CEH Management
Creative Environments of Hollywood (“CEH”) is a full service real estate investment, development, and management firm based in Hollywood, California. Founded in 2001 by Gerald Schneiderman and Manuel Meza, CEH specializes in the construction, conversion, and rehabilitation of creative commercial, live-work, and residential space for the inspired urban tenant. CEH, its principals and partners are committed to the revitalization of L.A.’s urban neighborhoods with a particular focus on Hollywood, downtown, and areas in between. CEH has acquired and/or developed over 1,100,000 square feet of commercial and residential space since its inception in 2001.
CEH actively pursues value-added real estate ventures for its own account, its loyal investors, or together with joint venture partners. Currently, CEH has nearly 750,000 square feet of building space either under construction or in the pre development.
CEH has a history of achieving superior risk-adjusted returns through a calculated formula of innovative design, meticulous cost control, hands-on construction management, targeted leasing, and aggressive property management. Yet most importantly, CEH prides itself on seeing potential where others don’t. CEH maintains a highly qualified in-house design and construction team that has a proven track record of bringing new life and value to under-utilized, vacant, or otherwise under-performing properties. Through its ability to deliver contemporary urban spaces at affordable prices, CEH has cultivated a loyal tenant base and reputation among Hollywood’s artistic, fashion, entertainment, and creative professionals for delivering value combined with a truly unique living and working experience.
CEH always welcomes the opportunity to foster new relationships with investors, lenders, and joint venture partners.
Bios
Jerry Schneiderman
Chairman
Jerry Schneiderman is Chairman of the Board of Creative Environments of Hollywood, Inc., as well as Chairman of Colony Bancorp of Malibu, another real estate development firm.
Jerry graduated from Art Center College of Design in 1971 and began his own company in 1976, specializing in design, construction and merchandising. Over the next several years, his companies designed twenty million square feet, built six million square feet of commercial space, and brokered over $12 billion in deals.
Today, Jerry’s companies currently own and/or operate over 500,000 square feet of commercial and residential property. He also manages and consults with owners of 10 million square feet of additional space and one thousand residential units. He has been appointed to sit on the CRA’s Planning Design Review Board and the CRA’s Economic Development Committee. He also served on the Board of Directors of the Hollywood Arts Council. Jerry and his companies have recently won the following awards:
Hollywood Entertainment Museum’s “Legacy Award” for Best Restoration
Hollywood Arts Council’s “Charlie Award” for Preservation Arts
Hollywood Arts Council’s “Charlie Award” Architecture award for the Cosmo Building
Hollywood Heritage’s “Golden Palm Award” for Excellence in Historic Preservation
State Senate “Commendation” for Leadership in Development
The Nelson Mandela Multi-Cultural Center “Humanitarian Award”
City of Los Angeles “Certificate of Commendation”
Having designed and constructed over 7,000,000 square feet of executive and shared legal suites, Jerry is an expert on the planning of these unique environments. As a principal, he has also developed over 2,000,000 square feet of creative space for tenants in the arts and entertainment industries, including Theater Row Hollywood, which today comprises 23 live stage theaters, restaurants, clubs, and galleries.
Jerry has been featured in Forbes Magazine, Los Angeles Magazine, New Times Magazine, City Beat, Los Angeles Times and The Los Angeles Business Journal.
Howard Sadowsky
Vice-Chairman
Howard Sadowsky joined Creative Environments of Hollywood, Inc. in the spring of 2004, as a partner. His expertise lies in his overall knowledge and experience in creating new opportunities for CEH and formulating new lending equity alliances.
Howard formed Studleys West Coast Operations in Los Angeles in 1971. He oversaw the company’s expansion to three offices including Downtown Los Angeles and Orange County, with over 60 professionals actively doing deals in the marketplace. Studleys soon became one of the elite brokerage firms in the business. In 1977, he became a partner and 2 years later joined the Board of Directors. He and his partners sold the company in 2003.
Howard’s 38 years of experience involve commercial leasing, equity leasing, build-to-suit transactions and investment sales. Over the last 10 years, Howard has spent his efforts focusing on the buying and selling of investment properties. Considered one of the key brokers in the country, he has been responsible for transactions valued at over $2 billion.
A speaker at numerous industry conferences and events, Howard is frequently quoted in The Wall Street Journal, The Los Angeles Times, The Los Angeles Business Journal, Forbes and Business Week. He won The Los Angeles Business Journal's Top Broker of the Year Award for Commercial Investment for two consecutive years, 1995 and 1996. H e was also named one of the “Hot Brokers" for 1996 and 2000 in Commercial Property News , and in 1997 won the Award for Most Creative Deal for the sale of MGM Plaza.
As an active member of the community, Howard serves on the Board of Directors for Chrone’s Colitis Foundation, and was honored in March 2002 as Man of the Year. He is also on the board of SCI-ARC (Southern California Institute of Architecture).
Manuel Meza
President
As President of CEH, Manuel Meza is responsible for setting and implementing the company’s overall direction and vision. As a real estate broker and asset manager for over 20 years, he brings extensive experience to the team.
