Meet the Team
Gary Segal: Co-founder and ceo
Gary Segal brings his decades of experience, entrepreneurial leadership, spirit and core principles to Dynamic Star.
Segal is a 35-year veteran of New York City's construction industry. After taking over the reins of his small family contracting business in 1991, Segal expanded from a 35 employee company to a 1,500 employee organization. Segal’s Five Star Electric became the largest union electrical contractor in New York City.
In 2007, Segal merged Five Star with the largest plumbing and mechanical contractor in the City and a private equity firm to create GreenStar Services. Four years later, GreenStar was sold to one of the largest General Contractors in the country. Five Star continued to be ranked #1 in the New York Metropolitan area and #10 in the country in Engineering News Record. When Segal left Five Star in January 2016, Five Star had over $1.1 billion in backlog.
Some of Five Star's highly-profiled projects include One World Trade Center (Freedom Tower), the 9/11 Memorial & Museum and the new PATH Station- all at the rebuild at the old World Trade Center site, the electrification of the East Side Access Tunnel, the renovation of Madison Square Garden, the construction of CitiField, and One57 mixed-use tower, to name a few.
Then in November of 2017, Segal partnered with Brad Zackson to create Dynamic Star, and to date, Dynamic Star has five mixed-use developments in the pipeline totaling over 7,500,000 BSF.
Brad Zackson: co-founder and director of development
Brad Zackson brings his 35 years of experience, extraordinary vision, creative approach, and unique ability to spot opportunities and anticipate future trends, all which help foster significant increased value, to Dynamic Star.
Zackson is a veteran in real estate development, finance and management in New York City. He started his career as a broker, becoming the exclusive broker and manager for one of New York City's real estate families , where he managed and supervised over 45,000 residential units.
More recently, Zackson was the driving force in the acquisition of three significant property assemblages in Long Island City, New York. The first property, 23-10 Queens Plaza South, is now a 44-story rental tower with 391 units and future commercial development coming. The second property, known as the “Clock Tower Building,” was a masterful assemblage of two adjacent properties, owned by different owners, which also included an expedited purchase of air rights from the MTA to create a one million developable square foot site with a 15-year 421a.
The third property was an off-market transaction, friendly negotiation from a non-seller. Zackson was able to accommodate the sellers needs by agreeing to a sale leaseback and the seller agreeing to allow the necessary work for Zackson to secure a 421a Tax Abatement under the laws that were extended six months past the deadline. Zackson spearheaded these acquisitions, zoning lot merger and other critical pre-development aspects in order to close these transactions.
Penny Lee: Director of planning
Penny Lee brings her 30 years of planning, urban development, land use and rezoning experience to Dynamic Star.
Lee is a New York City Planning veteran, who previously served as Senior Planner for Long Island City & Queens Community District 2 at the NYC Department of City Planning. As the lead planner for several zoning changes and infrastructure projects, including the LIC Special District and Queens Plaza, Lee worked seamlessly throughout the Koch, Dinkens, Guiliani, Bloomberg, and de Blasio administrations to create one of the fastest growing neighborhoods in the country while preserving the neighborhood's industrial precincts.
Lee established land use, zoning, and infrastructure policy for Sunnyside, Woodside, and Long Island City. Lee's Plan for Long Island City: A Framework for Development (1993) established a long-term land use and zoning policy for the neighborhood. She initiated and implemented follow-up zoning changes in the neighborhood in 1995, 1997, and 2001. The zoning changes resulted in approximately 17,000 new housing units and approximately two million square feet of new office space to date. The area has grown into a vibrant residential and commercial district, attracting attention from the largest companies in the world.
Lee has also been a key figuring in shaping smart, urban development for pedestrians and cyclists in Queens. Lee initiated and managed the design process for the Queens Plaza Bike and Pedestrian Improvement Project, which transformed the primary entry point into Long Island City and Queens to improve the flow of traffic and bikes and enhance the pedestrian environment. The project included a new off-street bike lane, more than one acre of new public open space, new crosswalks, and a new roadway network.
Francisco Diaz JR.: DIRECTOR OF STRATEGIC COMMUNITY AFFAIRS
Francisco Diaz Jr. brings over 30 years of experience in community development, community relations, urban planning, land use zoning, procurement and legislation to Dynamic Star.
Diaz previously worked as a registered lobbyist representing Fortune 100 companies, not-for-profit organizations and real estate developers at both the city and state level. Diaz is responsible for leading, planning, and executing Dynamic Star’s community outreach programs by working with community leaders and government officials to foster the creation of needs-based programs for the community.
Diaz is a former member of the New York State Assembly Legislature representing the 68th District of Manhattan and the Bronx, Vice Chairman of Manhattan Community Board 11 and District Manager. Diaz served as Board Member and Advisor for various local, citywide and statewide organizations focused on residential housing and economic development, urban community development planning, education reform and business development. Diaz also serves as Chairman and Board Member of Somos Inc.; a not-for-profit organization collaborating with the NYS Assembly/Senate Puerto Rican Hispanic Task Force.