August 24, 2026

Welcome to People and Properties, the Cohen-Esrey newsletter where we celebrate the successes of our team members and keep you informed about what is happening in the Cohen-Esrey world. If you have something you would like to share or an achievement that you would like to celebrate, please send it to Lee Harris at lharris@cohenesrey.com. If you are on a property, please print and distribute this newsletter to each member of your property team. You can also find People and Properties on KnowledgeNet. Click here to view previous editions.

Building Community in the Heart of Kearney

The Centennial Park Apartments are located in Kearney, NE, and were built in 1981. The property is situated across the street from it’s namesake, Centennial Park, a 12.8-acre city park at 602 W. 13th Street. It was established on April 22, 1967, and its name commemorates the 100th anniversary of Nebraska statehood, which occurred that year. Two-bedroom townhomes are 700 square feet and rent for $936 per month.Three-bedroom townhomes are 900 square feet and rent for $1,198 per month. Qualified residents receive Section 8 rental assistance. The two-story buildings offer private entrances for each townhouse unit.

Kearney is a community of 35,000 people in south-central Nebraska known for its strong economy, educational opportunities, and welcoming quality of life. Located along Interstate 80 and the Platte River, Kearney serves as an important regional center for healthcare, education, retail, manufacturing, and agriculture. The city is home to the University of Nebraska at Kearney, which brings students, cultural activities, athletics, and employment to the community.

Kearney also offers an extensive system of parks, trails, recreation facilities, and community attractions. Each spring, the surrounding Platte River valley draws visitors from around the world to witness the migration of hundreds of thousands of sandhill cranes. The Museum of Nebraska Art, Great Platte River Road Archway, and Yanney Heritage Park are other notable attractions. Combining small-city accessibility with regional amenities and employment opportunities, Kearney provides an appealing environment for families, students, professionals, retirees, and businesses while maintaining its strong connection to Nebraska’s agricultural heritage.

Centennial Park (the park – not the apartment complex) has an unusually broad range of amenities for its size, including a lighted ball diamond, half-court basketball court, disc golf course, two lighted tennis courts, sand volleyball court, playground, flower garden, picnic tables, grills, shelters, restrooms, and drinking fountains. Its large picnic shelter can accommodate roughly 100–120 people. One of the park's major attractions is Centennial Pool. The pool was renovated in 2002 and features zero-depth entry, spray features, a maximum depth of six feet, a grass lounging area, shade umbrellas, concessions, and recreational features..

Sealess Bonham (2026) is the Property Manager, and Kahla Stanley (2025), is the Regional Manager. Michael Gioia (2020), is the Senior Property Accountant, and Nancy Lewis (2021), is the Property Accounting Assistant.

We welcome the following new team members to Cohen-Esrey and the Nexus 5 Group.

Lauren Etoll – Geneva Tower – Cedar Rapids, IA – Leasing Agent

Claire Fagan – Corporate – Human Resources Business Partner

Jay Rodgers – Lincoln Heights Townhomes – Hastings, NE – Custodian

Transformational Construction

Construction continues at Cohen-Esrey Development Group (CEDG) future communities.

Removal of a small hill at Overlook 157 in Asheville, NC to make way for the swimming pool and parking lot.

Appliance installation underway at Overlook 157.

Meet the Eileen’s Place Team

Meet the Eileen’s Place team. Nicolas Hernandez (2004), Maintenance Technician and Macaria (Mona) Gonzales (2010), Property Manager.

Eileen’s Place is a 60-unit affordable community in Kansas City, KS, that is managed by Cohen-Esrey for a third-party client.

HR Corner

By Jennifer Miller (2025), Director of Human Resources

Finish Strong – Making the Most of the Final Months of the Year

It's hard to believe we're already heading into the final months of the year. Summer vacations are winding down, school is back in session, and before we know it, we'll be talking about the holidays and making plans for a new year. This time of year provides a great opportunity to pause, take stock of where we are, and think about how we want to finish the year. When we hear "finish strong," it's easy to think it means working harder, moving faster, or adding more to an already full plate. But finishing strong isn't necessarily about doing more. It's about being intentional with the time we have left.

Look Back Before You Look Ahead

Think back to the beginning of the year. What did you hope to accomplish? What progress have you made? Chances are, you've accomplished more than you realize. Take a moment to recognize those wins—both big and small. Maybe you learned a new skill, helped train a new team member, improved a process, worked through a difficult situation, received positive feedback from a resident or client, or simply became a little better at what you do. Progress deserves to be recognized.

