2025 Women in CRE: Kasia Mickowska, Shawmut Design and Construction

What has been the most rewarding project or deal you’ve worked on in your career, and why? My transition from commercial to healthcare construction five years ago was deeply rewarding. Working in occupied hospital environments, navigating active patient areas with complex logistics and phasing, allowed me to see firsthand how our work positively impacts patients and clinical staff.

2025 Women in CRE: Shannon Bahnsen, Westerman Ball Ederer Miller Zucker & Sharfstein, LLP

What has been the most rewarding project or deal you’ve worked on in your career, and why? My practice includes negotiating commercial leases on behalf of landlords and tenants for high-end properties, including retail, restaurant, office, industrial and other commercial properties located in New York and across the United States.

2025 Women in CRE: Barbara Champoux, Champoux Law Group PLLC

What has been the most rewarding project or deal you’ve worked on in your career, and why? Representing the environmental response trust created in a high-profile bankruptcy to acquire, remediate and sell various brownfields sites across 14 states to achieve optimal job creation & generate economic opportunity in the communities hurt by the bankruptcy.

2025 Women in CRE: Cindy DeFronzo, Lane Office

What has been the most rewarding project or deal you’ve worked on in your career, and why? Condé Nast’s 2014 move into One World Trade Center stands out as my most rewarding project. As the first major tenant in the rebuilt tower, the project symbolized New York’s resilience in the aftermath of 9/11.

2025 Women in CRE: Samantha Pacheco, Reidy Contracting Group

What has been the most rewarding project or deal you’ve worked on in your career, and why? Some of my proudest moments are when I successfully close out the financial side of big jobs, like 149 Madison, Warner Bros., and 360 Park Ave. South. There were some of Reidy Contracting’s largest projects at the time of completion.

2025 Women in CRE: Katie Marciano, Reidy Contracting Group

What has been the most rewarding project or deal you’ve worked on in your career, and why? An office space at 1350 Avenue of the Americas was my most rewarding project to date. It was a dynamic build with unique features and a fast-paced schedule. Frequent changes required quick thinking and adaptability,

2025 Women in CRE: Leyann Pena, Reidy Contracting Group

What has been the most rewarding project or deal you’ve worked on in your career, and why? I think a willingness to learn is one of the most important qualities you can have. In construction, so much of what you know comes from being on the job; asking questions, jumping in to help, and picking up tips

2025 Women in CRE: Niamh Henry, Reidy Contracting Group

What has been the most rewarding project or deal you’ve worked on in your career, and why? One of the most rewarding projects I’ve worked on was leading the pre-construction phase for a prestigious luxury client’s high-end office fit-out. It was the first major project I managed from start to finish,

2025 Women in CRE: Nancy Erardi, NYCAN Builders

What skill or quality do you believe is essential for success in your field today? An essential skill for successfully running a construction firm today is adaptive leadership - the ability to lead effectively through constant change, uncertainty, and complexity.

2025 Women in CRE: Kathy Younkins, Younkins & Schecter LLP

What has been the most rewarding project or deal you’ve worked on in your career, and why? In 29 years, we’ve worked on many rewarding projects. Recently, our work has included six amazing commercial-to-residential conversions for Vanbarton Group. Starting with the groundbreaking 180 Water St. conversion in 2014,