The Sunshine State's commercial real estate business has long had an international feel, and with a new wave of development on the horizon, the future looks bright. However, Florida's success in this arena wouldn't be possible without the efforts of individuals who have helped shape—and many of whom continue to influence—the market. Here's a look at some of the people who have become household names in the regional industry.

They don't call him the "ultimate CEO" for nothing. Stephen Bittel has been making his mark on management, leasing, financing, development and sales of major real estate assets in Florida since 1980, when he founded Terranova Corp. With his unique blend of legal and real estate savvy—he's a member of the Florida Bar Association and the Mortgage Bankers Association, as well as a licensed real estate broker and a member of the International Council of Shopping Centers—Bittel has personally been responsible for more than $2 billion in transactions, and Terranova operates nearly $1 billion worth of real estate assets. He's also president of Petroleum Realty Investment Partners, a venture launched in April 1999 to invest in the gas station and convenience store industry.

Malcolm Butters is one industry icon who shows no signs of slowing down. As president of Butters Construction & Development, the veteran developer last year facilitated one of the largest land transactions in terms of acreage. The move allowed his firm to take control of one of the last remaining major development sites in western Miami-Dade County, putting Butters and partner Liberty Property Trust in the front seat of Miami's industrial building boom in advance of the Panama Canal and Port of Miami expansions. The 125-acre site, a former limestone pit along Florida's Turnpike just south of Okeechobee Road, is being repositioned as a 1.6-million-squarefoot business park and is expected to pump $125 million and 4,000 jobs into the local economy. With this and two other land deals, the firm is overseeing construction of more than two million square feet of class A industrial product in the years to come.

Anyone who can boast $5 billion in real estate loan originations in a 25-year period certainly qualifies for icon status. But anyone who can continue closing new loans during a capital crunch may be equally noteworthy. Philip Carroll has done both. After a successful career with major names in banking like Chase Manhattan, Bank of America and KeyBank, Carroll launched American Real Estate Capital in 2009. His firm funded more than $350 million in new loans in 2010 and 2011. Just before launching AREC, Carroll was a commercial real estate workout consultant for a Miami commercial bank as well as an acquisitions advisor for a Miami real estate investment company.

Armando Codina has influenced many of the current and rising stars on Miami's commercial real estate scene. Chairman and CEO of Codina Partners, a real estate and investment firm in Coral Gables with a Florida focus, Codina continues his legacy as the next wave of development gets underway in Miami, recently buying the loan on a 0.8-acre site in Coral Gables zoned for commercial use. Codina Partners is also developing Downtown Doral, a mixed-use development. Before launching his firm in 2009, Codina was chairman of Flagler and oversaw its 12 million square feet of commercial real estate. He merged his previous firm, Codina Group, with Flagler in 2006. Over the past 15 years, Codina has been recognized with numerous awards and honors, including Developer of the Year by NAIOP and Office Developer of the Year, Shopping Center Developer of the Year and Entrepreneur of the Year by the Wharton School. Codina has a hefty presence in politics as well; he actually gave former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush his first job in Miami in the early 1980s.

Miles C. Collier's influence on Southwest Florida's commercial real estate scene dates back to the 1970s. Grandson of Barron Gift Collier—an American advertising entrepreneur who became the largest landowner and developer in Florida in the early 1900s—he founded Collier Enterprises in Naples in 1976 as a real estate development firm. It grew through diversification, forming Private Capital Management, an investment and asset management firm that reached $9 billion in assets under management by 2001, when Legg Mason acquired it. Now retired, Collier is an artist, investor and philanthropist. He founded the Revs Institute for Automotive Research in Naples, is a founding supporter of the Stanford-Revs initiative and chairman of the board of trustees of Eckerd College.

Edward J. DeBartolo Jr. is perhaps best known as the legendary owner of the San Francisco 49ers during its winningest decade, but he's also made a name for himself in Florida commercial real estate. DeBartolo began his career with the Edward J. DeBartolo Corp. in 1971. His task: to oversee one of the US' largest mall developers and managers. Not only did he succeed, but he also reinvented the business as the market changed. He became chairman of the DeBartolo Realty Corp., a public REIT, in 1994 and within two years merged with Simon Property Group to create Simon DeBartolo Group, with a market capitalization of $7.5 billion and a portfolio of nearly 200 shopping centers in 32 states. Today, he is founder and CEO of DeBartolo Holdings LLC, the parent organization of DeBartolo Development and other family entities.

