Luxury Real Estate

Courtesy of: Shawn Elliott of Shawn Elliott Luxury Homes and Estates in Long Island, NY

At the Shawn Elliott Open House of the Year Party, the evening was ALL ABOUT LUXURY. The Villa at Chestnut Hill's entry displayed an exquisite array of Maseratis, Ferraris and Rolls Royces as guests arrived.

Attendees had an opportunity to experience the passion, luxury and performance of these legendary automobiles.

DENVER – Nina O’Kelley, a leading broker associate with Kentwood City Properties, has announced the annual LoDo Loft Tour scheduled for Sunday, July 19, 2009 to benefit Family HomeStead’s Back-to-School project. Family HomeStead is a non-profit organization dedicated to helping homeless families get back on their feet by providing housing and case management. The tour in the Lower Downtown Historic District runs from 2-5 p.m. and light refreshments will be served at each loft.

All the lofts showcased on the tour are located along Wynkoop Street, including a two-story penthouse at The Ice House at 1801 Wynkoop. This stylish residence includes a cool spiral staircase and two terraces. A three-story penthouse with a roof-top deck overlooking Union Station in the Wynkoop Mercantile building is also featured at 1792 Wynkoop.

Loft tourists will enjoy viewing a totally remodeled loft in the historic Street Car Stables at 1720 Wynkoop, plus a gorgeous condominium in the newly-built Wynkoop Residences at 1411 Wynkoop.

“Remember getting new shoes and a special backpack for that first day back at school?” asks O’Kelley. “Volunteers make this happen for the Family HomeStead children. We encourage tour participants to bring school supplies or make a cash donation to Family HomeStead. Supplies may include backpacks, No. 2 pencils and colored pencils, pencil sharpeners, pens, and both wide and narrow-tip markers. You may contribute erasers, crayons, two-pocket folders, marble covered composition notebooks, and spiral notebooks. Other items include three-ring binders, notebook paper and dividers, graph paper, glue sticks, scissors, dictionaries, calculators, compass and protractors, a supply bag, and more. This is an extremely worthy cause and your contributions will give needy children a head-start when school resumes in late summer.”

To adopt a family and outfit children for school, contact Family HomeStead’s Judy Mugler at 303-623-6514. If you can’t make the tour but wish to make a tax-deductible contribution, send checks payable to HomeSteaders to 1ST Bank, attn: Shannon Jones, Sr. VP, 370 17th St., Denver, CO 80202. To join HomeSteaders, contact Mary Ann Wadas at 303-825-0969.

For more information on the Loft Tour, contact Nina O’Kelley of Kentwood City Properties and incoming president of HomeSteaders at 303-478-6703, or send an email to Nina at nina@kentwoodcity.com.

Kentwood City Properties, formed in 1999, is the newest member of The Kentwood Companies, known nationally as Denver’s premier real estate company. The company’s street-front office at the corner of 17^th and Wynkoop streets, directly across the street from Union Station, is comprised of nearly 50 of metro Denver’s most experienced real estate professionals serving residential buyers, sellers, and developers. For more information phone 303-820-CITY (2489), and visit online at www.kentwoodcity.com.

The Kentwood Companies is comprised of Kentwood City Properties, The Kentwood Company at Cherry Creek, and The Kentwood Company in the Denver Tech Center. View all Kentwood listings at www.DenverRealEstate.com.

At the head of Furer SA  , Philippe Furer – – fourth generation – and his wife Anne-Lise have been working in the family business for over 35 years, and are now its majority shareholders by a wide margin.

Philippe Furer, Could you give us a brief overview of your business?

After studying humanities and law, I was thinking about becoming a diplomat, but the circumstances of life decided otherwise. I started working for my father, Claude Furer, in 1973, and I’ve remained faithful to the requirements of quality, precision and discretion that were the founding values of Furer SA. Our staff of 27 are actively involved in property management, administration of co-ownership property, renovation, brokerage, expertise and consultancy, primarily on the Vaud Riviera and in the Lake Geneva area between Geneva and Lausanne. Reconciling the interests of owners and tenants is no picnic – it requires first class services and, above all, a genuine ability to listen. Our management teams deserve a medal every day!

