Uniland Development Co.

Born and raised in Buffalo, New York, Carl J. Montante‘s accomplishments in business and philanthropy have earned him a reputation as one of Buffalo’s most notable citizens. A passionate community leader, Mr. Montante is active in countless organizations and manages the majority of his and his family’s philanthropic contributions with little fanfare.   Although the recipient of many noteworthy achievements, one of his proudest professional accomplishments has been completion of the AVANT, a sixteen-level, mixed-use hotel, office and condominium building which has quickly become one of the City of Buffalo’s crown jewels.

After earning a law degree and practicing as a member of the New York State Bar, he joined his family’s business and led its growth into automotive aftermarket distribution. As the business grew, a need for a larger warehouse arose and it was then that Carl discovered a passion for real estate development. After managing the design and construction of several commercial buildings, he decided to pursue it full-time and founded Uniland Development Company in 1974.  Since that time, Mr. Montante has managed the development of over 12 million square feet of commercial, institutional and residential properties, making Uniland one of the largest developers and property owners in Western New York.  As President and Managing Director of Uniland, he is responsible for overall commercial development and portfolio operations in Uniland’s Buffalo and Rochester offices.

As strong as Carl’s belief in the pursuit of excellence is his steadfast responsibility for strengthening community. He dedicates much of his time and energy to nonprofit organizations in the Buffalo-Niagara region including D’Youville College, The Bishops Council of the Laity, Buffalo Niagara Enterprise and the Buffalo Niagara Partnership. He has served on the board of more than two-dozen organizations including Key Bank, the Buffalo Club, the Kissing Bridge Corporation and Western New York Graduate Medical Education.  He has served as chairman for the Catholic Health System, Canisius College, Canisius High School, and the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra. 

For his efforts Carl has received recognition from a variety of community organizations including the Seymour H. Knox Humanitarian of the Year Award, Business First’s Brick By Brick Lifetime Achievement Award, Canisius High School’s Distinguished Service Award, and the President’s Award from the National Association of Industrial and Office Parks. He has also received the Bishop’s Medal from the Catholic Diocese of Buffalo, WNY Philanthropist of the Year award from the American Federation of Fundraisers, an honorary degree and Distinguished Alumni award from Canisius College and the City of Buffalo’s Buffalonian of the Year citation.

Mr. Montante is a graduate of Canisius High School and received a Bachelor of Arts Degree from Canisius College, and LLB and JD Degrees from the State University of New York at Buffalo Law School.

As Vice President of Corporate Relations, Laura Zaepfel works extensively with local, regional, state and federal government and business leaders to optimize the Western New York business climate. Ms. Zaepfel collaborates with leading business support organizations to construct policies and procedures that will produce a diverse workforce and a sustainable economy in the region. A strong supporter of diversity and inclusion, she works internally and externally on initiatives and workforce development efforts which promote and embrace cross-cultural diversity in the community.

Ms. Zaepfel also manages Uniland’s corporate philanthropy program, continuing the company’s long tradition of community involvement and support. She works with and volunteers for community and business organizations that advocate for residents through social justice and diversity, health and wellness, education, and environmental programs.

Over the years, Ms. Zaepfel has provided leadership to Catholic Charities, Humanities New York, the National Association of Industrial and Office Properties (NAIOP), the National Federation of Just Communities (NFJC), and the Buffalo and Erie County Naval & Military Park. She is a former Trustee of the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra and Canisius College.

Michael Montante has 30 years’ experience in the real estate industry ranging from site selection and development to tenant negotiations and asset oversight. Mr. Montante’s responsibilities include managing the firm’s commercial office, industrial, retail, residential and hospitality development including acquisition, disposition and leasing of commercial real estate.

Mr. Montante recently led the team that developed The Delaware North Building, the award-winning 12-story, $117 million mixed-use facility anchored by Delaware North’s world headquarters in downtown Buffalo. The site had to be reclamated due to a large asbestos-tainted building and a certified brownfield from a former automotive operation before construction could begin.

