WDC 2023 Programs

Upcoming Program

December 6, 2023 8:00 PM to 9:30 PM ET: Virtual Holiday Cocktails and Conversations

This program will feature dynamic female founders, including Kirstyn Shaw and Alex Gagne who will share their hilarious stories about growing their retail businesses. Following their presentations and Q&A, we will break into small groups for more intimate conversations. We will also share cocktail/mocktail recipes featuring women vintners/distillers and raise our glasses together to toast the holidays and our amazing ecosystem of women in development!! REGISTER HERE.

Recent WDC 2023 Programs

June 13, 2023 at 1 PM ET:  Room of Our Own: Design, Build, Scale: Leaping forward to provide housing for all.

This program showcased ground-breaking organizations who are rapidly designing, building, and scaling new housing to address homelessness and provide housing for all members of our communities. Our panel featured Elizabeth Funk of Dignity Moves, Holly Arnold of Gensler and Jennifer Litwak of Housing on Merit. Moderated by Faye Beverett of Bard Consulting, we explored key opportunities and challenges for deploying innovative design and construction technologies, providing services to residents and attracting capital to scale growth rapidly.

August 8, 2023 at Noon ET:  WDC Copia-Investor Collaborative Roundtable Featuring WREIC and Its Co-Founders.

WDC and the Women’s Real Estate Investment Consortium (WREIC) explored future collaborations to promote investment in real estate developments led by women. Our August 8 Investment Roundtable began with a presentation by WREIC co-founders, Jill Homan and Jenna Howard, followed by audience and roundtable discussions. WREIC connects accredited women investors to commercial real estate investment opportunities and leverages the expertise of its members to learn from each other about how to wisely and effectively invest in real estate. Co-founder Jill Homan is President of Javelin 19 Investments, a North Carolina-based real estate investment, development, and advisory firm, and Jenna Howard is Senior Vice President at Lockton where she works with public and private organizations to identify, assess, and manage their financial, operational, and reputational risks.

September 13, 2023 at Noon ET:  WDC Investment Forum: Guarantees – Partnering to Close the Capital Gap.

Securing guarantees are a significant hurdle when it comes to raising capital for development. Organizations across the U.S. are closing the capital gap with programs that provide debt, equity and credit enhancement for developers whose balance sheets don’t meet traditional investor requirements. We learned how these innovative programs are meaningfully reducing the systemic barriers faced by emerging women and BIPOC developers, and how they can be replicated and expanded to broaden capital access. Charmaine Curtis of Curtis Development moderated a panel of innovative capital providers which featured Miranda Walker of U.S. Bank and Reagan Maechling of Enterprise and Marseah “Marcy” Delatte, Principal Owner of New Orleans Restoration Properties.

November 2, 2023, 5 PM to 8 PM PT: WDC LA Fall Meeting Thursday Evening Program: The VIP In LA CRE

5:00 PM Program Started at the lobby of Downtown L.A. Proper Hotel (1100 S. Broadway, Los Angeles, CA 90016, a short walk from the LA Convention Center) followed by VIP reception at hotel’s Cabrillo Club room at about 6:30 PM.

Channing Henry, Karin Liljegren, and Morgan Sykes Jaybush, the masterminds behind the award-winning Downtown L.A. Proper Hotel, led a swanky VIP tour. Once a grand Renaissance Revival-style building from yesteryear, this 13-story, 115,000-square foot beauty now boasts a fresh new look courtesy of designer extraordinare, Kelly Wearstler, and project architect Omgivning.

We got a sneak peek at the innovative way they’ve transformed this spot into the talk of the town, listed on both National and local historic registers. Thanks to a water tank conversion, the hotel’s multi-level rooftop oasis features a pool, restaurant, and bar lounge with stunning views of downtown, making it a masterpiece worth seeing. Our tour concluded with a VIP reception at the hotel’s Cabrillo Club room.

November 3, 2023, 8:30 AM to 3 PM PT: WDC LA Fall Meeting Friday Program: Rewriting the Script – On Progress and Partnerships in CRE

8:30 AM –Omgivning, 1301 N. Broadway, Los Angeles, CA 90012(about 20 minute drive from Convention Center)

9:00 AM Program Started followed by 10:00 AM development tour and presentation at small retailers in Chinatown, Little Tokyo and Arts District.

11:45 AM Lunch and Afternoon Presentations–LA Cleantech Incubator (LACI), 525 S. Hewitt St, Suite 150, Los Angeles 90013

Friday’s program began with a light breakfast at Omgivning Architecture + Interiors’ new home at Søm, a coworking company for design-related professionals, a walking tour and finished with a dynamic panel at the LA Cleantech Incubator. Our tour made several stops along the way, exploring local cultural districts and women-led projects:

  • Walk through LA’s historic Chinatown neighborhood
  • Take the light rail to Little Tokyo
  • Walk to the Arts District and and to the Sixth Street bridge where we will hear about how Skanska’s leadership and direction on this iconic endeavor featuring women in construction
  • Finish at the LA Cleantech Incubator (LACI) with an overview of the innovative facility

We concluded with a powerhouse panel of LA’s innovators. These women entrepreneurs are writing a new script on innovative partnerships and lessons learned creating a new paradigm of business success in CRE: Karin Liljegren , Dafna Kaplan, Dalila Sotelo, Leslie Haro, Dana Trujillo, and Christianne Schrobilgen.

November 15, 2023, 1 PM ET: Virtual Developer Forum – Building Partnerships: Forward-thinking project delivery solutions

This program showcased innovative financing and construction techniques being used by development teams to achieve high quality projects with efficient design, reduced construction costs, and timely project delivery. Iliana Niculescu-Roman of SCCS Group moderated this experienced panel featuring Suzanne Brown of Equity Community Builders, Lia Tatevosian of Swinerton, and Joy Ou of Group i.

 Visit 2023 Archive For More Details:

  • January 11, 2023 at 1 PM ET:  WDC Investment Forum – Organizing Investment Club of Accredited Investors.
  • January 17, 2023 at 5 PM ET:  WDC Investment Forum – Organizing Investor Collaborative.
  • March 2, 2023 at 1 PM ET:  Room of Our Own – Disruptive Innovators Propelling Housing Forward.
  • April 25, 2023 at 1 PM ET:  Planting Seeds: How crowdfunding, micro-loans and philanthropy are catalyzing transformative developments.
  • May 14 & May 15, 2023 at the start of ULI Spring Meeting

Save the date!

  • Wednesday, December 6, 8 PM ET, Virtual holiday cocktail conversation with fabulous, trend-setting women retailers
  • Tuesday, January 16, 2024 at Noon ET, Looking Back Looking Forward – Inspirations and collaborations for the new year
  • Sunday, April 7, 2024, WDC in-person event before ULI Spring Meeting in New York City
  • Monday, April 8, 2024, WDC in-person event before ULI Spring Meeting in New York City