The Saxum Real Estate office in Summit — Courtesy: Saxum
By Joshua Burd
Saxum Real Estate has announced four new hires aimed at bolstering its legal, project management and leasing teams.
The new hires include Michael Lickstein, who joins the Summit-based firm as its associate general counsel. He works alongside Saxum’s general counsel and investment teams, assisting with all legal matters and with the negotiation and execution of acquisitions, financings, joint ventures and other transactions.
Prior to joining Saxum, Lickstein was an associate in the real estate practice groups of Hogan Lovells and Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP, according to a news release. He received his undergraduate and law degrees from Cornell University and Columbia Law School, respectively.
“We are excited to have Michael join the Saxum team as associate general counsel,” said Lee Samuelson, the firm’s general counsel. “His legal knowledge and depth of experience coming from Hogan Lovells and Cleary Gotlieb will be invaluable for our transactional and strategic relationships, as Saxum continues to grow exponentially across multiple asset classes nationally.”
Meantime, Mehul Desai joins the firm as a senior project manager, bringing 20 years of construction and development experience that will help guide its projects from design through completion. He has a bachelor’s in civil engineering and a master’s in construction management from Stevens Institute of Technology, while maintaining his New York City superintendent license and his Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design accreditation by the U.S. Green Building Council.
“As we seek and grow our construction and development opportunities, Mehul plays a key role on our team in delivering excellence for our projects across the country,” said Kieran Flanagan, the firm’s director of construction. “He brings his wide breadth of experience from all the major sectors of construction to manage even our most complex projects. Mehul’s extensive skillset will add notable value as we specialize in bringing projects from concept to completion while also enhancing and upholding our earned reputation for success.”
As a corporate paralegal, Gina Karnick comes to Saxum with more than 20 years of experience, the firm said, citing her proficiency in analyzing financial records, writing correspondence and document preparation. Samuelson added that “her legal knowledge and depth of experience working at various law firms and construction companies will be invaluable to help Saxum grow and provide best-in-class service to our investors and joint venture partners.”
Also joining the company is Jason Wolfthal. He serves as a leasing analyst and will assist in property research and data preparation for the leasing team, while working closely with colleagues from across departments to support their overall goals.
He holds a degree in hotel, restaurant and institutional management from the University of Delaware, having interned at Pyramid Hotel Group.
“Jason’s addition to Saxum further strengthens one of Saxum’s core foundations, which is bringing best-in-class leasing practices together with investment and development,” said Matt Wassel, its director of leasing. “Jason brings energy and further capacity to our leasing team along with his hospitality and customer service background, which will all help Saxum as we expand our footprint across the U.S.”
