About

Melissa is both an Architect and Structural Engineer — a rare dual licensure — with broad experience at the intersection of design, technical expertise, and commercial real estate strategy. She founded Lumina Relay to help developers, owners, and manufacturers translate design innovation into real estate value.

Her cross-disciplinary background spans architecture, structural engineering, digital fabrication, and deep engagement with the development community, providing a distinctive perspective on how design choices influence asset performance and market positioning.

Melissa established the wood industry's first national partnership with Urban Land Institute (ULI), led mass timber education for real estate developers for seven years, and co-authored industry resources including the Mass Timber Business Case Studies, Mass Timber Cost and Design Optimization Checklists, and Wood in Industrial Buildings. She has contributed to publications for Morningstar, Nuveen, and ULI.

Her project experience ranges from complex public-private partnerships — including managing design phases for the Treasure Island Ferry Terminal in San Francisco — to complex structural systems across commercial, institutional, residential, and military buildings. At one of the nation's most advanced CNC fabrication facilities, she set up and devised proramming scripts for a new CNC machine and managed the fabrication schedule for 700 unique facade panels with complex double curvatures for the SFMOMA expansion.

Melissa serves on ULI's national Sustainable Development Council and the Mass Timber Advisory Council, contributing to the development of a mass timber AI tool for real estate developers.

Melissa Kroskey, Principal of Lumina Relay

Melissa Kroskey, AIA, SE

Select Speaking Engagements

Melissa Kroskey speaking at ULI conference panel with industry leaders from Hines, Timberlab, and Amazon
A presentation room with a large screen displaying slides titled 'Resources for Developers/Owners' and images of project case studies and QR codes. A woman in a black outfit holds a microphone and speaks to an audience seated in front of her, with another woman standing to the left near a podium marked 'ULE'.

  • ULI Mass Timber AI Tool for Developers (ULI Spring Meeting 2026)

  • Mass Timber Momentum in Warehouse Applications (ULI Fall Meeting 2025)

  • Mass Timber on Campus: Investing in the Future of Student Housing (ULI Spring Meeting 2025)

  • Beyond the Beam: Mass Timber’s Expansion into New Spaces (ULI Fall Meeting 2024)

  • Redevelopments with Mass Timber, a Lightweight and Low-Carbon System (ULI webinar 2024)

  • DBRS Morningstar: Mass Timber as a Sustainable Investment (ULI Fall Meeting 2024)

  • ESG Innovators in Real Estate: Mass Timber Trends (ULI Fall Meeting 2023)

  • Mass Timber Warehouses: Redefining Industrial Aesthetics & ESG Alignment (ULI Spring Meeting 2023)

  • The Business Case for Mass Timber and Wildfire Resilience (ULI webinar 2022)

  • The World’s Tallest Timber Tower: The Business Case for Ascent, Milwaukee (ULI Fall Meeting 2022)

  • INTRO Cleveland: Mixed-Use Mass Timber Exceeds All Expectations (ULI Fall Meeting 2022)

  • Mass Timber: Contributing to Wildfire Resilience and Financial Returns (ULI Spring Meeting 2022)

  • ESG Innovation Roundtable (ULI Fall Meeting 2021)

  • Mass Timber Business Case Studies: Multifamily Real Deal Release (ULI Fall Meeting 2021)

  • Innovative Wood Buildings: High Value | Low Impact (ULI Fall Meeting 2020)

  • Greenprint Roundtable (ULI Fall Meeting 2019)

Urban Land Institute:

Two women holding microphones at a panel discussion with a NAIOP backdrop and a presentation screen, smiling at the camera.

NAIOP Industrial Conferences:

  • CRE Talk: Industrial Goes Timber (I.CON West 2026)

  • CRE Talk: Building the Future - Mass Timber in Warehouses (I.CON West 2025)

A panel of five people sitting on stage during a conference with a woman speaking at a podium. The background features green and black curtains and trees, with a sign reading "Timber Conference." Audience members are seated facing the stage.

International Mass Timber Conference:

  • Making Mass Timber Financially Feasible (MTC 2026)

  • Completing the Value Proposition for Developers and Owners (MTC 2023)

  • Business Case for Mass Timber: Real Deals | Real Numbers (MTC 2021)