Beyond the Skyline

This special episode of Beyond the Skyline features a panel discussion on child care. Across Minnesota, child care is in crisis. Panelists look at the latest national and state data, and take part in a free-flowing conversation about the challenges the industry faces and the solutions being implemented to address this critical issue. Topics discussed include the short- and long-term future of the child care industry, child care deserts (which are not just a metro issue) and the direct impact child care plays in the economic health of our state, especially now as COVID-19 has presented a serious blow to the Minnesota economy.

The panelists were Chad Dunkley, Chief Executive Officer, New Horizon Academy; Rob Grunewald, Economist, Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis; Debra Marofsky, President, Affiliated Insurance Services; and Suzanne Pearl, Minnesota Director, First Children's Finance

Senior housing has been a priority for Oppidan Investment Co. for several years, but recent demographic trends are encouraging the company to expand its investment in this type of housing even further.

Joe Ryan, the company’s CEO and founder, said their increased interest in senior housing projects is due to the nation’s aging population as well as the “great” business opportunity that comes with these developments. Oppidan has also worked on multifamily, industrial and retail developments to ensure it has a diverse array of investments.

Since founding the Excelsior-based company in 1991, Ryan’s not only developed more than $3 billion in real estate, he’s also expanded the company’s footprint outside of Minnesota. He’s completed more than 420 projects across 35 states, which encompasses over 15.8 million square feet of space.

Most recently, Oppidan opened the Watermark of Napa Valley, a senior housing project in California, and has several other senior living developments in various stages in the state as well.

Ryan graduated from St. Thomas University, with both a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration and a Master of Business Finance. Before starting Oppidan, he was a shareholding partner of REI and Limited, and directed the operations of Richard Ellis Inc.’s Minneapolis office. Additionally, he was vice president of asset management at St. Paul Properties Inc. In this episode, reporter Kelly Busche interviews Oppidan CEO, Joe Ryan.

After a slow start to the year, Minneapolis-based Sons of Norway has seen a spike in sales of life insurance products amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Chris Pinkerton, the fraternal benefit organization’s new CEO, says the timing isn’t coincidental.

“Life insurance is not something that the typical consumer is just rushing out to buy,” Pinkerton said. “But when there is an occurrence that makes you think about your own mortality and the impact that it will have on your family, people will take action.”

Sons of Norway, which has 300 lodges and provides life insurance and annuity products, holds more than $365 million in assets in 38 states. From January through July, the company sold 1,469 life insurance policies, up more than twofold from the same period in 2019.

Pinkerton assumed his new role as CEO in March, just before the state went into lockdown. Previously, he was chief operating officer of Sons of Norway, which recently opened a new headquarters in Minneapolis’ Uptown Neighborhood as part of a mixed-use development.

In the following interview, Pinkerton talks about starting his new job just before the state lockdown, the impact of COVID-19 on life insurance sales and more.

Aleesha Webb got her first taste of the finance business at a young age when she worked as a teller for Village Bank, a financial institution founded in the 1990s by Webb’s father, Donald Kveton.

She proved to be a quick study. After earning her MBA at the University of St. Thomas, Webb went on to hold leadership positions at Minnesota Bank and Trust and Sunrise Bank. Two years ago, she returned to the family business as president of Village Bank.

In the following interview, Webb talks about her career journey and weighs in how closing the gender gap in the industry is still a work in progress.

Longtime MSR Design Principal Jack Poling didn’t plan to pursue a career in architecture until well into his college career, when a guidance counselor suggested it might be a good fit.

The counselor was onto something. Now, after a decadeslong career in architecture, including 16 years as managing director at MSR, Poling is calling it a career.

A native of Texas, Poling graduated from Texas A&M University with a degree in environmental design, and he later earned a master’s degree in architecture at the University of Minnesota.

Poling has worked on numerous projects in Minnesota and beyond, with a special focus on libraries. In 2019, he was inducted into the American Institute of Architects’ prestigious College of Fellows, which honors AIA members who have made “significant contributions to elevate those architects who have achieved a standard of excellence in the profession and have made a significant contribution to architecture and society on a national level.”

