Meet Kenneth Bernstein, ICSC’s new chairman

Bernstein, an ICSC member since 1992, heads a company whose portfolio encompasses both urban and suburban retail and mixed-use development. The Rye, N.Y.–based Acadia owns and manages more than 180 properties, mainly in the Northeastern, Mid-Atlantic and Midwestern U.S. It is active in dynamic urban markets including Boston, Chicago, New York City, San Francisco and Washington D.C.

“Ken’s aptitude for retail real estate development and his extensive experience within the field will be a valuable asset for ICSC,” said Tom McGee, ICSC President and CEO. “Ken’s knowledge on the value of retail real estate development will prove crucial when advocating for the members of ICSC in front of the press and in Washington, D.C. with legislative issues such as e-fairness and tax reform on the agenda.”

Bernstein, 55, came to real estate via the law profession. After his second year of law school at Boston University, in 1986, he landed an internship at Battle Fowler LLP, renowned for its real estate practice, and after he graduated, the firm hired him. 

In 1990 he accepted an invitation to join a startup called RD Capital as a partner. As chief operating officer, Bernstein helped build RD Capital into a larger private company backed by institutional capital. The firm merged with a publicly traded shopping center REIT called Mark Centers Trust in 1998, resulting in the creation of Acadia Realty Trust. Bernstein was promoted to CEO in 2001.

Acadia also runs an investment fund, backed by institutional investors, that pursues opportunistic and value-add investing. “That dual platform has enabled us to do a lot of interesting and profitable things that we otherwise would not have been able to do as a small-cap REIT,” Bernstein said, “and we have created a lot of shareholder value over the last 20 years.” 

Bernstein’s introduction to ICSC came during the two years he practiced law before joining RD Capital. “As a lawyer, it provided me with a much deeper understanding of what was going on in that industry, and compared to other industry trade organizations, it seemed much more dynamic and fascinating,” he said. “Then, by 1990, when retail became a more significant focus for me as a principal on the business side, ICSC was a must-attend, must-belong organization.”

Besides serving on ICSC’s Board of Trustees and as ICSC vice chairman this past year, Bernstein was co-chairman of the Open-Air Centers Committee for several years. “That gave me an opportunity to understand how powerful ICSC is when it’s connecting the right people. Whether it’s exchanging information, sharing insights and ideas, or deal-making, that OAC experience really got me excited about what ICSC can do,” he said. 

Bernstein also belongs to the National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts, the Urban Land Institute, and the Real Estate Roundtable, where he is chairman of the Tax Policy Committee. 

Bernstein succeeds 2016–17 ICSC Chairman Elizabeth I. Holland, CEO of Chicago-based Abbell Credit Corp. and Abbell Associates. Among other issues on the ICSC agenda in the coming year, Bernstein says the organization will continue advocating for“market-place fairness” — demanding that where brick-and-mortar retailers are required to collect and remit state sales taxes, online retailers be mandated to do the same — and ensuring that any tax reform is fair to the industry.

It is also crucial that ICSC continue to be the face of the retail real estate industry, Bernstein says, especially when it comes to the resilience of physical retail. 

“ICSC is at an interesting crossroads where it must remain strong on legislative initiatives that impact retail real estate and create durable relationships with the media to tell complete stories about our industry,” he said. “I’m excited to serve at the forefront of an organization of my peers that can help shape the future of retail real estate.”

Bernstein says he is enthusiastic about the growth of the annual New York National Deal Making conference. “My expectation is that over the next several years, the New York conference will grow significantly in importance and relevance, especially as retail continues to become more global,” he said. “Part of ICSC’s global initiative will be bringing as many people from around the world to ICSC, and New York is the ideal spot to do that. Las Vegas [home of RECon] will always be a critical meeting, but this is an opportunity for there to be another important meeting halfway through the year.”

Bernstein credits previous chairmen with building ICSC into an effective advocate for the retail real estate industry. “A lot of the heavy lifting has been done,” he said. “Now it’s a matter of seeing that ICSC is the critical voice in those key initiatives, that it is focused and assisting the industry in whatever way is possible.”

Bernstein lives in Irvington, N.Y., with his wife, Janet, and their two children.