AUTHORED BY COLE STERR

Earlier this year, Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal featured our office on its MSP Cool Offices website page. After 35 years in Bloomington, our office moved to the heart of downtown Minneapolis, right in the middle of the skyway system. We were ecstatic to join the hustle and bustle of the innovative and modern downtown Minneapolis – with an office to match, too!

With a renovated office complete with branded interior, open concepts, collaboration and communal spaces, artwork and unbeatable views, we’re stoked that our office is considered “cool.”

But wait. What is a “cool” office anyway?

Let’s look at some of the most popular office trends of 2018 that make an office “cool.”

The Emerging Trends

Some of the main emerging office trends include increased collaboration and communal spaces, improvised working stations and brand visibility. Let’s break these down.

• Increased collaboration: Many offices now designate spaces that are meant for collaboration between co-workers. This includes pop up seating areas, technology-infused conference spaces and even bean bag chairs and ping pop tables to foster comfortable working environments. Take a look at one of our communal spaces – called the UP Park – for example.

• Hoteling: This trend reflects the fast-paced and flexible environment that working professionals oh so crave today. As more professionals have the option to work remotely, our clients channel efficiency and fiscal responsibility with a concept known as “hoteling.” This practice employs unofficial seating arrangements where employees don’t have an assigned cubicle, but rather come into the office and work anywhere for the day. This trend eliminates unnecessary office space and thus, reduces costs and allows room for efficiency and flexibility for busy employees. Huh, what a concept.
• Brand visibility: Ah, what a trend branding has become in the last decade. It’s now common – and almost expected – that a company’s office integrates brand elements throughout its space. Take a look at our brand wall below that features our signature work and key messages:

But wait, there’re more. Consider the following:

• Biophilic design elements: Oooh, fancy word. Biophilic basically means any natural elements incorporated into a design space whether that’s greenery, water features or rooftop gardens.
• Accessibility improvements to better suit employees with physical disabilities. This includes translation devices for employees who are hearing impaired, adaptive desks and wellness/meditation rooms.

Keeping Up with the Office Trends

As these office space trends normalize, we continue to imagine possibilities of providing comfortable and high-quality working environments for our clients, helping foster collaboration and teamwork.

We’re proud that we have imagined these possibilities and cultivated an inclusive, collaborative – and “cool” – office that matches our drive for innovation and desire to not only strengthen our own community, but the communities we serve, as well.

 

AUTHORED BY COLE STERR

This week, technology in real estate is the focus. Ah, technology. What a concept.

It certainly goes without saying that technology has become a major influence in the real estate industry in the past couple of decades. The industry has seen an evolution from the fax machine and stationary phones to cell phones, robotics, and virtual reality. Technological advancements have transformed the real estate landscape, allowing companies to efficiently manage their operations, teams, and assets.

Now, because technology is continuously evolving, it’s virtually impossible to examine all technological advancements. That said, let’s examine some of the most unique technological contributions to real estate.

Communication Advancements

Tele-advancements in the industry have certainly been instrumental in improving the means of communication between companies. Take an early advancement like the fax machine, for example.

VP of Construction Management Bill Jundt remembers the benefits – as well as the unexpected struggles – of the device. In the 1980s, he remembers, “The construction industry started to move more swiftly, being able to exchange information faster, a huge plus.” However, the ink on the heat pressure paper that the fax printed on would evaporate into thin air, leaving him with a blank piece of paper. After the fax machine printed, one had to hand cut with scissors to make 8.5-by-11-inch sheets and then hang them on a piece of string with a clothes pin for the paper and ink to dry.

What a process.

Speaking of process, other communication advancements included word processors, desktop computers (and eventually laptop computers), along with mobile devices and the accompanied fingertip access for faster decision-making information.

The World Wide Web certainly changed the game in several ways, too. In its early years, having access to marketing information about clients, colleagues, and partners, changed the way we all marketed our organizations. Today, we are seeing how the internet has also contributed to the development of more industrial assets. The impact of ecommerce and the new emphasis of online shopping has “caused a major boom in industrial real estate,” according to Real Estate Associate Connor McCarthy.

