Linked In
facebook

WHO WE ARE


Multi-Disciplined Strategic Advisor
BMA is a strategic advisor that applies a holistic, balanced approach to maximizing value while minimizing risk from environmentally impacted properties. We analyze sites through multiple lenses and create solutions that other companies (e.g., developers, risk transfer companies, brokers, traditional environmental consultants, law firms) often overlook or do not execute efficiently or effectively. As a pure owner-side advisor, our interests are fully aligned with our clients’ goals to identify and execute optimal value-recovery and risk-mitigation solutions.

BMA has only one, straightforward client objective – to maximize value for our clients from their non-performing real estate assets while mitigating risk in a way that makes sense for the long haul, not just the near term. To that end, we apply our extensive experience in several essential analytical areas (real estate, environmental and risk mitigation) to identify and execute optimal solutions that monetize assets while protecting clients from liability “comebacks” and other long-tail risks and exposures. We have no other interest, objective or agenda related to the property, unlike some other companies who also claim to help corporate owners maximize value and minimize risk from their dirty surplus sites.

Full Spectrum of Value-Recovery & Risk-Mitigation Solutions
We help our clients recover value from non-performing assets utilizing a variety of strategies, including protective divestment and strategic repositioning alternatives, eco-asset value recovery, response cost recovery from private and government entities, insurance recovery under historic CGL policies and others. Whether the best option is to divest the asset or hold it, we create strategies that allow companies to mitigate risks and extract hidden value from their underperforming assets. Where divestment makes sense (from a financial, legal and practical standpoint), we have the expertise to design and execute multi-tiered packages of protection to guard against liability comebacks. For divestment of environmentally challenged properties, we connect clients only with the best, most reliable candidate purchasers (based on their first-hand experience and proven financial stability). Where the best option for the client is to hold a property, we can extract value in other ways noted above – e.g., eco-credits, cost recovery, insurance recovery, etc.

Collaborative/Synergistic With Internal Teams
We have extensive experience working with multiple internal stakeholders to identify and promote synergies, which allows us to complement existing personnel, systems and initiatives to achieve optimal results. This collaborative, catalytic approach marshals existing talent/resources, facilitates communication and maintains critical momentum to collectively review, evaluate and execute proposed strategies.

Extensive Experience
We have provided brownfield value-recovery and risk-mitigation solutions for a wide range of clients, from large public, multinational companies to individual site owners throughout the United States and various international locations. The Principals of BMA have over 60 years of experience designing and executing value-recovery and risk-mitigation strategies. Our consulting team includes three experienced large firm environmental attorneys (50+ years combined experience) who have worked on several hundred transactions involving environmentally impacted properties throughout the US, including numerous transactions and other projects for large public and private companies (Fortune 500 to Fortune 10), which provides a broad range of battle-tested insights on liability management strategies that lead to reliable, protective property exits and liability transfers.

Sophisticated IT Systems
Our advanced, proprietary IT systems (site data management, report generation, compliance management, site presentation to prospective purchasers) support a comprehensive, efficient and effective decision-making process for large and diverse portfolios. These systems were designed for national and multinational companies to manage real estate, regulatory and environmental issues for portfolios containing thousands of active and surplus properties.

Additional Risk Mitigation Capabilities
We also design and execute proven strategies for transitioning legacy liabilities at sites no longer owned or operated by the company. Our proprietary IT systems can be utilized to efficiently organize and present relevant information regarding legacy liabilities for confidential review by reliable and experienced third party risk transfer companies. We apply our extensive experience in managing long-term risks to review and evaluate risk transfer options and recommend the most protective and cost-effective solution for the client.


