The awards program recognizes outstanding achievements in the field of commercial real estate in NM

The upgrade and modernization of the University of New Mexico’s Johnson Center was recognized as part of the NAIOP NM Awards of Excellence program. (Courtesy NAIOP New Mexico)

It’s a year of pros and cons for NAIOP New Mexico.

On the positive side, the Association for Commercial Real Estate Development’s NAIOP Annual Awards of Excellence 2021 were held indoors on Friday after a year marked by zoom meetings sparked by the pandemic.

This year’s top winners include Titan Development for the NAIOP Chairman Award 2021; the city of Rio Rancho public-private partnership with Los Diamantes and Rio Rancho Public Schools for the Cleve Matthews Vision Award 2021; and Lynne Andersen of NAIOP New Mexico and her husband John Gallegos, who were named Chuck Gara Community Leader Award winners.

This is where the minus comes in. Andersen and Gallegos – who have run the organization for years – are both retiring.

These awards are important to the top winners.

Rio Rancho partnership

Rio Rancho Mayor Gregg Hull is helping the late Joe Harris Sr.’s grandchildren work with the giant scissors to sever the ribbon to officially celebrate Joe Harris Elementary School in August. The public-private partnership of the city of Rio Rancho around the Los Diamantes Rio Rancho public schools received the Cleve Matthews Vision Award 2021 from NAIOP NM this year. (Gary Herron / Rio Rancho Observer)

The public-private partnership of the city of Rio Rancho revolves around the Los Diamantes community planned by the master plan, the city and the coalition Our Gateway.

The Los Diamantes community was master-planned for 578 single-family residential units; 394 acres for a business park and apartment buildings; and five hectares for amusement parks and open spaces. The plan also envisaged a new four-lane main thoroughfare stretching on the west side of Unser via the new Joe Harris Elementary School to development, according to NAIOP NM.

Rio Rancho Public Schools had purchased land for an elementary school elsewhere, but lacked the system-level infrastructure to support it.

“Contrary to a tight schedule, Mayor Gregg Hull orchestrated instrumental meetings to forge a public-private partnership across the city, including Superintendent of Rio Rancho Public Schools Dr. Sue Cleveland, and the private property developer Pierre Amestoy. After a rare joint meeting of the Rio Rancho Board of Directors and the school committee, the board voted to change plans and build their new Joe Harris Elementary School in Our Gateway next to Los Diamantes, ”wrote NAIOP NM in a press release. “The school was funded with a public loan of $ 30 million. With unanimous support from the city council, Mayor Hull has secured $ 3 million in utilities to offset improvements in public infrastructure. “

According to NAIOP NM, other private partners contributed right of way for the construction and widening of the four-lane main traffic artery.

Hull said in a statement that the city is “really excited about this amazing public-private partnership”.

“This really is testament to the great and important work that can be done when public organizations such as the Rio Rancho Public School District, the City of Rio Rancho and (Arroyo Flood Control Authority of southern Sandoval County) work with private developers to help the quality levels on projects like this, ”he said.

Titan development

Kurt Browning. (Roberto E. Rosales / )

Kurt Browning, a Titan Development partner, said the award is an endorsement of the company’s work.

“Titan is a full-service real estate investment company and recognition is important,” he said.

Over the past five years, the company has raised nearly $ 250 million, he said.

The award, he added, “is about our Titan team. We work hard, play hard and are a well-oiled machine. It’s a reflection of my two partners – Ben Spencer and Kevin Reid. You have laid the foundation. “

Reid works out of the company’s Austin office, while Spencer and Browning work out of Albuquerque.

“We work a lot in our own garden,” said Browning.

Changing of the guard

Lynne Andersen and John Gallegos. (Elizabeth Tucker / Journal)

Andersen and Gallegos said they are stepping down at the right time and leaving a strong organization to new, younger leaders. Rhiannon Samuel – who served as communications director for former Albuquerque Mayor Richard Berry before becoming the founding director of the non-partisan political education group Viante New Mexico – has been named the new executive director of NAIOP New Mexico.

However, Andersen and Gallegos have left their mark. Andersen, who took over the management in 1995, led the group’s growth from 70 members to over 300.

“It was just an amazing group of people,” she said. “These were all pretty small businesses by national standards, local, and in many cases their children came into the business.

Nationally, NAIOP is primarily a development organization, “but in New Mexico you could probably only bring all the people who develop into a very small meeting room.”

NAIOP New Mexico has expanded the number of companies that could become members, Andersen said.

“We’re so different from national chapters,” said Andersen. “We include everyone who has been involved in commercial real estate – architects, contractors, engineers, property developers, banks, investment companies, landowners, lawyers, title companies, brokers. It became a very diverse group of people, all the people who touch a project to make it happen. “

Last year the pandemic hindered things, but Zoom came to the rescue. In June, Andersen said the organization returned to face-to-face meetings and events.

“Half of what NAIOP is about is networking,” she said. “This is where you meet the people you do business with.”

In the past few years, NAIOP has entered politics.

Advocacy, said Andersen, “has become an important part of our work.

“No matter what you build, you have to go to a government agency to get approval, even if it’s on your own land. There’s always this side of the equation, you just don’t buy a property and build on what you want. It’s a very complex world. “

Awards

The annual Awards of Excellence, held on Friday, have also grown over the years. “At first it was just a very small thing that has turned into a pretty amazing production.”

The awards are given according to a system of nominations and peer selection.

This year, 55 companies and projects were winners in categories such as retail, office, mixed use and apartment buildings, community and public over 100,000 square feet, community residents less than 17,000 square feet, education, hospitality, industry / infrastructure, and medicine.

The committee included co-chairs Jim Strozier and Angela Valdez, Shirley Anderson, Darin Davis, Ryan Garcia, Doug Majewski, Kevin Patton, Karl Smith and Bruce Stidworthy.

The event, co-hosted this year by Andersen, Samuel and Lance Sigmon from Allen Sigmon Real Estate Group, which will serve as chair of NAIOP NM in 2022, usually starts with the fun part of the show, the creative skits this year included.

In the second half, people and companies are praised for “creating a place where you work, play and live”.

NAIOP New Mexico’s success should be attributed to its members, said Andersen and Gallegos.

“They do the heavy lifting,” said Gallegos.

Andersen agreed.

“It’s membership driven,” she said. “It is their chapter and you have a strong feeling that it is their chapter.”

Top winners of the NAIOP New Mexico 2021 Awards of Excellence

Below are the recipients of the Eagle Awards as part of the NAIOP New Mexico 2021 Awards …

What is NAIOP NM?

NAIOP New Mexico is a commercial real estate development association with more than 300 members from all industries that come into contact with commercial real estate, including architects, contractors, engineers, developers and more. NAIOP NM is a local chapter of the national organization.

And believe it or not, “NAIOP” is not an acronym – at least not anymore. The letters come from an earlier version of the name of the organization that was once the National Association of Industrial and Office Properties. The national office is now known simply as the NAIOP Commercial Real Estate Development Association.

The Journal is NAIOP NM’s media partner for its annual Awards of Excellence program.