Construction & Imagery

Visualization is a critical component of real estate and another area where so much change has taken place.

Google Earth is just one of the many advancements that has allowed visualization to flourish within the industry. The 3D service can allow a real estate professional to calculate property square footage and acreage, analyze the terrain of a potential site, view a property’s surroundings on a screen (replacing the outdated method of driving to a site), and give tours of a building (also replacing the outdated method of driving to a site).

Groundbreaking!

Drones have also proved successful in propelling real estate forward. The aerial vehicle can capture beautiful aerial shots of properties and track information about large portions of land. They can capture footage in hard-to-reach locations, like in between downtown high-rise buildings and/or around natural barriers. These handy dandy inventions can also inspect skyscrapers and power lines to save businesses money to avoid harming its employees.

Additionally, many of our construction plans have transferred to the digital world, calling for tablets in the field instead of paper plans. Other tools like Procore, for example, a program that supplies design and construction teams with the ability to share and update plans live, cultivate collaboration and give rise to virtual reality. Bluebeam is another helpful software that’s used for marking up and revising construction drawings, which encourages innovation and possibilities in construction and design planning.

Technology is great, right?

Sustainability & Automation Systems

Another fascinating advancement in real estate is the rise of automation systems, or the use of various control systems for managing facility-related matters on a property.

According to Development Project Manager Carrie Eggleston, there have been strides in CFFM systems – services that employ cost management techniques down to the penny, deploy, track, and close out work orders, and implement preventative maintenance programs to effectively manage assets and lower costs.

Building automation systems also contribute to efficiency and sustainability. From an international location, buildings (referred to as “smart buildings”) can be controlled whether that’s turning the lights off or locking the door. Additionally, heating, ventilating, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems are constantly improving to maintain sustainable, lasting properties.

Smart buildings also enhance the human experience. For example, if an employee likes to work in a 72-degree office, the building’s automation system can automatically adjust to the desired temperature when that employee swipes their badge walking into work. This smart feature decreases automation and electricity costs, acting as a sustainable and environmentally-friendly building, too!

High tech stuff!

Rise of Social Media Marketing

The rise of social media has beefed up the real estate arena, too. Social media platforms like Instagram and Facebook allow developers to capture aesthetically pleasing photos of projects, share construction updates, and recruit tenants to lease up buildings .

Additionally, the media has been crucial in recruitment efforts to attract the new generation of professionals. Maintaining a brand identity, aesthetic, and social media presence, curating content for thousands of people to see, and tailoring content for niche audiences are all methods companies can use to attract the best real estate go-getters.

Financial Reporting & Investment Analyses

We have made strides in financial reporting to improve the efficiencies of our monetary record-keeping. A few years ago, we migrated our accounting records from our servers to the “Cloud.”

Ooh, the “Cloud.”

Anyway, because of this switch, we’re no longer having to spend so much time maintaining our databases, and we can focus on improving our properties more quickly.

A tool used by our finance and accounting teams – called Spreadsheet Server – can pull data out of MRI, our accounting system where all our financial data lives, ensure more accurate data, and anticipate tedious transactions so that they can eventually be automated. This tool eliminates hundreds of manual data entry hours, allowing us to make better and more timely decisions, expedite negotiations, and maintain our status as a leading developer in the Twin Cities.

We are always imagining possibilities of technology in real estate. With superior leadership and IT direction, our technological advancements have positively impacted our development and asset management tactics, while incorporating a forward-thinking dynamic to our work.

Technology’s Lasting Legacy

Clearly, technology has already left its mark in the real estate world. In a fast-paced, always changing industry, there’s no doubt that technology will keep up to better help developers and asset managers do what they do best.

Technology’s lasting legacy? Creating more efficient, human-friendly, and sustainable properties to ensure that value is created, communities are strengthened, possibilities are imagined, and of course, legacies are left.

 

AUTHORED BY COLE STERR

Inclusion and diversity efforts are becoming increasingly important in organizations and businesses across the U.S. The importance of these efforts may seem clear-cut: a workplace can be enriched with broader ideas, cultural backgrounds can be recognized, employees may feel more valued, and an organization can outperform others within an industry.