BMA LEADERSHIP


Adam M. Meek
Chief Executive Officer
Adam Meek is BMA’s primary value recovery and risk mitigation advisor. In addition to his work with BMA, Adam is an environmental attorney and has practiced law since 1991. Prior to founding BMA, Adam was a partner in the Real Estate Group at DLA Piper, a 3,700-attorney international law firm, where he led the Environmental Transaction Group and specialized in complex corporate and real estate transactions involving environmentally impacted properties. As Co-Chair of DLA Piper’s 85-attorney Real Estate Green Team, he advised clients on sustainable development and value recovery strategies for their properties, including brownfield redevelopment, protective divestment, renewable energy, monetization of ecosystem services, third-party cost recovery, insurance recovery and other value-recovery and risk-mitigation strategies.
(read more)

David A. White
Chief Operating Officer
David White joined BMA, an environmental, and real estate development consulting company that helps organizations unlock value from their non-performing real estate assets in 2015 as a Principal and Chief Operating officer, and is responsible for operational and financial management of the organization. He also has an active role in advising BMA clients on financial, transactional, risk management and environmental aspects of brownfield remediation and redevelopment projects and plays a major role in business development and in the strategic planning for BMA, identifying and developing various partnerships and alliances to supplement and expand BMA’s comprehensive suite of client services, including heading the principal acquisition operations.
(read more)


OUR CLIENTS


BMA’s clients include organizations that own environmentally impacted surplus properties and seek to unlock value and mitigate risk. These organizations are both large and small, public and private, and range from Fortune 50 corporations to individual scrap yard owners. Clients have a range of real estate holdings, from large portfolios of hundreds of sites to individual surplus properties. Some have held these properties for decades, others have recently acquired them and are looking for ways to extract value and manage risks.

Representative Clients include:
  • E.I. DuPont de Nemours
  • R.J. Reynolds
  • GE Capital
  • USG Corp.
  • Verizon
  • British Petroleum
  • Leucadia
  • Harrison Street Real Estate
  • EMCO Chemical
  • Vertellus Chemical
  • Mesirow Financial

BMA’s clients also can be found at different levels on the “knowledge and strategy curve” – i.e., how much they know about their liabilities and how far developed their risk mitigation plans may be. BMA can assist clients who are anywhere on this curve, from designing a full value-recovery and risk-mitigation strategy for those on the lower end, to supporting protective site divestments or efficiently implementing other exit strategies for those at the higher end of the curve.


THE BMA DIFFERENCE


We routinely get asked “What does BMA provide that we don’t already have?” Or put another way, “Why BMA?” These are important bedrock questions that should be answered before any company engages BMA. Briefly, working with BMA is the Right Way to maximize value and mitigate risk from surplus properties, versus the many other less efficient or effective options.

More specifically, BMA is different because we provide clients the Right Team, the Right Approach and the Right Technology to achieve the Right Results, as discussed below.

  • The Right Team – BMA provides the ideal mix of professional capabilities and experience in each of the key areas required for identifying value-recovery and risk-mitigation options and opportunities, as well developing and executing the most effective value-recovery and risk-mitigation strategies. BMA’s broad bandwidth comes from our high-pedigreed team of professionals (from some of the largest and most respected companies in their respective fields) who have identified and executed value-recovery and risk-mitigation solutions for hundreds of companies on thousands of properties throughout the United States and international locations.

  • In addition to identifying and executing new strategies, this broad knowledge and experience allows BMA to provide clients extensive, battle-tested feedback on their existing programs and strategies, as well as benchmarking opportunities.

  • The Right Approach – With its mix of capabilities and experience, BMA looks through multiple lenses to explore the complete range of value-recovery and risk-mitigation options and applies its clear vision to identify preferred options and opportunities. We also employ specific systems and protocols for working closely and collaboratively with our clients and any other consultants or professionals engaged by our clients to identify, evaluate and pursue, as appropriate, the most viable and attractive options for execution or further analysis.

    Working collaboratively with clients allows BMA to 1) integrate the diverse goals of multiple corporate stakeholders, 2) marshal existing internal resources and expertise, 3) facilitate communications among various stakeholder groups to evaluate and select the best value-recovery and risk-mitigation options for a given property or portfolio, and 4) maintain critical forward momentum on projects to monetize value-recovery opportunities and realize risk-mitigation goals.


