Community Partners

Sunshine Event Center

Sunshine Event Center is CREID's home — the venue where our monthly meetings and Happy Hours take place every 2nd Thursday. Located inside Springfield's Plaza Towers at 1736 E. Sunshine Street, the facility offers over 5,000 square feet of adaptable event space plus a rooftop patio with panoramic skyline views.

The space features state-of-the-art AV technology including an 86" Ultra HD display, multiple large-format screens, professional sound, and customizable lighting — making it ideal for the presentations, discussions, and networking that define a CREID evening. It's more than a venue; it's a partner in creating a professional environment for the Southwest Missouri commercial real estate community.

Content & Community

Living in the Ozarks

Living in the Ozarks, led by Duston Farrell, is a media platform dedicated to telling the real stories of the Ozarks region — its people, places, businesses, and culture. With a strong presence across social media and digital platforms, the brand has built a genuine audience of people who care deeply about Southwest Missouri.

Duston brings that same authenticity to his work with CREID. He helps the group create content that reaches and resonates with the broader community, and plays an active role in managing and growing the CREID group. His connection to the region and his ability to translate what we do into content people actually want to watch and read has been invaluable.

"Real Stories. Real Ozarks."

Entrepreneur Community

1 Million Cups Springfield

1 Million Cups is a free, weekly program created by the Kauffman Foundation to connect entrepreneurs with their communities. The Springfield chapter — one of the first in Missouri — has been running since 2014 and has helped hundreds of local entrepreneurs connect, present, and grow.

Each session features a 6–8 minute presentation from a local entrepreneur, followed by 20 minutes of open Q&A and community feedback. It's one of the most accessible and consistent gathering points for Springfield's business community, and a natural ally for what CREID does in the commercial real estate space.

Sterling Huff Jr., one of the founding organizers of 1MC Springfield, has been a connector and supporter of the CREID community — bridging the gap between the broader entrepreneurial ecosystem and the commercial real estate investors who fuel local development.

Real Estate & Land Use

ULI Southwest Missouri

The Urban Land Institute (ULI) is one of the most respected research and education organizations in the world for real estate and land use. The Southwest Missouri chapter, established in 2023, brought that national expertise home — creating a local forum for developers, architects, realtors, community leaders, and investors to engage on the decisions shaping Springfield's built environment.

Brandon Biskup, the chapter's founder and chair, is a Springfield-based architect whose work sits at the intersection of design and development. He recognized the need for a more structured community conversation around land use and real estate — and built ULI SWMO to spark it.

The alignment with CREID is natural. Brandon and ULI contribute market research, development insights, and a deeper perspective on the forces shaping commercial real estate in Southwest Missouri — the kind of context that makes every CREID conversation smarter.