The company’s head office is in Vevey, while our two dedicated brokerage operations are based in Montreux and Lausanne, under the expert leadership of our associate, Sandro Rigois.

Was the current economic crisis a surprise to you?

Not at all. I’d seen it coming for two years, thanks to political economics classes given by the late François Schaller and several books on 1929 that opened my eyes to the chain reactions that happen during severe economic crises – a vicious circle. However, I fear the current crisis might turn out to be worse than the 1929 one, due among other factors, to runaway demographics (in 1929 the global population was 1.8 billion; in 2009 it’s 7.5 billion), climate risks and technological ‘progress’ that even the most motivated in our globalised world – if you’ll forgive the tautology – are no longer able to control, not to mention the collapse of moral values.

Faced with ever-increasing violence both within and beyond our borders, we’ll have no option but to ‘believe and create’ (which was the theme of the national exhibition as long ago as 1964!); a fascinating, historic challenge for current and future generations.

In the context of your business, what steps have you already taken?

As early as March 2008, I did a U-turn by abandoning international brokerage – even though it seemed to offer promising development prospects – in order to free up the time needed to implement our strategic choices, namely: always striving to improve staff training, perfecting our management applications, strengthening the disputes department and, as a necessary corollary, reinforcing security measures. This inevitably means protecting people and property, making our IT resources as secure as possible and protecting our image. We’ve recently been promoting two new sections on our www.furer.ch website: “The legal expert’s view”, written by Eric Ramel, a member of our Board of Directors, and “The tax expert’s view”, written by Gérard Balimann, director of Fidinter SA, a renowned trust company.

And what are your plans for the immediate future?

Creating a ‘culture corner’ on our website, for which plans are already well advanced. This will include my favourites and discoveries in classical and contemporary music, history, philosophy, literature and fine art. Moreover, there will be a section dedicated to various humanitarian activities. I’m also pulling together various writings in view of publishing a small work, in the not-too-distant future I hope, on... No, wait – it’s still a secret!

Among other activities, you’re a judge at the Rent Tribunal. What motivates you to hold this role?

After 37 years’ service in civil and military security, an army officer has a duty to serve the community in another way: “Ask not what your country can do for you – ask what you can do for your country”. So it was natural for me to contribute to peace between landlords and tenants through the channel of conciliation, at the same time as maintaining my legal knowledge by exercising a type of law that is always more tricky: summum jus summa injuria.

What are your other interests apart from property?

I’ll answer that question indirectly; one of my best friends is a famous conductor who’s just published a book titled “De la musique avant toute chose “ (Music above all things) with resounding success. At the request of another great friend – a canon, organist and internationally renowned concert performer and composer – the Protestant that I am has just formed a committee for the restoration of the great organs of the Sacré-Cœur de Montreux Catholic church (www.orguesmontreux.ch). I spend my leisure time, of which I don’t have enough, at the piano (currently J.-S. Bach, Beethoven and Chopin). I’m passionate about history and philosophy and am often inspired in day-to-day life by the thoughts of that great Stoic Marcus Aurelius, about whom I sometimes give lectures. I’ve chosen one of his thoughts for your article 2. Apart from that, every day I stroke two superb cats while contemplating my beautiful wife. To stay fit, I cycle between 700 and 800 kilometres a month...

What do you like most? ?

The sound of a child laughing.

What do you hate most?

Vulgarity.

Anne-Lise Furer, you are Managing Director of Furer SA and Director of its co-ownership department. What motivates you?

I used to be a primary teacher and yoga instructor. After I met Philippe, I began to take part in the administration of the sales department in Montreux. When a position became available in the co-ownership department, I jumped at it without knowing where it might lead... It’s a fascinating area that teaches you patience, self-control and diplomacy – what you gain is learning the art of living in harmony with others. As everyone knows, the administration of a co-ownership property is not limited to resolving a building’s technical problems – far from it...

You’ve considerably developed the co-ownership department. What’s your recipe?

You have to constantly be disciplined, towards both yourself and others. My rural origins have helped me a lot in this regard. I also have a great team of girls I can rely on.

What are your other interests apart from work?

I’m an avid figure skater, forest walker and yoga enthusiast. I also look after my cats, Merlin and Morgan, as well as... my husband. The precious time I share with him helps us keep our relationship in balance. Finally, when that little lot leaves me the time, I also play the piano: J S Bach, Schubert, Mendelssohn...

