Our Team
Leadership
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JM Schapiro
Chief Executive Officer
Executive Committee Member
JM Schapiro
Chief Executive Officer
Executive Committee MemberJM Schapiro is Chief Executive Officer of CRC, where he leads the executive management team and oversees the firm’s long-term strategic direction. Since rejoining CRC in 1998, JM has been instrumental in guiding the company’s growth, drawing on decades of experience in real estate finance, leasing, and development. He originally joined CRC in 1991 and later served as Vice President of Real Estate at Sylvan Learning Systems, Inc. from 1995 to 1998. JM holds a B.S. from Bucknell University and an M.S. in Real Estate from Johns Hopkins University. His leadership and entrepreneurial vision were recognized in 2014 when he was named a regional winner of the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year award.
In addition to his role at CRC, JM is deeply committed to civic engagement and community development. He is a co-founder of Baltimore Homecoming, an initiative that connects Baltimore’s most accomplished natives and alumni with leaders driving the city’s future. He also serves on the Board of Trustees at Cristo Rey Jesuit High School, supporting educational opportunities for underserved youth in Baltimore.
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Crystal Frey
Executive Vice President of People, Culture & Brand
Executive Committee Member
Crystal Frey
Executive Vice President of People, Culture & Brand
Executive Committee MemberCrystal’s unique ability to relate to people in all areas within and outside of the organization allows her to make a real impact on culture, engagement, and team cohesion. As the Executive Vice President of People, Culture & Brand, Crystal is responsible for team recruitment, retention, engagement, development, and benefits. She also works closely with the Corporate Marketing team to maximize CRC’s brand. Her involvement in the Society for Human Resource Management’s Advocacy Team and Executive Network advocating for public policy enables Crystal to keep her finger on the pulse of emerging workplace trends.
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Haley Gallagher
Chief Operating Officer
Executive Committee Member
Haley Gallagher
Chief Operating Officer
Executive Committee MemberHaley Gallagher serves as Chief Operating Officer of CRC, overseeing the firm’s multifamily and retail operations, asset management, capital markets, business analytics, and insurance structuring. She is a member of both the Investment Committee and Executive Committee and plays a key role in shaping and executing firm-wide strategy. Since joining CRC in 2012, Haley has made a lasting impact across the organization, always anchored in a deep understanding of asset-level operations. She built CRC’s Asset Management platform from the ground up and has led the expansion of several core functions—developing the company’s data science capabilities, strengthening insurance and risk programs, and evolving capital markets strategy through new tools and talent. Haley is known for her ability to seamlessly bridge high-level strategy and operational detail, with a talent for connecting dots across functions to drive performance.
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Stephanie Shack
Senior Vice President & General Counsel
Executive Committee Member
Stephanie Shack
Senior Vice President & General Counsel
Executive Committee MemberStephanie Shack serves as Senior Vice President and General Counsel for CRC. With a history of success and extensive background in commercial real estate, finance and equity funds, Stephanie joined CRC in 2023. Her legal insight and judgment provide the foundation for her responsibilities coordinating all legal work for CRC. Her inter-personal skills and ability to communicate at all levels are talents she puts to good use in her role as supervisor of CRC’s internal legal department, outside counsel and corporate legal compliance. She brings with her experience gained as senior vice president and general counsel for Enterprise Community Partners, a national non-profit that invests in and advocates for the preservation and production of quality affordable housing. Prior to Enterprise, she was senior vice president and associate general counsel with Corporate Office Properties Trust (COPT), a publicly traded real estate investment trust, where she provided expertise and honed her skills in real estate development, acquisitions and dispositions of commercial office properties, among other high-level responsibilities. Earlier in her career, she held positions at DLA Piper and with U.S. Magistrate Judge John E. Dougherty.
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Lauren Wayne, CPA
Chief Financial Officer
Executive Committee Member
Lauren Wayne, CPA
Chief Financial Officer
Executive Committee MemberLauren Wayne serves as Chief Financial Officer, where she leads the firm’s accounting, information technology, systems, investor relations, and investor reporting functions. She is a member of both the Valuation Committee and Executive Committee. Since joining CRC in 2010, Lauren has been instrumental in building a scalable financial and accounting infrastructure and developing the firm’s external investor reporting platform. With over 20 years of experience in accounting and reporting for private equity funds, she brings deep industry expertise and a forward-thinking approach to operational leadership. Lauren is known for her ability to transform processes by identifying inefficiencies and implementing scalable, technology-driven solutions. Her leadership has been central to shaping the systems that support CRC’s long-term growth strategy.
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John Luetkemeyer
Co-Chairman
John Luetkemeyer
Co-Chairman
Jack currently serves as a Co-Chairman on the Advisory Board for CRC. Jack joined Continental Realty Corporation (CRC) in 1979 after serving as a former Treasurer of the City of Baltimore and commercial banker for Equitable Trust Company. Jack was responsible for the start of CRC’s Commercial Division and the CR Restaurant Division. Jack has served as a Chairman of the Commissioners of Finance of the City of Baltimore. After serving as a Trustee for several local private schools, Jack is currently a Trustee of Cristo Rey Jesuit High School. He is a Director and President of Rollins–Luetkemeyer Foundation. Jack is a graduate of Williams College and has an M.B.A. from New York University.
