Daily Archives: January 27, 2014

Business, Construction, Real Estate

Parallel Infrastructure CEO Addresses Congressional Subcommittee on Using Right-of-Way Real Estate to Finance Passenger Rail Improvements

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Frank Chechile, CEO of Parallel Infrastructure LLC (“Parallel”), a leading right-of-way (“ROW”) land management and asset development company, presented testimony yesterday to the U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines, & Hazardous Materials on how right-of-way real estate can be used in an innovative way to fund passenger rail without placing additional burden on taxpayers. The title of the hearing was, “The Role of Innovative Finance in Intercity Passenger Rail.”

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (January 27, 2014) — Frank Chechile, CEO of Parallel Infrastructure LLC (“Parallel”), a leading right-of-way (“ROW”) land management and asset development company, presented testimony yesterday to the U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines, & Hazardous Materials on how right-of-way real estate can be used in an innovative way to fund passenger rail without placing additional burden on taxpayers. The title of the hearing was, “The Role of Innovative Finance in Intercity Passenger Rail.”

In his testimony, Chechile stated that collaboration between the public and private sector can enable a new source of financing for passenger rail systems. Parallel Infrastructure has the ability to unlock the value of real estate assets owned by public agencies to create a new revenue stream that can be used to finance capital projects and/or ongoing operations.

“There are more than one million miles of right-of-way transportation corridor in the United States, the vast majority of which is owned by the public sector,” said Chechile. “By tapping the value of ROW real estate, billions of dollars in new revenue can be generated and leveraged to fund passenger rail infrastructure improvements in our country.”

Established just two years ago as an independent company, Parallel Infrastructure has grown to become a national player by securing agreements with public and private sector railroad companies. In addition to securing agreements with public sector railroads, such as North Coast Railroad Authority and SEDA-Council of Government, Parallel recently signed an agreement to help Allegheny County in Pennsylvania increase its earnings from its land assets through telecommunications infrastructure development.

Chechile credits the company’s rapid growth to the unique skillset developed from 100+ years of managing its own ROW in Florida and its ability and willingness to deploy its own capital to realize these real estate opportunities. The company has agreements covering more than 1,800 miles of ROW corridor across 22 states.

“I appreciate the chance to have spoken directly with this group of legislators to share Parallel Infrastructure’s experience with generating new financing streams from proactive ROW management that can offer government agencies at all levels the means to enhance our nation’s passenger rail transportation system,” added Chechile.

The hearing can be viewed at: http://www.transportation.house.gov/hearing/role-innovative-finance-intercity-passenger-rail.

About Parallel Infrastructure
Parallel Infrastructure LLC is the first universal Right-of-Way (ROW) land management and communications infrastructure development company focused on monetizing and maximizing the value of underutilized land assets along railroad and highway corridors for third-party clients. The Company’s service offerings include real estate management services, telecommunications infrastructure development, and generating ancillary revenue streams through alternative ROW uses. Headquartered in Jacksonville, Fla., Parallel Infrastructure is a wholly owned subsidiary of Florida East Coast Industries, Inc. For more information, visit http://www.parallelinfrastructure.com.

About Florida East Coast Industries
Florida East Coast Industries, Inc. (FECI) is one of Florida’s oldest and largest full-service commercial real estate and infrastructure companies. Headquartered in Coral Gables, Fla., FECI has a rich history dating back over a century. Mr. Henry Flagler first established a predecessor company in 1892, which became a pioneer in the development of Florida’s eastern coast. Today, FECI continues to transform Florida as the parent company to the following leading real estate, transportation, and infrastructure businesses within the state: Flagler, a full-service commercial real estate company; All Aboard Florida, the United States’ first privately owned, operated and maintained intercity passenger rail; South Florida Logistics Services, an integrated logistics company that offers a wide range of logistics services and solutions; and Parallel Infrastructure, a leader in third-party Right of Way (ROW) management services. FECI is owned by private equity funds managed by affiliates of Fortress Investment Group LLC. For more information, visit http://www.feci.com.