That said, it’s interesting to imagine the possibilities of inclusion and diversity efforts – especially in the real estate sector. Let’s look at why inclusion and diversity initiatives are critical to this multifaceted industry.

The Influence of Real Estate

Commercial real estate development is a critical component of community dynamics. Whether that’s developing an environmentally-friendly building or transforming a gravel pit into a highly usable space, real estate initiatives can have a direct effect on communities and effectuating societal change.

As we welcome a new generation into the workforce, implementing and maintaining inclusion and diversity efforts are necessary to attract the best thinkers and doers in the industry – no matter where they come from.

Reflecting Our Communities

We believe that diversity in the workplace is a gateway to more robust thoughts, actions, and solutions. By acknowledging diversity, we can develop a more inclusive understanding of the communities we serve.

With communities that comprise of many backgrounds, it’s necessary to leverage the workers of these backgrounds and reflect those we serve. Executive Administrator Pequita Jordan adds that diversity is “what creates a greater variety of ideas and ‘outside the box’ thinking where innovation can be achieved.”

By recognizing cultures, appealing to all identities, and realizing how certain developments will affect our communities, more innovative and forward-thinking processes can be achieved and executed to cultivate an inclusive industry.

Imagining the Possibilities

With the recent formation of an Inclusion & Diversity committee, United Properties is making strides to foster a more inclusive and diverse work environment in real estate. We’re increasing awareness by partnering with businesses that are owned by women or individuals of color and hosting internal events to celebrate Black History Month and International Women’s Day. We’re also devoting space on our intranet site to share information about local events and celebrations. Through these efforts, we are raising awareness within our organization about the importance of recognizing cultural backgrounds and reflecting the identities of our communities.

We also sponsor the Urban Land Institute’s (ULI) Real Estate Diversity Initiative (REDi) program, a comprehensive 13-session curriculum for women and professionals of color working in real estate industries aimed at advancing their careers, through mentorship and charitable donations. For its 2018 program, we also donated our Centennial Lakes property for its informational sessions. And, Co-President Eva Stevens has also extended an offered to mentor interested REDi professionals, and some have expressed interest in meeting with her.

This program provides real estate professionals the opportunities for networking and the knowledge needed to experience different components of real estate. For women and people of color, traditional opportunities to expand networks has proven to be challenging because often their networks don’t cross.

Looking Forward

While we’re making strides with our initial inclusion and diversity efforts, there is still plenty of work for the commercial real estate industry – and for United Propreties!

We know it’s not enough to simply acknowledge that diversity exists, but to also ensure that initiatives consider how all communities will be represented and affected. It’s also crucial to examine various perspectives and mindsets involved in a decision-making process.

By imagining the possibilities of what diversity looks like in real estate, we can bring different backgrounds, perspectives, and minds together to construct a well-rounded and innovative industry.

United Properties is proud of its work with inclusion and diversity and looks forward to maintaining and building on future efforts to foster a diverse working climate.

AUTHORED BY COLE STERR

Today, we are celebrating the joy of aging! Ah, joy. Whether it’s spending time with family, sharing words of wisdom with youngsters, celebrating accomplishments, or simply appreciating the roses in life, joy can be found each year we mature and grow as human beings.

Every month at our Cherrywood Pointe (CWP) community meetings, wholesome and heart-felt stories, called “mission moments,” are shared about the residents and how they are experiencing joy as they peacefully age. Let’s look at some of the most feel-good mission moments from the summer.

Ladybug Adventure

Jess, a staff member from Cherrywood Pointe in Minnetonka, paints rocks to resemble ladybugs so that the residents can hide them all throughout the complex, as well as the walking trails outside the community. The residents are always on the lookout for her signature pieces of art, and once found, the rocks are then hidden again by the resident that found them. The ladybug hunt throughout the facility and nearby trails also motivates the residents to go for walks and enjoy the outdoors. With each ladybug rock, Jess is instilling joy in the residents as they gracefully age while cultivating a stronger Cherrywood Pointe community.