  • The Right Technology – BMA utilizes sophisticated web-based Information Technology systems (including The BOX™, The ROX™ and IPMS®) to facilitate the identification, evaluation and execution of value-recovery and risk-mitigation strategies and opportunities. These are proprietary systems not available through other organizations.


  • The Right Results – This collaborative approach produces integrated, balanced solutions that integrate the financial and risk management goals of multiple corporate stakeholders. This integrated, purpose-built platform generates optimal results that are difficult, if not impossible, for companies to achieve with other resources.


REPRESENTATIVE PROJECTS AND EXPERIENCE


  • Paper company portfolio optimization – Determined best disposition model for a major paper products corporation manufacturing and distribution facilities (8 properties). Located across the US, sites included saw mills, warehouses, paper production plants and warehouses.
  • Chemical company surplus asset disposition – Provided asset optimization and disposition strategies for 45 chemical production and storage facilities and two R&D facilities. Some of the properties were decommissioned tank farms adjacent to economically challenged areas with “environmental justice” concerns. Others were R&D/manufacturing facilities requiring repurposing in difficult, high vacancy markets.
  • Advised chemical company on the cost benefits of whether to remain in their Stamford CT R&D facility, move out entirely, or subdivide and sell the vacant 15 acres to fund a facility renovation. Using our Senior Analyst’s recommended approach, the site was subdivided to enable retail development adjacent to the preserved the R&D center. The retail site was subsequently sold for $12 million ($1.5 million/acre).
  • Advised chemical company regarding production facilities in Marietta Ohio and Niagara Falls Ontario, as well as two large tracts (Linden and Carteret NJ) with “soft soils.” For all the sites, best use and disposition alternatives were analyzed. For the “soft soils” sites, options were reviewed to import dredge soils and other additives to render the sites buildable and suitable for resale to a developer.
  • Utility company portfolio review of surplus assets – Reviewed regional energy utility’s (60 properties) surplus facilities for optimal reuse ranging from 1 acre to 500 acres. Sites contained varying viability, locations and levels of marketable ingress and egress.
  • Manufacturing facility repositioning – Assisted corporate client in re-opening and occupying the 276,000 square foot plant at in Roscoe, Illinois vacated by Warner Electric more than 10 years ago. This is a $7.5 million investment into refurbishing the facility, including environmental remediation. As the economic development consultant to the Village of Roscoe, one of BMA’s Senior Analysts worked with county, state and AAE to create a Tax Increment Financing District to finance the project under the federal Industrial Job Recovery Act. This project will create 130 manufacturing jobs by the end of 2013.
  • Value recovery and risk mitigation analysis for Fortune 50 chemical company – Advised client on options for complicated former chemical manufacturing site with multiple private and public/government stakeholders, including potential divestment scenarios and other opportunities such as monetization of eco-credits.
  • Facility optimization of R&D facility in New Jersey – Maximized asset value for leading chemical manufacturer. In addition to the 1 million sq. ft. facility, determined surplus land value for 150 acres, brownfield remediation impact, as well as future commercial development scenarios. Also evaluated current facility cost structure and formulated alternatives to cost effectively operate facility.
  • Facility upgrade and workforce retention – Worked with high tech printing company purchased from a major corporation by a minority investor with plants in Marengo, IL, Pennsylvania and Ohio, on behalf of the City of Marengo. Secured the retention of the plant’s 100 jobs, plus the addition of an additional 10 positions. Project investment exceeded $2 million.
  • Expansion of manufacturing facility – Created 35 new technology positions, retaining 47 existing jobs. Worked with Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) and the City of Marengo to secure Homeland Security Grant, ETIP funds. This expansion was delivered at a 70-plus year old manufacturing facility.
  • Brownfield prioritization and disposition strategies for major petro-chemical company – Developed and implemented a centralized process across the firm’s business lines for environmentally impaired, non-operating land assets. Provided strategic advice on prioritization of reuse opportunities across the portfolio, and managed associated brownfield property transactions and associated environmental risk transfers ultimately repositioning more than 3000 acres of land into new, productive uses.