Prior to forming CEH with Jerry, Manny was General Manager of Lotus Management where he brokered and managed nearly 1,000,000 square feet of property over a 15 - year period. Properties included shopping centers, restaurants, night clubs, hotels and over 275 residential units. As a seasoned commercial broker with vast experience in hotel, restaurant and property management, Manny has acquired a fertile resource of business connections that have been vital to the formation and operation of CEH.
Zachary Schneiderman
Vice President of Finance
As Vice President of Finance, Zachary Schneiderman controls all of CEH’s financial matters and is the firm’s primary liaison to lenders and investors. He regularly tracks and manages operational cash flow, both project-by-project as well as for the company overall.
At the inception of CEH, Zachary held the title of Vice President of Finance. After assuming responsibility for cultivating the company’s image, his duties have grown to encompass marketing and brand management while also overseeing asset management. Having built these departments himself, Zachary still takes pride in directing the current team.
Zachary is a graduate of the University of Kansas where he majored in Film Studies with a concentration in business and marketing. His entertainment background and extensive industry contacts have proven invaluable to the company. He also brings a very keen understanding of the lifestyle needs of the creative professionals comprising the majority of CEH’s growing tenant base.
Kelly McRae
Vice President of Administration
Kelly McRae is Vice President of Administration for CEH, managing all internal business development, employee relations and assisting in overall marketing and public relations for the company. With over two decade’s history assisting small-to-medium sized businesses throughout Southern California, Kelly brings experience and foresight to create, implement and direct internal protocol, policies and procedures.
Mr. McRae has not only successfully created and sold a number of his own small businesses, he has worked with, literally, hundreds of venture capital-backed startup technology companies at critical stages of their life cycle, managing employee growth, targeting corporate messaging, enhancing internal employee and technology functions, developing necessary partnerships and strategic alliances. Through his career, Kelly has helped create, manage and support over one thousand new jobs for his client companies.
Mr. McRae attended Long Beach State University, majoring in Business and English, then continued his education at the University of California Los Angeles.
Chris Meola
Vice President of Property Management & Leasing
Chris Meola is Vice President of Property Management & Leasing for Creative Environments, managing all portfolio properties for the company. Chris is also developing Creative Environment’s fee-based enterprise, provide the same leasing & property management expertise to external property owners.
Chris has years of real estate experience, ranging from development feasibility advisement to 1031 tax deferred exchanges and has worked with hundreds of investors and partnerships throughout Southern California.
Chris’s commitment to excellence, customer service and expense management is a key component in the continued success of Creative Environments.
James Williams
Vice President of Lending
As Vice President of Lending for Creative Environments of Hollywood, James is responsible for developing and maintaining lender relationships, for negotiating needed construction and permanent financing, for securing required bonds and letters of credit, for nurturing long-term “partnerships” with a myriad of financial institutions throughout the country.
A graduate of Indiana University, with a degree in Finance, James has managed investor portfolios in excess of $500 million, successfully forecasting market trends. He is experienced with property and loan analysis, capital strategic planning, financial reporting and deal origination. And James’ keen understanding of lending, extensive experience and his ability to find creative solutions to the lending needs of CEH makes him a critical component in the company’s ongoing success and profitability.
Alberto Makabali
Vice President of Development
As Vice President of Development for Creative Environments of Hollywood, “Bert” oversees projects from acquisition, planning, design and implementation through completion. He joined “CEH” at its inception and collaborated with its Chairman, Jerry Schneiderman, completing the award-winning Cosmo Lofts – the first live-work project under the Adaptive Reuse Ordinance Hollywood.
Bert began his career as a board certified, 22 year old graduate of one of the world’s oldest and most respected universities, the University of Santo Tomas, Manila. Bert was commissioned to design/build a “little town” project with housing, office buildings, a community park with recreation and a medical clinic and security complex.
In 1974, as associate architect of LST Designs Collaborative, Bert directed the New York City firm’s Upper Manhattan urban renewal projects for “Architectural Rehabilitation Committee of Harlem” and “HUD.” He then joined Space Matters, Inc., in Los Angeles, as Executive Vice President with responsibility for planning and construction of the firm’s multi-million square feet projects in the continental U.S. In 1979, he formed LTIC, the construction arm of Space Matters, Inc., opening offices in Los Angeles, San Francisco and Fresno.
With design/build experience in more than two continents, today Bert shares the vision of Jerry Schneiderman in committing development expertise to meet the challenge of a resurgent Asian economy with the opening of Creative Environments International offices in Japan and the Philippines.
Vivian Ramos
Controller
Vivian Ramos is Controller for Creative Environments of Hollywood, managing the company’s financial statements, P&L’s and banking accounts. Vivian works closely with the Chairman and Vice President of Finance on forecasting and maximizing investment strategies, and she is intimately involved with the firm’s property management and leasing department, overseeing CAM reconciliations, rent rolls, billing, determining depreciable/recoverable assets, etc..