What do you like most?

A person’s state of consciousness, which is the key to human evolution.

What do you hate most?

Deceitfulness or treachery, whichever you like.

I fully subscribe to Plato’s thought: “beauty is the splendour of the true”.

Is it difficult working together as a couple? Who wants to answer?

A.-L. Furer: No. The secret of success lies in the intelligent sharing of tasks: each of us has our own department and office. Philippe Furer adds: at home, each of us has our own bathroom (laughs) and piano, but only one kitchen where we prepare meals together, such is the extent to which a meal cooked well with two pairs of hands is as pleasant as a well-managed or administrated property!

Epicurus wasn’t far wrong...

Interviewed by Elisabeth Bastide-Kastl

By Rollie Jordan of The Kentwood Company

DENVER – Rollie Jordan, a leading broker associate with The Kentwood Company at Cherry Creek, is co-chairing along with Michael Pollak of Hyde Park Jewelers the “Thinking Blue” multi-dimensional exhibit and performance event to benefit The Kempe Foundation, the Thinking Blue Campaign, and victims of child abuse and neglect. The first of its kind affair, scheduled for Wednesday, April 1, 2009 at the Redline Gallery in Denver, will showcase a tribute to the legendary Miles Davis, and performances by a variety of high-profile artists. The Thinking Blue benefit is being produced by Rollie’s son, Rhett Jordan, owner of Faces of Entertainment.

The Thinking Blue event will feature performances by K’naan (his song “Take a Minute” is one of the theme songs of the event), Cleo Parker Robinson Dancers, music production by Rashad Smith, jazz artist Ron Miles, Shadow Theatre Director Jeffery Nickelson, Sparticause Live Art Battle and live cooking by Chef D. Well-known designer Chris Christmas has curated an exhibit in honor of Miles Davis featuring his life’s work, original paintings and other surprises focusing on their contributions to humanity.

Christmas, who created the campaign benefiting The Kempe Foundation, has also created the signature “Thinking Blue Ceramic Jewelry Line” which will be featured and available at Hyde Park Jewelers exclusively. Focusing on the activation of the blue ring, a large percentage of each piece sold will benefit The Kempe Foundation and will help further the foster mentoring program. Event sponsors include Hyde Park Jewelers, iTunes, Tunecore, The Palm, Alpha Graphics, Ultra Events and Area Arts.

Thinking Blue is a movement to increase awareness and provoke thought regarding child abuse. The Kempe Foundation is a solid partner in treating the needs of the organization’s children. Thinking Blue asks the community to believe we can all make a change by improving awareness and mentoring children into a better light. Thinking Blue represents a concerned community of activists working to change the outlook and outcome of child abuse and neglect. For more information on this remarkable event featuring jewelry design, theatre, art, dance, film, and music inspired by Miles Davis, visit www.thinkingblue.org. Tickets may be purchased and contributions made through this informative website.

Headquartered in Denver, The Kempe Center for the prevention and treatment of child abuse and neglect has been recognized as the world leader in child abuse treatment programs for more than 40 years. The Kempe Center hosts innovative programs that treat abused children from birth to age 18, train medical professionals, and research new treatment methods to help and heal the most children. Kemp’s mission statement is to increase awareness, engage in advocacy, and secure and provide resources for the prevention and treatment of child abuse. For more information, visit www.kempe.org.

Thinking Blue is scheduled for April 1^st at 6:30 p.m. at the Redline Gallery located at 2350 Arapahoe Street in Denver. Patron tickets are $150.00 and general admission is $75.00. Don’t miss this special event to benefit very worthwhile organizations and children’s needs.

For more information, contact Rhett Jordan at 720.308.6280 or via email at rhett@facesofentertainment.com, and visit: http://www.thinkingblue.org

The Kentwood Companies are dedicated to its legacy of being “Colorado’s Premier Real Estate Company” through the highest producing, most knowledgeable, caring and experienced sales team in the country, offering the highest quality customer service experience. The Kentwood Companies are innovators known for unparalleled marketing strategies and superior Internet technology that places its clients in the best possible position.

For more information, visit The Kentwood Companies online at www.DenverRealEstate.com.