Catherine Buell is founder of Wellness Real Estate Innovations. Previously director of Amazon Housing Equity Fund, president/CEO of Atlanta Housing Authority, chair of DC Historic Preservation Review Board, and executive director of St. Elizabeth's East Campus Redevelopment. Harvard Kennedy School Loeb Fellow.

(00:00) Introduction to second interview. Former Amazon Housing Equity Fund director, Atlanta Housing CEO, Harvard Kennedy School Loeb Fellow.

(03:14) New company Wellness Real Estate Innovations - bringing wellness real estate solutions to diverse urban audiences at intersection of health and housing.

(03:42) Personal motivation: mother's dementia/loneliness during COVID highlighted lack of aging options even in expensive continuum care facilities.

(05:33) Philosophy: housing is healthcare and building with care. Traditional housing continuum has cracks - expensive senior housing, limited diverse options. Beautiful places impact how you feel through social connection, walkability, vibrancy.

(09:05) Amazon lessons: Corporate investments influence markets but can't solve entire spectrum. Healthcare organizations increasingly investing in affordable housing targeting high-cost patients. Innovation gap for aging demographic - need co-housing, shared living, wellness communities.

(15:23) Combat loneliness through intentional community design - new urbanist model plus different housing types, oversized green spaces, shared amenities for organic connection.

(17:06) Alternative models: co-housing, shared living, ADUs. PadSplit's tech approach for $27K income essential workers - streamlined access to furnished shared rooms. Shared models add people without changing community character, help aging in place.

(21:26) Key challenge: lack of documented data on wellness community benefits. Need to document outcomes from 1990s/2000s wellness communities.

(23:37) Global Wellness Institute trends:

• Wellness as Infrastructure (WAI) - Bhutan mindfulness city
• Wellness as Service (WAAS) - integrated cleaning, nursing, caregiving
• Wellness ROI (WROI) - significantly higher returns
• Longevity Economy (WRELE) - aging population focus

(27:38) Gap: middle-income households with $80-120K retirement income can't afford elite wellness solutions ($400K-$1M deposits), don't want to leave social networks.

(32:48) Policy needs: data on health/housing intersection, true cost of "do nothing" strategy, economic benefits. Fastest growing DC population is 55+. Loneliness epidemic costs $6.7B annually to Medicaid.

(37:20) Example: dementia village in Ward 7 - 13% of DC seniors have dementia (16% east of river). Netherlands-inspired model with store, pub, church, arts room for quality of life vs traditional memory care.

• (00:00:09) - Interviewing Icons of D.C. Real Estate
• (00:00:45) - The Iconic Journey and CRE: Expanding Our Reach and Impact
• (00:02:47) - In the Elevator With Katherine Buell and Kathryn Bue
• (00:05:15) - Catherine Polley on Wellness Real Estate
• (00:08:22) - Seniors' Housing: Health Care
• (00:11:33) - Alex Jones on Wellbeing and Housing Innovation
• (00:17:50) - How Co-Housing and Shared Living Can Help Reduce Social Eng
• (00:24:00) - What's the Wellness Real Estate?
• (00:26:02) - Will Wellness Real Estate Impact?
• (00:31:58) - Sip and Solve: Wellbeing and Housing
• (00:35:24) - Washington DC Mayor on Wellbeing and Intergenerational Communities
• (00:39:34) - Real Estate News: Wellbeing and Intergenerational Housing
• (00:47:39) - Wellness Real Estate Innovation
• (00:50:21) - Wellness initiatives in real estate
• (00:53:01) - The Need for More Data on Aging and Housing
• (00:57:07) - Amazon's $2 Billion Housing Fund
• (01:00:31) - Jeff Bezos on Large-Scale Housing Investments
• (01:03:47) - The Harvard Loeb Fellowship
• (01:06:17) - Teaching at Harvard: Health and Housing Innovation
• (01:07:29) - Will Wellness Real Estate Be an Investment?
• (01:12:48) - Is Wellbeing a Driving Factor in Hotel Branding?
• (01:15:44) - Office and Retail: Wellbeing in the Office
• (01:17:44) - Have We Seen Innovation in Retail for Wellness?
• (01:20:20) - Wellness in the Real Estate Market
• (01:23:16) - Top Real Estate Book recommendations for the Wellness Industry

James Barlia is Executive Director of Station DC, a private members club for Frontier Tech innovators, investors, and policy makers advancing American national interest. Previously VP at Revolution's Rise of the Rest Seed Fund (Steve Case) investing in startups outside traditional tech hubs. Earlier worked at Greenspring Associates in fund of funds/impact VC. DC native, Tulane graduate.

Station DC Overview [1:11-3:00]

• Private members club for frontier tech in DC
• 13,000 sq ft space in Union Market for work, meetings, events
• Mission: Ensure American tech leadership endures with DC at forefront
• Focus on economic development, business attraction, diversification from federal government

Background & Journey [3:49-10:07]

• Influenced by entrepreneur father's renewable energy work
• Failed toothpaste startup in high school led to meeting angel investor
• Internship at 1776 DC tech incubator exposed him to impactful founders
• Learned "Rise of the Rest" thesis at Greenspring before joining Revolution

Venture Insights [11:02-17:00]

• Innovation exists everywhere, not just traditional hubs
• Place creates competitive advantage through network effects
• Key founder qualities: intrinsic motivation, unique insights, relentless effort
• Evaluation requires time, multiple meetings, references

Market Observations

• SVB Collapse [21:05-25:02]: Created resilience, highlighted treasury management importance
• Amazon HQ2 [26:10-27:00]: Real impact on talent/real estate but job numbers lower than marketed
• DC Commercial Real Estate [29:10-34:00]: Tech startups need flexible office space; landlords should offer flexibility and engage directly with founders

DC Tech Ecosystem [40:08-43:00]

• Influx driven by critical sectors: space, energy, synthetic biology, AI, defense
• Tech companies view DC as ally, not adversary
• Has required talent, customers (federal gov't, Fortune 500), knowledge, capital
• Major VC firms establishing DC satellite offices

Emerging Trends [63:00-67:00] Beyond AI: data centers, space economy, robotics, autonomy, defense systems. Frontier tech companies need dollars, talent, customers, capital - often found in DC.

Advice for Young Professionals [69:00-95:00]

• Pivoted from Cushman and Wakefield regional presidency to found LNSS Advisors focusing on data center advisory
• Positioned data centers as critical infrastructure underpinning the AI revolution and digital economy
• Launched firm immediately after C&W departure, targeting high-growth sector with specialized expertise
• Combines commercial real estate advisory with highest and best use evaluations and data center focus

• Atlantic City upbringing provided firsthand exposure to real estate valuation principles
• Father's FAA Tech Center background fostered interest in technical systems and early computer modeling
• Mother's artistic influence balanced technical perspective with creative problem-solving
• Observed demolition of historic Marlborough-Blenheim Hotel, demonstrating highest/best use concepts
• Atlantic City's casino redevelopment provided early lessons in market transformation dynamics

• Penn State Architectural Engineering provided technical foundation for complex asset evaluation
• Initial interest in architecture evolved toward technical engineering applications