Bill Gagliano, chair of the real estate group at the Cleveland office of law firm Ulmer & Berne, says that his clients often call on him to negotiate complicated zoning and finance issues.
But he also said that his clients today want an attorney who sees the big picture.
“What clients are looking for today from the legal counsel seems to be a more comprehensive and broader approach to dealing with their projects,” Gagliano said. “They are looking for someone who can see the big picture.”
When developers are taking on new projects that involve ground-up construction, or maybe a project that entails a total rehab or conversion of a building from one use to another, they need local expertise, Gagliano said. They want to deal with one point person who can then connect them to local contacts, inform them about state and federal programs and recommend any other experts they might need to complete a project.
The issues that this point legal contact can help with range from construction alternatives to insurance matters to the ins and outs of local customs and practices.
“We represent some national companies who come to us. They do a lot of development work in the state of Ohio. They want to know before they even get into the construction what issues they’re going to face when building here,” Gagliano said.
For instance, Ulmer & Berne recently represented a hotel chain that came into the Cleveland market to take over and rehab a historic hotel. The company already knew about possible federal tax credits. But the company, because it was coming into Ohio and Cleveland for the first time, needed to work with local real estate experts to learn about state tax-credit programs.
Officials with the hotel chain wanted to gain access, too, to key contacts with local zoning and planning personnel on the city and county levels.
“They wanted help with the kind of problems that can drive newcomers to a community crazy,” Gagliano said. “They wanted help with the kinds of issues that can vary from place to place. Most developers and real estate professionals are engaged in a nationwide practice. What they need is someone who understands the differences from community to community. The things that can really hold up a project are the little things that involve local nuances.”
