Bridgeport, CT -- (SBWIRE) -- 05/21/2010 -- The Connecticut Real Estate Investors Association, or CTREIA, in association with the Fairfield County Real Estate Investors Association, or FCREIA, is announcing a new FCREIA meeting. The event will take place in conjunction with the Bridgeport New Development Toolbox seminar, presented by the Bridgeport Downtown Task Force. This seminar is on Thursday, May 27, from 8:00AM to 11:00AM, at the Golden Hill Methodist Church on 210 Elm Street in Bridgeport, CT. Admission to this event is $20. All proceeds, minus expenses, will be donated to the church.

This seminar explores opportunities in development with Bridgeport’s new master plan and zoning regulations. Mayor Bill Finch will be providing opening remarks, and the event will be co-moderated by Anne Pappas Phillips, Commissioner of Bridgeport Planning and Zoning and Harlan S. Sexton, Senior Associate at BFJ Planning. The guest speaker’s for this event are Edmund F. Schmidt, Paul Antinozzi, and David Kooris. The expert panel includes Caroline E. Vary, Michael J. Cacace, Alan J. Plattus, and Jeffrey R. Dunne.

Edmund F. Schmidt is the Assistant City Attorney for the City of Bridgeport with the Curtis, Brinkerhoff & Barrett PC law firm. He is also a trustee for the Connecticut Trust for Historic Preservation, a former member of Darien Planning and Zoning Commission and South Western Regional Planning Agency, and a former Commissioner at the Connecticut Housing Finance Authority, Connecticut Law Revision Commission, and Connecticut African-American Affairs Commission. He was also the Counsel to Speaker of the House of Representatives, Connecticut General Assembly from 1991 to 2001 and a Trial Attorney at the U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Division from 1975 to 1979.

Paul Antinozzi is President of Antinozzi Associates, Architecture and Interiors in Bridgeport. In addition to maintaining a prominent architectural practice Mr. Antinozzi has been involved with civic activities for much of his career. Currently he is Co-Chair of the Downtown Task Force and President of the Housatonic Community College Foundation. His 25-year tenure with the AIA Committee on Design has enabled him to study urban design internationally.

David Kooris is Vice President and Connecticut Director at Regional Plan Association, the nation's oldest regional planning organization conducting research and advocating for progressive environmental, economic, and social policy across the New York Metropolitan region since the 1920s. He manages a wide range of projects exploring the relationship between built form and climate change and implementing transit-oriented development. Working in the region's primary centers and smaller towns, he works with communities to identify the best strategies to leverage the region's phenomenal transit infrastructure to meet local goals for livable and sustainable communities.

Caroline E. Vary joined Jonathan Rose Companies in 2007 to lead development projects in the Connecticut regional office. Ms. Vary brings 15 years of experience in design, construction, development, asset management, leasing and financing to her role as a Senior Project Manager. Ms. Vary oversees all aspects of real estate development and construction from the earliest pre-development planning phase of work to oversight of property management activities during occupancy.

Michael J. Cacace is the founding partner of the Stamford law firm of Cacace, Tusch & Santagata. He holds a B.A. degree from Fordham College and a J.D. degree from New York Law School, and is admitted to practice before the courts in Connecticut and New York. He is a former president of the Stamford Regional Bar Association and a former chairman of the Planning and Zoning Section of the Connecticut Bar Association. He was recently listed as one of the best lawyers in Connecticut by the Connecticut Magazine, Westchester Magazine and New York magazine in the areas of real estate and zoning.

Alan J. Plattus is Professor of Architecture and Urbanism at the Yale University School of Architecture, where he teaches courses on architectural history and theory, urban history and design, and directs the School's China Studio. He founded and directs the Yale Urban Design Workshop, a community design center that has undertaken urban design and building projects throughout Connecticut, and is now leading an international team designing a Peace Park on the Israeli-Jordanian border. He has lectured and published on the history of cities and civic pageantry, as well as on modern architecture and urbanism.

Jeffrey R. Dunne is a Vice Chairman at CB Richard Ellis, Inc. and oversees the Suburban New York Capital Markets group that sells, recapitalizes income producing office, retail, multi-family and industrial assets. Although much of their business is transacted in the New York Region, the group sells many assets and portfolios throughout the United States. Jeff's team completed $5.7 billion in transactions in 2007/2008, and nearly $20 billion since his team's inception. Jeff was CB Richard Ellis' top investment broker worldwide in 2007, 2004 and 2003 and was runner up in 2005, 2006, 2008 and 2009.

CT REIA is a Connecticut organization that provides motivation, networking opportunities, and up-to-date education for people that want to buy their own home or investment property in today's real estate economy. Each month various educational and networking opportunities are made available to real estate professionals, investors, landlords, property managers, realtors, contractors, wholesalers, and rehabbers. For more information on this event, please call (860) 265-4414 or visit http://www.ctreia.com/events.php?a=v&i=264 .