John Dieter has been a member of Uniland’s team for more than 25 years. Leading a staff of over 40 property managers, administrators, and maintenance personnel, Mr. Dieter manages all functions related to customer service and tenant relations. He also leads the Property Management team in client satisfaction, sustainability initiatives, and energy cost reduction programs.

Mr. Dieter oversees property maintenance, lease administration, property budgeting, asset management, risk management, real estate taxes and property insurance operations for over eight million square feet of commercial, residential rental, condominium, retail, and third-party properties.

He began his tenure as a maintenance mechanic and HVAC technician, was promoted to Senior Operations Manager in 2000, and became Uniland’s Director of Property Management in 2019.

David Reilly has more than 40 years of construction and design experience in the Buffalo region. As Director of Construction and Vice President of Uniland Construction Corporation, he supervises a staff of project managers, estimators and on-site personnel. 

Throughout his tenure at Uniland, Mr. Reilly has led numerous fast-track and time sensitive design-build projects for a variety of product types including office and industrial parks, warehouse and manufacturing facilities, residential and dormitory housing, educational buildings, hotels, and retail plazas.

Career Highlights
The Delaware North Building, 250 Delaware, Buffalo, NY
332,000 sq. ft. 12-story mixed-use project that includes the Delaware North Global Headquarters, The Westin Buffalo, Class A office space, and a six-level parking garage of 200,000 sq. ft. with office and retail at street level

Columbus McKinnon Corporate Headquarters, Amherst, NY
30,100 sq. ft. two-story Class A office building

D'Youville College of the Arts, Science and Education, Buffalo, NY
85,198 sq. ft. education building

GEICO, Amherst, NY
Two operations centers totaling 343,368 sq. ft.

Catholic Health Administrative & Regional Training Center, Buffalo, NY
140,000 sq. ft. six-story office and training facility

Avant, 200 Delaware Avenue, Buffalo, NY
405,275 sq. ft. 16-story mixed-use, adaptive re-use project that includes an Embassy Suites Hotel, Class A office and luxury residential condominiums

CrossPoint Business Park, Amherst, NY
125-acre business park, re-zoning, off-site mitigation, infrastructure

Charter School of Applied Technologies Campus, Tonawanda, NY
52,000 sq. ft. single-story high school and 76,550 sq. ft. grammar school and gymnasium

Citigroup Technology, Inc., Amherst, NY
263,000 sq. ft. two-building office complex

285 Delaware Avenue, Buffalo, NY
116,818 sq. ft. five-story Class A office building

As Director of Planning & Design, Kevin Kirk, R.A., leads Uniland’s in-house team of architectural designers, interior designers and space planners. He is responsible for the development of building design concepts, coordination of site master plans, and the creation of construction documents.

Mr. Kirk has more than 20 years of experience in the design industry and has been with Uniland since 2007. His dedication to high performance results have led to many successful leasing contracts and high customer satisfaction.

Prior to joining Uniland, Mr. Kirk was a project manager at Iskalo Development and played a major role in the historic renovation of the Electric Tower in downtown Buffalo.

Carl Montante, Jr. joined Uniland Development Company in 1992. Since then he has held positions in several departments including Property Management, Human Resources and Capital Markets. Currently he serves as Vice President of Marketing and Strategic Initiatives. In this role, Mr. Montante oversees the firm's strategic planning, marketing services and various corporate initiatives. Additional responsibilities include pursuing business development opportunities for market and product expansion, enhancement of client services, and organizational development. 

Mr. Montante is a noted public speaker on the topics of real estate development and education.

