Michele Maresca

Michele L. Maresca

Counsel

Michele L. Maresca

Counsel

  • Overview

    Biography

    Michele Maresca handles the full range of commercial real estate transactions, including representation of borrowers and lenders in financings, dispositions, acquisitions, and development agreements. She routinely represents developers, businesses, non-profit organizations, municipalities, and housing authorities. Throughout her varied practice, Michele leverages her background and experience as a former land use planner to assist clients in structuring agreements to address their unique development, title, and land use issues. She is a member of the firm’s Real Estate + Development Group.

    Real Estate – Financing and Transactions

    Michele has a decade of experience helping clients with their real estate transactions, negotiating, documenting, and closeing complex real estate transactions, including acquisitions, dispositions, and financings. She counsels clients in the structuring, negotiation, and documentation of mortgage loans and real estate transactions; conducts due diligence; and handles all matters related to title.

    Michele's recent transactions include representing a large real estate development firm in the refinancing of its construction loans for a high profile downtown Hartford commercial development project. She also recently assisted a real estate investment management company in its purchase of a hotel and office building through auction. She currently is handling the sale of a former industrial site for a chemical company, including conducting all related due diligence.

    Development and Reciprocal Easement Agreements

    Michele structures and negotiates complex development agreements and ground leases, including those involving public private partnerships. She has handled high profile projects, including representing the master developer in the negotiation and drafting of a development and disposition agreement for the former New Haven coliseum site. She also represented the Town of West Hartford by negotiating and drafting the ground lease and development agreement for the construction and disposition of a hotel in Blue Back Square. Michele negotiates all parties’ roles in various reciprocal easement agreements, addressing shared rights and responsibilities. She represented a national retailer in a complex reciprocal agreement among multiple landowners for rights of access, utilities and drainage.

    Michele has an extensive background in the land use field. Prior to law school, she worked for more than four years as a land use planner with a regional agency in northwest Vermont, where she was responsible for delivering technically sophisticated planning projects, including a regional build-out analysis and a regional landscape suitability analysis. During law school, she served as a research assistant for the Vermont Law School Land Use Institute, providing support to a statewide land use planning initiative.

    Michele was selected to the Connecticut Super Lawyers for 2018 and named a Rising Star in the Connecticut Super Lawyers list from 2013 to 2018. She is active in the community, and serves on West Hartford’s local planning and inland wetlands boards. She also serves on the education symposium committee for the Aurora Foundation for Women and Girls, which works to improve the lives of women and girls in the Greater Hartford area.

  • Experience
    • Experience

      Experience

        Real Estate + Development

      • While representing national retailer, obtained local zoning approvals to expand an existing retail facility and to construct a gas station as part of the expansion. In connection with the facility expansion and new gas station, the developer also made circulation and ingress and egress improvements requiring the widening of the fronting state roadway. This representation involved clearing title issues related to a paper street that were implicated by this ancillary roadway expansion.

      • Represented client in negotiating the option and sale of a 1,000±-acre development site to non-profit organizations, the Town of Old Saybrook and the State of Connecticut for perpetual conservation purposes. The conveyance involved negotiating documents with multiple parties and navigating the various State and local processes associated with the acquisition of conservation lands for public use and the use of State money.

      • Analyzed title and site development issues for a wireless telecommunications company.

      • Analyzing special acts and title history of beach properties to determine beach access rights and littoral rights.

      • Represented national retailer in support of development of new retail store as part of a master planned development with multiple landowners. Drafted and negotiated a complex reciprocal easement agreement for access, drainage, and utilities in connection with an internal drive that crosses multiple properties with multiple owners. Drafted and negotiated construction agreement and related temporary easements and development restrictions in connection with internal driveway and separate commercial developments within the master plan area.

      • Represented the Episcopal Diocese of Connecticut in connection with the sale and financing of property in Watertown, Connecticut, to The Taft School.

