Our Team

	Peter Cocoziello President & CEO Peter J. Cocoziello is President & CEO of Advance Realty formed in 1979, specializing in real estate development, construction and property management. Cocoziello had a mission to be the premier developer of creative real estate solutions. He started the company by purchasing a vacant lot in West Orange, NJ with the plans to develop his first property (14,000 sq. ft office building). From there he moved on to single-family homes and town homes and finally to build-to-suit commercial office space. Today the company owns more than 4.5 million square feet of commercial buildings from New Jersey to Washington and has 6 million square feet in the development process along with more than 6,500 residential units. Captivated by an ever changing industry, it required good market intuition and the preparedness to change according to the market, both of which he had. Peter created a different approach for Advance from other developers. The company motto, “Through today’s design, you can meet tomorrow’s needs, and control future costs.” Peter has been active in serving community and professional organizations such as Chair of New Jersey Network (NJN) and the Italian American Heritage Foundation. Currently, Peter serves on a vast number of Boards including NJN Foundation; NJ Chamber of Commerce; Smeal Business School at Penn State University and World Presidents Organization. Among the many awards received, Peter is the recipient of major honors including YPO Legacy Award; Lifetime Achievement Award, NAIOP; Developer of the Year, NAIOP - The Forum for Commerical Real Estate, Ernst & Young, Inc.; Entrepreneur of the Year - Real Estate Division, Ernst & Young, Outstanding Business People, Large Corporation, Somerset County Chamber of Commerce; Top 20 Companies, Central New Jersey Magazine; Humanitarian Award, National Conference for Community and Justice. Peter has earned a Bachelor of Science Degree from Penn State University, Senior Certificate in Mortgage Financing from New York University and Harvard University Presidents' Program.
	Kurt R. Padavano Chief Operating Officer With over 25 years of commercial real estate experience and well-known nationally in the industry as a forward-thinking leader, Kurt Padavano is Chief Operating Office of Advance Realty. As COO, Kurt provides executive oversight to the various divisions -- that support Advance’s 4.5 million-sq.-ft. portfolio in N.J. and the Washington D.C. region and its development pipeline of several million sq. ft. -- which include: asset management, property management, human resources, marketing and leasing, IT, capital markets, acquisitions and dispositions, and administrative services. Under his leadership, Advance has been nationally recognized as an industry leader by many professional and industry associations. He also oversaw the creation of the industry’s first and only Tenants’ Bill of Rights©, ensuring high-quality management services to Advance’s tenants. As a leader in the industry, Kurt has served as Chairman and Chief Elected Officer of the 17,000 member International Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA). His involvement in BOMA International also includes Chairmanship of the Regional Owner’s Council and as a member of its Executive Committee. Locally, Kurt has served as President of the New Jersey Association of BOMA, as well as Chairman of the Energy Aggregation Committee and member of the Investment Committee. Kurt has recognized by RealComm as “one of the top 35 people to watch in real estate” and received its “Digital Impact Award.” He was also recognized by the State of New Jersey’s General Assembly for his “meritorious service, leadership and commitment.” Kurt is a graduate of Harvard and Pennsylvania State University.
	Kevin Tartaglione Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer ADVANCE REALTY DEVELOPMENT Kevin Tartaglione is the Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of the company’s Development division. With over 17 years of commercial real estate experience in developing over 10 million square feet of office space, Kevin is responsible for design through construction and completion of all projects in Advance’s growing development platform, valued at over $500 million. Prior to joining Advance Realty, Kevin was vice president of development with Hines at its New York office, where he was responsible for new business development, project development and acquisitions, and asset management for its New Jersey client base and portfolio. While at Hines, Kevin was a key member in the development team responsible for the 2.2 million-square-foot construction of Goldman Sachs’ headquarters facility in Jersey City, New Jersey. Kevin had significant interaction with Jersey City and State authorities regarding the urban development issues surrounding this project. Kevin is a member of the Real Estate Board of New York (REBNY), American Institute of Architects Society (AIAS), Corporate Real Estate Executive Network (CoreNet) and Urban Land Institute (ULI) and serves on the NJ Board of Trustees for National Association of Industrial & Office Properties (NAIOP), and the The Independent College Fund of New Jersey (ICFNJ). Kevin holds a Bachelor of Arts in Architecture from Catholic University.
