Despite the fact that Southern California, if not Orange County, already is home to the Lusk Center at the University of Southern California and the Ziman Center at the University of California, Los Angeles, Orange County real estate professionals say the region needs a top-notch program.
Those might sound like fighting words, but Stuart Gabriel, director of the Lusk Center, isn't taking the bait.
While the Lusk Center is a "top-tier, national real estate center," Gabriel said, "I can understand the idea of organizing the Orange County real estate community and the need for leadership down there."
In fact, Gabriel said he is looking forward to working with Vandell. The two have been friends and colleagues for more than 20 years, he said.
"I know that he will do a superb job," Gabriel said. "Frankly, from our perspective at USC, this isn't really a zero-sum game. It's about all sorts of interesting and creative collaborations across universities and across centers. We collaborate with UCLA and we have every intention of working together with UC Irvine.
"There are many ways that the centers can complement one another and can collectively raise the standard of real estate scholarship and real estate academic programs," he added.