Decide What Matters Most

Now ask yourself: What would make me feel good about how I finished this year? There may be a project you've been meaning to complete, a goal that needs more attention, or a skill you'd like to strengthen. Maybe it's a relationship with a teammate that you want to improve or a process that you know could work better. You don't have to tackle everything at once. Identify one or two things that would make the biggest difference and focus your energy there.

Ask for Feedback

You don't have to wait for a performance review to find out how you're doing. Ask your manager: "What's one thing I could focus on over the next few months that would make the greatest impact?" Likewise, managers should be having these conversations with their teams. Make sure your team members understand what's going well, where they can grow, and what success looks like between now and the end of the year. A few minutes of meaningful feedback today can have a significant impact on someone's development tomorrow.

Help Someone Else Finish Strong

Finishing strong isn't just about individual accomplishments. Some of our greatest successes happen because people work together. Look around your team. Is someone carrying an especially heavy workload? Is there a new team member who could benefit from your experience? Is there someone doing great work who hasn't been recognized? Offer to help. Share what you know. Say thank you. Celebrate someone's success. Sometimes the most meaningful contribution we make isn't checking another item off our own list – it's helping someone else succeed.

Give Yourself Some Grace

Finally, remember that finishing strong doesn't mean finishing perfectly. There will always be another email to answer, another task to complete, and another problem to solve. Take pride in your progress, learn from the things that didn't go as planned, and keep moving forward. As we head into the final months of the year, consider three questions:

What am I proud of accomplishing this year?
What is one thing I want to accomplish before the year ends?
Who can I help succeed along the way?

There is still plenty of time to make an impact. Let's finish 2026 strong – together.

Welcome to Cohen-Esrey, Lorraine!

Ben Carpenter (2025), Regional Vice-President, is pleased to announce that Lorraine Plata has joined Cohen-Esrey as a Regional Manager. Lorraine began her property management career in 2001 on a 347-unit San Antonio apartment community where she received and posted rent, assisted with rent collections and evictions, approved files and move-out charges, walked units, marketed and leased units, and report daily to the property owner. Since then, she has worked on-site at a number of properties including handling lease-ups for tax credit properties and ultimately because a Regional Property Supervisor at her last place of employment. Lorraine is based in San Antonio and will oversee Lofts at Creekview, Loma Vista Lofts, Lofts at the Grim, Lofts at Ventura, and Heritage at Cottonwood Creek.

Welcome to Cohen-Esrey, Lorraine!

Historic Buildings of Cohen-Esrey

Cohen-Esrey has a long history of developing and/or managing some really cool historic buildings. In this series, we feature one such building in each issue.

Freedom Place

The Freedom Place Apartments, located at 4011 Delmar Boulevard in St. Louis, represents a remarkable combination of historic preservation and service to veterans. The five-story building was constructed in 1928 in the Vandeventer neighborhood, shortly after a devastating 1927 tornado created new opportunities for development along St. Louis’s central corridor. Over time, the property declined, and by the early 2000s it stood vacant and deteriorating. A proposed condominium conversion never materialized, leaving the building exposed to the elements for years.

The building’s fortunes changed when The Vecino Group undertook an extensive historic rehabilitation. Working with St. Patrick Center and the Missouri Department of Mental Health, Vecino transformed the property into 68 affordable apartments designed to serve veterans, particularly those who had experienced homelessness. The approximately $12.7 million redevelopment restored the historic masonry façade, windows, storefronts, and other architectural features while adding modern apartments, community spaces, and supportive services. Freedom Place opened in 2014.

The restoration earned a Preserve Missouri Award in 2015 for both preserving an important historic structure and contributing to neighborhood revitalization. Today, Freedom Place is a Cohen-Esrey community and continues its veteran-focused mission through its partnership with St. Patrick Center’s Project HERO.

Polishing Panorama Heights

Jade Leak (2025), Property Manager at Panorama Heights in Colorado Springs, provided photos from a clean-up day involving team members and residents. The staff also held a donut day much to the delight of everyone with a sugar addiction!

Verifying Banking Information

By Kathleen Williams (2022), Banking Administrator

In light of some recent fraudulent activity, we would like to share an important reminder regarding the verification of bank account information, particularly when requests are made by phone. Because fraudulent requests can be very convincing, please use extra caution any time someone asks us to confirm, change, or provide our banking information.

A key safeguard is to only verify banking instructions when we are expecting them. In most cases, bank account verification should occur as part of the normal process before a payment is made. An unexpected call or message asking us to verify account information should be treated with caution, even if the caller appears to know legitimate details about the company, vendor, or transaction.

