An Invitation to Become a Client in the 2010 Real Estate
Project Workshop Site
The Capstone Course
Philip Eisenberg has participated as a sponsor of the Project Workshop course.
One of the core, required courses in the Program in Real Estate (“PRE”) at Cornell University is the “Real Estate Project Workshop,” which is known as the PRE’s “Capstone Course.” The Program in Real Estate, one of the most comprehensive real estate programs in the country, requires all second semester/second year real estate masters’ degree candidates to participate in this Capstone experience. The class involves a semester-long applied project that integrates what real estate students have learned to date during their course of study. The class also includes students from other graduate school fields of study such as architecture, landscape architecture and regional planning.
Led by Professor Mark Foerster, the Olson Real Estate Faculty Fellow, students work together in teams to prepare the case for a specific real estate development project. Using a real site, and working for a real client, each team prepares a professional quality report that includes market research, site analysis, architectural design, branding and marketing strategies, financial analysis, financing and equity investment considerations, and projected investment returns. The project culminates in the form of written and oral presentations with recommendations for a development project to an actual owner/client.
Recent Experiences
During the 2008 Spring Semester, the Real Estate Project Workshop evaluated a site owned by the Macerich Company in Tysons Corner, Virginia. During the 2009 Spring Semester, the site studied by the class was one owned by Boston Properties in Reston, Virginia. By allowing their sites to be studied by the class, these project sponsors provided Cornell students with great opportunities to consider mixed use concepts and the viability of transit-oriented development.
Capstone clients receive development recommendations from the Cornell student teams at semester’s conclusion, including a presentation and final comprehensive reports. Each team’s materials include an 80-90 page report, a power point presentation, and financial models in Excel. In addition, many teams prepare architectural models and animations or “fly-throughs.”
Pete Otteni, Vice President of Development at Boston Properties, stated that participating in the Capstone Course “was very enjoyable, and we got some great work product. The students really did a great job. I anticipate that we will use ideas from each team’s presentation in creating a great plan of our own for our site.”
The Benefits of Participating as a Client
The PRE is in the process of identifying a site for the Spring 2010 Capstone Course. An urban site that has the potential for a mixed use or transit-oriented development is preferred.
We invite owners of development sites to apply to be considered for the Capstone Course. Participating as the “client” of the 2010 Capstone site will offer significant benefits, including the ability to obtain five or six different research reports about recommended uses for the site at no cost. Because the work is delivered in hard copy and electronic formats, a client will be able to manipulate components such as the Excel financial models to adjust assumptions and test other conclusions. The client will also get valuable exposure to potential job candidates for internships or permanent positions.
There is no financial cost to participating as a Capstone client. The only “cost” of participating as the client is a limited commitment of time. It is beneficial for one or more client officers or representatives to serve as direct participants in the process. Their commitment in time would be limited, however, to (1) a half-day meeting with the class early in the semester, (2) a three hour, mid-term progress report meeting or video conference in March, and (3) a day-long meeting in Ithaca in May (with lodging, lunch and dinner provided by Cornell) during which each team of students will present their written reports along with a power point presentation, and related materials.
Further Information
If you are interested in becoming a Capstone client or know of another company that may be, please contact Professor Mark Foerster by telephone at (585) 419-9771, or by email at or David Funk, director of the Program in Real Estate, at (607) 255-3291 or by email at .
Additional information about Cornell’s Program in Real Estate, the Capstone Course, and Professor Foerster can be found at http://www.realestate.cornell.edu.