Vivian has years of experience in finance/accounting for real estate development, property management, partnerships, public and private businesses.
Vivian received her B.A. from the University of Hawaii at Manoa in business administration with an emphasis on accounting, and she is currently working on her MBA with a concentration on finance at California State University, Northridge.
Vivian’s solid education and practical experience play a major role in the ongoing success and profitability for Creative Environments of Hollywood and our many partnerships.
Toshio Kato
Development Partner
Mr. Toshio Kato, Development Partner of Creative Environments of Hollywood and head of construction for the Hilrock Corporation, the construction entity within CEH. He began his real estate career in 1964 as an engineer at Sumitomo Japan and in the last 43 years, Mr. Kato has been renowned for the elegance in his dynamic projects.
Mr. Kato’s career progressed as he became the General Manager of Sumitomo America and Partner, COO of Westcoast Professional Development, Inc. He has been involved with significant developments worldwide as a Developer, General Contractor and Construction Manager.
Mr. Kato’s touch can be seen with projects such as the 400-unit, $35 million Park West apartment complex near the Los Angeles Airport; the 225-unit, 25-story Harbor Place ocean front condominiums in Long Beach; the Standard Oil Building in Downtown Los Angeles as well as the Mazda Motors America Headquarters and Warehouse in Orange County, California.
Mr. Kato’s developments have extended far beyond the state with the luxurious tenant improvement in Qiora, at 350 Madison Avenue in Manhattan; the Austin City Building in Austin, Texas as well as Benihana restaurants in Scottsdale, Arizona and Atlanta, Georgia.
Paul Rodriguez
Director of Architecture
Paul Rodriguez is the Director of Architecture for CEH, creating and overseeing many of the high-profile projects currently in development. A registered architect in California, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Ohio, he brings nearly 20 years of design and construction experience to the CEH architectural team.
Mr. Rodriguez earned a Bachelor of Architecture and a Bachelor of Science from Kent State University and completed the illustrious Italian Architecture Program in Florence, Italy. He began his career designing over 100,000 square feet of commercial space in Ohio and New Jersey. After 10 successful years, Paul moved to San Diego, California, working with Safdie Rabines Architects and Architectural Concepts, designing and consulting on dynamic projects throughout Southern California. Mr. Rodriguez’s keen eye for detail and his unique p3erspective on design bring invaluable creativity to design and construction.
Hank Havandijan
General Superintendent
Hank Havandijan is responsible for overseeing and supervising construction projects ranging from $17m to $50m. Individual project sizes ranging from 25,000 to 250,000 square feet. These project include Lacy lofts (50,000 s.f.), Imani Fe (250,000 s.f.), White Knoll (30,000 s.f.) and Seeley Lofts (45,000 s.f.). Hank is responsible for all phases of new construction, including all scheduling of sub-contractors, quality control, daily contact with building inspectors, interface with off-site utilities and municipalities, labor analysis and cost management of sub-contractor trade; stage and store materials, customer service T.I. remodel construction, resolve contract performance problems, lot staging, centralized scheduling, weekly owner meetings and jobs site maintenance and cleanliness.
Hank maintains daily communications with the owners, owner’s rep’s, architects, vendors, consultants, project managers and support staff. In addition, Hank records and tracks all construction documents, coordinates with all trades, schedules and completes all work in a timely manner. Chief among these is his long standing relationships with vendors and consultants who complete each construction trade in a timely manner.
Louis Lesser
Chairman of the Board Emeritus
Louis Lesser is Chairman of the Board Emeritus for Creative Environments of Hollywood, Inc. He has enjoyed an extensive and distinguished 55 year career as a real estate developer.
Beginning in 1952, with the purchase of property in Germany, Mexico, Iran and California, Lesser quickly made a name for himself through the visionary development of 1000-home subdivisions, 20-plus-story apartment buildings, office buildings, shopping centers, industrial plants and military projects.
Louis Lesser Enterprises, Inc. was listed on the American Stock Exchange and was the entity which built, developed and operated over $10 Billion in commercial and residential development and over $5 Billion in housing projects for the Armed Forces.
He has also developed, owned and operated the Sands Hotel, Shelter Island Inn, Half Moon Inn the Westwood Manor Retirement Hotel and Terrace Retirement Hotel in Southern California; the Nanaloa Hotel and Sheraton Waikiki Hotel in Hawaii as well as the Moulin Rouge Hotel and Frontier Hotel in Las Vegas and the Nicholette Hotel in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Lesser has also served with distinction on the boards of many corporations including: Chairman of the Board of Cash Express, Inc., Director and Officer, Sea Transportation, Ltd., Lee Martin, Inc., Petro Oil and Gas, Inc., Sunset Oil Co., Eagle Oil Refinery Co., and was the Managing Director of Zenith Refinery, Ltd.
Louis Lesser has been active in the community serving as the Los Angeles County and Cities Disaster and Defense commissioner in addition to his involvement as a member of the Board of Trustees of the City of Hope. In 1961 he was honored as the “Man of the Year” from the City of Hope in Los Angeles.
