investor relations Cityview, a leading multifamily investment management and development firm. Halvas is a 10-year veteran at Cityview and a partner and member of Cityview’s investment committee. She will continue to report to CEO Sean Burton and support the continued growth and evolution of the firm’s investment strategy and initiatives; enable new capital development opportunities; and continue to bolster the infrastructure for existing and future investors.

Halvas joined Cityview in 2011, and prior to her promotion served as senior vice president of operations and associate general counsel. She was named a partner of the firm in 2020 and has successfully overseen fundraising for Cityview’s high net worth platform since 2019. Halvas has previously been responsible for the firm’s corporate operations including identifying best practices, implementing policies and procedures, and championing Cityview’s ESG strategic initiatives and its merit-based performance culture focused on innovation, transparency and inclusion.

Prior to joining Cityview, Halvas was counsel at O’Melveny & Myers LLP, where she represented a variety of clients in real estate, project development, and finance transactions. She received her dual Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics and Political Science, with honors, from the University of Southern California and her Juris Doctor from Vanderbilt Law School.

Daniel Kattan is an executive director at PGIM Real Estate. Based in Los Angeles, Daniel is responsible for originating structured real estate investments including senior and mezzanine loans, and preferred equity for the Western U.S., including the Mountain States and Texas.  

Prior to joining PGIM Real Estate, Daniel was with Canyon Partners Real Estate where he was a Vice President with a focus on equity acquisitions and high yield debt originations throughout the Western US. In his five-year tenure, Daniel was responsible for executing $430 million of invested equity equal to $1.5 billion of total real estate capitalization.  

Prior to Canyon Partners Real Estate, Daniel was an associate with Colony Capital, an institutional real estate investment management firm, with a focus on equity acquisitions and bridge lending. Previously, he was an associate with CliftonLarsonAllen LLP, a leading accountancy firm, with a focus on tax and accounting services for institutional and high net worth real estate clients.  

Daniel has a bachelor’s degree in history and graduated magna cum laude from the University of Pennsylvania. He is also a member of the Jewish Federation Real Estate & Construction (REC) Network of Los Angeles.

Anthony Russo ’15, a seasoned real estate professional with over a decade of experience, is a Partner and Managing Principal at CSFG Real Estate. A graduate of Duke University (2015) and NYU Schack Institute of Real Estate (2020), Anthony began his career at Sterling Project Development, where he honed his skills as a project manager from 2015 to 2020. In 2020, he joined CSFG as its first full-time employee, playing a pivotal role in expanding the firm's real estate investment portfolio across the United States and Europe. His expertise spans various sectors, including multifamily, industrial, hospitality, and retail, with deals ranging from $10 million to $100 million.

Jason Clouet is a Senior Vice President of Originations at Petros PACE Finance. He is a seasoned real estate and hospitality executive with 30+ years of experience managing 1B+ in transactions. As President of Hotel Capital Management, he grew a 300M+ hospitality portfolio and led complex acquisitions, renovations, and dispositions. Previously, he held leadership roles at Laurus Corporation, Neptune Hospitality Advisors, and Allegiance Hospitality, specializing in debt/ equity financing, asset management, and investor relations. Most recently, as VP at Bayview Asset Management, he originated Florida’s largest CPACE loan.

Jason holds a BS from Florida State University and is recognized for driving value through strategic growth, operational excellence, and deep industry networks.

Matt Friedrich draws on deep market knowledge and long-standing relationships to deliver practical, business-oriented advice. Matt advises clients on a broad spectrum of commercial real estate transactions, spanning various asset types and markets nationwide. He works with private equity firms, family offices, institutional investment advisors, REITs and real estate operating companies on a range of matters, including:

• Programmatic and single-asset joint ventures
• Property acquisitions and dispositions
• Real estate financing

With over 20 years of industry experience, Matt began his career as a commercial real estate broker before transitioning to legal practice.

Matt is active in the community, serving on the board of Make-A-Wish Greater Los Angeles and serving as a Vice Chair in the Jewish Federation Los Angeles Real Estate & Construction (REC) Network.

Mr. Lucas is a senior vice president in the Product Specialist group, where he focuses on Oaktree’s real estate strategies.  In this capacity, he is responsible for Real Estate group’s product marketing, investment strategy reviews, portfolio communications and new product development for the firm’s Real Estate Income business.  Mr. Lucas joined Oaktree in 2020 from J.P. Morgan Asset Management, where he was most recently an investment specialist for the Real Estate Americas business.  In his previous role, Mr. Lucas was responsible for real estate client strategy and new business development, including advising clients on U.S. real estate equity and debt strategies.  Prior thereto, Mr. Lucas worked in J.P. Morgan’s Institutional Advisory and Sales division.  He received a B.B.A. in accounting and finance from Ohio University and has completed Level II of the CFA program.

Mr. Waters is a partner and head of investments for the real estate team.

Prior to StepStone, Mr. Waters was a vice president at Clairvue Capital Partners, a real estate investment manager which integrated with StepStone to establish StepStone Real Estate. At Clairvue, Mr. Waters focused on sourcing, underwriting and managing investments in the U.S. and Europe.  Prior to Clairvue, Mr. Waters was an acquisitions associate at Starwood Capital Group, a leading global private equity firm, where he focused on underwriting investments for the firm’s opportunity and debt funds. Before Starwood, Mr. Waters spent over two years as an analyst in the Real Estate Investment Banking group at Banc of America Securities, working on a variety of M&A transactions.

Mr. Waters received his BBA from the University of Georgia

Environmental, Social, and Governance at CIM Group®. In this position she is responsible for creating and maintaining a comprehensive ESG plan for CIM, setting related goals for the organization and managing ESG reporting and communication. Prior to joining CIM, Ms. Gutierrez-Sullivan served as a Vice President of Cushman & Wakefield’s Global Occupier Services Sustainability and Wellness Practice, where she held a global position and managed a wide range of sustainability related programs. She also co-founded the Los Angeles-based Women in Green networking group. Ms. Gutierrez-Sullivan earned a BA from University of California, Los Angeles. She is a LEED Accredited Professional, WELL Faculty, WELL Accredited Professional and a Fitwel Ambassador.

Alain R’bibo is a real estate partner in the Firm’s Century City office and serves on the Firm’s Management Committee. Since joining Allen Matkins in 2006, Alain has advised the nation’s leading real estate firms including Blackstone, Hines, Tishman Speyer, Silverstein, EOP, JPMorgan, Kilroy, and Brookfield. Clients rely on him for high-stakes real estate matters including complex acquisitions, dispositions, leasing, and joint ventures, and is a leading expert on EV-related real estate projects. Alain is known for his strategic guidance through market cycles, risk mitigation, and practical deal structuring.

Marc D. Renard serves as Executive Vice Chair of Cushman & Wakefield’s Global Capital Markets Group in Los Angeles and leads one of the nation’s most successful capital markets teams focused on investment sales throughout Southern California and the broader West Coast. Mr. Renard and his dedicated team have closed over 550 transactions with an aggregate value in excess of $40 billion.

Since joining Cushman & Wakefield in 1983, Mr. Renard has completed some of the largest, highest profile, and most complex deals in the Western United States and has consistently ranked as one of the firm’s top producers over the past 20 years.