Denise E. Conley is a real estate economist specializing in structuring public-private development partnerships. She heads Conley Consulting Group, headquartered in Oakland, California. Since 1979, she has assisted more than 150 clients with real estate matters, development strategies, and formation of public-private partnerships in development. Ms. Conley’s extensive experience in market and financial feasibility assessment provides the foundation for her expertise in development strategy and implementation. Before founding Conley Consulting Group, Ms. Conley served as a principal in charge of real estate consulting assignments at a San Francisco-based economics firm, often directing multi-disciplinary teams of consultants. 

 

Ms. Conley has supported negotiations for large and small developments throughout the West, including renovation of one of the most significant landmarks in San Francisco, the 100-year-old Ferry building; adaptive reuse of the former Ford Assembly Plant, a $100 million dollar project on the Richmond waterfront; and several office and hotel developments in downtown Oakland. She has also assisted the City of Oakland in conversion of the 420-acre Oakland Army Base to a job-generating business campus. 

 

Ms. Conley has a unique depth and breadth of experience with structuring public-private development projects in the context of complex regulatory environments, developer solicitation and negotiation processes, complex land transactions, and market and financial feasibility analyses. She also has considerable experience in developing community and neighborhood-specific strategies for economic revitalization and economic development. She has helped numerous communities define and accomplish projects and revitalization plans, including the cities of San Mateo, Richmond, and Vacaville. 

 

She has been a frequent speaker with such professional organizations as the California Redevelopment Association, California Association for Local Economic Development (CALED), International Council of Shopping Centers, and The Urban Land Institute. She has served as an expert witness in litigation involving real estate matters, and is a former member of the Board of Directors of CALED and EAH, a non-profit housing corporation. She has an AB degree in economics from Harvard University, cum laude, where she also conducted graduate studies in City Planning and Public Policy.