President/Chief Operating Officer
ekobel@debartolodevelopment.com

Edward Kobel is the President and Chief Operating Officer of DeBartolo Development and is responsible for the company’s strategy, execution and capitalization.

With a “customer and community come first” philosophy, Mr. Kobel leads a team that has created a nationwide real estate investment platform that spans from Hawaii to Florida. Capitalized by the DeBartolo Family and major capital commitments that Mr. Kobel secured with institutional partners, DeBartolo Development has underwritten a real estate pipeline of over $1 billion.

In anticipation of the current real estate slowdown, Mr. Kobel recently expanded the scope of DeBartolo Development to include investment funds and asset management. Under his leadership, the company launched a Community Reinvestment Fund that will invest $400 million into value-added real estate in the states of North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama and Florida. The fund actively looks for areas where there is need to create more job opportunities by revitalizing shopping centers in depressed communities and providing a vehicle to improve the quality of life in these urban areas.

Prior to overseeing DeBartolo Development, Mr. Kobel served as a partner of Fortis Advisors in Scottsdale, Ariz., an affiliate company of the DeBartolo Property Group, where he managed more than $600 million in real estate projects. Before joining Fortis Advisors, Mr. Kobel founded Trinity Development with offices in Colorado Springs and Denver, Colo., Phoenix, Ariz., and Chicago, Ill. Trinity Development was primarily engaged in new retail development as well as value- added shopping center redevelopment and completed over $300 million in retail development.

Throughout his professional career, Mr. Kobel has been a champion of charitable causes, devoting his time and leadership to multiple non-profit organizations and was awarded the Outstanding Professional and Community Citizenship award from Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio.

Mr. Kobel is the Chairman of LIFEWORK Leadership, a leadership development program that provides ethical leadership training for business and community leaders. He serves on the Board of Directors for Faith Tampa Bay, an organization working to meet the transformation needs of the Tampa Bay area. And in 2009, he was awarded the Community Involvement Award for his efforts as Chairman of the Super Bowl Breakfast, an official National Football League event with Athletes in Action.

Recently, Mr. Kobel was elected to the Board of Directors of the University of Tampa, where he will work on the faculty, student and staff well-being educational program. He also sits on the Board of Directors for Meet the Need and Operation Light Force.

Originally from Pittsburgh, Penn., Mr. Kobel served in the U.S. Army’s counter-intelligence department. He lives in Tampa, Fla., with his wife Becky of 26 years and daughters Elizabeth and Katherine.