  • Eco-asset valuation for former chemical disposal site – Evaluated the natural resources revenue stream opportunities for a former east coast chemical landfill site for potential source of conservation revenues as well as to financially support a strategy considering use of the site as an offset to natural resource damages in the nearby watershed. Evaluation helped client make informed decision on resolution of liabilities and potential conservation end uses for the former landfill property.
  • Divestment of chemical and munitions manufacturing facility for multinational financial institution – Negotiated comprehensive settlement of liabilities and coordinated divestment of impacted property that owner had been unable to sell (or even donate) for over 20 years.
  • Portfolio divestment and risk-transfer of 22 chemical plants – Implemented comprehensive value recovery and risk mitigation project for coal-tar and chemical company with over 100 years of operation and associated legacy liabilities, including protective divestment opportunities through the Brownfield Online Connexion (BOX™).
  • Divestment of hardware manufacturing and other facilities, including former manufactured gas plant – Created risk mitigation strategy with multi-tiered protections (insurance, risk-transfer) and value recovery option for cost recovery for sale of property with severe known and suspected contamination in context of sale of company with numerous industrial sites.
  • Multi-state portfolio divestment for major petroleum company – Negotiated protective divestment of service station portfolios including hundreds of sites, including layered protections for seller (covenants, insurance) that avoided liability comebacks and preserved reimbursement rights from state storage tank funds.
  • Divestment of large permitted waste treatment facility in Southern California – Coordinated RFP and negotiations process for sale of permitted hazardous waste facility with multiple long-term leases; positioned sale to include terms requiring risk assumption and indemnity from the site purchaser.
  • Design and execution of risk mitigation and divestment strategy for owner of shopping center with extensive groundwater contamination plume migrating off-site – Developed and implemented value recovery/risk mitigation strategies including negotiation of groundwater use restrictive ordinance to reduce cleanup costs by orders of magnitude; matched property to qualified brownfield purchasers using the BOX™; and positioned site owner for cost recovery/allocation settlement with operator of former dry cleaner.
  • Divestment of scrap yard with extensive known contamination – Coordinated site divestment through the BOX™ online system, including organizing and presenting environmental information and identifying qualified purchasers.
  • Design and execution of risk mitigation strategy for acquisition of multinational tool company – Designed complex, multi-layered risk mitigation strategy (covenants, insurance, indemnity) to facilitate purchase of company with 35 facilities, many of which were heavily contaminated.
  • Disaster response planning and cost recovery implementation for major diesel spill at resort property – Developed and executed an effective emergency response/risk mitigation strategy and insurance claim/cost reimbursement plan for owner of Colorado resort with diesel release impacting protected wetlands and other public and private offsite areas.
  • Divestment of 100-year old refinery facility – Developed protective divestment/risk mitigation strategy for sale and repurposing of one of the oldest petroleum sites in the US, including qualifying the purchaser to assume associated liabilities and ongoing maintenance requirements.
  • Adaptive reuse of chemical manufacturing plants – Identified and implemented best disposition model for numerous surplus facilities owned by four Fortune 500 manufacturers nationwide, ranging from 5 acres to 420 acres. Reviewed profitability across different deal structures including owner participation in development venture, sale-leaseback of a finished facility, and master leasing an entire site, and evaluated varied transaction structures, taking into account government incentives for tenants to construct office and flex/R&D facilities.
  • Developed natural gas pipeline and refinery – Assisted Aux Sable Liquid Products of Calgary, Canada in developing its $500 million natural gas pipeline and refinery in what is now Channahon, Illinois. The site was a mothballed Nicor synthetic fuel plant built in the 1970s before natural gas deregulation. Deal required a TIF district and property tax abatement.