Tori Kerr
Evoking emotions with the warmth of timber
What do you love the most about working on a T3 project?
The reaction that people have to the timber. Wood is a natural material, and it evokes a different emotion in people when they tour the building. Most visitors immediately walk to one of the mass timber columns to touch it. There is a warmth, a scent and a quietness that embraces you in a mass timber building. People’s reactions to timber are very powerful.
What do you love the most about working on a T3 project?
The reaction that people have to the timber. Wood is a natural material, and it evokes a different emotion in people when they tour the building. Most visitors immediately walk to one of the mass timber columns to touch it. There is a warmth, a scent and a quietness that embraces you in a mass timber building. People’s reactions to timber are very powerful.
What is special about T3 West Midtown?
T3 West Midtown was developed on a 1-acre site facing a pocket park within the broader Atlantic Station mixed-use neighborhood, so it’s “front door” is a small park that includes an old relic from the original Atlantic Steel Mill. This embodies the original thesis of T3 which was “old meets new” – the marrying of the best attributes of historic office or industrial loft stock with all the new building systems available today.
How does T3 West Midtown bring environmental and social sustainability to the workplace?
The original thesis of T3 was “old meets new” – the marrying of the best attributes of historic office or industrial loft stock with all the new building systems available today.
Tori
T3 West Midtown is built with a timber core versus a concrete core, so timber serves as both the structural system as well as the building’s aesthetic.
T3 was designed for collaboration and work/life balance. The first floor of the building is a social workspace with Wi-Fi, meeting areas, collaboration spaces, and along with the rooftop lounge offers a space outside of the office to host events, provide a comfortable spot to eat lunch, hold indoor or outdoor gatherings and meetings. The proximity of the building to the Atlantic Station retail village provides numerous options within short walking distance to eat, shop, play, and enjoy programmed events, including movie screenings, yoga, and outdoor concerts throughout the year.
The timber that was used for T3 West Midtown was carefully harvested and utilizes beetle-kill wood from infested trees that would otherwise fall to the forest floor and likely cause forest fires if they were not sustainably forested. Beetle kill wood is clearly visible, it takes on a bluish tint in the timbers offering additional depth and texture. It’s delightful to see this timber put to good use.
Get to Know Tori
What has your career path looked like within the firm?
My career over nearly 29 years with Hines has provided access to many aspects of our business including accounting, asset management and development. I have worked in both the East Region as well as the Southeast Region. It’s been quite varied, both in response to Hines needs, changes in markets and investment theses, as well as my personal preferences. I’ve found the firm to be responsive when I have requested pivots within my career trajectory, and I’m extremely grateful for that!
What do you love about commercial real estate?
I love that every real estate investment is different, and the markets are constantly moving in cycles, so I am perpetually challenged even though I have been in the business for nearly three decades. I love the people that I work with, and I love working for a family owned firm that operates at the highest level of integrity, because that aligns with my personal belief system.
What potential does CRE offer for young women today?
Real estate is a very lucrative career for men and woman alike. I can’t think of a single role in our firm where a woman can’t be equally successful to a man. That was not the case when I began my career, and that trajectory will only continue. As the industry evolves, the opportunities broaden, and as Hines grows at scale geographically and into more product types, career potential becomes limitless.
Want to join Hines?