 

The Power of Music

Jan, who was a Roseville Cleveland Cherrywood Pointe memory care resident and fairly non-responsive toward the end of her life, had a fervid passion for music. Her family informed the Cherrywood Pointe staff how much she enjoyed music, and the music therapist began singing to Jan in her final moments. Upon hearing the singing from the therapist, Jan started to sing along. The music therapist recorded the heartfelt event for Jan’s family and shared it with them after she had passed. The family was touched by the extra care that Cherrywood Pointe was providing for their dearest Jan and now have a wonderful, final memory of her embracing joy.

Extra-Mile Care

The family of Sam needed to secure a living space for their beloved family member. And Fast. The family decided to try out Cherrywood Pointe’s stay-by-the-day program units in Minnetonka, where a prospective resident can stay in a mock unit before choosing to live there. With no stay-by-the-day units available at the time, the Executive Director and staff quickly pulled some furniture together and provided Sam with an ideal living space to make him feel welcome for the weekend. Impressed and touched by the exceptional care, Sam decided the following Monday to stay at the Cherrywood Pointe community so that he could continue to embrace the joy of aging.

Bedroom Flood

At the Forest Lake Cherrywood Pointe community, Fritz and Rosetta moved into the newly built apartment. Two days in, the building flooded – directly over their bed! Cherrywood Pointe took the extra steps necessary to accommodate the couple to compensate for the damages that they experienced. Since then, they have moved from independent living to assisted living, and now to memory care. The family has been over the moon that Cherrywood Pointe has been able to care for them at every stage of their joyful aging process.

Living our Mission

At United Properties, our mission is to be the best-in-class real estate provider for seniors choosing to live in community setting. We strive to ensure that the residents in our communities can experience joy as they age. Whether that’s singing to a music lover to remind her of her passion, scrambling to accommodate a prospective resident, or quickly repairing a flooded bedroom, Cherrywood Pointe continues to remain mission-focused.

While keeping our mission at the forefront of what we do, United Properties and Cherrywood Pointe can continue to strengthen communities, enrich lives, and of course, instill joy in the hearts of those we serve.

More information about Cherrywood Pointe and how its creating inspiring and vibrant senior communities can be seen on its website.

AUTHORED BY COLE STERR

At United Properties, we are one team accountable for the whole, and we have each other’s backs.

This year, we were recognized by the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal as one of the Best Places to Work in the Twin Cities. As a company that values its employees and genuinely cares about the health of the communities it serves, we’re grateful to have scored a place on the list. With more than 100 years of creating deep roots, let’s look at some of the reasons we were honored with this recognition for the sixth time in our history!

Opportunities for Development

At United Properties, team members are given the specific direction, training, and tools they need to manage their individual roles. But providing the team with the tools they need goes well beyond that! We’ve also developed a customized leadership model that intersects skillset and mindset. Pointing to our culture declaration and developed through employee feedback, the leadership model allows each employee to grow within their roles within the company – and within their careers.

A Focus on Inclusion and Diversity

The recent creation of an inclusion and diversity committee ensures we’re continually working to foster a diverse and inclusive culture where we respect, embrace, and leverage team differences to create a unique competitive advantage in our industry. We believe that inclusion and diversity is a critical component of providing a positive work experience for the team.

A Commitment to Transparency and Communication

We continually work to innovate and increase our channels of communication as a critical component of providing a positive work experience for the team. From the top down and from the bottom up, transparent updates about happenings within the company and our industry contribute to our sense of belonging as a company.

Sharing our Talents

Employee commitment and engagement are what makes our organization one of the best places to work. Here at United Properties, we also offer multiple outlets for the team to bring their talents and passions to initiatives outside their primary roles through committee work.

With committees that focus on topics like charitable giving and inclusion and diversity, employees can continually innovate, volunteer, and make a difference within the company – and within our communities. These committees are strategically comprised of people from different departments, demographics, and career tenure for a broader perspective.

Legacies that Last

A long tenure isn’t unheard of in our work place, either. Our longest-tenured employee has been with the company 41 years, while several others have 30+ years under their belts. We also have a number of employees who have recently celebrated 20 or more years with the company.

