Product Councils

CALL FOR INTEREST: SUBMIT YOUR INTEREST FORM

Get connected to ULI Minnesota’s Local Product Councils!

ULI Minnesota’s local product councils are one of the best ways to connect and learn from your peers on significant trends facing our industry and region. Each Product Council is a small, intimate group of industry leaders (25-35 participants) who meet for two half-day sessions a year. Meetings consist of ULI members and guest speakers sharing best practices and lessons learned in case studies, round table discussions, and off-site private tours. ULI Minnesota hosts five of these unique councils:

Product Councils are invitation-only and designed to bring together a leadership-level cohort representing a range of sectors, experience, and perspectives. These councils provide an avenue for members to experience the special value of a ULI Product Council, particularly those that are unable to regularly attend the national conferences or participate at the Full Membership level. Councils maintain confidentiality and expect a high level of participation from all members.

As we enter the next season, you are invited to express your interest in one of our five Product Councils, for consideration before the upcoming fall sessions. Please reach out to the Council Co-chairs or Cathy Bennett, cathy.bennett@uli.org, with any questions. Descriptions of each Council are below. If interested, please complete and submit the below interest form.

COUNCILS OVERVIEW
  • Two-year commitment to attend at least three of four sessions
  • Annual Council affiliation dues are $350 (Private sector) or $250 (Public sector/Non-profit)
  • ULI membership is required, but non-members may join both the Product Council and ULI simultaneously; you can learn more about ULI membership here.
ULI Minnesota is committed to enabling participation for BIPOC entrepreneurs and those historically underrepresented in the industry. If cost is a barrier to participation, please reach out to discuss fee waivers. We also encourage nominations of peers who may be outside of the current ULI network.

Capital Markets Council

Co-chairs
Mark Kunkel
Murray Kornberg, Colliers Mortgage

The Capital Markets Council provides a lens on short-term and long-range issues that surround financial markets and how these issues are transforming the business of real estate finance, regionally, nationally and internationally. Members are leaders in brokerage, development, banking institutions and specialty finance companies, including public finance agencies. The Council hosts conversations on market trends, monetary policy, and real-time issues and opportunities in the real estate markets in order to foster a healthy and productive real estate capital markets sector.

“Being involved in the Capital Markets Council has broadened my knowledge base in an industry in which I thought I was already pretty adept.  The willingness of members to share their expertise and openly discuss their strategies and tactics has greatly enhanced my understanding of how market participants engage in the capital markets.” 

-Murray Kornberg, Colliers Mortgage

“Our diverse mix of owners, developers, lenders and brokers are what make this group so interesting and truly unique in our market.” 

-Mark Kunkel

Community Development Council

Co-chairs
Kim Berggren, City of Brooklyn Park
Bill Neuendorf, City of Edina

The Community Development Council brings together public agency leaders to discuss innovative approaches to community planning and development, explore best practices throughout the region, and discuss the challenges of leadership in a confidential setting. Membership is restricted to department head roles in regional and urban planning, housing, and economic development fields. Public sector leaders interested in ULI membership are also invited to explore discounted public agency membership.

“The Community Development Council is invaluable in connecting with other community development folks, tapping their expertise and advice, and sharing “the rest of the story” of various projects. The ability to be candid and confide in others is worth its weight in gold. We laugh a lot when sharing our professional woes and successes, a very good way to keep it all in perspective!” 

-Meg McMonigal, City of St. Louis Park 

Housing Council

Co-chairs
David Higgins, McGough
Katya Pilling, JE Dunn

The Housing Council reflects the full range of roles involved in the delivery of housing in our region including: private and non-profit developers, designers, builders, planners, and finance entities such as banks, syndicators and public funding agencies. The Housing Council encompasses market-rate and affordable housing as well as a range of typologies and scales.

“Participation in the ULI Minnesota Housing Council is a rare (exceptional even) opportunity to gather so many peers from the housing industry to share experiences, ideas, lessons learned, and to offer unguarded perspective on where we’ve been and where we are headed.”

-Dave Higgins, VP of Development, McGough Companies

Market Council

Co-chairs
Gretchen Camp, ESG Architecture & Design
Howard Paster, Paster Properties

The Market Council aims to mix members among principal investors and developers, transactional brokers, attorneys, and other related service providers and advisors centered on transactions. All Market Council members must be transaction-based senior-level real estate professionals active in the local market. The focus will be on the most important transactions and trends around the region: drivers, challenges, and ultimately solutions.

“Being part of the Market Council has allowed me to connect with many influential people in the Twin Cities real estate community and form lasting relationships. I especially appreciate the opportunities to gain valuable insights about development transactions and get behind the scenes knowledge on many projects. The collegial spirit amongst group members is fantastic, and it supports a very transparent and supportive culture.”

-Gretchen Camp, Principal, ESG

Resilient Communities Council

Co-chairs
Martha Faust, Ramsey County
Colin Oglesbay, D/O Architects

The Resilient Communities Council explores advances in environmental sustainability and community resiliency. Participants come from a variety of disciplines, including public, private and non-profit organizations, and are leaders in their sector. While members bring interest and expertise in specific issues, they all share a genuine curiosity and passion for learning best practices to equip our communities to adapt to the ecological, social, and economic systems impact of climate change.

“Participating in the ULI Minnesota Resilient Communities Council allows me to go beyond my niche knowledge base and learn about the newest construction methods and innovations in technical areas and resiliency topics adjacent to my world as a redevelopment professional. The opportunity for cross-disciplinary small group conversations with experts and respected peers goes beyond informing me–it equips me to be a more effective leader in my day-to-day work and within my organization.”

-Martha Faust, Redevelopment Manager, Ramsey County