NAIOP San Francisco Bay Area Chapter: Job Board

Development Associate

Company: Harvest Properties

THE COMPANY

Founded in 2002, Harvest Properties is a leading full service commercial real estate investment and development firm specializing in acquiring, entitling, developing, managing, and financing commercial and residential property, primarily through joint-venture investments in Northern California. Harvest Properties strives to generate attractive returns for its financial partners and provide creative real estate solutions and outstanding service. Harvest Properties’ portfolio comprises approximately ten million square feet of office, industrial, R&D, and retail properties in the San Francisco Bay Area.

More recently, the firm has been focused on building out its entitlement and development arm of the business and now has over ten projects underway, representing over 600 units of residential and nearly 2.75 million square feet of office. The company is actively seeking additional investments and looking to hire a Development Associate to join the growing team.

More information on the firm can be found at www.harvestproperties.com.

THE POSITION - OVERVIEW

The Development Associate will report to the project leads and be responsible for supporting all aspects of the development process from land acquisitions, entitlements, and vertical development for the company’s office, residential and mixed-use projects.

The focus of this position will be on all aspects of the development process including financial underwriting, budgeting, site/zoning diligence, architectural design, site engineering, offsite improvements, community outreach, CEQA/City approvals, and transition into development.

The individual will be responsible for supporting the team’s development efforts across the portfolio, with a mind towards maximizing returns, while mitigating budget impacts, and should have a good understanding of the entire process. The goal is to grow this individual into a project lead.

Specific Responsibilities and Accountabilities

Project Inception:

- Perform financial analysis and property due diligence for potential land acquisitions
- Work with project team to determine and execute a thoughtful entitlement and development strategy for the project with a mind towards maximizing value, while still ensuring a successful entitlement effort.
- Responsible for negotiating/managing consultant contracts, project schedule, the project budget and monthly reporting/draws and provides input on the development budget throughout the process.
- Coordinates with local officials and various stakeholder groups, including neighborhood councils, to assist in managing community outreach programs to build support for the development proposal.
- Provides support in the creation and development of all entitlement documentation and materials required for project approvals.
- Assists with identifying/solving issues during the entitlement process while mitigating budget impacts. Strong understanding of land-use policy and the entitlement/development process including CEQA.
- Depending on experience, takes on asset management responsibilities (leasing, etc.)
- Actively participates in local and regional industry groups and community organizations
- Keeps the group informed of General Plan and Precise Plan updates that may be of interest, as well as local ordinances and propositions that could impact the company portfolio or acquisition strategy.
- Ideally brings broader development experience than entitlements – acquisitions/financial expertise or development/construction expertise strongly preferred.
- Excellent organizational and time management skills with the ability to work independently, prioritize, and multi-task
- Extremely detail-oriented with strong quantitative skills
- Preference for entitlement/development experience in at least some of the jurisdictions in which Harvest is developing.
- Long-term dedication to the Bay Area and entrenching oneself in local communities & organizations.
- Thrives in an entrepreneurial environment with little structure. Works independently, as well as collaboratively and is extremely proactive about pushing the project forward with limited assistance.
- Highly motivated / proactive with excellent interpersonal skills and the ability to interact with the real estate community and grow within an entrepreneurial and thriving investment organization.
- Has the interpersonal skills and presence to interact effectively with all constituencies. A high energy team player with “can do” attitude.
- Friendly and approachable demeanor that works well under high stress situations.
- Possesses excellent writing skills.
- Excellent computer skills; must be literate in Excel, Word, and Powerpoint.

Planning Approvals/Entitlements:

- Provides support through the entitlement process, including support at hearings and neighborhood meetings, working closely with attorneys, planners, architects, engineers, local officials, community groups, political advisors, and other consultants.

Other:

Proactively communicates with the project team and capital partner

Candidate Qualifications/Experience

Education: The successful candidate should have a strong academic background with a college degree. A focus on finance, urban planning, architecture, engineering, construction, or public policy is preferred.

Experience: A minimum of 3 years of experience in real estate entitlement/development or acquisitions.

Specifically, candidates for this position should possess the following career experience/skills:

- Ideally brings broader development experience than entitlements – acquisitions/financial expertise or development/construction expertise strongly preferred.
- Excellent organizational and time management skills with the ability to work independently, prioritize, and multi-task
- Extremely detail-oriented with strong quantitative skills
- Preference for entitlement/development experience in at least some of the jurisdictions in which Harvest is developing.
- Long-term dedication to the Bay Area and entrenching oneself in local communities & organizations.
- Thrives in an entrepreneurial environment with little structure. Works independently, as well as collaboratively and is extremely proactive about pushing the project forward with limited assistance.
- Highly motivated / proactive with excellent interpersonal skills and the ability to interact with the real estate community and grow within an entrepreneurial and thriving investment organization.
- Has the interpersonal skills and presence to interact effectively with all constituencies. A high energy team player with “can do” attitude.
- Friendly and approachable demeanor that works well under high stress situations.
- Possesses excellent writing skills.
- Excellent computer skills; must be literate in Excel, Word, and Powerpoint.