Representative Experience
Provides legal, business and strategic advice at the highest professional level with a focus on commercial real estate, land use and telecommunications law. Provides acquisition, development, entitlement, financing, leasing and operations services to real estate development clients, including leading hospitality companies.

Has represented developers/borrowers in over a billion dollars in real estate transactions financed by Goldman Sachs, Chase Manhattan, Morgan Stanley, GMAC, GECC, AFL-CIO Building Investment Trust, Wells Fargo, EuroHypo and others.

Represents wireless carriers in entitlement, right of way and dispute resolution matters.

Real Estate and Land Use
Intercontinental Hotel Monterey: Introduced landowner’s managing partner, Theodore Balestreri, to hotelier Clement Chen, and structured a 99-year ground lease and feasibility contingency plan with the City of Monterey to make the project financially viable. Obtained approvals from the California Coastal Commission, the Army Corps of Engineers, the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary and scores of other agencies. Negotiated Intercontinental License Agreement. Negotiated GMP construction contract with general contractor Devcon Construction, which is now building the 210-room four-star hotel, which opened in June, 2008.

Transit Oriented Development: Working with Republic Urban Properties, Barry Swenson Builders and the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority to develop a LEED certified, high density, transit-oriented residential project with an affordable housing component: Negotiation of Disposition and Development Agreement with VTA.

Sheraton Palo Alto: Negotiated long-term ground lease with Stanford Land Management for this 346-room hotel.

Fort Baker Retreat Center: Assisted developer Tom Sargent in structuring and closing his initial investor round and negotiating a hotel operating agreement with Passport Resorts LLC for the Fort Baker Retreat Center, which opened in June, 2008.

Woodside Technology Center: Assisted in ground-up development; entity formation; land purchase agreement with Rohm and Haas Company; clearance letter with Regional Water Quality Control Board; financing from AFL-CIO Building Investment Trust; construction agreements with South Bay Construction; and sale to Carlyle Realty.

Solamar Hotel, San Diego: Negotiation of management contract, pre-opening agreement and owner's representative agreement with JMIR.

Monterey Plaza Hotel: Representation in purchase, renovation, operation, permitting, and sale; purchase of hotel garage in pending foreclosure action in Monterey County Superior Court (Hon. Richard M. Silver); negotiation of Forte Hotels franchise agreements.

Hotel Monaco San Francisco: Representation in purchase, renovation, and sale; negotiation of Kimpton Group hotel operating agreement.

Holiday Inn, Civic Center, San Francisco: Bankruptcy court purchase (Hon. Louise D. Adler) and financing (Bank of China).

Los Angeles Airport Crowne Plaza; Holiday Inns at LAX, Santa Monica; Long Beach Airport; Oakland Airport; and Brentwood/BelAir Hotel: Acted as borrower's special California counsel (working with Sullivan & Cromwell's New York office) for a series of securitized real estate finance transactions with Goldman Sachs Mortgage Company, Archon Group, International Securitization Corp., LaSalle National Bank, and others.

Lake Arrowhead Resort: Served as counsel to lender (ORIX) providing acquisition financing.

Sheraton Four Points, Emeryville: Representation in bankruptcy court purchase (Hon. Randall J. Newsome), financing (GMAC), leasing, and operation; negotiation of Days Inn termination and Sheraton franchise agreement.

Westin Palo Alto: Negotiation of ground-up development; easement agreements with Stanford Land Management; negotiation of Westin franchise agreement.

Richmond Courtyard Hotel: Negotiation of refinancing provided by General Electric Capital Corporation (GECC).

Buffalo Hilton: Representation in sale to HBE Corporation.

Cupertino Cypress Hotel: Representation in land acquisition.

Homewood Suites San Jose: Served as borrower's special California counsel regarding refinancing by Liberty Mortgage.

Restaurants: Fifth Floor, Hotel Palomar; Spire Restaurant, Nine Zero; Aqua Restaurant, Hotel Bellagio; Redwood Park, TransAmerica Pyramid; Fillmore Grill & Café Metropol, San Francisco; Ozumo and Pican Restaurants, Oakland; and Piatti Restaurant, Roseville. Represent restaurant landlords and tenants with lease and celebrity chef agreements.

Franchise Agreements: Clarion Bedford San Francisco; Sheraton Tacoma; Tuscan Best Western San Francisco; Marriott Courtyard Stockton; Marriott Residence Stockton; and Westin Palo Alto: Negotiation of franchise agreement with flags.

Telecommunications
T-Mobile: Represented T-Mobile as amicus curiae before the California Fourth District Court of Appeal in Sprint v. County of San Diego, the first California decision holding that wireless carriers benefit from the state’s statutory franchise grant to use the public right-of-way.

Local Government Committees: Served as a member of committees drafting telecommunications legislation in all nine contiguous Bay Area counties as well as in the cities of San Francisco, Oakland and San Jose.

Wireless Network Development: Represented AT&T Wireless, AirTouch (now part of Verizon Wireless), and Sprint in all aspects of telecommunications network deployment and infill, which includes leasing, entitlements, appeals and compliance actions under the 1996 Telecommunications Act.

Utility Condemnation: Represented Cellular One in private utility condemnation action to obtain mission critical cell site and in successful opposition to proposed local moratoria on the permitting and construction of wireless telecommunications facilities.

Prior Experience
Founder, Ledoux Esquire Inc., San Francisco, CA

Senior VP, Syndication/Business Development, Mondo Media, San Francisco, CA

Partner, Mackenzie & Albritton LLP, San Francisco, CA

Associate, Graham & James LLP, San Francisco, CA

Staff Attorney, Jacksonville Area Legal Aid, Jacksonville, FL

Representative Clients
Pacific Hotel Management

Kimpton Hotel and Restaurant Group

T-Mobile

Republic Urban Properties

Barry Swenson Builder

Signature Properties

Ace Capital Group

Publications and Presentations
Lecturer and panelist at APA, ABAG, CTIA and MCLE conferences

Memberships and Activities
Counsel, Marin Agricultural Land Trust & Regeneration Project

Past Corporate Counsel, Board of Directors, Jazz in Flight, Children in Flight

Past Counsel, San Francisco Education Services

Past President and Director, Big Brothers/Big Sisters of St. Joseph County

Education
J.D., cum laude, Harvard Law School, Cambridge, MA, 1985

B.A. in American Studies, summa cum laude, University of Notre Dame, South Bend, IN, 1981

Languages
Conversant in French