      • Represented the developer of a 1.5 million square foot distribution facility in Windsor, Connecticut, for the world's largest online retailer in all aspects of permitting, the closing of the land conveyance, and negotiation of easements and service agreements with electric, water, and sewer utilities.

      • As part of a complex multimillion-dollar factory transformation project, drafted innovative agreement to memorialize both the operational savings achieved through energy efficiency improvements at an industrial facility, and the related purchase price increase.

        • Commercial Real Estate Lending

      • Representation of borrower in commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS) loan secured by commercial office building.

      • Handled the real estate due diligence and mortgage documentation for administrative agent and syndicate of national lenders in connection with a multimillion-dollar term loan and line of credit secured by more than twenty properties.

      • Negotiated and documented the refinance of a construction to permanent financing for the commercial and retail phase of the redevelopment of a downtown district in Hartford, Connecticut.

        • Public-Private Partnerships

      • Represented national retailer in support of development of new retail store as part of a public-private agreement to acquire and develop a portion of a publicly owned golf course. Drafted and negotiated with the Connecticut Department of Transportation various easements in support of retail store roadway improvements and drafted and negotiated various easements between the city and retailer for drainage, slope creation, and maintenance and construction work related to the retail store and the relocation of certain golf holes on the city-owned golf course.

      • Representation of developer in public-private development agreement for the redevelopment of a city-owned property in the central business district. Drafted and negotiated a complex development agreement between the city and our client for the multiphased redevelopment of downtown property, as well as the related infrastructure improvements.

      • Represented the Town of West Hartford in a public-private agreement for the development of a luxury boutique hotel in Blue Back Square. Drafted and negotiated ground lease and development agreement. 

      • Represented the master developer in the negotiation and drafting of a development and disposition agreement for the redevelopment of the former New Haven coliseum site. 

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    • Professional Associations

      Professional Associations

      American Bar Association

      Connecticut Bar Association

      International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC)
      Private Sector Chair of P3 Committee in Connecticut
    • Honors + Awards

      Honors + Awards

      Selected as a Rising Star to the Connecticut Super Lawyers list from 2013 to 2017.

      UConn School of Business Center for Real Estate, Organizational Partner Special Service Award 2011/2012

       

    • Community Involvement

      Community Involvement

      Town of West Hartford
      Member, Past Vice Chair of Planning and Zoning Commission
      Member, Past Vice Chair of Inland Wetlands and Watercourses Agency

      Aurora Women and Girls Foundation
      Board of Directors (2018)
  • NEWS + PRESS
    • Publications

      Publications

      Library of Connecticut Civil Complaints for Business Litigation, Volume I, co-authored with Brian R. Smith and Timothy D. Bates and Joel Norwood, a Connecticut Law Tribune publication (2010)
      • » more info

        • Library of Connecticut Civil Complaints for Business Litigation, Volume I

        Library of Connecticut Civil Complaints for Business Litigation, Volume I, co-authored by Michele L. Maresca, Brian R. Smith and Timothy D. Bates and Joel Norwood, a Connecticut Law Tribune publication (2010)

        The volume covers land use complaints.


      "Greening Connecticut's Buildings," published in Construction Law Group Newsletter, co-authored with Thomas P. Cody (November 2009)

    • Presentations

      Presentations

      "Future of Retail," moderator, as part of the New England Conference & Deal Making Idea Exchange in Boston, Massachusetts (7/17/2018)
      • » more info

        • Future of Retail

        "Future of Retail," presented by Michele L. Maresca, moderator, as part of the New England Conference & Deal Making Idea Exchange in Boston, Massachusetts (7/17/2018)

        Presented by the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC,) the session examined how landlords can position their tenant mix to respond to a rapidly changing market. The program also included the exploration of two case studies, Arsenal Yards redevelopment and Tuscan Village new development, that are especially illustrative of forward-thinking retail development. Arsenal Yards is a community-minded redevelopment of a Boston area retail center into a major mixed-use project with retail, restaurant, office, hotel, and residential space. Tuscan Village is a ground-up development on over 170 acres that will use a mix of downtown-style housing, office, retail, and experience to create a destination where people can live, work, stay, and play.


