Equity Estates Fund

Board of Advisors

Our management team will be assisted by our Board of Advisors that will provide advice with respect to investments, financings, service related issues, and relationships with strategic partners. The advisory board is comprised of members with substantial experience and success in the resort real estate and other related industries. The members of our Board of Advisors are as follows:

Andy MacLellan

Andy MacLellan is former Vice President - Resorts, Westin Hotels & Resorts, former Vice President and Managing Director, Holiday Inn Worldwide, and former Vice Chairman and Chief Operating Officer of Dolce International. Andy MacLellan has had extensive experience in hotel management, development and renovation. The breadth of his experience spans more than 30 years, with three of the industry's leaders. Throughout his career, Mr. MacLellan created world class resorts such as the Mauna Kea, Big Island, Hawaii; the Arizona Biltmore, Phoenix, Arizona; Las Brisas, Acapulco, Mexico; Las Hadas, Manzanillo, Mexico; the Westin Kauai and The Sundance Resort, Sundance, Utah. Mr. MacLellan now operates Scottford Enterprises, a hotel and resort properties consultancy and management firm.

Stephen R. Gross

Stephen R. Gross is a CPA, CVA, CFE and founding member of HLB Gross Collins, PC. Mr. Gross was Regional Managing Partner, National Director of Business Consulting, and a member of the Executive Committee of the national accounting firm. Steve has taught strategic business planning, executive development, real estate finance, tax planning, and computer consulting to CPAs throughout Georgia and was a national speaker and trainer on these subjects. Steve has consulted and audited with hundreds of companies throughout the United States and Western Europe. He is a current board member of the Henry Grady Foundation. Steve is also the Bailli of the Chaine des Rotisseurs in Atlanta, an international fine wine and food society, a member of the Cherokee Town and Country Club and Lake Arrowhead Country Club, a founding member of the Georgian Club and the Reynolds Plantation Club, at Lake Oconee. As part of his services to his clients, for over 17 years he has served on the board of directors of many companies, both public and private, which currently include Mutual Fund Family of CitiGroup Smith Barney ($55 billion in assets).

Mr. Gross is a licensed CPA, Certified Fraud Examiner and Certified Valuation Analyst. He is a member of the state and national CPA societies and former chairman of the Ethics Committee of the Atlanta Chapter of the GSCPA. He is a member of the Institute of Business Appraisers, the National Association of Certified Valuation Analysts, and the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners.

Timothy J. Trankina

Timothy J. Trankina, JD, CPA, MBA, is a member of Equity Estates, LLC. More on Timothy.

Aaron Goldman

Aaron Goldman is currently a Principal of Perennial Properties. In 1997, after years of experience in real estate financing, Mr. Goldman joined Perennial Properties, Inc as a full partner. Perennial Properties, Inc. is an Atlanta based mixed-use commercial development firm that specializes in high-end urban apartment and condominium projects with street level retail. Including projects previously sold, currently owned and under development,. Aaron and his partner are responsible for the acquisition or development of nearly 150 single-family home sites, 3000 apartments and condominiums as well as 150,000 square feet of commercial space. Perennial is expanding operations to Athens, Georgia and Western Florida. He is also a co-founder of the Financial Advisory Board for Operation PEACE, an inner-city youth and family services program, and has served as a Board Member for Chicago Youth Programs, Inc. and its predecessor, Cabrini Green Youth Programs. Goldman also served on the DeKalb County (GA) Development Advisory Board.

Janine Ellman Cifelli

Janine Ellman Cifelli is President of Janine Cifelli Representation, a travel industry representation firm for small premier resorts and hotels around the world. During her 20 years in the luxury travel business with Sanctuare (formerly Resorts Management), Janine has amassed a comprehensive resume of developing unique properties and putting them on the industry radar. Janine has held senior positions in travel agencies and has not only managed public relations responsibilities for five Sanctuare properties (including Palazzo Sasso, Amalfi coast and Sir Richard Branson's Limited Edition by Virgin; Necker Island in the Caribbean, Ulusaba Private Game Reserve in South Africa and Kasbah Tamadot in Morocco), but also handled client relations and travel industry sales for Necker Island. Janine is well respected for her professionalism and attention to detail.

Janine is a member of the Society of American Travel Writers, and she has been active within the prestigious Virtuoso luxury travel network for ten years. Janine has participated in panel discussions for both the Luxury Travel Expo (NYC 2005) and The International Luxury Travel Market (ILTM, Cannes, December 2006).

Brennan Ryan

Brennan Ryan is a partner of Nelson, Mullins, Riley & Scarborough, LLP in Atlanta where he practices in the areas of corporate law, securities and banking law. His clients range from de novo banks and start-up technology and services companies to billion dollar public entities. Mr. Ryan is also a partner in several companies in the ATM industry with a focus on the transaction processing aspects of that market. He is a member of the Florida Bar, the State Bar of Georgia and is an active member of the American Bar Association, the Georgia Bankers Association, the Community Bankers Association and the Atlanta Bar Association. In 1997, Mr. Ryan earned a J.D., with honors, from the Levin College of Law at the University of Florida. Having been enrolled in a joint degree program, he also earned an MBA from the school. Mr. Ryan served in the U.S. Navy and U.S. Navy Reserves from 1987 to 1995.

Michael Thompson

Michael Thompson has served as President and Vice Chairman of the Vail Board of Realtors and has been a director for the Colorado Association of Realtors. He has been selling real estate for 12 years in Vail Valley, one of the most sought after ski destinations in America. In addition, Mr. Thompson has successfully purchased and managed investment real estate in the area, and has a strong background in what it takes to acquire and manage a high-end luxury home in a top resort destination, as well as finding the best values in the region.

Tim S. Schrager

Tim S. Schrager founded Perennial Properties, Inc., an Atlanta based real estate development and management company. From the very beginning, Mr. Schrager saw a need for quality housing choices in Atlanta's older neighborhoods where the rental housing stock was deteriorating. Focusing on the development of infill real estate in gentrifying neighborhoods, Perennial has been responsible for the acquisition, development or rehabilitation of over 3000 apartments and condominiums, 150,000 square feet of commercial space and 150 single-family home sites. Perennial made a name for itself by pioneering development in areas that others felt were too risky, but are now institutional grade locations. This vision and entrepreneurial spirit has kept Perennial on the cutting edge of the Atlanta real estate development scene.