Mobile Tours to Highlight Innovative Real Estate Developments throughout Metro Area

For more information, contact: Trisha Riggs at 202/624-7086

WASHINGTON (February 2, 2016) – Vanguard Chairman and Chief Executive Officer F. William McNabb III is headlining an impressive list of speakers at the Urban Land Institute’s (ULI) 2016 Spring Meeting, set for April 19-21 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia. ULI is a global research and education institute dedicated to responsible land use and creating thriving, sustainable communities.

The Spring Meeting, open only to ULI full members, routinely draws nearly 3,000 attendees, including renowned industry experts from around the world providing insights on all aspects of real estate. McNabb, who will be interviewed during the opening general session by ULI leader William J. Ferguson, is expected to share thoughts on leadership and the economic outlook, both of which are key areas of focus for ULI. Ferguson, chairman and chief executive officer of Ferguson Partners Ltd. and co-chairman and co-chief executive officer of the FPL Advisory Group, is the author of the ULI publication, Keepers of the Castle: Real Estate Executives on Leadership and Management.

Another high-profile event at the meeting will be “A New National Housing Policy,” a discussion featuring former U.S. Senator Scott Brown, (R-Massachusetts); Daryl Carter, chairman and chief executive officer of Avanath Capital Management; Renee Glover, founder and managing member of the Catalyst Group LLC; and J. Ronald Terwilliger, founder of the ULI Terwilliger Center for Housing and chairman of Terwilliger Pappas Multifamily Partners. More than 20 real estate sessions are planned on an array of topics such as: the long-term industry forecast, successful public-private partnerships, reclaiming the waterfront, the latest in retail development, trends in transit-oriented development, anchor institutions as economic development catalysts, innovative housing design, and the future of suburbs.

A major focus for the 2016 gathering will be creative place making that is transforming cities across the United States. Several mobile tours are planned to showcase Philadelphia’s progress in this urban evolution, including tours of developments in University City, the Navy Yard, Center City, East Market Street, North Broad Street, and West Market; as well as a tour of public spaces along Benjamin Franklin Parkway; a biking tour along the city’s urban trail; and a tour of redevelopment in Camden, New Jersey.

In recent years, Philadelphia has regained much of its urban population due to key investments in residential and mixed-use development throughout its downtown neighborhoods. The concentration of technology companies and other knowledge-based businesses within the urban core has made the city more attractive to millennials, who are seeking vibrant places to live, work, and play. More than $6.7 billion of new developments are under construction, including the highly anticipated Comcast Innovation and Technology Center in the West Market neighborhood, a $1.2 billion, 59-story commercial and retail complex that will be the third tallest building in the U.S. when it is completed in 2017 by Liberty Property Trust; as well as significant residential, office and mixed-use developments by Brandywine Realty Trust connecting Center City and University City.

“The timing is perfect for bringing a ULI global meeting to Philadelphia — a city rich with history that is now experiencing a 21^st century renaissance,” said ULI Global Chief Executive Officer Patrick L. Phillips. “At our 2016 Spring Meeting in Philadelphia, our members can look forward to a program with rich content and excellent networking events, as well as the opportunity to see how collaborative efforts between the public, private, and non-profit sectors are making one of America’s finest cities even better.”

Liberty Property Trust and Brandywine Realty Trust are the two Icon sponsors for the 2016 Spring Meeting. Other sponsors of the meeting include Allen Matkins; CBRE; Colliers International; Cushman & Wakefield; First Niagara; and Greenberg Traurig.

The 2016 Spring Meeting Steering Committee is being co-chaired by three ULI leaders: William P. Hankowsky, Chairman, President, and Chief Executive Officer of Liberty Property Trust; Gerard H. Sweeney, President and Chief Executive Officer, Brandywine Realty Trust; and former ULI Global Chairman and current ULI Trustee Marilyn Jordan Taylor, Dean and Paley Professor at the University of Pennsylvania School of Design.

The meeting’s Host Committee, which is charged with maximizing the visibility of the Philadelphia metropolitan area real estate market to meeting attendees, is being co-chaired by ULI Philadelphia District Council Chairman Antonio Fiol-Silva, Principal at Wallace Roberts and Todd; and past ULI Philadelphia District Council Chairman, John E. “Jack” Farrell, President and Chief Executive Officer of The Norwood Company and a ULI Foundation Governor.

“Transformative development is happening everywhere in the greater Philadelphia region, with creative, innovative projects that change the way we think about the possibilities for our built environment,” Fiol-Silva said. “The ULI 2016 Spring Meeting presents a unique opportunity to showcase these exciting changes on a global stage.”

“Our goals are to deliver a successful, content-rich experience to our full members while highlighting the culture of innovation and creativity as well as the transformative projects occurring in Philadelphia and elsewhere in our region,” Farrell said.

In addition to delivering a variety of events and programming of local interest through ULI Philadelphia, ULI and its members have long been engaged with Philadelphia’s civic leaders and business community on major land use and urban development issues, economic development, and community outreach initiatives.

In 2014, Judith Rodin, president of the Rockefeller Foundation and former president of the University of Pennsylvania, was awarded ULI’s highest honor — the ULI J.C. Nichols Prize for Visionaries in Urban Development — in part for her role in leading the revitalization of the neighborhoods surrounding the university during her tenure as president from 1994-2004.

In 2010, Philadelphia was one of four cities chosen to participate in the inaugural year of the Daniel Rose Fellowship, the signature program of the ULI Rose Center for Public Leadership. Additionally, Philadelphia was chosen as one of several cities in which best practices in the adaptive reuse of historic buildings were identified and curated through a partnership between ULI and the National Trust of Historic Preservation.

NOTE TO REPORTERS AND EDITORS: Registration to the 2016 Spring Meeting is complimentary for members of the media. For more information regarding registration or event coverage, please contact Trish Riggs at 202-624-7086; or Robert Krueger at 202-624-7051.

About the Urban Land Institute
The Urban Land Institute (uli.org) is a nonprofit education and research institute supported by its members. Its mission is to provide leadership in the responsible use of land and in creating and sustaining thriving communities worldwide. Established in 1936, the Institute has more than 36,000 members representing all aspects of land use and development disciplines.