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Category Archives: Environmental Due Diligence

A Phase I Environmental Site Assessment in San Francisco

The Phase I Environmental Site Assessment or ESA, known to many as the most essential form of environmental due diligence, can vary in complexity and challenge when conducted in the City known for liberal nature and dynamic history.  San Francisco has historically experienced several great events of great change in regards to its development which…

The Best Laid Plans – or Rather, the Best Laid Lighting…

I had just started as an in-house architect for a Real Estate Investment Advisory firm.  The company had just secured the acquisition of an eighteen story office in the state capital. The building was recently completed and three floors of 12,000 sf each were occupied by a state agency. I was sent to the building…

How to Love an Environmental Professional

Entry by JoeDerhake Entry Maybe my wife should have written this one—or maybe she would have advised young people to not…better to marry a doctor.   More seriously, how do consulting firms love their environmental professionals?   When you run an environmental due diligence firm, you have to be good at it if you want to…

2011 RealShare Apartments – Multifamily is Rockin’ and Rolling

The 2011 RealShare Apartments conference was a huge success with a noticeable increase in attendance and palpable optimism.  The multifamily market is booming, and signs indicate it will continue to do well for the foreseeable future. Multifamily Success Factors Optimism for the multifamily market stems from some significant trends tied to the bad economy, including:…

Grace and Diplomacy are Part of Quality

Entry by JoeDerhake Entry When doing environmental due diligence in support of an acquisition, we are a small but sometimes very important part of a larger process.  While our fee is modest, we are often supporting a very high dollar transaction.  Occasionally we find ourselves center stage at the negotiating table.  Maybe our Phase I…

ICSC Western Division Conference – Blackout in San Diego

The ICSC Western Division 2011 conference was full of energy – until that energy went out. Literally.  The San Diego blackout on September 8th took the entire ICSC conference off the grid (not to mention the real damage done to the city, including sewage leaks and environmental damage). So, what do you do when a…

EDR ScoreKeeper – 2011 Trends in Phase I Environmental Site Assessments

I noticed in EDR ScoreKeeper’s Q1 2011 and Q2 2011 report that big consulting firms are growing at a larger rate than small firms.  Apparently lenders and real estate investors are increasingly choosing larger firms for their Phase I Environmental Site Assessments.   I spoke with two national lenders who said that they were trying to…