**New York People and Company News – Week of May 23, 2025**
**Douglaston Companies Forms Board of Directors**
Douglaston Companies—which includes Douglaston Development, Levine Builders, and Clinton Management—has established a governing board of directors. Benjamin Levine and Jessica Sherman have been appointed principals and vice chairs of the board. Ambassador Randi Charno Levine and Dara Rose will also serve as board members, with plans to bring on additional independent advisors and industry experts.
**Prospect Ridge Adds Michael Mestel as Co-Head of Credit Strategies**
Prospect Ridge, a private equity real estate investment management firm, has named Michael Mestel as managing director and co-head of its Credit Strategies platform. Mestel previously served as managing director and co-head of U.S. Real Estate Credit at H.I.G. Capital.
**Valeria Syanchuk Joins Lee & Associates NYC**
Lee & Associates NYC has appointed Valeria Syanchuk as Director of Market Research. Syanchuk, formerly a Senior Research Analyst at Cushman & Wakefield, will lead the firm’s Market Research department, bringing deep expertise in the New York City commercial real estate market.
**Tom Consiglio Named 2025 New Jersey Business Icon**
Tom Consiglio, founder and principal of Resource Realty of Northern New Jersey (RRNNJ), has been recognized as a 2025 Icon in Business in New Jersey. The honor coincides with RRNNJ’s 35th anniversary, celebrating Consiglio’s decades of leadership in the commercial real estate industry.
**Sweemit Goswami Joins NAI DiLeo-Bram & Co.**
NAI DiLeo-Bram & Co. has welcomed Sweemit Goswami as an associate. Specializing in industrial acquisitions, dispositions, and leasing across Northern and Central New Jersey, Goswami is an undergraduate student focused on real estate and supply chain logistics. He was previously an intern at the firm.
**Simone Development Companies Receives BOMA Award**
Simone Development Companies was recently honored by the Westchester Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) for its medical office property at One Executive Boulevard in North Yonkers. The building received the Best of BOMA Signature Award for Best Curb Appeal and Common Areas, presented during BOMA’s Annual Hall of Honor Awards Dinner on May 15.
**Diversified Properties Expands Property Management Services**
Montville, NJ-based Diversified Properties, LLC has expanded its Property Management division to include a full range of services for third-party property owners. The services now target various asset classes such as flex industrial, multifamily, office, and retail.
**VERO Closes Growth Equity Round**
Leasing and tenant screening platform VERO completed a significant growth equity round co-led by Fifth Wall and Sunriver Capital Partners, with additional funding from Rebuild Capital. This follows VERO’s $9-million Series B, which closed in April 2023.
**Ladder Capital Earns Investment Grade Rating**
Ladder Capital Corp, a top commercial real estate finance REIT, has received an investment grade rating from Fitch Ratings. The firm was assigned a Long-Term Issuer Default Rating of ‘BBB-’ with a Stable Outlook. Fitch also upgraded the senior unsecured debt ratings to ‘BBB-,’ making Ladder the only commercial mortgage REIT with an investment-grade rating.
**Garnett Station Partners Launches Grizzly MEP**
Garnett Station Partners, a New York-based investment firm with over $3.5 billion in assets, has launched a new commercial mechanical, electrical, and plumbing (MEP) services platform, Grizzly MEP. Industry veteran Kelly Romano has been named chairman of the board.