It’s clear that United Properties cultivates an environment that ultimately, people want to stay in. With multiple people on our team showcasing significant tenures, it’s no secret that we take care of our family! We understand that our roots extend far beyond the confines of our office, developments, and assets, but into the families of the employees that have created deep roots and emotional ties to this company.

More than Bricks and Mortar

On Thursday, August 16, we were recognized by the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal at its Best Places to Work awards celebration. Members from our team, each representing a different department within our organization, accepted the award on behalf of the company.

Being recognized as a Best Places to Work reinforces our belief that commercial real estate is more than bricks and mortar. Moving forward, we will continue to create deep roots through our individual roles, cultivating a deeper passion for the communities we serve. We’re honored to have been recognized as one of the 2018 Best Places to Work.

The published story from the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal can be seen online.

 

AUTHORED BY COLE STERR

After more than 40 years in the commercial real estate industry, champion John Saunders has truly left a lasting legacy throughout his career. To commemorate his retirement, let’s look at his real estate journey and some of the key legacies he will leave behind.

Creating Deep Roots in Commercial Real Estate

Saunders attended Tufts University in Boston, where he received his bachelor’s degree in English. Besides attending college, he enjoyed “his favorite job ever.” He scooped ice cream at Joey’s Ice Cream Shop. “It was a blast. Everybody is always happy and in a good mood when they are getting ice cream,” explains Saunders.

As a Minnesota native, Saunders then returned to Minnesota to attend the university’s law school. Graduating in 1981, he began his law career at the Rider Bennett firm in Minneapolis, where he practiced bankruptcy, corporate, and commercial real estate law. From there, he performed in-house work for a developer client and then moved to Northco, primarily doing acquisitions on the business side, not as a lawyer.

Imagining Possibilities

Having developed an interest in the commercial real estate business while practicing law, Saunders imagined the possibilities of making the transition to the business side of real estate, which he achieved while at Northco in the acquisition and disposition of office and industrial property investments.

This mid-life career change from law to business real estate was one of the most difficult undertakings for Saunders. “Trying to get in the business side of the industry when all I had ever done was law, while in my late 30s, was really difficult,” he recalls. However, upon reflecting on his career, Saunders explains that successfully making that transition is what he’s most proud of. “It was totally worth it,” he says.

Strengthening Communities

After successfully morphing to the business side of the commercial real estate industry, Saunders found himself here at UP where he has spent 16 years performing acquisition, disposition, and asset management work.

Saunders remembers how his time at United Properties has strengthened the communities around him, especially the North Loop neighborhood. A project that he is very proud of is the renovation, tax credit financing, and successful transformation of the Ford Center. “The Ford Center was the first big historic renovation in the North Loop, which really helped set off major redevelopment in that neighborhood,” explains Saunders.

Two other highlights of his impressive commercial real estate career include the acquisition via an online auction of four struggling buildings that UP leased up and sold in 18 months and the recent sale of industrial buildings to two groups out of Hawaii. He also mentions as a highlight the sale of RSM Plaza after difficult work extending the ground leases underlying that property.

Leaving Lasting Legacies

Looking back on his time in the industry, Saunders wants to be remembered as someone who maintained high values and contributed to the success of United Properties. “In the long-run, honesty and maintaining integrity are the most important things,” says Saunders.

As for his hopes for United Properties, he foresees the company continuing to thrive from developing and investing in unique and noteworthy assets. When asked if he had any advice for incoming real estate professionals, he said: “Get really good at numbers, be very thorough in analysis and diligence, and enjoy the business because it can be really fun.” When asked what the best advice he had ever received was, he said that his father once told him: “It’s better to keep your mouth shut and let people think you’re an idiot than to open it and remove all doubt.”

As for retirement, Saunders is most excited for one simple thing: time. Embarking on this new chapter of his life will allow him to drive his 1967 Volkswagen van, relearn Portuguese and travel to Brazil, lower his handicap, and finish building his cabin in Webster, Wisconsin. He also plans to eventually do some non-profit work.

