Kenneth A. Kecskes

Ken advises clients in complex real estate transactions and land use matters throughout California. With nearly 30 years of experience, Ken represents U.S. and international investors, corporate end-users, developers, and public and private entities across a wide range of asset classes and project types.

In his real estate transactional practice, Ken helps clients with real estate acquisitions and dispositions, build-to-suit and long term ground leases, joint ventures, real estate secured and mezzanine financing, development transactions, and public finance and land use entitlement strategy. In his land use practice, he counsels clients through the full lifecycle of real estate development and redevelopment projects—from initial site acquisition and land use due diligence, through submission of a project application and environmental review under the California Environmental Quality Act, processing of discretionary entitlements and permitting, to construction and long-term operation or disposition.

Transactional Real Estate Practice

Ken’s transactional experience includes acquisition and disposition of multifamily, office, retail, biotechnology and high-technology buildings and campuses, industrial and logistics facilities, hotels and resorts, and sale of developed land in large-scale master planned communities.  He represents private equity sponsors and real estate investors in the formation and structuring of joint ventures, limited liability companies, and partnerships. Ken also advises clients on a broad range of real estate financing transactions, including acquisition, development, permanent, bridge, mixed-collateral, and mezzanine loans. His experience also includes workouts of troubled loans, including loans financing master planned communities, office towers, and multifamily properties.

Land Use, Entitlements, and Public-Private Partnerships

Ken has extensive experience guiding clients through the entitlement of complex, large-scale development projects. He advises on land use entitlement strategy, including general plan amendments, specific plans, modification of port master plans, zoning changes, subdivision map processing, and discretionary permitting. He counsels clients on compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), including project design scoping, negotiation of mitigation measures, and compliance strategy.

Ken’s background in both transactional real estate and land use entitlement provides a strategic advantage to clients negotiating statutory development agreements and disposition and development agreements (DDAs), as well as advising on public-private partnerships. Ken also counsels clients on exactions and impact fees, the Permit Streamlining Act, the Mitigation Fee Act, and the impact of climate change and green building laws on development projects (including build to suit leases for corporate end users).

Ken has particular experience with projects located on public trust lands and lands under the jurisdiction of California port districts.  He has worked on military base reuse projects and brownfields redevelopment matters involving the repositioning of properties to comply with hazardous materials laws and discussions with U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the California Department of Toxic Substances Control, and regional water quality control boards. He also advises clients on housing-related regulatory frameworks, including California’s Housing Accountability Act and Density Bonus Law.

Hospitality and Leisure Projects

Ken represents both public and private owners, operators, and developers of hotel and resort properties. His hospitality experience includes the acquisition and disposition of individual hotels and multi-state portfolios, hospitality construction projects, environmental matters, alcoholic beverage licensing, restaurant leasing, parking and service contracts, marina development, and hotel management agreements.

International and Strategic Advisory Work

Ken provides strategic counsel to international clients investing in U.S. real estate. He has advised investors from Korea, China, the United Kingdom and continental Europe on inbound investments and has participated in economic missions to Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, and Hong Kong aimed at promoting real estate investment in the San Francisco Bay Area. His experience includes structuring transactions involving non-U.S. entities and high-net-worth individuals investing in U.S. real estate assets and real estate-related businesses.

Professional Affiliations

Chair, Community Development Council (Silver Flight), a US Product Council of the Urban Land Institute

Steering Committee, ULI NEXT, San Francisco District Council, Urban Land Institute

Member, ULI San Francisco, Public Private Partnership Local Product Council

Volunteer, UrbanPlan for Public Officials and UrbanPlan for High School Students

Leadership Team, San Francisco Leadership and Development Group