Professional Affiliations

Member - Urban Land Institute (ULI)

Board Member - NAIOP Upstate Chapter (the Commercial Real Estate Development Association)

Member - NAIOP Urban Redevelopment Forum

Board Member - Invest Buffalo Niagara

Member - Buffalo Niagara Partnership Development Advisory Council

Member - One Region Forward Private Sector Council

Philanthropic and Civic Endeavors

Board Member - Buffalo Civic Auto Ramps (BCAR)

Board Member - The Buffalo Club

Member - Governor Cuomo's Regional Council Work Group, Smart Growth Advisory Committee

Education 

B.A., St. Lawrence University

J.D., Cleveland Marshall School of Law

M.B.A., University at Buffalo

As Director of Development, Kellena Kane orchestrates development, acquisition and disposition opportunities, as well as oversees the development process for the firm’s projects. Ms. Kane is also president and co-founder of HANSA, an innovative office and coworking space in downtown Buffalo affiliated with Uniland.

Since joining Uniland in 2007, Ms. Kane has played a critical role in Uniland’s prominent projects through pursuing new development opportunities and coordinating subsequent development phases, including preliminary due diligence, concept, feasibility, pre-development, design, construction and financing.  Prior to her work in the Development department she was senior loan analyst and portfolio manager for Uniland’s Capital Markets Group.

As Director of Capital Markets Group, Peter Sayadoff is responsible for the financing of Uniland Development Company’s commercial development projects as well as funding the various capital requirements related to its acquisition of property. Since joining Uniland in 1983, Mr. Sayadoff has been involved in the financing of over 535 transactions totaling in excess of $2 billion. He oversees a staff of professionals who have responsibilities including financial analysis, due diligence, closing coordination, and corporate and real estate law.

Prior to joining Uniland, Mr. Sayadoff was employed in the commercial loan industry as an Assistant Vice President with a mortgage banking firm in Rochester, N.Y.

Paul W. Evans, CPA, CGMA brings over 30 years of financial management experience in the private and public sectors, with a focus on developing policies and procedures to improve financial performance and productivity. Mr. Evans is primarily responsible for overseeing, managing, planning, implementing, and controlling all Finance & Accounting and Information Technology related activities at the company. This includes managing the processes for financial forecasting, budgeting, consolidation and reporting on more than 40 Corporate entities, providing recommendations to strategically enhance the financial performance of the Company, as well as ensuring that effective internal controls are in place and proper compliance with all applicable federal, state and local regulatory laws and rules for financial and tax reporting. He also oversees the Company’s treasury function to ensure sufficient cash flow to meet the organization’s needs.

Mr. Evans also provides direction for the company’s Human Resources function and Employee Benefits administration. Prior to his role as Director of Finance and Tax Services, he served as the company’s Senior Financial Manager and Corporate Controller for more than 20 years.

As Director of Leasing, Kevin Szmania manages a team of account executives to secure commercial tenant leases for the company’s six million square foot portfolio of office, R&D, industrial, medical and retail space in Upstate New York.

Since joining Uniland in 1995 as a Sales and Leasing Executive, Mr. Szmania has been brokering some of the company’s most significant deals. During his tenure, he has worked with approximately 600 clients and secured more than $450 million in sales and leases. He has managed more than 2.5 million square feet of lease transactions.

Mr. Szmania’s expertise and ability to guide clients seamlessly through the leasing process—from property selection to occupancy—has led to many long-term leasing contracts.

Scott A. Hill, CPM®, LEED Green Associate, has more than 30 years of experience in commercial real estate sales, leasing and property management. In his role as Senior Leasing Executive, Mr. Hill oversees the Sales & Leasing Department and is involved in all phases of the leasing process, including creating marketing and leasing strategies in coordination with all Uniland departments. Previously, Mr. Hill was the General Manager of Uniland Rochester and its portfolio of nearly 700,000 SF of commercial and residential property in the region.

Mr. Hill has been a member of the Uniland team since 2003. Earlier, he managed commercial and residential real estate portfolios at firms including the Cabot Group, Richard Gollel & Companies, and Sibley Real Estate Services.