A few best practices to keep in mind:

Know what you're expecting
- Before verifying banking information, confirm that there is an upcoming payment or other legitimate business reason for the verification.
Do not rely solely on an incoming phone call
- If someone contacts you unexpectedly claiming to represent a bank, vendor, customer, or another organization, do not verify account information simply because they request it.
Use trusted contact information
- If a callback is necessary, use a phone number already on file or obtained through a trusted source—not a number provided by the caller.
Be cautious of urgency or pressure
- Requests to act immediately, bypass normal procedures, or keep a transaction confidential are red flags.
Be especially careful with changes to payment instructions
- A request to change a vendor's bank account or routing information should receive additional verification before any funds are sent.
If something seems unusual, stop
- Do not feel pressured to complete a verification simply because someone is on the phone. Pause the process and seek assistance.

As our Banking Administrator know that I am here to help! I can assist with bank account verification and help ensure that the request is legitimate and follows our normal procedures. If there is any uncertainty about whether account information should be verified, please let me know before proceeding. I can be reached at kwilliams@cohenesrey.com and by phone at (913) 671-3339.

The goal is to make sure we are verifying legitimate payment instructions—not simply responding to an unexpected request for banking information. Taking a few extra minutes to confirm the circumstances can help prevent significant financial losses.

Thank you for your attention and for helping protect our organization from fraud.

Welcome, Claire!

Please join us in welcoming Claire Fagan, who joined the Cohen-Esrey team August 10, as our new Human Resources Business Partner reporting to Jennifer Miller (2025), Director of Human Resources.

She brings more than a decade of progressive human resources experience supporting organizations across a variety of industries. Throughout her career, she has partnered with business leaders to enhance the employee experience through strategic HR support, employee relations, talent development, process improvement, and organizational initiatives.

Most recently, Claire served as a Human Resource Generalist supporting more than 500 employees, where she partnered with leaders on employee relations, workplace investigations, performance management, leave administration, employee engagement, and continuous

process improvement. She has also played an integral role in developing standard operating procedures, coordinating employee engagement initiatives, and implementing programs designed to strengthen organizational culture.

Claire's previous experience as a Human Resources Business Partner includes leading employee relations, coaching leaders, supporting performance management, developing leadership training, managing HR technology implementations and data initiatives, and serving as an interim Talent Acquisition leader. She is passionate about building strong relationships, helping leaders succeed, and creating positive workplace experiences for employees.

Claire is a SHRM Certified Professional (SHRM-CP) and brings a collaborative, people-first approach to Human Resources.

Please join us in giving Claire a warm Cohen-Esrey welcome! We are excited to have her join the team and look forward to the experience, knowledge, and enthusiasm she will bring to our organization.

Cybersecurity Starts with You: Protecting Yourself at Home and at Work

Cybersecurity is no longer just an IT responsibility – it's everyone's responsibility. Every day, cybercriminals look for opportunities to steal information, disrupt businesses, or trick individuals into revealing sensitive data. Whether you're working from the office, from home, or using your personal devices, a few simple habits can dramatically reduce your risk.

The good news is that you don't need to be a technology expert to help protect yourself and Cohen-Esrey. Awareness and good decision-making are the strongest defenses.

One of the most important steps you can take is creating strong, unique passwords for every account. Using the same password for multiple websites means that if one account is compromised, others become vulnerable as well. Consider using a reputable password manager to generate and securely store complex passwords. Whenever possible, enable multi-factor authentication (MFA), which requires a second verification step before granting access. This additional layer of security can stop many attacks, even if a password is stolen.

Email continues to be the Number One way cybercriminals gain access to businesses. Be cautious whenever you receive unexpected emails asking you to click a link, open an attachment, or provide confidential information. Before responding, verify the sender's email address carefully – not just the display name. If something feels unusual or creates a sense of urgency, pause and verify the request through another communication method. Remember, legitimate organizations rarely ask for passwords or financial information through email.

Keep all devices updated. Software updates aren't just about new features – they frequently contain critical security patches that close newly discovered vulnerabilities. Whether it's your work computer, smartphone, tablet, or home laptop, installing updates promptly is one of the simplest ways to stay protected.

At home, secure your wireless network by changing the default password on your router and using strong WPA2 or WPA3 encryption if available. Avoid conducting sensitive business while connected to public Wi-Fi unless you're using your company's approved virtual private network (VPN). Public networks at airports, coffee shops, and hotels can expose your information if proper precautions aren't taken.

Protecting sensitive information also requires physical awareness. Lock your computer whenever you step away from your desk, even if it's only for a few minutes. Avoid leaving confidential documents in plain view and properly shred documents containing personal or financial information before disposing of them.

