CAI New Jersey’s Political Action Committee is the fundraising arm of NJ-LAC.
Decisions by legislators can have a big impact on millions of people who live and work with community associations. Our PAC allows us to support candidates for office that advocate for well-reasoned legislation and oppose legislation that creates unnecessary burdens on the governance and operation of community associations.
Make sure that YOUR voice is heard in Trenton – CLICK HERE to make YOUR contribution today!
LAC Chair
Matthew Earle, Esq.
Matthew Earle is a partner with the law firm Kates, Nussman, Ellis, Farhi & Earle, LLP and concentrates his practice in the areas of community association law, real estate tax appeals, construction law, general equity, and commercial litigation before the state and federal courts of New York and New Jersey. Mr. Earle has extensive experience acting as general counsel to community associations and providing legal services relating to, among other things, assisting with the transition from developer to owner control, review and amendment to governing documents, preparation of rules and other corporate documents, managing association risk, resolving insurance coverage issues, assisting with compliance with federal and state laws, advising boards on fiduciary duties, dealing with resident disputes, and handling annual meeting and election issues.
LAC Treasurer
Mohammed Salyani, CPA
Mohammed Salyani, a Principal at WilkinGuttenplan, joined the firm in 2001 after he moved from Kenya. He specializes in providing audit, review, and compilation services to not-for-profit organizations, closely-held businesses, and real estate entities such as community associations. He is a Co-Practice Leader of the Firm’s Community Associations group. For his real estate clients, he also often performs consulting services and agreed-upon procedures including fraud detection, forecasting, and transition reports for sponsors and management companies. Prior to joining WilkinGuttenplan Mohammed worked for a public accounting firm in Kenya where he performed audit work for hotels, banks, and closely-held businesses.
Mohammed served on the Board of Directors for the chapter from 2015 through 2020. In 2019 Mohammed was the President of the Board. Mohammed recently joined the Board of Trustees of Elijah’s Promise. A non-profit organization situated in New Brunswick. In addition, Mohammed is on the Advisory Board of Maun Federal Credit Union, a faith-based credit union in New Jersey
PAC President
Liz Comando, CMCA, PCAM
Elizabeth (Liz) Comando oversees a team of Regional Vice Presidents, Marketing, Human Resources and Property Transitions at Taylor Management Company. Together they ensure the highest level of accountability to over three hundred Community Associations. Since 1989, Liz has been recognized as a Real Estate Management Industry leader with a focus on HOA’s, condominium associations and cooperatives, as well as specializing in luxury hi-rise buildings.
She has managed several large-scale communities in the Pocono Mountain area with lots of amenities and recreational activities, community maintenance and infrastructure such as water/sewer systems. Liz has been a trailblazer in New Jersey in the areas of High-Rise Management, Developer Transition Services, Project Management and Building Restoration. She has implemented and developed training programs about best practices in her trade and has been an integral part of establishing the highest level of excellence in each of the properties she has worked with. Liz attained her PCAM (Professional Community Association Manager) and CMCA (Certified Manager of Community Association) designations from CAI, the Community Associations Institute.
Liz is a graduate of SUNY Cortland with a Bachelor of Science Degree and has over 30 years of experience in community management. She has raised money for numerous charitable organizations including Cancer Research, Hudson Cradle and Make a Wish. She has also served on the Board of Directors for Fairmont Housing Corporation (Division of Women Rising); a non-profit organization that provides affordable housing for matriarchal households. Liz Comando is a Public Speaker and Author. She has served on the CAI Managers Committee, Manager Ethics Committee, Editorial Committee, PCAM Committee and Manager Licensed Task Force in the past. Liz currently serves on the Legislative Action Committee (LAC) and is the President of the Political Action Committee (PAC). She is also a certified mediator.
Jennifer Alexander, Esq.
Jennifer L. Alexander is the Managing Shareholder at Griffin Alexander, P.C. whose practice concentrates on matters involving New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania, Community Association Law and Landlord Tenant Law, and Contract Law. She also handles Commercial Real Estate Transactions, Land Use and Municipal Court matters. She begins most days appearing in Landlord-Tenant Court or appearing on behalf of community associations in litigation, providing legal advice and guidance through the day and ends most of her days representing communities in board meetings.