Media Contacts:
Kristy Kennedy
rbb Public Relations
305-448-5839
kristy.kennedy@rbbpr.com

Kathleen Rodriguez
Florida East Coast Industries
305-520-2306
kathleen.rodriguez@feci.com

Art

Mughal Garden, a Collection of Neo-Mughal Artworks by Vijit Pillai at Sublime Galleria

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Revisit the splendor of a golden dynasty with artworks inspired by the Mughal Era, in Sublime Galleria’s latest exhibit.

Bangalore, India, January 27, 2014 — Kick starting 2014, Sublime Galleria opens with a peek into the past, showcasing the grandeur of the Mughal Era through the works of the celebrated new age artist Vijit Pillai. His latest exhibition is titled Mughal Garden.

Mughal Garden is a collection of artworks inspired by the characters and scenes from the classic miniatures. Created in 2013, this collection pays tribute to Mughal art styles through the use of colour, floral and stain-glass paintings. Here, Pillai adds a contemporary twist by using an extraordinary mixture of patterns and abstract visuals. This compilation adds to the artist’s characteristic trait and brings out the sheer drama of a time gone by.

The material used is acrylic paint on canvas with photographs. Pillai uses his own photographs which transforms through the use of filters, textures and patterns. Also evident is the sophisticated use of digital technique, depth and fabric creating a unique visual. These limited edition canvases come under the ‘Mixed Media Art’ genre. In this form of art, several materials and methods are combined to create a greater visual appeal and Pillai has proved to be a forerunner in it.

Exhibition Dates:
This Neo-Mughal exhibition titled ‘Mughal Garden’ is on from 18th January to 16th February 2014 at Sublime Galleria, on the 8th floor of UB City, on Vittal Mallya Road.

About the Artist:
Vijit Pillai took to the arts early in life, being encouraged by his artist mother. He trained under eminent art teacher Rathin Mitra and won his first few accolades while in school. Having been exposed to contemporary and modern art works from an early age, Pillai began to explore his own style with confidence while working in advertising. His added interest in photography led to the realm of New Media and Mixed Media Art.

Over the years, Vijit Pillai has been a part of several art auctions and exhibitions across the country and has been featured alongside legends such as MF Hussain and FN Souza. As a well recognized artist and pioneer in Mew Media and Digital Art, he has sold over 500 works internationally including countries like New Zealand, Germany, Italy, UK, Switzerland and Australia. His works are also currently featured at the 1D Terminal at the Delhi Airport and Radisson Blu Plaza in Hyderabad.

About Sublime Galleria:
Sublime Galleria, located on the 8th Floor Sky Bridge of UB City, is India’s first Sky Gallery, founded by Ms. Uzma Irfan – Director, Corporate Communications, Prestige Group. Known for its encouragement and support of the fine arts and the performing arts, Sublime holds exhibitions showcasing the talents of not only famous artists but also of up-and-coming artists.

Strongly believing in the need to these artists, Uzma Irfan founded Sublime Galleria to help provide a platform for them to exhibit their work. She believes that fine art is an integral part of our rich culture and we should strive to keep these art forms vibrant and accessible to society.

Sublime Galleria has promoted the works of several artists across categories. Here’s a complete list of the artists that have earlier showcased their works at the gallery – Aditi Babel, Alok Utsav, Amina Shazi, Amit Sharma, Anoop H., Aparna Ganesh, Ashish Parmar, C.P.B. Prasad, Devanshi (Tina) Agarwal, Dnyati Wagh, Elena Renee Pereira, Farah Ahmed, G. Prakash Nayak, Harsha Jagasia, Jayanth B. Hubli, Joseph Cairns, Kalabhakesari, Karthik Poojappa, Manoj M. Masand, Milind Nayak, Pallon Daruwala, Pradeep Kumar D.M., Pragya Jain, Pramod Kumar Mohanty, Priyanka Gupta Agarwal, Raju Terdal, Ramesh Terdal, Ruchika K.C., Runa Biswas, Rupesh Patrick, Seshu Kiran G.S., Shraddha Rathi, Shukla Chowdhury, Simran K.S. Lamba, Sonu Mulchandani, Soraya Taher Merchant, Sripad Kulkarni, Sudeep Mukherjee, Sujata Sah Sejekan, Suman Purushotham, Swati Pasari and Thota Tharrani.

Press & Media Contact:
Ms. Urmila Biswas
+91 98860 99736
contact@marchingantsllp.com

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