Finally, Saunders is “totally blessed” to have worked with some “top-notch and wonderful people” in the industry. He is also blessed by having a wonderful wife, Mary, and son, Jackson, who will be following in his father’s footsteps, attending Tuft’s University in the fall.

AUTHORED BY COLE STERR

Innovation has always been at the forefront of our agenda. Whether we’re developing a new property or giving back to the community, strengthening communities and exercising a forward-thinking dynamic to the industry sets us apart.

One unique example of channeling innovation is our interest in repurposing materials when developing or repositioning projects. Let’s look at some key – and cool – examples of properties where those materials have been, or are currently being, transformed to enrich a building’s aesthetic.

Overlap of Organizational Impact

Take the Be The Match (BTM) headquarters in the North Loop, for example. Three tables within the BTM building were repurposed from fallen trees by Wood from the Hood (WFTH), a local business that reclaims discarded trees from urban neighborhoods to create “beautiful, high-quality wood products.” One of which is a 42-foot Silver Maple conference table in the employee gathering space (pictured below). The other two tables are located in another gathering space and the 5^th Street Station restaurant.

Kristine Fisher, the Director of Facilities Management and Real Estate for BTM, explains that the recommendation to use recycled materials for the property came from the interior architect. Supporting a local business with a purposeful cause seemed like the perfect choice for BTM, an organization that also has major influence and acts for the greater good of humanity. Collaboration between the two companies resonates well with the space as the repurposed wood complements the interior of the building, as well as the mission of the national marrow donor program.

WFTH is an innovative way to utilize trees that might otherwise go to waste. This creative, local business even crafted wood products from fallen trees from the 2011 North Minneapolis tornado. With their work, they are able to decrease urban waste and raise consumer awareness about tree removal. WFTH also supplies green materials to builders and architects to potentially strengthen the communities where these trees once lived.

A more detailed look at Wood from the Hood’s work can be seen on its website.

Maintaining Historic Charm

Other UP developments have ties to repurposed materials, too.

At the Nordic construction site, old printing plates were discovered and will now be displayed as art in the front lobby of the WELL-registered building. This discovery will add character and historical flavor to the multi-tenant establishment.

At the Kickernick Building, described as a “diamond in the rough” by VP of Construction Management Bill Jundt, hidden gems continue to be uncovered throughout its construction process. Built in 1896 and previously a women’s lingerie factory, all the wood is currently being returned to its original luster. Repurposing the building itself and exposing its original materials will strengthen its overall aesthetic and foster a stronger working community.

A Repurposed Purpose

Repurposing materials can be seen in different ways, as well.

Before United Properties began developing The Venue in Chanhassen, the former Frontier Building Center that occupied the site in the 1960s, 70s, and 80s supplied lumber to construct homes and establishments throughout the city. Throughout its time there, the Frontier Building Center strengthened the Chanhassen community with its lumberyard, multi-tenant leasing, and entertainment venues.

Last April, the Chanhassen Fire Department and the Tri-City SWAT Team received permission from United Properties to use the space for a different purpose than what it was once known for: law enforcement training. To simulate realistic situations and scenarios, the two teams conduct training sessions in buildings that will eventually be demolished. In this case, the Frontier Building Center was repurposed to accommodate their training needs and ultimately strengthen Chanhassen.

The in-process Venue Apartments will now take over as the land’s main tenant, sitting on land that has left a lasting legacy to the city of Chanhassen.

The Impact

The commitment to repurposing materials has profound impact on the communities where we live and work; it’s more than just reusing materials for a new development. It’s about preserving memories, enhancing historic charm, supporting local businesses, protecting the environment, and of course, strengthening our communities.

AUTHORED BY COLE STERR

Asset Management and Analyst Intern Nusrat Chowdhury came to Minnesota in the fall of 2016. Her mother, who disapproved of her moving across the world from Bangladesh, told her not to tell anyone that she was a practicing Muslim. Never feeling uncomfortable to disclose her religion, Chowdhury embraced her new life in Minnesota and put down new roots in a place she’d call home for the rest of her academic career.

