In the first quarter of 2016, ARK Development—a Racebrook portfolio company—will open The ARK at JFK, the world’s only animal-only airport terminal. Construction is now underway on the 178,000 square foot facility, which has made the news from Germany to Japan to India. Racebrook CEO John J. Cuticelli Jr. is no Dr. Dolittle – he has just one dog, a Cockapoo named Tucker, at home. But he is a savvy investor with an eye for unusual opportunities and assets, and so the concept of creating a world-leading animal handling facility, one that will see domestic pets, race horses, livestock, and perhaps the occasional zoo animal pass through its large doors, presented an appealing challenge. Cuticelli recently spoke about the project and its associated challenges. What a fascinating idea – the world’s only privately owned animal handling cargo terminal – how did you come up with it? Cuticelli: A Cornell veterinarian approached me with a document from the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (Ed. note: a Yardi client), in which they were seeking a developer to build a 6,000 sf small animal veterinary hospital somewhere on the airport property. With my background in the airport freight business, I had some idea of the kind of animal volume that comes through the airport. Given the footprint and notoriety of JFK, my response to that was that a 6,000 square foot facility was just too small. If we wanted to make a significant contribution to animal care, it would have to be much more elaborate and fulfill the needs of the industry. That’s how it started. So what is the volume of animal traffic that passes through the airport? Cuticelli: One of the interesting things is that there’s no single place where you can...

Flown the friendly skies lately? No matter where you went, you probably noted that some airports are better than others. Some are easy to navigate while you’re rushing to make that tight connection. Some had concessionaires that were more convenient to your departure gate than others. And some, inexplicably, put the restrooms way too far from the baggage claim. Recently, the Airport Revenue News announced its annual winners in the ARN Best Airport & Concession Awards. Among the honorees are two New York airports that are in the process of implementing Yardi Voyager for Government to meet their tenant management, lease administration, and property management needs. Even though we can’t claim to have been a part of their success (yet), we’re still proud of our clients. LaGuardia (Flushing, NY) and John F. Kennedy International (Jamaica, NY) are part of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, the largest port complex on the East Coast. The Port Authority chose Yardi’s commercial property management software solution for all of its real estate business, which ranges from office leases in One World Trade Center (Freedom Tower) to concession and fixed base operation leases at the nation’s three busiest airports, to collecting tolls on the New Jersey Turnpike. ARN recognized LaGuardia and JFK for excellence in the following categories: Airport with the Best Customer Service Airportwide (Terminal) – LaGuardia, Terminal D. Terminal D includes an impressive array of food service offerings, with everything from artisan sandwiches to burgers to celebrity chef-run restaurants, and the dining experience is described as high tech and relaxing for stressed out travelers. With iPad-based ordering, your food will arrive in no time so you can eat calmly and still catch your flight. Airport with the Most Unique Services – John F....

Have you ever thought about how planes, trains, cargo ships and automobiles are inextricably linked with the world of real estate? There’s no better illustration of this reality then the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, the largest port complex on the East Coast, which recently chose Yardi Voyager for Government to handle tenant management, lease administration, property management, and much more. The most important work of a port authority is to keep regional trade and transportation systems moving safely and smoothly. But roads, rails, seaports and airspace all require extensive supporting infrastructure and real estate, and that’s where Yardi Systems can be of great help. The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey will use Yardi’s commercial property management software solution for all of its real estate business, which ranges from office leases in One World Trade Center (Freedom Tower) to concession and fixed base operation leases at the nation’s three busiest airports (John F. Kennedy International Airport, LaGuardia Airport, Newark Liberty International Airport) to collecting tolls on the New Jersey Turnpike. More than 485 leases, 65M SF of buildings and 15,000 acres of property will be managed using Yardi Voyager. “Yardi can handle all of it, with our commercial off the shelf (COTS) system,” said Spencer Stewart, National Account Executive, Yardi Government Services, of the advantages of choosing Yardi Voyager. “We’re going to personalize it for you. We have all the tools to match your workflow and your terminology without the need to customize or modify.” Because governments are so unique, Yardi has created vertically integrated government services group. Yardi’s Government Services arm is ideally positioned to meet the needs of government clients, which frequently have diverse property management needs. The department includes a dedicated implementation staff for government...