Sidney Domb knows the net-lease industry like the proverbial back of his hand, and many consider him a pioneer of sale-leasebacks. Founder and CEO of United Trust Fund, Domb's been involved in every facet of the sale-leaseback business, completing hundreds of projects in 44 states. He launched his real estate career in Florida in the early '60s as an owner/developer of gas stations before expanding to California, adding hundreds of 7-Elevens to his netleased tenant base. Founded in 1972, UTF is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year, making it the oldest investment firm specializing in sale-leasebacks. Domb's recent work includes the $203-million forward-funded, build-to-suit, sale-leaseback of a hospital in Springfield, MO and medical office building in Edmond, OK with the Sisters of Mercy.

Russell Galbut, managing principal of Crescent Heights, is a jack of all commercial real estate trades—and a master, too. Born and raised in Miami Beach, Galbut graduated from the School of Hotel Administration at Cornell University in 1974 and returned to his hometown to start a career as a hotel and real estate consultant with Laventhal & Horwath. Within two years, he was building condos and retail centers across Miami while studying law at night. When interest rates started rising in 1981, he launched a family nursing home and adult congregate care business that became one of the largest in the region. He began converting hotels in 1983, beginning with the Shelbourne, and finally launched Crescent Heights in 1989. The firm today has condos in every major US city and has converted more hotels to condo-hotels than any other developer in the US.

Just call him the dealmaker. Ezra Katz has been creating JVs and solving complicated real estate transactions for more than 30 years. He founded the Aztec Group in 1981 and has established it as a go-to real estate investment and merchant banking firm in Florida, inking more than $8 billion worth of transactions in the past decade alone. Under Katz's leadership, Aztec has been involved in deals ranging from the $72-million sale of Mayfair Shops to the $70-million financing of Dadeland Station. He also arranged a $157-million capital investment by Colony with Michael Swerdlow Cos. and formed shopping center developer Progressive Development Co. in Charlotte, NC.

When Salvadore Leccese launched LeCesse Development Corp. in 1952, it was a small building contractor in Rochester, NY. Today, it's a multi-state developer and owner of multifamily properties with an annual construction volume of more than $100 million a year. As CEO, Leccese shifted his focus to development and investment in 1992, building residential, healthcare, recreational, commercial and industrial properties with clients including IBM, Chase, Citibank and General Motors. Leccese has also been involved in the design, development, construction and acquisition of more than 15,000 multifamily units—including market-rate, affordable, senior, governmentsubsidized, retirement and military housing—and formed a property management affiliate, Cambridge Management Services.

The late Raymond Lutgert, founder of the Lutgert Cos., is behind a visionary project that transformed 760 acres of Naples beachfront into one of the most prestigious communities in Florida. But Scott Lutgert, chairman of the development firm, has forwarded that vision with 17 luxury residential towers in the beachfront community of Park Shore. But Lutgert isn't finished on Florida's southwest coast yet. He continues to develop high-rises in Bonita Bay and luxury golf course communities, one in Naples and another in North Carolina, and has developed and owns shopping centers and office buildings in the region. Lutgert also oversees the firm's diverse holdings, which include Premier Sotheby's International Realty, Signature Sotheby's International Realty, Lutgert Insurance and Lutgert Title.

When Jose Milton emigrated to Miami in 1963, the young Cuban architect and builder set his sights on rebuilding the successful contracting and real estate investment business he left behind in his homeland. He did that and more with J. Milton & Associates. Milton launched his Miami vision with small apartments and went on to build a real estate empire. J. Milton & Associates has developed more than 50,000 rental units and more than $2 billion in condos. Landmark projects include Sands Pointe, Pinnacle, King David, Sayan and St. Tropez. Milton has since handed the reigns to his son, Joseph, who serves as president and CEO of the family business alongside his brothers, Cecil and Frank Milton.