	Donald M. Slaght Managing Director Advance Real Estate Solutions Don Slaght is the Managing Director of Advance Real Estate Solutions, a division of Advance Realty that provides corporations, investors and building owners with a comprehensive platform of investment, development and advisory solutions. Prior to joining Advance, Don was Co-Founder and Executive Vice President of Workstage LLC, a national development company which created award-winning, high-performance buildings throughout the United States. Workstage developed more than 30 build-to-suit projects totaling nearly $500 million for clients such as ADP, Pay Pal, Northrup Grumman, Cox Communications, Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines, Fairfield University and many others. Before the formation of Workstage, Don held a number of positions at Gale & Wentworth, Inc. including Chief Operating Officer. At Gale & Wentworth, Don managed all service sector divisions including leasing, asset, property and facility management, construction and development services. Don started in the real estate business and was a Vice President at CB Richard Ellis (formerly Coldwell Banker Commercial Group). Don earned his bachelor’s degree in Finance from The University of Richmond’s Robins School of Business Administration. He is also the Vice Chairman and former Chairman of the Board of Directors of Special Olympics New Jersey; a member of the Board of Directors of local access cable TV station HomeTowne Television; and an active supporter of numerous charities, including the Summit Area YMCA and the Grant W. Koch Scholarship Fund.
	David J. Fisher Senior Vice President/Regional Managing Director Washington, D.C. Region David Fisher has been involved in the Washington DC Metropolitan Area real estate market for over 25 years with experience in commercial leasing, development, acquisitions and dispositions. David has been with Advance since 1998, and is responsible for overseeing the performance and growth of the Company's portfolio in the Washington area. David is a member of the Company’s Executive Committee. Prior to joining Advance Realty, David was associated with The Mark Winkler Company for over 17 years. His duties included supervising Winkler's commercial leasing staff of ten professionals in their representation of tenants, owners and third parties. In this role, he was responsible for a portfolio in excess of 4 million square feet, as well as negotiating build to suit transactions.
	Ginny Carita Vice President, Property Management ADVANCE REALTY MANAGEMENT, INC. Ginny A. Carita, RPA is Vice President, Property Management of Advance Realty since September 1998. She has over 20 years experience in the commercial property management industry with specialties in lease administration, financial reporting, customer service and property management technologies. In this capacity, she provides the leadership and training needed to successfully manage a portfolio of assets in excess of 4.5 million square feet in the New Jersey and Washington DC region. Ms. Carita has a BA from Cedar Crest College, holds her New Jersey Real Estate license and an RPA Designation from the Building Owners and Managers Institute International. She is active in the Building Owners and Managers Association of New Jersey (BOMA, NJ). She is also an active member of the Education Advisory Council, Audit Committee and is Chair of the Awards Committee for BOMA International. Prior to joining Advance Realty, Ms. Carita served as a Regional Property Manager for The Gale Company located in Florham Park.
	Brian Banaszynski Vice President – Leasing New Jersey Region Brian T. Banaszynski, Vice President of Leasing, is recognized as one of the region’s most accomplished leasing professionals with over 21 years of proven success in the commercial real estate sector. Brian is responsible for leading the leasing efforts for our New Jersey Region Portfolio, as well as other projects throughout Advance’s extensive development portfolio. Prior to joining Advance, Banaszynski was senior vice president of M. Alfieri Co. in Edison, New Jersey . Other commercial real estate leadership positions include Vice President of Development at Mack-Cali Realty Corporation in Cranford, New Jersey, Vice President of Leasing at Alfred Sanzari Enterprises in Hackensack, New Jersey; as well as a commercial real estate broker at Cushman & Wakefield. Banaszynski earned both his bachelor's and master's degrees in business administration from the Universtiy of Wisconsin. He is a member of the National Association of Industrial and Office Parks (NAIOP), Urban Land Institute (ULI), Morris County Economic Development Corporation (MCEDC) and cuurently serves on the Board of Trustees for the Northern New Jersey Multiple Sclerosis Society, New Jersey CoreNet and Somerset County Business Partnership (SCBP).
	Larry P. Hilaire Vice President – Development Larry Hilaire joined Advance Realty as vice president in its Development Division. With over 18 years of experience in the commercial real estate industry, Mr. Hilaire manages the construction and development of Advance’s commercial real estate projects from the planning and architectural conceptual stages through to building and completion. He also directs and oversees the general contractors and various subcontractors utilized on Advance’s development projects. Mr. Hilaire is a seasoned veteran in property and construction management services in the commercial real estate industry and was employed for the past eight years with Hines in New York City , as both a construction and property manager. Some of the key projects he was responsible for during his tenure at Hines included: 30 Hudson Street (New Jersey's tallest office building at 42 stories), in Jersey City, New Jersey; Bridgewater Crossing, in Bridgewater, New Jersey; and Two Montgomery Street in Jersey City. At Advance, he recently completed 100 Tice Boulevard in Woodcliff Lake, New Jersey, an over 200,000 square foot Class A headquarters for Eisai Pharmaceuticals; and Advance@Southgate, 445 South Street in Morris Township, New Jersey, an over 300,000 square foot office building which was transformed into a Class A facility. Previously, Mr. Hilaire held senior level positions at Grubb & Ellis Management Services Inc., Advantage Real Estate Services, and Cushman & Wakefield, Inc. A licensed architect in New Jersey and Pennsylvania and National Council of Architectural Registration Boards certified, he received an undergraduate degree in architecture from the New Jersey Institute of Technology and a master’s of business administration in finance and real estate from Rutgers University.