NAIOPWA Announces 2024 Night of the Stars Finalists & First Winners: Historic Renovation, Local Taproom, & Tenant-Focused Industrial Project Ushering Community Renaissance

People’s Choice Award with Daily Voting on the NAIOPWA website begins Wednesday, September 18

SEATTLE – Announced today at the “Women Who Build Seattle” breakfast panel, finalists for NAIOP Washington State’s 2024 Night of the Stars Awards showcased the premier commercial real estate developments that are revitalizing the Puget Sound region, from office and residential towers to well-positioned industrial and biotech campuses.  

This year, finalists include six candidates for Developer of the Year, representing a mix of industrial, multifamily, mixed use and office developers.

The past year’s COVID shutdown and restrictions were especially hard on the restaurant and entertainment industries. Despite the tough times, there have been some positives that have come from the pandemic. There have been many new restaurants, bars and businesses that have opened up over the past year in Washington’s South Sound. To celebrate the innovation that has resulted from challenging circumstances, we are going to share a few uplifting success stories. Many of these places have creatively adapted their business models to government orders or designed a space that allows for optimal ventilation and spread-out seating to keep the public safe and remain compliant with COVID opening regulations.

Below are just a couple of the South Sound eateries that have opened up over the past year, highlighted and shared by our NAIOP South Sound Committee Members.

Ben Waiss (Tarragon) is one of the Co-Chairs for NAIOPWA's South Sound Committee. He has been recognized by his peers for his outstanding leadership and continued commitment to the committee's efforts. Ben joined NAIOP in 2014 after he began working for his current company. We spoke with Ben about his work with Tarragon, what he enjoys most about CRE, and what he does in his spare time. 

• Hands on developer that provides services from feasibility thru lease up and stabilization
• Portfolio developer that delivers highest quality assets designed to operate at a high level throughout the lifespan of the development
• Long term outlook that allows us to accumulate and hold land in the portfolio until market conditions are optimal to construct a commercial asset

How long have you been with your company?
I have been with Tarragon for about 6 years. In a previous life I was a Civil Engineer.

Morgan Sly (The Rush Companies) is a dedicated volunteer member of NAIOPWA's South Sound Committee. She's been with Rush since 2018 and has been an active NAIOPWA member since June of 2019. Her peers have recognized her for outstanding efforts in organizing unique and engaging events for the South Sound. We asked Morgan about her work in CRE, how she spends her time outside of her profession, and interesting tidbits about herself. 

NAIOPWA: What do you like best about your industry? 
Morgan Sly: My favorite part about working for Rush - a developer/builder is creating communities where people want to live and work. I enjoy identifying the next place where we believe future tenants or buyers will want to move to, through our projects we have the ability to add value to people’s day-to-day lives and that is exciting!

On June 20, the South Sound Committee, in conjunction with several local, active companies, including Davis Property and Investment, joined in on the Big Invitational, a fundraiser golf/networking event held annually at Washington National Golf Club in Auburn and put on by Big Brothers Big Sisters of Puget Sound.

Over the years, BBBSPS has worked with the South Sound Committee to keep the tournament specific to commercial real estate, and the excitement in the south-end development market shone strong this year with this twelfth annual Big Invitational selling out more than a month ahead of time and raising over $112,000 for Big Brothers Big Sisters!

Most of us know the ports in Washington as little industries within themselves, responsible for Washington’s link to international trade around the globe and the distribution infrastructure of our region. Ports also manage airports and public marinas, and support additional recreational opportunities via parks and open spaces. 

On July 11, NAIOPWA held our monthly breakfast meeting at the Georgetown Ballroom to learn about the future of urban industrial and take a field trip to the nearby Prologis Georgetown Crossroads, the first multi-level distribution center of its type.

President Tony Toppenberg kicked off the meeting by thanking our breakfast sponsor, Sierra Construction, and our stellar group of annual sponsors. We sincerely thank them for their involvement.

NAIOP WA's Real Estate Challenge is an annual contest matching teams from real estate programs at Portland State University, the University of British Columbia and the University of Washington in a competition that focuses on a development/redevelopment project in the Puget Sound area. Teams are tasked with forming a proposed investment strategy based on the site sponsor’s needs.

NAIOP WA is pleased to announce the City of Tacoma as the site sponsor for this year’s Real Estate Challenge. The 0.56 acre property, located at 728 Market Street in downtown Tacoma, is zoned Downtown Commercial Core, providing teams with an opportunity to evaluate market-rate urban development consistent with Tacoma’s urban design guidelines.