Charles S. Lanier

Director of Real Estate

Charles has been the director of real estate since 2006 with his main focus directed towards the Crabtree Valley Mall based in Raleigh, NC. Over the past two decades, he has amassed one of the most diverse backgrounds in the Carolinas having leased or sold office space, warehouse, retail outparcels, undeveloped land, community centers, lifestyle centers, traditional malls and super-regional malls. In 2007, Charles was a Triangle Business Journal Space Award winner.

Charles started at Plaza Associates in 1994 as a leasing agent in charge of over 18 neighborhood and community strip centers throughout the Southeast Other responsibilities included the leasing and sale of multiple retail outparcels, site selection, and development of raw land and the construction of new shopping centers for private and third party ownership. In addition to his duties leasing strip centers, Charles operated the Specialty Leasing and Temporary Tenant Program for Crabtree Valley Mall from 2003 - 2006.

From 1991 to 1993, Charles operated as an independent contractor with C.J. Harris and Company, Inc., marketing financial consulting services and acting as an intermediary in mergers, acquisitions, and divestitures of small to middle market business. He managed a portfolio in excess of 2 million dollars and was the top listing agent for the company in 1991, 1992. His responsibilities included all phases of activity necessary to complete a successful acquisition or divestiture of a business including strategic planning, financial analysis, business valuation, employee evaluation, inventory and accounts receivable analysis, pricing, marketing, value negotiation, and execution of the sale.

Charles has a BSBA in Real Estate Finance from East Carolina University and an M.B.A. from Campbell University. He is a member of the International Council of Shopping Centers and has both his SCLS and SCSM designations. He is a NC Real Estate Broker and a member of the Triangle Commercial Association of Realtors (TCAR). He co-founded the Specialty Leasing Association of the Mid-Atlantic States (SLAMA) and served as its President in 2004.

Connie Ostrander

Leasing Manager

Connie joined Plaza Associates Inc. in March of 2009. She is responsible for leasing and managing the Marketplace specialty retail program at Crabtree Valley Mall located in Raleigh, North Carolina in addition to the leasing of the strip center portfolio and various property management and brokerage activities.

Connie has 18 years of experience in all aspects of shopping center management including property management, specialty leasing, marketing, and permanent leasing. She began her career as a contracted employee handling all aspects of specialty leasing programs for multiple national shopping center developers for a variety of property types including regional malls, festival marketplaces, outlet malls and airports. From 2000 to 2007, she worked for Colonial Properties Trust where she managed strip centers followed by the permanent leasing of regional malls throughout the southeast. In 2007 she joined the leasing team at CBL & Associates Properties as a leasing manager adding to her experience with real estate investment trusts (REIT’s).

She earned a BSBA in Marketing from Central Michigan University and holds a Certified Leasing Specialist designation (CLS) from the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC). Connie is a Real Estate Broker in North Carolina and is a member of ICSC.