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J. Mark Schapiro
Co-Chairman
J. Mark Schapiro
Co-Chairman
As Co-Chairman on the Advisory Board for CRC and one of the pioneers in Baltimore’s urban development, J. Mark Schapiro is the son of Continental Realty Corporation (CRC) founder, Marvin S. Schapiro. Mark’s career with CRC began in 1964. Mark has overseen CRC’s multifamily acquisition and development program and actively managed the theater division before it was sold in 1988. Mark has served on numerous mayoral task forces and committees, as a Trustee for the Baltimore Museum of Art, on the Board of Sinai Hospital, and was President of the Associated Jewish Charities of Baltimore from 1994-1996. Mark is a graduate of Baltimore City College and has a law degree from the University of Baltimore.
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Lawrence Rief
Partner
Lawrence Rief
Partner
Lawrence joined Continental Realty Corporation (CRC) in 1985. He specializes in the creative redevelopment of existing buildings, land development, and new construction. Lawrence has revitalized over 60 buildings ranging in size from 33,000 to 650,000 square feet during his 50-year career in commercial real estate.
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Josh Dinstein
Co-Chief Investment Officer
Executive Committee Member
Josh Dinstein
Co-Chief Investment Officer
Executive Committee MemberJosh serves as Senior Vice President of the Acquisition Team at CRC and focuses his attention on the growth of the real estate portfolio. Prior to joining CRC, Josh served as Managing Director at Garrison Investment Group, where he oversaw real estate strategy, investments, development, leasing, management and disposition. Earlier he was a Portfolio Manager at Kimco Realty Corporation, where he was responsible for distressed investing.
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Matthew Joiner
Senior Vice President, Multifamily Acquisitions
Matthew Joiner
Senior Vice President, Multifamily Acquisitions
Matt Joiner is a Senior Vice President of Acquisitions and leads the firm’s multifamily acquisitions vertical. Based in New York, he has experience in private and public equity real estate investment.
Prior to Joining CRC, Matt was the Senior Director of Investments and Head of Multifamily in the US for CapitaLand Investment, an $100 billion AUM publicly traded investment manager based in Singapore. As the first US based hire, he oversaw the creation of the multifamily asset management platform, along with the acquisition of over $1.5 billion investments comprising 6,000 apartments and 2.5 million square feet of office and industrial properties. Earlier, he worked at Equus Capital Partners across disciplines in acquisitions, asset management, and portfolio management for a diversified portfolio of office, industrial, retail, and multifamily assets.
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Kristina O’Keefe
Vice President, Commercial Division
Kristina O’Keefe
Vice President, Commercial Division
Kristina serves as Vice President of the Commercial Division for CRC and oversees all aspects of leasing and property management for the commercial portfolio. She started her career interning for the renowned Rouse Company, then transitioned to retail leasing brokerage in CBRE’s Baltimore office. She came on board with Continental in 2009 as a commercial leasing agent for the Maryland portfolio and has since advanced to become head of the 27-person team, overseeing the day-to-day leasing, assisting with due diligence on new acquisitions, and driving process improvements for the department. She is a member of ICSC and a graduate of Denison University.
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Ari Abramson
Vice President, Multifamily Acquisitions
Ari Abramson
Vice President, Multifamily Acquisitions
As the Vice President of Acquisitions, Ari co-leads CRC’s multifamily acquisitions team through the sourcing, evaluating, and closing of acquisitions throughout the Mid-Atlantic and Southeast regions of the US. Currently, Ari is investing on behalf of the Value-Add Multifamily Fund I, LP and Core Multifamily Fund, LP. He is a Board Member of the National Multifamily Housing Council (NMHC), where he is member of the Member Engagement Committee and former Chair of the Emerging Leaders Committee. Further, Ari is a full member of Urban Land Institute (ULI) where he serves as the Vice Chair of the Multifamily Blue Product Council. Prior to joining CRC, Ari worked at Alex Brown Realty as an Acquisitions Officer with a focus on joint venture investments throughout the Southeast. In addition, Ari held investment banking and real estate development positions for Stifel Nicolaus, Townsend Capital, and Legg Mason.
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Elisabeth Mygatt
Vice President, Multifamily Asset Management
Elisabeth Mygatt
Vice President, Multifamily Asset Management
As Vice President of Multifamily Asset Management, Elisabeth leads all functions of CRC’s multifamily asset management division. Her responsibilities include evaluating new acquisitions, managing the onboarding process, overseeing property operations and budgeting, conducting asset valuations, preparing investor reports, and guiding disposition strategies. Prior to joining CRC, Elisabeth worked for nearly a decade at AvalonBay, and earned a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from the Williams School of Commerce, Economics, and Politics at Washington and Lee University.
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J. Blake Dickinson
Vice President, Net Lease Strategy
J. Blake Dickinson
Vice President, Net Lease Strategy
As Vice President of Net Lease Strategy, Blake drives the pad site strategy across the portfolio, including leasing, occasional development, and disposition. Blake came to Continental in 2008 as a Leasing Associate. He was one of the architects of Continental’s leasing strategy during the recovery from the Global Financial Crisis, and he has become a specialist in pad and anchor leasing. Blake is a member of ICSC and earned his BA in History from Dickinson College and his MBA from Loyola University Maryland.