W. Allen Morris heads one of the largest development and office building management firms in Florida, recently completing its 78th office development in Coral Gables and currently building the Ponce de Leon Towers. The chairman and CEO of the Allen Morris Co. is a frequent guest on Fox Business News' Cavuto with Neil Cavuto, as well as the Fox Business Morning Break with Charles Payne and The Strategy Room with Eric Bolling. Morris, a graduate of Harvard Business School, is an officer and director at more than 35 real estate-related companies and president of three charitable foundations. He's traveled extensively, working with international clients, and served Florida on Economic Missions to Europe and Asia. Morris has received numerous professional distinctions including the 2009 South Florida Business Leader of the Year Award in Real Estate and the 2011 REAL Trend Setter Award from the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce.

For more than 30 years, Timothy O'Connor has been making commercial real estate loans, both as a lender and mortgage banker. He joined NorthMarq Capital in 2003 when it acquired the mortgage banking division of Legg Mason Real Estate Services, which he'd served since 1993. As senior EVP and head of production for NorthMarq's eastern offices, Orlandobased O'Connor continues to get deals done as he oversees all production-related activity and serves as the primary liaison for correspondent investors. At LMRES, O'Connor was a member of the executive management committee and executive staff. Before LMRES, he was the president, chief production officer and New Jersey regional manager for Dorman & Wilson Inc.

Stephen Owens' name is known on several continents. A 35-year veteran of Swire Properties, Owens has led the multinational firm's US development and investment operations since 1985. He headed the master planning of Brickell Key in Downtown Miami, a major mixed-use urban project that included Courvoisier Centre office complex, the three-tower, 800-unit Tequesta Point condominium; Courvoisier Courts, Courts Brickell Key, Carbonell and ASIA luxury condos with a combined total of 1,800 units; and the 336-condo JADE at Brickell Bay. Owens also directed the development of the 329-room luxury Mandarin Oriental Miami. Altogether, Owens' work at Swire has spanned $2.8 billion in projects in Florida, Hawaii, Texas and Hong Kong.

Darryl Parmenter had a sterling career with the likes of Lincoln Property Co. and CBRE. He used the experience he amassed in real estate acquisition, development and management to launch Parmenter Realty Partners in 1989. As chairman and CEO, he's led the firm in raising over $1 billion in direct capital contributions, and invested and managed office and residential assets across the US, including a $500-million fund targeting distressed assets in the Southeast. During his 10 years at Lincoln, Parmenter directed the development, management and acquisition program for assets valued in excess of $400 million, including the development of 701 Brickell Ave. He is currently a governor for the Urban Land Institute.

Known as the "Donald Trump of the Tropics," Jorge Pérez is the name behind the vision for a 24/7 Downtown Miami. Born in Argentina to Cuban parents and raised in Colombia before moving to Miami in 1968, he is also the picture of multiculturalism—but he had humble beginnings. Before founding the Related Cos. in 1979, Pérez was an economic development director with the City of Miami. He built his fortune by developing and operating low-income apartments across Miami, then branched off into rentals before becoming one of the most prolific high-rise condo builders in the Southeast. Pérez has owned 50 condo towers in various stages of completion in South Florida, Fort Myers and Las Vegas. The Related Cos. had $2.1 billion in revenue in 2004, putting Pérez at the top of the Hispanic Business 500 that year, and Time magazine has named him as one of the Most Influential Hispanics in America.

Craig Robins' name is nearly synonymous with creative communities that integrate art and design. The president and CEO of Dacra, he's the mastermind behind some of the most transformative commercial, residential and mixed-use projects in Miami history. Robins founded Dacra in 2007 and played an integral role in the repositioning and revitalization of Miami's South Beach District through the restoration of Art Deco landmarks and the creation of new commercial, creative and cultural opportunities. Dacra, which is behind the transformation of the Miami Design District, also developed mixed-use projects on Lincoln Road and Española Way that combine forward-thinking urban design with commercial viability. In 1999, Dacra acquired 8.5 acres on the southern tip of Allison Island with a vision to create Aqua, a new urbanist community.

