The $420 million Genesee County Employees' Retirement System, Flint, Mich., will issue an RFP within the next week or two for a real estate manager, and next month will issue one for an international equity manager, said George Vitta, consultant to the fund. Warren Vyvyan, office supervisor for Genesee, said about $5 million will be allocated to the real estate manager and $25 million to international. The funding source has not yet been determined. Diversification is the reason for the search. Asset Strategies Portfolio Services is assisting.
The $750 million City of Flint (Mich.) Employees' Retirement System is searching for a core small-cap U.S. equity manager to replace Capital Technology, which was terminated for performance reasons, said Art Fenton, consultant to the fund. No RFPs will be issued. Mr. Fenton expects to interview finalists by February. Robb W. Rowe, president of Capital Technology, would not comment on the matter. Callan Associates is assisting.
The $175 million Aurora (Colo.) City General Employees' Retirement Plan is searching for its first core small-cap U.S. equity manager, to provide more diversification and to help reach a 7% target, said Thomas Connell, pension plan administrator. Mr. Connell said no RFPs were issued and their consultant is handling all proposals. The $12 million allocation will come from rebalancing. Callan Associates is assisting.
The City of Austin (Texas) Employees' Retirement System issued RFPs for a full-retainer investment consultant. Proposals are due Feb. 5. The board probably will present a short list in March, with a final decision in June, according to Cathy Harrington, pension director of the $1 billion system. She said one of the earliest projects for the consultant will be an asset liability study and an asset allocation study. Cooper Consultants is assisting the fund in the search.
The $25 million Monroe County Retirement Board, Stroudsburg, Pa., is expected to begin searching for its first large-cap growth U.S. equity manager next month, said Kelly Lewis, controller for the $25 million fund. The reason for the search is diversification. Mr. Lewis said funding will come from a $25 million midcap U.S. equity portfolio run by C.S. McKee, currently the fund's only manager. The portfolio size has not yet been determined.
The $6 billion New Mexico Public Employees' Retirement Association, Santa Fe, is considering a search for an additional international equity manager sometime next quarter, said Fred Reynolds, deputy director of investments. Currently, Capital Guardian manages a $700 million international equity portfolio. A final decision is expected by February.
The Electric Power Board of Nashville, Tenn., is considering adding alternative investments as a new asset class, said Decosta Jenkins, vice president of finance for the $127 million defined benefit plan. Mr. Jenkins said if the asset class is added, a manager search will soon follow. A final decision is expected by February. PaineWebber is assisting.
The $607 million Chicago Park Employees' Annuity & Benefit Fund will begin an asset allocation review in the first quarter, said Joseph Fratto, executive director for the $607 million fund. The review was spurred by a change in state law that gave fund officials the prudent person rule in choosing investments, Mr. Fratto said. Recent market volatility led fund executives to delay the review for a few months. Ennis Knupp is assisting.
Children's Hospital of Philadelphia is conducting an asset allocation study that could lead to manager changes and possibly a new asset class, said Thomas Conroy, chief investment officer for the $850 million endowment. The study, conducted by Cambridge Associates, is expected to be completed by March.
The $67 million Chatham County Employees' Retirement System, Savannah, Ga., is conducting an asset allocation study that could lead to manager changes, said David Persaud, director of finance. Merrill Lynch is conducting the study.
The New York Racing Association Inc., Jamaica, N.Y., will conduct major asset allocation studies for its two defined benefit funds, said Alex Ingle, vice president-finance. It also will conduct a manager review for the two funds and its two 401(k) funds and hopes to finish the reviews by the end of March. The defined benefit funds have assets totaling about $50 million. The 401(k) funds also have assets totaling about $50 million. Sedgwick Noble Lowndes is assisting.