Be cautious about what you share on social media. Cybercriminals often gather personal details from online profiles to answer security questions, impersonate employees, or create convincing phishing attacks. Information such as birthdays, vacation plans, family relationships, or workplace details can unintentionally provide valuable clues.

Mobile devices deserve the same attention as computers. Use a screen lock, enable device encryption if available, and activate the "Find My Device" feature in case your phone or tablet is lost or stolen. Download apps only from trusted sources and review the permissions each app requests before installing it.

Artificial intelligence has also made scams more sophisticated. Fraudulent emails are becoming more polished, and criminals can now generate realistic voice messages, images, and documents. Don't assume a message is legitimate simply because it appears professionally written. When in doubt, verify independently.

Finally, if you believe you've clicked a suspicious link, opened a questionable attachment, or shared information by mistake, report it immediately. Acting quickly allows your IT team to investigate, limit potential damage, and protect the organization. There should never be hesitation or embarrassment in reporting a possible mistake – early reporting is one of the most effective cybersecurity tools available.

Cybersecurity isn't about perfection. It's about consistently making smart decisions that protect yourself, your coworkers, our residents, and the company. Every strong password, every software update, and every suspicious email reported helps strengthen our collective security. Together, we can create a safer digital environment both at work and at home.

Pizza, Pizza, Pizza!

Lisa Melgoza (2019), Property Manager, at Libertad Des Moines, reports that a resident pizza party was a smashing success! Kids had a great time and the pizza mascot even showed up. Terrific delivery of Customer Fulfillment!

Fun in the Sun at Brighton Creek

Laureen Woods (2022), Property Manager at Brighton Creek in Kansas City, MO, shared information about a pool party that was held for the residents on August 7. The Carnita Bar was a huge hit – Laureen said only six tacos were left at the end of the party. Nice job of delivering Customer Fulfillment!

Cities of Cohen-Esrey

Vermillion, SD: Vermtown

Vermillion, SD, is a vibrant college community in the southeastern corner of the state, situated on bluffs near the Missouri River. With an estimated population of about 11,700, Vermillion combines the character of a small Midwestern city with the cultural, educational, and economic energy of a university town.

The community was founded in 1859 and became closely connected with higher education when the territorial legislature authorized a university in Vermillion in 1862. Today, the University of South Dakota is the state’s flagship university and a defining part of the community. USD’s Vermillion campus covers 274 acres, and the university enrolled more than 10,000 students in fall 2025.

Vermillion also offers a notable mix of history, arts, recreation, and entertainment. Its historic downtown includes buildings dating from 1880 to 1942, while the city maintains approximately 135 acres of parks and recreational land. The University of South Dakota campus is home to the National Music Museum, whose internationally recognized collection contains more than 15,000 musical instruments.

Outdoor opportunities are another attraction, with hiking, biking, paddling, and golf available nearby. Vermillion is also conveniently positioned within driving distance of Sioux Falls and Sioux City. Together, the university, historic downtown, cultural attractions, and surrounding landscape give Vermillion a distinctive identity: a welcoming community with small-town accessibility, strong educational resources, and connections to the broader region.

Cohen-Esrey manages the 28-unit Oakwood Apartments in Vermillion as part of a larger portfolio for a third-party client.

An Empowerment Story

By Autumn Johnson (2025), Property Manager – Sundance Tonganoxie I & II

Stepping into my role as Property Manager marked my very first time taking on a Property Manager position. Coming in, I knew that leading a team and managing operations across three properties – Sundance Tonganoxie Phase I, Sundance Tonganoxie Phase II, and Maple Senior Residence – would bring new challenges, but the support, structure, and resources provided by Cohen-Esrey made the transition seamless. Over my time here, I’ve had the opportunity to focus on building a positive team culture, improving resident satisfaction, and managing daily property operations with consistency and dedication. Being part of an organization that truly lives its mission – Empowering People to Thrive – has enabled me to grow as a leader and make a meaningful impact on our residents and communities every day.

Fun Photos!

How about this for a Fun Photo? Here are a series of bathroom scenes from current and former properties.

NPS Leaderboards

The three NPS Leaderboards have been updated as of August 21, 2026. In the 50-Units or Less category, Mills Crossing (Salem, IL) keeps the lead with a perfect NPS of +100! In the Properties 51 to 120-Units category, Justin Place (Kansas City, MO) remains the leader with an NPS of +97.12. And in the Properties of More than 120-Units category, Panorama Heights (Colorado Springs) has vaulted into first place with an NPS of +72.97. There are 21 properties on Leaderboards – one less than our last report. Our overall NPS has increased to +42!