      "Dollars and $ense: Practical Insights to Solving Recurring & Emerging Shopping Center Issues and Improving Your Bottom Line," at the New England Conference & Deal Making event, sponsored by the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) (7/19/2017)
      • » more info

        • Dollars and $ense: Practical Insights to Solving Recurring & Emerging Shopping Center Issues and Improving Your Bottom Line

        "Dollars and $ense: Practical Insights to Solving Recurring & Emerging Shopping Center Issues and Improving Your Bottom Line," presented by Michele L. Maresca, at the New England Conference & Deal Making event, sponsored by the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) (7/19/2017)

        Ms. Maresca, along with her fellow panelists, spoke about the transformation of shopping centers. In particular, she explored two emerging elements of the retail real estate industry: first, the importance of understanding and quantifying occupancy costs in tenant rent negotiations and shopping center operations in today's changing marketplace, and second, issues and situations in repurposing and redevelopment in the rapidly evolving area of shopping centers.


      "Real Estate and Land Use Issues in the Representation of Medical Marijuana Facilities," co-presented with Brian R. Smith, American Bar Association's Annual Meeting (2015)

      "Creating/Modifying Historic Preservation Ordinances," at International Municipal Lawyers Association webinar series, co-presented with Thomas P. Cody (June 2014)

      "Legal and Ethical Issues in the Representation of Medical Marijuana Facilities," co-presented with Diane W. Whitney, at Connecticut Bar Association's Real Property Section Meeting (2014)

      "Current Real Estate Issues and Trends," co-presented with Lauren M. Sigg and George W. Watson III, co-moderator of monthly webinar series sponsored by the Connecticut Chapter of the Counselors of Real Estate and the University of Connecticut Center for Real Estate and Urban Economic Studies (2010-2012)

      "Primer: Zoning and the Fair Housing Act Amendments and Americans with Disabilities Act," at Connecticut Bar Association's Planning and Zoning Section Advanced Program "A Potpourri of Hot Topics: A Spicy Mix of Land Use Issues" in New Britain, Connecticut (10/22/2010)

      "Robinson & Cole Annual Review of Land Use Case Law," co-presented with John P. Casey, at Connecticut Bar Association's June Meeting of the Planning and Zoning Section (6/21/2010)

      "Accommodating Zoning: Uses and Limits of the Fair Housing Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act," at American Bar Association's State and Local Government Section Spring Meeting (4/30/2010)

      "Clean Water Act Update: Storm Water Permitting, Enforcement, and TMDLs," co-presented with Lauren M. Sigg and George W. Watson III, Environmental and Utilities Practice Group Roundtable (2009)

    • News

      R+C in the News

      • July 20, 2018

        Michele Maresca Moderates Panel Discussion on the Future of Retail

        • » more info

          Michele Maresca Moderates Panel Discussion on the Future of Retail

          Real Estate + Development Group lawyer Michele L. Maresca moderated a panel discussion on the "Future of Retail" as part of the New England Conference & Deal Making Idea Exchange on July 17, 2018 in Boston, Massachusetts. Presented by the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC,) the session examined how landlords can position their tenant mix to respond to a rapidly changing market. The program also included the exploration of two case studies, Arsenal Yards redevelopment and Tuscan Village new development, that are especially illustrative of forward-thinking retail development. Arsenal Yards is a community-minded redevelopment of a Boston area retail center into a major mixed-use project with retail, restaurant, office, hotel, and residential space. Tuscan Village is a ground-up development on over 170 acres that will use a mix of downtown-style housing, office, retail, and experience to create a destination where people can live, work, stay, and play.

