New Pathway That Protects Against Alzheimer's Protein Buildup Found

Senior woman reading a book

Photo by Clément Falize on Unsplash

Based in Miami, Brian Sidman guides BAS Holdings Investments, LLC, where he provides solutions in the areas of real estate acquisition and asset management. With a strong community focus, Brian Sidman previously held responsibilities on the board of a nonprofit foundation that provided financial support to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. 

Researchers at the St. Jude Department of Immunology were recently involved in research that yielded a new pathways that prevents Alzheimer's protein buildup. Also enabling the regulation of inflammation, the pathway involves microglial cells that are the central nervous system and brain’s primary immune cell source, and is known as LC3-associated endocytosis (LANDO). 

Activating LANDO can help prevent deposits of the neurotoxic β-amyloid protein and safeguard against neurodegeneration and neuroinflammation, which are tied to memory problems. In addition, inhibiting the pathway may be a strategy for boosting cancer immunotherapy results. 

The study results were described as reflecting a situation where “you never know where science will lead,” as the project was initially focused on immune responses among children against cancer.

ICSC's 2019 Annual RECon Event

Brian A. Sidman, the founder and principal of BAS Holdings Investments, LLC, attends the annual International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) RECon conference. ICSC RECon offers professionals like Brian A. Sidman a chance to advance their careers, learn about issues facing the commercial real estate field, and connect with others.

Slated to begin on May 19, the 2019 RECon event will be held at the Las Vegas Convention Center. The first day of this four-day event will include professional development workshops as well as an opening keynote presentation. On the remaining three days of the conference, the event's Leasing Mall, Marketplace Mall, and SPREE will be open, providing attendees with first looks at new products and services for the retail field. The second and third days of the event also include more keynote presentations as well as conference sessions and professional development opportunities.

Past session topics have touched on ways to deal with emergencies and catastrophic events, current issues in commercial real estate, ways to support transitions between online and offline business, and long-term projections for retail operation and related business.

Factors to Consider before Purchasing Commercial Parking Property

Real estate professional Brian Sidman has worked with large scale real estate advisory companies over his career. Brian Sidman founded and leads as the managing principal of BAS Holdings Investments, LLC, a company that acquires and manages commercial real estate parking assets.

Commercial parking properties generate substantial revenue in the United States. The International Parking Institute estimates that there are more than 105 million parking spaces in the country generating about $20 billion annually. With such attractive numbers, many investors are drawn to the market. Here are three factors to consider before acquiring a commercial real estate parking asset:

- Location. As with all real estate investments, location holds the most weight when determining an investment. Specifically, urban areas with strong economic activity and new construction of offices, hotels, retail centers, and other commercial developments make for attractive locations. 

- Zoning Laws. In addition to a location’s economic activity, consider zoning laws and other guidelines. Some municipalities restrict the construction of parking facilities or make the process very expensive, which may make new construction difficult but puts a premium on already existing facilities. 

- Parking Ratio. Defined as the ratio of a property’s available parking spaces to gross leasable area, the parking ratio is expressed per 1,000 square feet of property. Some cities have minimum parking-ratio requirements, while others may require higher parking ratios for specific types of properties. Factoring in the parking ratio is a good way to estimate the investment potential of local properties. For example, if a local center has buildings with parking ratios of four spaces per 1,000 square feet, but tenants desire a ratio of six per 1,000 square feet, the area may provide an opportunity for investment.

- Redevelopment or repurpose opportunity. In an ever changing environment relating to technology and the future of cars, it is always important to determine if a parking asset may be repurposed should there be less cars on the road. When we make a decision on a parking investment, one box we check is if the asset is located in an area with a high velocity of population growth that may be positioned for a self-storage or data center conversion in the future.

Understanding Qualified Opportunity Funds

For over a decade, Brian Sidman has been involved in real estate acquisitions and investments. The managing principal of BAS Holdings Investments, LLC, Brian Sidman focuses on parking investments, land parcel acquisitions and qualified opportunity funds. 

Qualified Opportunity Funds are investment vehicles that are formed as partnerships or LLCs. They are privately managed and are required to invest 90 percent of all their assets into qualified opportunity zones. Qualified Opportunity Funds were a creation of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017. The funds were created as part of a tax incentive program to spur investment in low-income areas across the country. The act allowed investors who realize a capital gain in their investments to defer capital gains tax payments or eliminate up to 15 percent of the taxable gain by investing the gains in qualified opportunity funds, which channel the money to qualified opportunity zones.

These qualified opportunity zones are low-income communities nominated as such by the state's governor and certified by the U.S. Treasury Department. Once an area is certified, it retains its designation for a decade. The area will benefit from additional investment and job creation for as long as it is eligible. If investments made by investors in qualified opportunity funds lead to gains after 10 years, these gains, once realized, are not taxable.

St. Jude’s Cancer Survivorship Research Project

Miami, Florida-based executive Brian Sidman has extensive experience in real estate investment, acquisition, and capital-raising. In addition to his years in senior management positions for commercial real estate investment firms in California, Florida, New York, and New Jersey, Brian Sidman is a former board member of a foundation which has raised over $16 million for the St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.

In addition to its groundbreaking research for preventative and restorative cancer treatment, St Jude’s is studying the long-term impact of treatment on childhood cancer survivors. Its Cancer Survivorship Research program is composed of the LIFE study and Childhood Cancer Survivor Study (CCSS). 

The LIFE study tracks the long-term health outcomes for over 4,300 former St. Jude’s patients. The study has helped the research hospital anticipate the challenges faced by cancer survivors and develop effective methods for monitoring health issues.

The CCSS is a collaborative effort of over 30 treatment centers throughout the U.S. and Canada. The CCSS is analyzing data from more than 35,000 childhood cancer survivors who were first diagnosed between 1970 and 1999 and 5,000 of their siblings. The study aims to understand the relationship between long-term health risks, treatment type, and individual factors.

NPA Convention and Expo

Brian Sidman has been active in the commercial real estate sphere for more than a decade, and in 2014 founded BAS Holdings in Miami. As part of his efforts to stay current within the professional sphere, Brian Sidman maintains membership in the National Parking Association (NPA).

The NPA will hold the 2018 NPA Convention and Expo in Las Vegas, Nevada, on October 22, 2018. This four-day event will bring together professionals from all areas associated with parking, as well as many exhibitors and vendors.

Those interested in advancing their knowledge of the field can attend NPA Convention Education events during the expo. Some are general education events that focus on building general skills or theoretical understanding. Others offer certification and credentials, such as the Certified Parking Professional designation or the Valet Operations Certificate.

The convention will also host many networking events for parking-industry professionals. These events will provide activities that allow participants to bond, share stories, and cultivate the connections that could assist in taking their careers to the next level.

The ICSC Foundation's Hurricane Relief Efforts

An experienced real estate professional, Brian Sidman has served as CEO of BAS Properties Group since founding the North Miami-based property acquisitions and asset management consultancy in 2014. To inform his leadership operations at BAS, Brian Sidman regularly attends the annual conferences of the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC).

In addition to its commitment to promoting and furthering the best interests of the shopping center industry, the ICSC benefits the world at large through the charitable efforts of the ICSC Foundation. The foundation recently spearheaded an initiative to support those who were adversely affected by the 2017 hurricane season.

Knowing that millions of people required assistance in the wake of these storms, the ICSC Foundation encouraged its members to contribute to separate funds for Hurricane Harvey, Hurricane Irma, and/or Hurricane Maria through the official ICSC-dedicated Red Cross web page. The ICSC matched the first $500,000 in member donations.