SPANIERGROUP

Rob Spanier

President, Spanier Group

Member of the Advisory Board, Governance Committee, and Placemaking Product Council
Urban Land Institute (ULI) Toronto District Council

Co-Founder, Skateez Inc.

A seasoned real estate professional specialised in mixed-use development and place-making. With two decades of hands-on experience, Rob has brought to life more than 80 legacy projects throughout North America, Europe and the Caribbean.

Rob is an international real estate development advisor dedicated to creating innovative, next-generation destinations and places, with expertise in creating thriving communities with uniquely curated specialty retail experiences. By playing an integral role on multi-disciplinary project teams, Rob commits his extensive knowledge in large-scale mixed-use development, master planning, specialty leasing and deal making as well as programming and activation in order to create vibrant and prosperous communities.

Rob has spent two decades working in the real estate sector on complex retail and mixed-use development projects, including 11 years as a Partner & Principal at Live Work Learn Play Inc. where he opened and led the Toronto operations and helped develop numerous large and small-scale mixed-use destinations. Prior to that , Rob spent 5 years at Intrawest Corporation, where he led an international leasing team that created iconic destination resort towns worldwide. Most notably, Rob was involved in helping develop: the 147-acre mixed-use development on Mississauga’s waterfront (“Lakeview Village”), the 680-acre parcel of land at Woodbine Racetrack (“Woodbine Districts”) in Toronto, the 2015 PanAm Games Athletes Village (“Canary District”), the redevelopment of the Toronto Waterfront, the development of the Florida State University’s (“College Town”) in Tallahassee Florida, the development of Sandestin Golf & Beach Resort (“Village of Baytowne Wharf”) in Destin Florida, as well as the Presidio Trust in San Francisco, California. Rob was also actively involved in the Vaughan Metropolitan Centre development (VMC), as well as the City of Mississauga and Downtown London Ontario, working directly with each city and with many land owners to help advance each project.

Passionate about place-making and developing great places, Rob has been actively involved with the Urban Land Institute (“ULI”) since 2007. He currently sits as a Member of both the Advisory Board and Governance Committee for ULI’s Toronto District Council (2018-2022) and has previously served as Governance Committee Chair (2016-2018), Chair of the Board (2014-2016), Vice Chair for Mission Advancement (2010-2014) and Program Committee Co-Chair (2008-2010). He continues to passionately grow ULI in Canada, solidifying its contributions locally as the organization evolves globally, and was recently appointed to the ULI Placemaking Product Council (2018-2022). Rob was also appointed to the Ontario Business Improvement Authority Association “Return on Investment” Advisory Committee (2016-2017) to provide strategic direction and guide the development of the report alongside industry and governmental leaders from the Province of Ontario, as well as appointed to the Transit-supportive Development Working Group (June 2017 to Present) as an advisor to share insights and knowledge in the creation of solutions to better promote transit-supportive development and planning across the province of Ontario.

Rob is a regular speaker as a subject matter expert on city building, place-making and mixed-use development in Canada and the United States. He has spoken at organizations including the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC), Association of Municipalities Ontario (AMO), The Congress for the New Urbanism (CNU), Economic Developers Council of Ontario (EDCO), Tourism Industry Association of Ontario (TIAO), Toronto Real Estate Forum and Land & Development, The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Ministry of Tourism Culture and Sport of Ontario, and at various universities and colleges.

Rob holds an Interdisciplinary Bachelor of Arts Degree in Industrial Relations with a minor in Economics from McGill University where he graduated with honors. Rob grew up in Montreal, Quebec and is passionate about helping to develop places where people can connect with each other and to their environments; where memories are born and last forever.

Karla Alag

Development Manager, Spanier Group

Karla is a graduate of the Urban and Regional Planning program from the Toronto Metropolitan University (formerly Ryerson University).

Prior to joining Spanier Group, Karla has worked for the Toronto Catholic District School Board as the Development and Analysis Officer in the Planning and Development Services Department. She has also worked for the Ryerson Development and Real Estate Department as a Planning Intern where she was involved in the 2020 Campus Master Plan process, specifically in the Bond Street redevelopment, and campus transportation efforts.

Karla is keen on design and connectivity of spaces, both indoor and outdoor, and believes that design ties in with how people experience places.

Riley Malthaner

Development Manager, Spanier Group

Member, OPPI

Riley is a graduate of Toronto Metropolitan University’s Master of Planning, Urban Development Program where she focused on issues relating to housing affordability. Specifically, Riley’s academic work examined the implications of Inclusionary Zoning and Laneway Suite policies across the City of Toronto. Additionally, while completing her graduate studies, Riley participated in the ULI Hines Competition where she joined a multidisciplinary team to devise a development program for a large-scale site in Kansas City. Riley also holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography with a Certificate in Urban and Regional Planning from Queen’s University and is currently a Candidate OPPI member.

Prior to joining Spanier Group, Riley worked for N. Barry Lyon Consultants as a Planner and Real Estate Analyst where she worked on various land use analyses and market studies across Ontario and all real estate sectors, analyzed the impact of transit investment on housing, and worked to develop affordable housing strategies for a range of clients. Riley also worked as an Intern for Evergreen Canada where she supported the Housing Supply Challenge Support Program under CMHC’s Affordable Housing Supply Challenge.

Shanon Govindan

Development Analyst, Spanier Group

Shanon is a graduate from the Urban and Regional Planning program at the University of South Australia. Whilst undertaking an honours program Shanon completed a thesis investigating the attributing factors for cyclist route selection through the Adelaide CBD.

Prior to joining the Spanier Group, Shanon was working in Australia at the City of Playford as a Planning Officer and Analyst. He has been involved in a range of development assessments including land division, commercial and residential with the mindset to improve the communities’ amenities. Shanon has also been involved in the development of Riverlea in South Australia a master planned community that will deliver 12,500 homes on the fringe of Adelaide.

Shanon has a keen interest in delivering outcomes that cultivate resilient communities through impactful urban design techniques.