      • March 19, 2018

        Robinson+Cole Lawyers Support Annual Bryant University Women’s Summit®

        • » more info

          Robinson+Cole Lawyers Support Annual Bryant University Women’s Summit®

          Robinson+Cole was a bronze sponsor of the Bryant University Women’s Summit® held on Friday, March 16, 2018, in Smithfield, Rhode Island. With over 1000 women in attendance, Robinson+Cole was the sole law firm sponsor. The mission of the Women's Summit is to empower women professionally, personally, and financially. The event features nationally recognized keynote speakers as well as breakout sessions led by experts in their fields, helping attendees experience renewed confidence and enthusiasm in approaching their personal and professional lives. Data Privacy + Cybersecurity Team lawyer Linn F. Freedman was among the summit’s speakers and presented the session "Take Control of Your Personal Information: Understanding the Risks and Rewards of Using Smartphones, Mobile Applications, and Social Media." Ms. Freedman provided practical tips for protecting against identify theft. This is the sixth year that Robinson+Cole has sponsored this event. Attendees included the following lawyers: Nuala E. Droney, Patricia J. Igoe, Dana M. Horton, Michele L. Maresca, Kathryn M. Rattigan, and Lisa C. Riccio along with their respective guests.

           

      • August 23, 2017

        Michele Maresca Appointed to ICSC Leadership Position

        • » more info

          Michele Maresca Appointed to ICSC Leadership Position

          Real Estate + Development Group lawyer Michele L. Maresca has been appointed as the private sector chair to the International Council of Shopping Centers’ (ICSC) P3 Committee in Connecticut. Her role will be to help build positive relationships between the public and private sectors by developing educational programs that highlight the positive economic effect of the retail industry on communities. The P3 Committee's educational programs also provide a forum for developers, retailers, brokers, lenders, and local government officials to network, initiate dialogue, and discuss development issues and mutually desired retail projects. 

      • August 9, 2017

        Michele Maresca Presents at New England Conference & Deal Making Event

        • » more info

          Michele Maresca Presents at New England Conference & Deal Making Event

          Real Estate + Development Group lawyer Michele L. Maresca presented at the New England Conference & Deal Making event, sponsored by the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC), in the session "Dollars and $ense: Practical Insights to Solving Recurring & Emerging Shopping Center Issues and Improving Your Bottom Line," held in Boston on July 19, 2017. Ms. Maresca, along with her fellow panelists, spoke about the transformation of shopping centers. In particular, she explored two emerging elements of the retail real estate industry: first, the importance of understanding and quantifying occupancy costs in tenant rent negotiations and shopping center operations in today's changing marketplace, and second, issues and situations in repurposing and redevelopment in the rapidly evolving area of shopping centers.

      • January 17, 2013

        Michele Maresca Appointed Alternate to West Hartford’s Town Plan and Zoning Commission and Inland Wetlands and Watercourses Agency

        • » more info

          Michele Maresca Appointed Alternate to West Hartford’s Town Plan and Zoning Commission and Inland Wetlands and Watercourses Agency

          Land use and real estate attorney Michele L. Maresca has been appointed as an alternate to the Town Plan and Zoning Commission and the Inland Wetlands and Watercourses Agency of West Hartford. The commission manages community development through the Town’s zoning and subdivision regulations and is responsible for updating and adopting the Town Plan of Conservation and Development while the agency has approval authority over all land use applications requiring an inland wetlands permit.
      • December 2, 2010

        National Association of Realtors® honors LandLaw Partner and Firm

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          National Association of Realtors® honors LandLaw Partner and Firm

          LandLaw partner Brian W. Blaesser and Robinson & Cole were honored by the National Association of Realtors® (NAR) at its national conference in November. Mr. Blaesser and his R&C team were recognized for their 12 years of work on behalf of NAR through programs developed to address issues important to Realtors® and the real estate industry. These programs include the Land Use Initiative, through which the team provides analyses of proposed state and local regulatory initiatives, the Customized State Legislation Program, through which the team prepares Realtor®-sponsored state legislation, the Smart Growth Quarterly e-Newsletter, which provides a 50-state update of pending smart growth-related legislation and initiatives at the state and local levels, and the Coordinating Realtor® Campaign, NAR’s national legislative campaign to address state real estate transfer taxes. The Robinson & Cole NAR team of attorneys and land use analysts is drawn from across the firm’s offices and includes Karla L. Chaffee, Anne F. Campbell, Amanda S. Eckhoff, Michael Giaimo, Michele L. Maresca, Linnea C. McCaffrey, Gregory S. Sampson, Timothy C. Twardowski and George W. Watson III.

