Keynote Speakers

Morning Keynote Speaker:

Tony Williams, former Mayor of Washington, DC & Chief Executive Officer, Federal City Council

Tony Williams, the former Mayor of Washington, D.C. (1999 – 2007), is the current Chief Executive Officer of the Federal City Council, an organization which serves as a catalyst for progress in the Nation’s Capital by focusing the creative and administrative talents of Washington’s business and professional leaders on major problems and opportunities that are facing the City. Prior to this he served as the Executive Director of the Global Government Practice at the Corporate Executive Board in Arlington, Virginia. He also serves as the William H. Bloomberg Lecturer in Public Management at the Harvard Kennedy School.

In addition, he is a Senior Consultant to the firm McKenna Long and Aldridge, with particular emphasis on its municipal restructuring practice. During his two terms as Mayor, he is widely credited with leading the comeback of Washington D.C., restoring the finances of our nation’s capital, and improving the performance of government agencies, all while lowering taxes and investing in infrastructure and human services. Before his election as Mayor, he was the independent Chief Financial Officer of the District from 1995 to 1998, working with and on behalf of local officials, the D.C. Financial Control Board, and the U.S. Congress.

Before his service in local Washington, Tony worked in a variety of positions in federal, state, and local government, including as the first CFO for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, appointed by President Bill Clinton and confirmed by the U.S. Senate. In addition to his work on company boards, Tony devotes his attention to issues of education and the environment, serving on the board of Fight for Children and the Chesapeake Bay Foundation. He holds a BA from Yale and an MPP from the Kennedy School and a J.D. from the Harvard Law School, as well as a number of awards and honorary degrees, including Governing Magazine Public Official of the Year in 1997. He is a fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration and former President of the National League of Cities.

Afternoon Keynote Speaker:

Robert Kettler, Chief Executive Officer, Kettler Management

Robert Kettler is the Chief Executive Officer of Kettler, one of top multifamily housing developers in the nation. Founded in 1977, Kettler has developed some of the region’s most successful multifamily communities, including national award-winners The Metropolitan at Pentagon City, The Metropolitan at Reston Town Center, Midtown Reston Town Center and The Millennium at Metropolitan Park. The company has developed or acquired/renovated more than 21,000 multifamily units and currently has four multifamily projects under construction: The Acadia at Metropolitan Park | m.flats – Mount Vernon Triangle | The Metropolitan Downtown Columbia | VITA – Tysons Corner Center (Development Manager). In 2014, Kettler will break ground on m.flats – Crystal City and Element 28. Kettler has developed over 5 million square feet of commercial space, nearly 50,000 homes in 30+ master-planned communities and many of the region’s premier mixed-use developments.

In 1988, Mr. Kettler established Kettler Management, the property management division of his company. The wholly-owned subsidiary manages more than 20,000 apartment units in nearly 100 communities for Kettler and third-party clients. In the last three years the company has expanded into several new markets, including New York, New Jersey, North Carolina and the Virginia Beach and Richmond areas of Virginia. Kettler Management has received numerous honors in recognition of its excellence, most notably the NAHB Multifamily Pillars of the Industry Award as 2008 Property Management Company of the Year.

Mr. Kettler has a long standing commitment to education. He has served on advisory boards at George Mason University, Northern Virginia Community College, and the National Methodist Church. Additionally, he served as a Trustee of St. Patrick’s Episcopal Day School in Washington, D.C., and the Potomac School in McLean, Virginia for five and six years respectively. Since 2003, Mr. Kettler and his wife, Charlotte, have served as Co-Chairs of a $50 million capital campaign that led to a transformational redevelopment of the Potomac School. They have four children and live in McLean, Virginia.