Ms. Alexander assists communities in governance, providing guidance through the transition process from developer control to homeowner control and serves as general counsel for community association needs. She provides legal guidance to her communities in all legal facets, inter alia, of rulemaking and drafting amendments to promote community living. She also assists in contested elections and ensures that associations are in full compliance with the Radburn Act and the newly enacted DCA Regulations. Ms. Alexander also helps community associations in negotiating Municipal Services Agreements to ensure her clients receive the services they are entitled to or the reimbursement equivalent.
Under Ms. Alexander’s leadership in the Landlord Tenant Department, the firm represents local, national corporate and individual landlords. Representation includes non-payment cases, “for-cause” cases (e.g. habitability claims, security deposits, lease violations), lease drafting and statutory compliance. Ms. Alexander regularly provides lease reviews and lease drafting for her clients to ensure they are in compliance with new laws and fit the needs of her individual clients. She is also well versed in rent control laws, affordable housing requirements and what is necessary for capital surcharge applications.
Ms. Alexander has successfully handled several housing discrimination suits on behalf of landlords filed by tenants and provides procedures and recommendations to help limit landlord exposure to Federal Fair Housing violations. She also appears in court related to contract disputes for both community associations and landlords and when her clients are cited for violations.
Ms. Alexander is a member of the America Bar Association; the New Jersey Bar Association; the New York Bar Association; the Pennsylvania Bar Association; the Community Associations Institute – New Jersey Chapter; the National Apartment Association; the New Jersey Apartment Association; and the NJ Cooperator. She also currently holds a position on the Advisory Board for the Center for Real Estate at Rutgers University, where she mentors students in the Mentor/Mentee program as well as is a guest speaker for students enrolled in the graduate program. Ms. Alexander also holds a position on the NJAA Legislative Committee.
Ms. Alexander is a Mediator through the New Jersey Community Associations Institute (CAI). She is a also a frequent contributor and speaker for the New Jersey State Bar Association, Institute for Continuing Legal Education, Community Association Institute, and the New Jersey Apartment Association, AssociationHelp Now. Ms. Alexander recently was the keynote speaker in a seminar on “NJ is Legalizing Cannabis” to advise members in the Multifamily Industry on the ins and outs of the pending marijuana legalization bill. She also routinely lectures through NJAA presenting a seminar on “Fair Housing and Beyond” pertaining to Fair Housing laws. She has also been instrumental in helping clients navigate these unchartered waters during the COVID-19 pandemic by among many things, assisting in establishing policies and procedures. Ms. Alexander has been honorably appointed as a LAC delegate to the NJ Legislative Action Committee in which Ms. Alexander is pleased to offer her industry experience and broad knowledge.
Vincent Hager, CIRMS
Vinnie Hager joined JGS Insurance in 1989 after graduating from Villanova University’s School of Business with a degree in Finance. As President he has overseen the growth of JGS from a small family agency to being recognized by Insurance Journal’s Top 100 Property/Casualty Agencies in the US. Vinnie is a member of CAI-NJ’s Legislative Action Committee. He is a Past President of CAI-NJ, Past President of Monmouth County Independent Insurance Agents and Brokers of NJ, Past Chair of CAI National’s Insurance & Risk Management Committee.
Terry Kessler, Esq.
Terry A. Kessler is a partner of Hill Wallack LLP in the Princeton, N.J. office. She is a member of the firm’s Community Associations
Law practice group.
Ms. Kessler concentrates her practice in the areas of community association law and is also a state approved mediator. She oversees the group’s collection practice and has lectured on the collection of delinquent assessments as well as issues regarding enforcement and other areas of practice related to the representation of associations. She is involved in all areas of Community Associations
practice.
Ms. Kessler is admitted to practice in New Jersey before the U.S. District Court and New Jersey State Courts (1985) as well as
Pennsylvania (1985). She began her legal career in the New Jersey Superior Court, Essex County, Family Part serving as law clerk to
the Hon. June Strelecki and the Hon. Alexander J. Matturri. Ms. Kessler earned her B.A. from Albright College and received her J.D.from Seton Hall University Law School.
Cheryl Palent
Coming soon…
Richard Milder
Richard Milder is a proud member of the Board of Trustees of The Views at Hudson Pointe Condominium Association, Inc. in North Bergen, Hudson County, New Jersey, with a perch overlooking the Hudson River. In his spare time, he is a Vice President and in-house counsel at Hartz Mountain Industries, Inc., one of the largest private owners of commercial real estate in the U.S., based in Secaucus, New Jersey, where he has been employed since 1992. Richard has practiced law since 1983, specializing in commercial real estate law. Richard is admitted to practice in New Jersey and New York.