Chowdhury’s Deep Roots

Chowdhury’s roots were established in Chittagong, Bangladesh, a city that maintains traditional beliefs. For example, women are not encouraged to pursue any higher education before marriage, study abroad, or have a career. Chowdhury decided to imagine the possibilities of rejecting societal norms and took a chance to fulfill her dream of receiving a college education in the United States, despite her family’s apprehension.

As a young girl, Chowdhury received strong pressure not to earn a higher education and instead, get married and stay in the home. “The society thinks that having a career is not a vital part for a woman,” she explains.

That said, Chowdhury’s grandfather, a big influence in her life, had always encouraged her to pursue a post-graduate collegiate route. Eventually, Chowdhury was accepted into the Asian University for Women in Chittagong, an independent, international institution that accepts 100-200 young women from 14 different Asian countries each year. At the university, Chowdhury developed a passion for economics. She also connected with young women from all over Asia, learning how diverse each Asian country represented was. Chowdhury describes her time at the university as “one of the most crucial” parts of her life because it supplied her with the ambition and empowerment to follow her passion of receiving a post-graduate education.

Chowdhury feels most happy when her work is contributing to some sort of societal change; remapping opportunities for marginalized communities and identities is where her passion lies. During her time with the Asian University for Women, she spent time working on advocacy campaigns to make feminine hygiene products more accessible to low income individuals. She also became very interested in working with transgenders, saying that they are an “untapped social circle that nobody likes to work with [in Bangladesh].”

From Chittagong to Minneapolis

Coming to the U.S. was by no means an easy transition for Chowdhury. According to her, the biggest culture shock that she experienced was how hard it was to make friends here; the individualist culture was quite the juxtaposition to Bangladesh’s collectivist culture. Upon meeting someone for the first time in Bangladesh, you’d most likely be invited into their home for a cup of tea. That’s simply not the case here in the U.S., a difficult societal norm for Chowdhury to adopt.

Adapting to the individualist culture was not the only challenge for Chowdhury; her identity as an international student in Minnesota engendered some more unexpected obstacles. As Chowdhury was looking for internships in the U.S., she found that many businesses were (and still are) unable to hire international students, which forced her to focus solely on her studies. It wasn’t until she applied for a position as an Asset Management and Analyst Intern here at United Properties that she was able to enter the American work force.

Early on, Chowdhury also discovered a disconnect between domestic and international students. Most of Chowdhury’s friends are international students given that they share a common bond of ubiquitously not feeling at home. To help improve support and resources for the international student community, Chowdhury has been a member of the U of M’s International Student Advisory Board. She and nine other student members offer feedback and suggestions aimed to improve the college experience of international students. Since coming to the U.S., Chowdhury has learned that building relationships is important when making a foreign place feel like home.

Imagining the Possibilities

Nearly two years later, Chowdhury will begin her last semester at the University of Minnesota this fall. She will work as one of four research assistants at the Heller Hewitt Economics Institute at the university.

For the future, Chowdhury plans to pursue a master’s degree in Economics. She also plans to continue engaging in work that will positively change society and supply opportunities to those who are less fortunate.

AUTHORED BY COLE STERR

United Properties’ CFO Eric Skalland and his wife Amanda spent 80 days in the NICU at North Memorial Health Hospital in Robbinsdale, MN after their daughter, Elin, was born 12 weeks premature. Those 80 days spent in the hospital were filled with uncertainty, worry, and apprehension. “The whole time you’re in the NICU, you never know when you’re going to take your child home,” Skalland explains.

On June 26, 2016 – an “awesome day,” Eric remembers – they received the news that they could take Elin home. As they watched Elin grow and thrive, they knew they wanted to give something back to the hospital that had given them so much.

When they heard about a program called “Beads of Courage” from a NICU nurse, they thought that bringing the program to North Memorial’s NICU staff and parents would be a way to leave a lasting legacy. The Skallands contacted the North Memorial Foundation to jumpstart the Beads of Courage program in the NICU in September of 2017, and the rest is history.