          While at the conference, Mr. Blaesser met with NAR’s leadership to discuss Robinson & Cole’s work for NAR and was asked to address the controversial issue of private transfer fees (PTFs), which are fees required to be paid to a private third party upon the sale or transfer of real property. They are typically imposed in the form of a covenant recorded against the property. NAR and the American Land Title Association (ALTA) have opposed PTFs on the ground that they constitute an unreasonable restraint on the transferability of real property. The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) acted to prohibit issuance of FHA insurance on properties with PTFs in June 2010. The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) recently proposed guidance that would instruct Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac not to purchase mortgages secured by properties that are encumbered by private transfer fees.

      • November 3, 2010

        Attorneys Cochair Connecticut Bar Association Planning and Zoning Section Event

        • » more info

          Attorneys Cochair Connecticut Bar Association Planning and Zoning Section Event

          Land use attorneys Timothy D. Bates and John P. Casey cochaired the Connecticut Bar Association Planning and Zoning Section advanced program entitled A Potpourri of Hot Topics: A Spicy Mix of Land Use Issues on October 22, 2010, in New Britain, Connecticut. As part of the program, land use and real estate attorney Michele L. Maresca delivered the presentation “Primer: Zoning and the Fair Housing Act Amendments and Americans With Disabilities Act.” The half day event also included lectures on green building and zoning, electronic filing in land use cases, updates on wetlands laws and conditions in zoning permits, and municipal insurance company responses to civil rights claims.
      • July 9, 2010

        John Casey and Michele Maresca Present a Review of Land Use Case Law to the Connecticut Bar Association

        • » more info

          John Casey and Michele Maresca Present a Review of Land Use Case Law to the Connecticut Bar Association

          Landlaw attorneys John P. Casey and Michele L. Maresca recently presented the firm's annual review of land use case law to the Planning and Zoning Section of the Connecticut Bar Association. The presentation discussed significant Connecticut Appellate Court and Supreme Court decisions in land use law from the past year, including cases on site plan review under the Coastal Management Act, public notice requirements for zoning applications, proximity of a residential property to a gun club as a violation of due process, standing of an opposition group to challenge a zoning decision, and a town's exercise of municipal powers in lieu of relief under zoning statutes.
      • May 11, 2010

        Robinson & Cole Attorney Speaks at Land Use Hot Topics Program in Miami

        • » more info

          Robinson & Cole Attorney Speaks at Land Use Hot Topics Program in Miami

          LandLaw attorney Michele L. Maresca recently participated in the Land Use Hot Topics panel at the American Bar Association's State and Local Law Section meeting in Miami on April 30, 2010. Ms. Maresca presented a paper, co-authored with Timothy D. Bates and Joel C. Norwood, entitled "Accommodating Zoning: Uses and Limits of the Fair Housing Act and the Americans With Disabilities Act." The paper analyzes a case study of a site application made in Mystic, Connecticut, by which the applicant sought "reasonable accommodations" under the Fair Housing Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act. The article will be published in an upcoming edition of The Urban Lawyer.

      R+C News Releases

      • March 6, 2018

        Michele Maresca Appointed to Aurora Foundation Board of Directors

        • » more info

          Michele Maresca Appointed to Aurora Foundation Board of Directors

          The Aurora Foundation, an organization committed to addressing the needs of women and girls to ensure a level playing field for all, has appointed Real Estate + Development Group lawyer Michele L. Maresca to its Board of Directors. The Aurora Foundation was formed to serve as a catalyst for change in the lives of women and girls in Greater Hartford, with the intended effect of unlocking the potential of their families and surrounding communities. Read more in the press release.