PAC Committee
Jim Rademacher, EBP
Jim Rademacher is founder and CEO of Rezkom Enterprises, Inc., a porter, maintenance and construction company based in Ocean Township, NJ. He oversees the day-to-day operations of his company, and together with his staff, has provided maintenance and renovation services to hundreds of Community Associations throughout NJ for over thirty-one years.
Jim served on the CAI National Board and the CAI National Business Partners Council, positions that allowed him to positively influence the educational and networking expe-riences for the entire CAI membership base. Additionally, he became one of the nation’s first to earn his CAI Educated Business Partner distinction and also co-created a module for the educational webinar. Jim served as the President of the CAI-New Jersey chapter in 2009. Rezkom currently an Ultimate Partner of CAI-NJ and has been a proud, top tiered sponsor in the Partnership program since the program’s inception.
Jim earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Rider University where he served as the President of the Alumni Board of Directors. Rezkom Enterprises, Inc. is a New Jersey licensed Home Improvement Contractor and a New Home Builder.
John Reichart, CMCA, AMS
John is a Regional Director in the High-Rise Division at FirstService Residential. He brings 20 years of community association and 30 years of legislative affairs experience to the New Jersey Chapter Legislative Action Committee. A retired NJ Transit Police Sergeant, John was an active state delegate for both the NJ State PBA and FOP and was a registered government affairs agent for both organizations.
After retirement, John spent 14 years as the Director of Operations and Broker of Record for a well-respected development firm in Jersey City. He remained very active in the legislative arena and even had a successful run as an elected member and Vice President of the Jersey City Board of Education.
In addition to being a member of the Legislative Action Committee, John is a member of the New Jersey Apartment Association Legislative Committee and is the co-founder and chairman of the Jersey City Apartment Owners Association, where he continues his commitment and advocacy on behalf of the community association industry.
LAC Vice Chair
Edward San George, PCAM
Edward San George, MPA, PCAM – Ed, is the President, Owner and CEO of INTEGRA Management Corp. located in Mt. Arlington, NJ. For CAI-NJ, he is a past president, regular speaker and committee member, earned the Hall of Fame Award, chaired the Past Presidents Group, and currently serves on the Legislative Action Committee. For CAI National, he continues to serve on the CEOMC Planning Committee and is the past Chairperson organizing and hosting the 2018 conference, which was largest attended program in the 30-year history of CEOMC. He is an inaugural member of the Advisory Board for the Rutgers Center for Real Studies and teaches the first ever property management course to undergraduate and graduate students in the Rutgers Business School.
LAC Secretary
Jackie Thermidor, CMCA, AMS, PCAM
Coming soon…
PAC Vice President
Andrew Podolski, Esq.
Drew is a Shareholder and member of Stark & Stark’s Community Association and Construction Law Group, where he represents common interest community associations in a wide variety of legal matters. Drew’s practice has a particular emphasis on helping clients navigate the Transition process, including disputes with sponsor/developers over design and construction deficiencies and insufficient reserve funding. Drew also represents associations in general conflicts with repair contractors, maintenance vendors, neighboring communities and insurance coverage claims. Beyond the common interest community industry, Drew has experience representing property owners, builders, contractors, franchisees and other businesses in a wide variety of matters including contract disputes, construction lien availability and enforceability, delay damages, consumer fraud claims and litigation exposure/avoidance counseling. Drew has authored many articles and frequently presents in-house seminars to property management companies on many legal issues impacting common interest communities and property management.
Drew has been practicing law for twenty years and has been a shareholder at Stark & Stark since 2014. In addition to serving on the CAI-NJ Editorial Committee, Drew is a member of the CAI Legislative Action Committee (LAC) and Vice President of the CAI Political Action Committee (PAC). Drew graduated from Rutgers University School of Law in 2002, where he served as Editor-In-Chief of the Rutgers Law Review.
Roslyn Brodsky
Coming soon…
Barbara Drummond, CMCA, PCAM
Mitch Frumkin, P.E., R.S.
Mitchell H. Frumkin is founder and president of Kipcon Inc., a full-service engineering firm which provides engineering consulting services across a full range of disciplines, specializing in community associations. Mr. Frumkin is a frequent speaker and writer on state and national levels for the Community Associations Institute (CAI). He continues to lead national efforts in developing and upgrading the standards for Reserve Studies and Transition Studies for community associations.