One Bead at a Time

Beads of Courage is used in many children’s hospitals nationwide to help families see the positives of their child’s treatment journey. Using colorful beads as a daily reminder of courage and hope, each day a bead is added to a string to represent a milestone that has happened. Whether it’s something as eventful as getting off the respirator or simply just living another day in the hospital, the beads serve as a physical representation of their time in the NICU, as well as a reminder of how much they’ve overcome.

According to Skalland, the Beads of Courage program helps “foster a human side of a relationship between doctors, nurses, and families.” One bead at a time, the families can better communicate with the medical staff about what their child is going through and how they can stay positive throughout the process. “There’s not always a lot of opportunity to think about the positives, and there were many days where all we thought about were the negatives,” says Skalland. With a recurring daily reminder about something positive, families are better able to stay positive themselves, celebrate milestones with their child’s nurses and doctors, serve as an advocate for their child, and overall have a more positive experience in the NICU.

The Skalland Legacy

The program launched in April of 2018, and the Skallands will receive quarterly reports about the program. Additionally, they will visit the NICU periodically to encourage families to stay positive and be a strong advocate for their baby.

According to Skalland, the program is doing what it’s supposed to be doing at the hospital: bringing nurses, doctors, and families together to remind them of the positive aspects of their child’s treatment journey.

Today, Elin is a happy, thriving two-year old. And with help from United Properties and the Pohlad Companies, the Skallands have agreed to fund the program for a minimum of three years, continuing to leave a lasting legacy and provide strength and comfort to other families who, like theirs, spent long days in the NICU department.

More information on the Beads of Courage program can be seen on their website.

 

AUTHORED BY COLE STERR

“When I walk into a space, I see pictures before I even take them.”

Meet one of our photographers: Bob Perzel. As a commercial photographer who has been in the business for more than 30 years, Perzel travels from coast to coast (as well as internationally) capturing the architectural beauty of the exteriors and interiors of office spaces, skyscrapers, industrial buildings, and other sites.

Snapshot of the Past

His story begins at 14 years old when he had received his first camera, a Canon. After experimenting with different types of cameras, Perzel then went on to study photography at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities. Later, he joined the Marine Corps and went to work for a delivery firm soon after, eventually investing his passion into his own photography business. By day, he was a professional photographer, but by night, he was a delivery guy.

Getting started with the photography business and gaining clients wasn’t a walk in the park, Perzel remembers. For example, as Perzel was looking for clients, he had called the head of marketing at the Mall of America for over a year. His phone calls started out once a month for five to six months, and then he started calling every couple of weeks. Those couple of weeks turned in to every week and then eventually every day. Perzel was told that he was one of the “most persistent photographers” by the head of marketing, and ultimately, landed the client. “A ‘no’ is one step closer to a ‘yes’,” Perzel said, “…persistence pays off.”

The Meat and Potatoes of His Work

Perzel says that his favorite sites to photograph are well-designed, colorful office and commercial spaces. He loves to see architects stretch their creativity and having the chance to capture that creativity in a photograph “sets him on fire,” especially interior spaces. He also says that these spaces are the most challenging to photograph. Calling it the “meat and potatoes” of his photography work, interiors are the most difficult because of the variety of lighting that the space reflects, which then affects how the photo is produced. Controlling and managing the lighting so that the space looks as it should be is critical to not only taking a photograph, but the editing process as well.

Having produced nearly half a million film negatives and possessing over 7 terabytes of storage (that’s 7,000 gigabytes!), Perzel dedicates the necessary time to ensure a client is happy. With an extensive editing process that can take 16 hours up to a week, “pleasing the client is the biggest thing you have to do [as a photographer],” Perzel told me.

Imagining a Future

Perzel doesn’t do it alone, of course. His wife, Lynn, has been a pivotal team player with the photography business. Lynn is the office manager and handles all the books, taxes, and paper work for the business, complementing Perzel as his “rock.” According to Perzel, if it weren’t for Lynn, this business wouldn’t be around.

With no vision of retirement, Perzel will continue to pursue his photography passion, continuously imagining the possibilities of how different architectural spaces can be photographed and shared with the world.

A further look at Perzel’s photography can be viewed on his website.