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      • October 17, 2017

        Robinson+Cole Lawyers Recognized by Super Lawyers®

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          Robinson+Cole Lawyers Recognized by Super Lawyers®

          A total of 56 Robinson+Cole attorneys were named Super Lawyers® in the states of Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York, and Rhode Island for 2017. The Super Lawyers® designation is based on regional balloting by attorneys, third-party research, and a peer review process encompassing myriad practice areas.

          In addition, 29 attorneys at the firm were recognized as “Rising Stars.” An explanation of the Super Lawyers methodology can be found here.

          See the list of included lawyers in the news release.

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      • May 18, 2017

        Robinson+Cole Team Involved in “Office Deal of the Year”

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          Robinson+Cole Team Involved in “Office Deal of the Year”

          A team of lawyers from Robinson+Cole are among those involved in a commercial real estate deal recognized by the New Jersey Chapter of NAIOP as Office Deal of the Year 2017 during the 30th Annual Commercial Real Estate Awards Gala, held at The Palace at Somerset Park in Somerset, New Jersey on May 11, 2017.

          The Office Deal of the Year 2017 Award was presented in recognition of the work performed on the sale and leaseback of Unilever's North American Office Headquarters and industrial facility located at 700 and 800 Sylvan Avenue in Englewood Cliffs, NJ. Robinson+Cole represented Unilever in a series of transactions that resulted in redevelopments at both properties.

          The team involved in the deal included: April F. Condon, Steven L. Elbaum, Charles E. Janson, Michele L. Maresca, Martin A. Onorato, and Matthew R. Weilgus. Read more in the press release.

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      • October 18, 2016

        Robinson+Cole Lawyers Recognized by Super Lawyers®

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          Robinson+Cole Lawyers Recognized by Super Lawyers®

          A total of 51 Robinson+Cole attorneys were named Super Lawyers® in the states of Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York, and Rhode Island for 2016. The Super Lawyers® designation is based on regional balloting by attorneys, third-party research, and a peer review process encompassing myriad practice areas.

          In addition, 23 attorneys at the firm were recognized as “Rising Stars.” An explanation of the Super Lawyers methodology can be found here.

          See the list of included lawyers in the news release.

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      • December 28, 2015

        Robinson+Cole Elects New Partners and Counsel

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          Robinson+Cole Elects New Partners and Counsel

          Robinson+Cole is pleased to announce the election of four new partners and the promotion of two associates to counsel, effective January 1, 2016. The new partners are Adam Anderson, Megan E. Baroni, Britt-Marie K. Cole-Johnson, and April F. Condon. The new counsel are Alaine C. Doolan and Michele L. Maresca.
          "These six lawyers have made significant contributions to our clients and to our firm's successes and it is a pleasure to congratulate them on their well-deserved promotions," said John B. Lynch Jr., managing partner. "They provide exceptional service and value to our clients and offer a deep knowledge in their respective legal fields."
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      • October 19, 2015

        Robinson+Cole Lawyers Recognized by Super Lawyers®

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          Robinson+Cole Lawyers Recognized by Super Lawyers®

          A total of 54 Robinson+Cole attorneys were named Super Lawyers® in the states of Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York, and Rhode Island for 2015. The Super Lawyers designation is based on regional balloting by attorneys, third-party research, and a peer review process encompassing myriad practice areas.
          In addition, 21 attorneys at the firm were recognized as “Rising Stars.” Read an explanation of the Super Lawyers methodology here. See the list of included lawyers in the news release.
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      • October 17, 2014

        Robinson+Cole Lawyers Recognized by Super Lawyers

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          Robinson+Cole Lawyers Recognized by Super Lawyers

          A total of 54 Robinson+Cole attorneys were named Super Lawyers® in the states of Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New York for 2014.The Super Lawyers® designation is based on regional balloting by attorneys, third-party research, and a peer review process encompassing myriad practice areas.

          In addition, 21 attorneys at the firm were recognized as "Rising Stars." Read an explanation of the Super Lawyers methodology here.

          To see the recognized attorneys and their areas of practice, click here.

        • View article