CDG has a proven track record of adding value to its acquisitions and projects by implementing a disciplined underwriting strategy with quick to market asset development; resulting in above market returns. CDG acquires assets that need to be repositioned or completely redeveloped; in addition to land for development.
Development
CDG’s development team’s approach to add value to each project is responsible for high returns combined with quick results. The development team consists of professionals with diverse backgrounds and expertise in all phases of development. CDG brings its team together to execute each project with individual expertise in acquisitions, development, leasing, asset management and financing. CDG’s team is committed to working with people who have a passion for results.
Leasing
CDG’s strength in leasing is routed in its excellent relationships with tenants, both national and local, and their brokers. CDG’s experienced leasing team produces financial results through its personalized attention to achieve the development business objectives. For each project, the team focuses on curating a tenant mix designed to produce high sales and long term customer traffic by leveraging existing relationships with national and local tenants.
Financing
CDG’s capital strategy is to combine large equity with low leverage financing, particularly for projects where long term ownership is structured. CDG’s process is robust and repeatable, and not dependent on any one investment, strategy or individual. CDG capital stack is generally geared to cash equity by injecting its own cash equity, and in some instances, equity from select partners, combined with full leverage financing.
Management
CDG, through its affiliate Continental Management Group, LLC, provides comprehensive asset and property management services designed to maximize the value and performance of each asset. CMG’s management team works closely with the development team to develop customized management programs that meet and exceed investment objectives. CMG places a high priority on its tenant relationships as an important management tool to produce maximum value.
Firm Profile
Continental Development Group, LLC is a boutique real estate investment and development firm, focused on specific densely populated, urban core neighborhoods. CDG is a Los Angeles based private real estate company with vertically integrated construction, asset management, and financing capabilities. Since 1979, CDG has established a proven track record of developing, acquiring, and repositioning commercial assets throughout the continental United States.
CDG's core competencies are focused on re-positioning Class A and B commercial assets through a proven approach of in-house use-optimization, construction, finance & lease restructuring, and tenant repositioning. This approach has consistently yielded double-digit annual returns for mixed-use, retail, multi-family, and office/medical projects.
Born in Los Angeles, Samantha graduated from George Washington University with a degree in international business. Before spending almost a decade at CDG, Samantha worked at a REIT in New York City. Samantha has established a proven track record of developing, acquiring, and repositioning commercial assets throughout the continental US. Samantha specializes in construction, planning, and city entitlements, and assisting new concepts while helping stabilize their real estate presence.
Antoinette Ripinsky
COO Director of Planning and Development
Antoinette has been a principal founder of Continental Development Group, LLC since its formation in 1998; and has served as a Director of CDG for over 23 years.
Antoinette has developed multi-family and commercial retail properties in Los Angeles since 1980; and formed CDG to fill a void in the Los Angeles market - to create an investment company to acquire and build a portfolio of high quality multi-family and commercial properties located in a dense and affluent demographics, inside dense urban city cores - combining investment properties and development projects under one office, managed by private professionals, merging private individual oversight and management with the ability to implement professional investment decisions and project management, under one roof - in order to compete with institutional and public company property companies - yet free from the related organizational protocol and overhead costs. The formation of CDG provided a platform for quick and decisive investments, rapid analysis and decisions, which enabled the acquisition of high quality projects in high quality, dense urban areas - allowing CDG to compete head on with institutional investors - and enabled CDG to acquire and assemble a portfolio of Class “A” investment properties in Class “A” locations.
During Antoinette‘s service as a Director of CDG, she acquired and developed over 1,000,000 square feet of multi-family and commercial properties, primarily in the Southern California market, with a specialty in Los Angeles.
Angelica Orellana
Chief Financial Officer
Angie has 15 years of real estate management, acquisition, and financial experience. She began her career with Continental Development Group in 2005. She has built many successful professional relationships with tenants, lenders and Vendors during her tenure at CDG. Angie prepares all asset financial statements, business activity reports and forecasts. Daily tasks include the planning, directing and coordinating of all accounting operational functions, managing the accumulation and consolidation of all financial data necessary for an accurate accounting of all assets.
Phillip Silver
Director of Construction
Phil brings 30 years of experience in the construction industry and works closely with clients to achieve their project goals. His unique background in both general and concrete construction gives him the insight to find solutions and work as an effective construction consultant in large complex projects such as multi-family communities including high-rise, mid-rise and garden-style communities, multi-story subterranean parking structures and commercial space improvements.
Jaime Navarro
Project Management & Construction Superintendent
Jaime Navarro is retired from US Navy after serving 25 years with the Naval Construction Force. With 33 years of combined single family and multi-family mixed use construction experience, he brings his love of the industry to the job he enjoys, including the challenges of building and managing construction projects. When Navarro is not working on managing projects, he likes to go mountain biking, camping, cooking and spending time with his wife and family.
Theresa Garza
Head of Property Management and Operations
With over 23 years of experience, Theresa was first introduced to property management overseeing the daily operations of “Executive Suites”. While there, she cultivated relationships with proprietors of Real Estate, Finance and Law. She has devoted much of her time managing the upkeep of each facility, including the daily operations of the office, interactions with tenants, vendors, government agencies, and property maintenance.
Maria Fasano
Executive Architect and Designer
Maria was born in Panama. She has lived and/or collaborated in projects in Costa Rica, Colombia, United States, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Japan and China.
After working for private contractors, architectural firms (both as guest architect and as architectural designer), construction firms and private clients Maria has found a new home here at CDG. Maria has worked in areas of interior design and architectural design. Her architecture experience includes high-end luxury residential design, mixed-use, rehabilitation and re-use, multi-family residential projects, commercial projects and conceptual civic buildings.