Veris Residential welcomes chief investment officer, general counsel

In January, Veris Residential announced a transition plan among its financial leadership. Now, as the former Mack-Cali continues its evolution, the Jersey City company is introducing two new members to its executive team.

Succeeding Ricardo Cardoso, Juff Turkanis was named chief investment officer, effective April 4, and Taryn Fielder was appointed general counsel, succeeding Gary Wagner, effective April 18, Veris announced March 31.

Turkanis is the former head of U.S. Residential at Oxford Properties Group; Fielder previously served as general counsel at WashREIT. According to Veris, following a transition period, Cardoso and Wagner will leave the company to pursue other opportunities.

“We are pleased to welcome Jeff and Taryn to Veris Residential as we continue to strengthen our team with top professionals who have significant experience working across private and publicly traded residential real estate,” CEO Mahbod Nia said in a statement. “Jeff’s intricate knowledge of the residential sector and impressive track record of sourcing and executing strategic investments, coupled with Taryn’s breadth of experience that includes providing strategic advice for a variety of complex real estate transactions, will be invaluable as we continue our transition to a pure-play multifamily REIT.”

Over the course of his career, which has included more than a decade at Oxford, Turkanis’ experience in real estate investment has seen more than $15 billion in closed deals, mainly across office and residential, according to Veris. Over the past eight years, his focus has been predominantly on multifamily, closing deals adding up to more than $4 billion. As CIO, Turkanis will oversee the sale of non-strategic assets, identifying potential value enhancement opportunities within the company’s existing portfolio and potential new investment opportunities, Veris said.

Fielder has experience counseling on capital market transactions, securities, corporate governance and regulatory compliance matters, according to Veris. Before joining WashREIT she was senior vice president and GC for ASB Real Estate Investments. Other roles include as assistant general counsel for DiamondRock Hospitality Co. and earlier roles in law firm Hogan Lovells’ real estate group and at Simpson, Thacher and Bartlett LLP.

The new hires join Amanda Lombard, who was brought on earlier this year as chief accounting officer, and will transition to the role of chief financial officer at the completion of current CFO David Smetana’s contract.

Along with the news of their hiring, Veris — pursuant to New York Stock Exchange Listed Company Manual Rule 303A.08 — announced equity awards due to the trio as a material inducement to their joining the company. Lombard and Fielder are each slated for restricted stock unit awards, and Turkanis will receive the same, in addition to a stock option award. According to Veris:

The restricted stock unit award to Ms. Lombard will have a grant date fair value of $150,000 and will generally vest ratably on each of the first three anniversaries of the date of grant. The restricted stock unit award to Ms. Fielder will have a grant date fair value of $400,000 and will generally vest 60% on Dec. 31, 2022, 20% on Dec. 31, 2023 and 20% on the third anniversary of the date of grant. The restricted stock unit award to Mr. Turkanis will have a grant date fair value of $425,000 and will generally vest 50% on the first anniversary of the date of grant and 25% on each of the next two anniversaries of the grant date. The option grant to Mr. Turkanis will cover 250,000 shares, have an exercise price equal to the closing price of the underlying stock on the date of grant, generally vest and become exercisable ratably on each of the first three anniversaries of the date of grant, and have a maximum six-year term.

The awards were approved by the Compensation Committee of the company’s board of directors and Veris said will be made effective April 18, or at a later date as may be determined by the committee’s chair. All  are subject to accelerated vesting in certain circumstances.