Founder and chairman emeritus of the Sembler Co., Mel Sembler served as US Ambassador to Italy from 2001 to 2005 and as US Ambassador to Australia and Nauru from 1989 to 1993. On the business front, the Sembler Co. is one of the nation's most highly recognized shopping center developers. A past president of the International Council of Shopping Centers, Sembler has served in the group for 25 years. He's also on the boards of several banks, including the First Bank of Treasure Island, National Bank, First Union Bank and American Momentum Bank. Sembler Co. continues to develop projects such as Boynton Town Center and Renaissance Commons, even in a down economy. Sembler also built Duval Park, a residential complex in St. Petersburg intended to recreate the charm of Old Key West. Although best known as a developer, Sembler is also renowned for his activism in the anti-drug movement.

Founder and executive chairman of CNL Financial Group, James Seneff boasts a real estate investment career that began in 1973 with a $5,000 loan and a 50-year plan. CNL and its affiliates have since formed or acquired companies with more than $26 billion in assets. In 2006-2007, CNL sold $15 billion in REIT assets, including CNL Hotels & Resorts, CNL Retirement Properties and Trustreet Properties, at or near the market peak. Seneff chairs CNL's four non-traded REITs—Global Income Trust, Global Growth Trust, CNL Lifestyle Properties and CNL Healthcare Trust—and is executive chairman of CNLBancshares. The company expanded into commercial real estate services in 2007 and now has a presence in seven US cities.

Donald Soffer transformed a mosquitoinfested swamp in North Dade County into an upscale, planned community. It all started about 50 years ago when he purchased a 785-acre tract of marshland and sketched his vision on a cocktail napkin. That vision became South Florida's Aventura. Although he built an upscale community, Soffer came from humble roots. He was born and raised in the small, poor steel town of Duquesne, PA. His father, Harold, sold cars and appliances before starting a successful real estate and development business. When he came into his own, Donald Soffer spent 40 years building the Turnberry Isle Miami and the Aventura Mall, as well as thousands of residential units and numerous offices. Aventura is now a self-contained city with golf courses, lakes, bike and exercise paths, hotels and more—much of it developed by the company he founded, Turnberry Associates.

Faced with a double-digit decrease in consumer spending, more retail closures than openings and a nonexistent capital market, Regency Centers CEO Hap Stein has faced his greatest challenge since assuming the company's top leadership position 15 years ago. Stein recently made subtle strategic decisions, including raising more than $1 billion capital through a combination of two common stock offerings, mortgage and unsecured debt financings and property sales. Stein, the son of Regency's founders, started with the company's energy plant and worked his way up to CEO in 1993. Stein is credited with sharpening the company's focus on its current niche—grocery-anchored shopping centers. Regency went public as a REIT in Stein's first year as CEO and now boasts 396 properties.

Terry Stiles heads one of the largest fullservice real state companies in the Southeast, a firm his father Howard Stiles launched in 1951. Stiles Corp. has developed more than 37 million square feet of real estate. Stiles has built his personal and corporate reputation on being at the forefront of commercial real estate trends, building the first master-planned corporate park in Broward County and the first speculative office building in an urban downtown area in the nation after a five-year period of slow construction activity. Stiles has over a million feet of office space in Downtown Ft. Lauderdale and has developed many of the high-profile projects on Las Olas Boulevard, including the Bank of America Plaza at Las Olas City Center and 350 and 450 Las Olas Center.

Michael Swerdlow is the brains behind South Florida projects like the Dolphin Mall, a 1.4-million-square-foot outlet center in Miami, as well as Dolphin Commerce Center, a planned three-million-squarefoot corporate park in Miami, and Las Olas Riverfront, a retail entertainment venue along Ft. Lauderdale's waterfront. The hands-on chairman and CEO of the Swerdlow Group taps his 30-plus years of experience in evaluating and selecting new development opportunities and in making major decisions regarding architectural design and key professional resources. Swerdlow is currently working on Biscayne Landing, one of the most significant urban redevelopments in South Florida's history and one of the largest residential projects planned on a former Superfund site.