Andy Deckas
President of commercial properties and executive vice president, CSM Corp.
Andy Deckas, 50, has joined Minneapolis-based CSM Corp. as president of commercial properties and executive vice president of the overall company. He will help develop and execute a growth strategy for the firm's commercial division and oversee day-to-day operations.
Deckas most recently served as president of Minnetonka-based Founders Properties, overseeing the acquisition and management of more than $3 billion in assets. Before that, he was president of Opus Properties. Deckas got his start in the business at Heitman, one of the nation's biggest real estate advisors.
CSM also recently hired Lori Larson as senior managing director of capital markets, and Michael Coolidge as senior vice president of real estate and lodging.
Q: What will your primary responsibilities be?
A: The commercial portfolio is primarily office and industrial and some retail. So it's overseeing that portfolio of approximately 10 million square feet and working with the existing property base, tenant base, broker base and then complementing and trying to add resources and strengths to an already good team here.
Q: Is CSM positioning itself for growth?
A: Absolutely. We need to get our arms around and maximize the value of the existing portfolio, but clearly the intent and mission here is to start growing again — and growing through acquisitions, development and other things to add value to the overall platform.