He served as chair of a joint task force between CAI and the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) dealing with the transition of community associations from developer to homeowner control. This task force published a paper entitled Best Practices: Transition, which is currently being updated under Mr. Frumkin’s leadership. He also teaches senior level CAI classes such as M-370, “Managing Developing Communities” and M-320 “High Rise Maintenance and Management” on an ongoing basis.
As past chair of CAI’s National Reserve Professionals Committee, Mr. Frumkin is editor and contributing author of the Guide for Association Practitioners (GAP) report, Reserve Funds: How and Why Community Associations Invest Assets. During his time as chair, this committee developed the National Reserve Study Standards of the Community Associations Institute and the “Reserve Specialist” designation. In 1998, he was awarded the National President’s Award for these efforts. In 2019, he co-chaired a national task force to update these standards and the Best Practices paper on Reserves. He was recently awarded the 2019 Award of Excellence in Designations by CAI for his efforts.
In June of 2021 as the result of the tragic collapse of Champlain Towers South in Surfside, Florida, CAI created three task forces to develop public policies to help avoid this type of tragedy from happening again. The results of these task forces were published in October 2021 in the Condominium Safety Public Policy Report: Reserve Studies and Funding, Maintenance, and Structural Integrity. Mr. Frumkin cochaired the Building Maintence and Structural Integrity Task Force and had a leadership role in the Reserve Study and Funding Plans Task Force. He was the only engineer who had a leadership role in these programs.
Mr. Frumkin served as a reviewer for the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) regarding reserve study issues. In 2003, he was involved with rewriting a chapter on future major repairs and replacements in the AICPA’s Common Interest Realty Associations Guide. He is also published in the 2019 edition of New Jersey Condominium and Community Association Law, in the “Reserve Studies” section.
Mr. Frumkin is approved as a court-appointed mediator in the civil division of the Superior Court of New Jersey and mediates construction cases on an ongoing basis. He is also an approved Arbitrator under the New Jersey Homeowners Warranty program and has arbitrated numerous claims through this program.
With a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from Tulane University and a Master’s in Business Administration from Rutgers University, Mr. Frumkin is a licensed Professional Engineer in multiple states and holds the Community Associations Institute’s Reserve Specialist designation.
Karyn A. Kennedy Branco, Esq.
Lisa Rayca, CMCA, AMS
Lisa brings years of experience to the industry, although Lisa’s degree is in Culinary Arts, she decided that property management was where she belonged. The problem solving, customer service and time management skills were just a few things that she was able to bring over from cooking field.
She has a unique management style and always looks at things from another angle. Lisa also mentor’s her boards with regards to parliamentary procedure as she use to compete while in high school.
More importantly Lisa and Corner Property Management embrace each other and share the same goal or commitment and leadership. We know that she will continue to giver her all to her communities and Board and continue to shine for Corner Property Management.
Lisa is a member of both the Community Associations Institute (CAI) NJ Chapter and Keystone Chapter.
J. David Ramsey, Esq.
Alexander Scheffer, CMCA
Alex Scheffer, CMCA joined Access Property Management (APM) in 2010, as a manager with a portfolio of 6 communities. He has an extensive knowledge of the building industry. He has served on a wide variety of major initiatives and areas of focus, including the company’s robust expansion of services for established homeowner associations and townhome communities throughout New Jersey and Pennsylvania. In 2020, Alex was appointed president of APM. He received his BS in Economics from Penn State University. He continues to expand his expertise in property management through education training programs with both CAI and IREM. His commitment to education includes several designations, including CMCA, ARM and CPM.
Gregory Vinogradsky, Esq., EBP
Gregory Vinogradsky is a Partner at the firm and focuses on both litigation and general counsel representation of corporations, including community associations, throughout New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania. He has significant experience litigating matters in both State and Federal Court and his litigation background ranges from premises liability, construction defect, transportation, professional liability, property damage and products liability.
Mr. Vinogradsky’s practice also focuses on representing community associations in a general counsel capacity, debt collection as well as transition litigation where he uses his diverse litigation background to assist his clients in negotiations with developers.
Mr. Vinogradsky is actively involved in both the Community Association Institute as well as Claims and Litigation Management Alliance and provides education through various speaking engagements.
Education
University of Rhode Island (B.S. in Computer Science, 2008)
Saint Thomas University School of Law (J.D., cum laude, 2013)