In the following interview, Poling talks about how he decided to pursue a career in architecture, the importance of designing libraries as transformational places, the impact of the pandemic on design firms and more.

As Baker Tilly’s newest partner, Russ Fleming brings nearly three decades of experience to the Minneapolis-based accounting services firm and its construction and real estate clients.

Fleming heads up Baker Tilly’s construction and real estate group. He rejoined Baker Tilly two years ago after a six-year run in a similar role with the company’s Detroit office.

Among other duties, Fleming works with construction and real estate clients on services related to low-income housing tax credits, historic tax credits, Section 42 requirements, contract compliance, mergers and acquisitions, litigation support and more.

During his four-decade run with St. Louis Park-based Knutson Construction, Dave Bastyr has put his building and management skills to use on notable projects ranging from stadiums and hotels to hospitals and schools.

Bastyr, the company’s executive vice president, kicked off his Knutson career in the early 1980s by working as a land surveyor on the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome project in downtown Minneapolis. He went on to become general manager in each of Knutson’s regional offices.

During his 17 years as general manager, he oversaw “numerous new construction, remodel and renovation projects,” according to Knutson. After a stopover in Iowa, Bastyr is back in the Twin Cities, where he serves on the company’s advisory board.

In the following interview, Bastyr reflects on his time with the century-old company, how he got started in the business, and his experiences working on the Metrodome, the one-time home of the Twins and the Vikings.

To a big extent, Lisa Clarke has been the name and face of the Destination Medical Center initiative in Rochester.

Now getting ready for retirement, Clarke has served as executive director of the DMC Economic Development Agency since 2014. The nonprofit agency works with the city of Rochester and others to develop and implement DMC’s mission: a 20-year, $5.6 billion development initiative designed to “position Minnesota as a global center for the highest-quality medical care and to generate high-value jobs, new tax revenue and businesses.”

Clarke led the effort to get state funding for the DMC. In 2013, a total of $585 million was allocated by state statute for the initiative, including $424 million from the state, $128 million from the city of Rochester and $33 million from Olmsted County.

Under her watch, the Mayo Clinic and private developers have invested nearly $1 billion in Rochester development projects, including two hotels, housing and the $300 million business and research complex known as One Discovery Square.

Clarke will soon hand over the leadership baton to Patrick Seeb, the agency’s current director of economic development and placemaking and former executive director of the Saint Paul Riverfront Corp. Her retirement is effective Jan. 4, 2021.

In the following interview, Clarke talks about her time with the DMC Economic Development Agency, the initiative’s formative years and other topics.

Less than a month into his new job as president of Rogers-based Veit Cos., Tim Reimann has hit the ground running with an agenda that includes growing a specialty contracting business and maintaining safe work practices during a pandemic.

Reimann has 25 years of business leadership experience, most recently as vice president of operations at McGough Construction in Roseville. His resume includes a stint with the U.S. Navy, and his business experience runs the gamut from working with startups to leading multibillion-dollar corporations in the manufacturing, construction and service sectors, according to his bio.

He joins a company that was founded in 1928 by Frank Veit. Today, Veit Cos. has more than 700 employees, and offers specialty contracting services such as earthwork, foundations, demolition, underground utilities, hydraulic dredging and industrial cleaning.

In the following interview, Reimann talks about COVID’s impact on the construction industry, the future of waste management and demolition, and other topics.

Gary Kirt bought his first home when he was still in high school, an investment that launched what would become a 50-plus year career in mortgage banking.

After stints with Conservative Mortgage and Midwest Federal, Kirt purchased Minneapolis-based Bell Mortgage (then known as the David C. Bell Investment Co.) in 1980. He’s credited with growing the 100-year-old business into the largest privately owned mortgage company in the Midwest with nearly $2 billion in annual closings. Kirt stayed on as an adviser after Fargo, North Dakota-based State Bank & Trust acquired Bell in 2011.

Now retired and focused largely on volunteer work, Kirt joined an elite group recently when the Minnesota Bankers Association inducted him into its Pioneer Banking Club, which recognizes Minnesota bankers for 50 years or more of industry leadership.

In the following interview, Kirt talks with Reporter Brian Johnson about his long journey in the mortgage banking industry from precocious homebuyer to Pioneer Club member.