Disaster Recovery and Resilience: Tips, Techniques and Best Practices for Public and Private Organizations

8:30 AM – 9:00 AM

Registration/Breakfast

9:00 AM - 9:15 AM

Welcome & Opening Remarks

• Michelle DePass, Dean, The Milano School of International Affairs, Management, and Urban Policy, The New School

9:00 AM - 12:15 AM

Morning Sessions: "Fire, Flood and Acts of Terrorism: Preparedness and Recovery"

9:15 AM – 10:15 AM

Real Estate after the Storm: Appropriate Placement of Responsibility and Risk for Landlords, Tenants and Insurance Companies

Panelists:

• Suzanne St. Pierre, Moderator, Partner, Venable LLP
• Jana Critchfield, Regional Sales Manager for New York and New England, Wright Flood Insurance
• Matt Duthie, Managing Director, Jones Lang LaSalle
• Peter Koffler, Partner, Venable LLP
• Williams Lewis, Vice President, Facilities and Corporate Services, and Associate General Counsel, EmblemHealth, Inc.
• Allyson Martin, Managing Director, Beecher Carlson

Occurrences like Hurricane Sandy affect participants on all sides of real estate contracts, including landlords, tenants and insurance companies alike. Join us as this panel discusses contract terms that purportedly address emergency and recovery situations; emergency decision-making authority; barriers to preparedness; new due diligence inquiries prior to buying or leasing a space; the impact on operating costs and rental rates, and insurance "policy" issues.

10:15 AM – 11:15 AM

Infrastructure Readiness and Changes to Construction Practices: Lessons Learned from Catastrophic Events

Panelists:

• Peter Britell, Moderator, Partner, Venable LLP
• Christopher Flagg, Vice President, Waterfront NY
• Kenneth Holden, Chief Facilities Officer, Mount Sinai Medical System
• Brian McGrath, Dean, School of Constructed Environments, Parsons the New School for Design
• Michael Phillipou, Counsel, Venable LLP 
   

Catastrophic events like 9/11 and Superstorm Sandy have led institutions and governments to focus on thoughtfully preparing for the worst. Since any catastrophe is by definition unexpected, it is possible to plan for disaster response in terms first of emergency and then follow-up construction planning and procedures. This panel will discuss the panelists’ experience with emergency construction responses and will consider types of planning for future events – including infrastructure resiliency and preparedness; changes to building codes and construction best practices to mitigate the impact of future catastrophes; emergency procurement and contract forms (public and private); plans for compliance with government rules to avoid post-contracting issues (such as litigation, audit, etc); goals or measures of success; the role of a micro-grid in large-scale infrastructure projects; and green (gray) infrastructure and building issues.

11:15 AM – 12:15 PM

Energy and the Environment: Regulatory, Policy and Economic Issues in Disaster Recovery and Preparedness

Panelists:

• Michael Davis, Moderator, Partner, Venable LLP
• Bicky Corman, Partner, Venable LLP
• Shalom Flank, Chief Technology Officer & Microgrid Architect, Pareto Energy
• Daniel Greene, Deputy General Counsel, Governor’s Office of Storm Recovery
• Doug Pabst, Sandy Recovery Green Chief, EPA Region 2

During extreme circumstances, emergency permitting becomes paramount to the success of any recovery effort. Similarly, planning for the next emergency may trigger new permitting requirements. Join us as this panel discusses permitting solutions in regards to lessons learned from Hurricane Sandy, including emergency decision making; how to achieve sustainability during an emergency response and in the future; micro-grid permitting and pricing; goals or measure of success, and communicating and addressing public health and safety.

12:15 PM – 12:30 PM

Break

12:30 PM – 1:45 PM

Lunch with Keynote Speaker

Keynote Speaker:

• Jo-Ellen Darcy, United States Assistant Secretary of the Army (Civil Works), United States Army Corps of Engineers

 Lunch to begin at 12:30pm, with keynote address from 1:00pm-1:45pm.

1:45 PM – 2:00 PM

Break

2:00 PM - 5: 00 PM

Afternoon Sessions: "Build it Back Better: Federal Assistance for Disaster Recovery and Resilience"

2:00 PM – 3:00 PM

Resilience and the Next Disaster: Creating a Permanent Structure for Future Responsiveness

Panelists:

• Dismas Locaria, Moderator, Partner, Venable LLP
• Ana Baptista, Assistant Professor, The Milano School of International Affairs, Management, and Urban Policy, The New School
• Bicky Corman, Partner, Venable LLP
• Marion Mollegen McFadden, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Grant Programs, US Department of Housing and Urban Development
• Michael Molina, Community Resilience Coordinator, Ironbound Community Corporation

Planning for the unknown is key in creating a permanent structure for future responsiveness. This panel will look forward, not backward, at ways to successfully prepare for future disasters, covering the role of science and data; role of community stakeholders; fiscal sustainability and financial incentives; infrastructure resilience guidelines developed by federal agencies post-Hurricane Sandy; the Rockefeller Foundation City resilience framework, and using competitive models e.g., Rebuild by Design and the National Disaster Resilience Competition.

3:00 PM – 4:00 PM

Regulatory Framework for Disaster Recovery Grants

Panelists:

• Dismas Locaria, Partner, Venable LLP
• Natalie Dennery, Senior Counsel, Governor's Office of Storm Recovery
• Thomas J. King, Assistant General Counsel and Certifying Officer, Governor's Office of Storm Recovery
• Kevin McQueen, Lecturer, The Milano School of International Affairs, Management, and Urban Policy, The New School

The federal government continually plays a role in the recovery efforts post-catastrophic events. Join us as this panel reviews lessons learned from Superstorm Sandy in regards to federal funded grants and contracts, including the role of community stakeholders; balancing speed in providing assistance with compliance issues; reconciling of local, state and federal contract requirements, and barriers to building back “better” and the limitations on the use of funds.

4:00 PM – 5:00 PM

Coordination and Regional Planning: Lessons Learned from the World Trade Center Redevelopment and the Sandy Task Force

Panelists:

• Gordon Davis, Moderator, Partner, Venable LLP
• Irene Chang-Cimino, Senior Regional Interagency Coordination Advisor, Federal Sandy Recovery Office
• Susan Golden, Counsel, Venable LLP
• Anne M. Locke, Chief Operating Officer and Senior Vice President, AKRF Inc.
• Timothy G. Stickelman, Assistant General Counsel, Port Authority of New York & New Jersey

Coordination is a vital step in rebuilding after a disaster, whether it be at the regional, inter-state or inter-agency level, or at the community level among neighbors and other stakeholders. Redevelopment decisions may benefit from shared data and planning to avoid unintended consequences outside of the immediate project area. These panelists will reflect on their personal experiences in the redevelopment of the World Trade Center after 9/11 and on the Federal Sandy Task Force, sharing tools for collaboration in planning, review and implementation of projects and discussing barriers to coordination and how they might be overcome.

5:15 PM - 6:30 PM

Networking and Cocktail Party

Please join us for a networking party immediately following the conference. Cocktails and hors d'oeuvres will be served. More details to come.