By Carla Pineda
CREJ Contributing Writer
At 9:30 a.m., the auditorium hall filled with groups of well-suited people lugging their laptops and their architectural models. Voices were shaky as proposals were dis-sected under the judges' eyes. But those who brought a solid financial foundation and confidence prevailed.
The challenge was to wow a panel of investors and the owner of a restaurant who was seeking redevelopment ideas. The task was to wake up a sleepy hot dog joint by maximizing the elements of the surrounding urban neighborhood and determining the best use of the site.
The presenters were students of the Ross Minority Program in Real Estate's winter session at the University of Southern California, but the "student" label should not detract from the professional members of this group, which included architects, financial advisors and a City Councilman.
The Ross Program, which was founded in 1993 as the Summer Program in Real Estate, has grown to include two short but intense sessions at USC and another in the San Francisco area. The program was designed to teach real estate practitioners and community leaders about development in underserved urban communities. The goal was to provide an overview of real estate's connection to the broader economy, the development process, the financial building blocks and valuation skills in urban settings.
The winter 2010 students had five days to prepare a financial feasibility study, market analysis and site plan for redeveloping of the Earlz Grille site.
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