CLEMSON UNIVERSITY REAL ESTATE SUMMIT

Brent Abbott is Executive Vice President and Head of Real Estate at Pacolet Milliken, a leading investment manager of private capital. Pacolet owns and operates a diversified portfolio of real estate, power, and infrastructure assets with a dual mandate of long-term capital appreciation and growth in operating cash flow.

Mr. Abbott oversees strategy and execution for Pacolet’s national real estate portfolio, which spans core‑plus, value‑add, and opportunistic investments with a primary focus on multifamily, industrial, and self‑storage assets. He leads the firm’s real estate division and is responsible for all phases of the investment lifecycle, including acquisitions, joint ventures, structured investments, asset management, capital markets activities, and dispositions. He also manages key relationships across Pacolet’s network of operating partners, lenders, and investor counterparties.

Since joining Pacolet in 2015, Mr. Abbott has led more than $1.8 billion in real estate transactions on behalf of the firm.

Prior to Pacolet Milliken, Mr. Abbott served as Vice President of Capital Markets at Forest City Ratner Companies in New York. There, he closed over $2.2 billion in capital markets transactions and oversaw the financial management of four major ground‑up development projects in the New York metropolitan area totaling more than $2.3 billion in project costs.

Mr. Abbott holds a bachelor’s degree in business from Wake Forest University and an MBA from the Stern School of Business at New York University. He is active in the community and has served on the boards of the Greenville Housing Fund, CommunityWorks Carolina, and Young Life of New York City.

Quinn Balderson leads business development for Choate Construction’s South Carolina division, where she helps shape the state’s commercial real estate future by driving strategic growth, forging strong partnerships, and aligning construction solutions with market needs. With deep roots in the industry and a reputation for delivering results, she’s been recognized as a SC Biz News 2024 Woman of Influence, a 40 Under 40 honoree, and recipient of CREW Charleston’s Career Advancement for Women Award.

Known for her relationship-first approach, Quinn is a connector and problem-solver who brings energy and insight to every project. She’s actively involved in CREW, ULI, and the Charleston Metro Chamber, and is a graduate of both Leadership Charleston and the SC Ports Authority Ambassador Program.

Beyond her role at Choate, she champions initiatives that support inclusive development, women in leadership, and community-driven growth—making her a strong voice in shaping the next phase of South Carolina’s commercial real estate evolution.

Stephen Farnsworth is senior managing director of Capital Markets at Walker & Dunlop and is based in New Orleans. In this role, he manages the company’s New Orleans origination office and is responsible for developer and owner relationship management, lender relationships, and sourcing new loan originations for multifamily and commercial properties nationwide. As a real estate finance specialist, Farnsworth sources capital through Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), life companies, banks, debt funds, proprietary capital, and commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS) executions. He has extensive experience in structured finance, preferred equity, value-add, new construction, and moderate rehabilitation executions, and has originated more than $20 billion in agency, HUD, and capital market loans across the United States.

Farnsworth joined Walker & Dunlop in February 2009 after the company acquired certain assets of Column Guaranteed. He began his mortgage banking career at Standard Mortgage Corp. in 2002, which was acquired by Column Guaranteed in 2003.

Farnsworth earned a bachelor’s degree in industrial engineering from Clemson University and a master’s degree in real estate and construction management from the University of Denver. He is a member of the Urban Land Institute and a former chair of ULI Louisiana. In addition, he serves on the board of governors for Isidore Newman School as Building and Grounds chair and is on the advisory board of the University of Denver’s Burns School of Real Estate and the Built Environment. Farnsworth lives in New Orleans with his wife and three sons.

Micah Mallace became President and CEO of South Carolina Ports on October 6, 2025, and is the seventh leader in the history of the organization.

He returns to SC Ports after serving as President of Harbor Logistics, a Southeast-based third-party logistics company specializing in port drayage, warehousing, and transload operations. Under his leadership, Harbor navigated the post-pandemic freight recession through operational turnaround, geographic expansion, and strategic acquisitions—transforming the company into a scalable logistics platform.

Previously at SC Ports, Mr. Mallace served as Chief Commercial Officer. He started with the SC Ports in 2011 and held a range of commercial and economic development roles. During his tenure, SC Ports became the fastest-growing container port in the United States. Mr. Mallace played a pivotal role in attracting and executing major projects, including Samsung’s plant in Newberry, SC, Gallo Winery’s facility in Fort Lawn, SC, and Walmart’s Ridgeville, SC distribution center.

Earlier in his career, he gained commercial real estate experience with Riverstone Residential and resort management with Vail Resorts.

Micah began his career in commercial real estate and hospitality before focusing on logistics and supply chain. He holds both an undergraduate degree and an MBA in Finance from the College of Charleston, where he continues to give back through his service on the School of Business Board of Governors.

Outside of work, Mr. Mallace is grateful for his wife, Katie, and their three children – a son and twin daughters – who keep life both full and lively.

Derek is a Sr. Vice President at SunCap Property Group. Based in SunCap’s Charleston office, he leads the firm’s development efforts, overseeing speculative industrial and build-to-suit projects across the Southeast region.

Prior to joining SunCap, Derek was Director of Industrial Development for WestRock Land & Development where he was responsible for managing the company's industrial development and land disposition efforts. Over the course of his career, Derek has been involved in the vertical development of approximately 5 million square feet of Class A industrial space valued at more than $375 million and facilitated land transactions totaling more than $85 million. He was also directly involved in a number of notable local economic development projects including Volvo Cars US, SHL Medical, Thorne Research and Sundaram Clayton.

Derek is a member of numerous professional associations and is a past president and current board member at the Dee Norton Lowcountry Children's Advocacy Center as well as the Charleston Regional Development Alliance. In 2016, he was named to Charleston Business Magazine's "50 Most Influential" list and was a member of the 2015 "Forty under Forty" class, awarded by Charleston Regional Business Journal. He earned a Bachelor's degree in Business Administration and Management from Clemson University and a Master's of Real Estate Development from Georgetown University.

A native of Charleston, Derek resides in Mt Pleasant with his wife Jennifer and their three children.

John serves as a Partner in Burr Forman's Government Relations practice group where he assists a diverse group of domestic and international clients with economic development advice and government affairs representation at the local and state level.

As a leader of the firm’s Economic Development Team, John has experience assisting manufacturers, real estate developers, and warehouse/distribution facilities with securing state and local tax incentives, grants, and tax exemptions. John focuses on finding cost savings and up-front money for his clients through various incentive arrangements and vehicles to include abandoned building tax credits, energy grant programs (state and federal), fee-in-lieu of tax agreements, historical tax credits (state and federal), income tax credits, property tax credits (i.e. "Bailey Bill" and others), multi-county business parks, port volume increase tax credits, retail and textile revitalization credits, state and local grant programs, state job development/retraining tax credits, and other individualized arrangements. His economic development knowledge coupled with his government relations experience makes John a valuable asset in developing new comprehensive incentive packages, improvements or extensions of existing incentive packages, creation of workforce development strategies, and any required statutory or regulatory changes to help advance his client’s goals.