NAIOP Honors Commercial Real Estate Leaders

On Nov 4, 2025

A powerhouse of commercial real estate talent was honored last night at NAIOP – Commercial Real Estate Association – New Jersey Chapter’s President’s Awards & Hall of Fame reception held at the Hilton East Brunswick.

“The six President’s Award winners and two Hall of Fame inductees have significantly contributed to shaping NAIOP NJ into the respected organization it is today, trusted by policymakers, influential in Trenton, and a valuable resource for both experienced commercial real estate professionals and future leaders,” said Matt Schlindwein, NAIOP NJ president and managing partner at Greek Real Estate Partners.

The recipients of the awards included:

Legacy Award – David Gibbons, president and CEO of Elberon Development Group. Gibbons oversees all aspects of Elberon, including capital allocation, asset management, and financial analysis. He is a past president of NAIOP NJ.

Pillar Award – PGIM, a real estate asset management firm that specializes in real estate equity and debt, agriculture, global data centers, industrial assets, and sustainable investments across the globe. It is part of Prudential Financial, Inc.

Advocacy Award – Cecilia I. Lassiter, chair of the State and Local Incentives Law Practice at Sills Cummis & Gross PC. Lassiter has worked on several large-scale, mixed-use development projects including 1888 Studios in Bayonne, ON3 Campus in Nutley, and BellWorks in Holmdel.

Advocacy Award – Brad Vander Vliet, vice president at Crow Holdings Development. Over the course of his career, Vander Vliet has been involved in the development and construction of more than 11.5 million square feet of industrial space.

Volunteer of the Year Award – Anthony Marin, founder of MIG Real Estate. The real estate management company today manages approximately 500 residential units, more than 250,000 square feet of office and retail space, and 24-acres of land throughout Northern New Jersey.

Rising Star Award – Mike Barone, project manager for the Rockefeller Group’s design and construction team in Morristown. Since joining the firm in 2019, Barone has contributed to the delivery of more than 1.5 million square feet of new distribution space across New Jersey and Pennsylvania, along with 300MW of data capacity in Northern Virginia.

Hall of Fame Inductee – Robert Lieb, founder of Mountain Development Corp. In 1979, Lieb left the law profession to establish Mountain Development Corp. and commenced the development of signature project, Garret Mountain in Woodland Park. Since that time, the company has built a diversified portfolio of commercial real estate properties and projects through New Jersey, New York, Connecticut and Pennsylvania.

Hall of Fame Inductee – Monica Padovano Casiello, vice president of marketing and business development at U.S. Title Solutions. Padovano Casiello is known for leading the effort to secure groundbreaking projects such as The Helix in New Brunswick, The Cooperman Center in Newark, Lionsgate Film Studio in Newark, and 1888 Studios in Bayonne.

NAIOP NJ CEO Dan Kennedy, in looking out into the crowd of more than 300 attendees at the event, commented that the future of commercial real estate is vibrant in New Jersey as the industry is becoming younger and diverse.

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