BAE Urban Economics Announces ‘New’ Owners

BERKELEY, Calif.—BAE Urban Economics, a real estate, economics, and economic development advisory firm, today announced new ownership for the company.

Widely known as BAE (the initials of the company’s original name, Bay Area Economics), Matt Kowta and David Shiver now own all outstanding company stock, with Kowta serving as president and managing principal. With a commitment to the long-term employees who have helped build BAE, the company plans to add additional ownership participation by existing BAE staff in the coming year.

Kowta and Shiver have been with BAE since the early 1990s and became shareholders in 1996. While Kowta oversees company operations throughout the U.S., they continue to function as principals in charge of the company’s Sacramento region and San Francisco Bay area offices, respectively.

The new ownership coincides with the retirement of founder Janet Smith-Heimer, who launched BAE in July 1986. For the next three decades, Smith-Heimer nurtured the company from a startup based in her East Bay home into the highly-regarded, award-winning national organization it is today.

Entering the “BAE 3.0” Era

Kowta explained the company has dubbed the new ownership “BAE 3.0,” a reference to two previous changes in the company’s primary ownership.

“‘BAE 1.0’ refers to the genesis of the company that Janet launched in 1986, later adding Dena Belzer as a partner,” said Kowta. “‘BAE 2.0’ refers to the era from when David Shiver and I became shareholders and Dena left the company, through 2016. With this latest ownership transition, we have embarked on the ‘BAE 3.0’ era.”

Kowta further explained the reason for the new label is partly to identify the new ownership, but also to express a continuation of the company’s emphasis on the “triple bottom-line of economics, equity and environment.”

“Aside from the new ownership, BAE is very much the same company that we’ve been—which is to say that we will continue the tradition of providing the world-class urban economics consulting and real estate advisory services for which we’ve become known.”

Although the company’s name is rooted in our significant involvement with San Francisco Bay area clients—including the Port of San Francisco, Golden Gate National Recreation Area, NASA Ames Research Center and dozens of municipalities, institutions, and organizations within the region—BAE maintains a strong presence throughout California and nationwide, including its assignments for clients such as the City of Los Angeles, City of Sacramento, Charlotte Housing Authority in North Carolina, Fort Monroe Authority in Hampton, Virginia, and the City of New York.

“Speaking for the entire company, we look forward to BAE’s promising future,” said Kowta. “We are truly passionate about what we do and are grateful for the encouragement we’ve already received from our clients.”