St. John Properties is expanding into residential building for the first time with the launch of a new multifamily construction division to complement its existing development and investment operations.
The Baltimore-based commercial real estate firm is currently invested in over 3,000 residential units through a number of joint venture partnerships, and has 1,500 units in its development. The company intends to leverage its existing subcontractor relationships in commercial office, flex/office, industrial and retail to support its multifamily division.
“We are launching this new in-house division based on our long-term confidence in the multifamily sector and our mission to bring consistency and reduce expenses when developing multifamily product,” Lawrence Maykrantz, president and CEO of St. John Properties, said in the news release. “Starting a new multifamily construction division has been in our corporate plans for many years.”
To oversee the new division, St. John Properties has hired Michael Poirot as vice president of multifamily construction. Poirot will initially oversee multifamily construction and development in Maryland, then expand the division’s scope to the company’s operations across the country — including Nashville, Tennessee, its newest market.
“St. John Properties’ business model emphasizes vertical integration, a philosophy that encompasses every phase of the development process,” Poirot said in the release. “Managing the entire process with in-house resources brings consistency, allows for the implementation of proven protocols, helps eliminate delays and saves money.”
Poirot has over 20 years of construction management experience, most recently at Towson, Maryland-based Whiting-Turner Contracting Co. He has overseen the construction of more than 2.3 million square feet of development space, including over 1,400 multifamily units, with a combined value of almost $400 million.
He intends to start in his new role by building a team of professionals to support St. John Properties’ multifamily pipeline.
St. John Properties has a national commercial real estate portfolio valued at over $5 billion, and has developed more than 24 million square feet of real estate across a variety of asset classes, according to the release.
