McGarvey Development Co. is a relative newcomer in
the crowded Florida marketplace, and its approach is anything but traditional.
The result: atypical success. McGarvey Development Co. in Bonita Springs, Fla., is not your typical
property developer. The company takes a unique view of its mission: McGarvey not
only develops and build its properties, it owns and manages them as
well.
Many developers work only for Clients, while few actually own their
projects.
'We are the developer, and aside from being the developer, we
are the general contractors,' says McGarvey vice president Charles Jans. 'Going
one step further, we are licensed electricians, plumbers and air-conditioning
specialists. The difference between us and other companies that do what we do is
that we are all in-house. All of the aspects of the business - down to about 85
percent of the workforce - is actually on the payroll.'
This fact also
makes the company different: Among its strengths is relating to tenants on a
personal level and completely engaging them in the design process.
'We
talk about everything down to the finishes and paint colors and they're dealing
with the same people, so there's a real comfort level in dealing with us,' Jans
cites. 'That helps us.
' If there is a complaint about even the smallest
issue - the air-conditioning's too cold or the dumpster doesn't get emptied
enough - they call us about it, so we know what their concerns are. The
interesting thing about us is if there's not enough room in the building that
they're in, if they want to move, we can cancel their lease and set them up in a
new space or another building. Our tenants come to us for the same reasons they
came to us in the first place: our ability to deliver what they require. We can
handle their growth.'
By contrast, often people have to deal with what
Jans refers to as 'briefcase contractors' - that is, those who must subcontract
out much of the work but do not have much control over the end
product.
That's not the case with McGarvey.
' If somebody wants to
lease a space in a specific building,' he adds, 'we are pretty good about giving
a certain date they can be in a space because we have control over the
construction and the quality, and we've been pretty successful at it because of
that.'
Caption:
McGarvey Development Co. not only develops and builds
projects, it also owns and manages them. The strategy has been successful in
Florida, where a move from New Jersey has hastened company
growth.
Moreover, the company has bucked long odds in relocation, which
also makes it atypical.
McGarvey originated in Mooresetown, N.J., 18
years ago but moved to Florida in 1996, when it departed New Jersey in the wake
of a recession that forced some 10 development companies out of business.
McGarvey targeted southwest Florida, one of the nation's hot spots for new
development. As such, McGarvey wasn't the only developer looking south for
greener pastures.
Nonetheless, seven years later, the company is standing
tall - as both a residential and commercial developer. The 80-employee company,
considered a medium-sized developer, has annual revenues of $50
million.
In addition to its commercial and industrial projects, McGarvey
dabbles in the residential market, focusing on homes in the $2.5 million to
$ 10 million range. The company also keeps an eye on market trends to
determine where it will reap the best profitability.
'Because of being
the diverse kind of company that we are, there have been times when the market
fluctuates, and the residential product is actually more active than the
commercial product,' Jans notes. 'It turns one way and goes completely the other
way. From that respect, it's been good to be a company that does commercial,
residential and industrial.'
McGarvey's development area includes Lee and
Collier counties, approximately 150 miles due south of Tampa. There, the company
has a dozen project managers who handle various aspects of
construction.
One manager handles the shell construction and builds the
buildings. Another manager follows up with the interior build-out. Even the
equipment, from dump trucks and rollers to lifts, belongs to the
company.
' It's down to a science,' Jans says. 'We built a
98,000-square-foot shell with four floors over a level of parking in six months,
which has got to be some kind of record. I don't track it, but I don't know that
a lot of people can build a single-family home sometimes in six months, so that
was a remarkable feat.'
Caption:
While McGarvey Development builds
high-end homes, its primary market is commercial projects. Speedy construction
is one key company attribute. Another attribute is close tenant participation in
the planning of individual units.
'We are
the developer, and aside from being the developer, we are the general
contractors. Going one step further, we are licensed electricians, plumbers and
air-conditioning specialists.'
-Charles Jans,
vice president, McCarvey Development Co.
McGarvey favors tilt-wall
construction, although it also performs traditional construction work. The
flexibility, both in type of project and how it is built, isn't by
accident.
'You've got to really understand what's happening with the
market,' Jans emphasizes. 'It's a very vibrant and changing thing, and if you
see the market take a new direction, be prepared and know where to
go.'
McGarvey's most notable developments include the Mid-Metro Business
Center on Metro Parkway in Fort Myers, a 20-acre, seven-building development
totaling 204,000 square feet. The recently completed development broke ground in
1999 and now is almost 100 percent leased.
Jans describes the project as
a blend of at-grade and dock-height buildings. The dock-height buildings are
constructed with level ground in the rear while the parking lot in the front is
built up to what looks like a mild elevation. The look adds to the aesthetic
appeal of the buildings while making it easier for truck drivers to park their
vehicles and unload their goods.
' That's been a very effective marketing
tool in just that aspect alone, because you've got trucks that are as large as
65 feet that are trying to come in and maneuver around behind these buildings
into units,' Jans notes. 'We always provide a large apron in the back that gives
these trucks room to maneuver back there, and that's important.'
Another
project is the Westlink's Business Park a 5,000-acre master plan for the
community of Gateway in Fort Myers. Westlinks features a mix of office and
industrial buildings, and is currently constructing a 98,000-square-foot
build-
ing that is 200-feet deep, all dock-height, and offers a 24-foot
clear-height ceiling.
'You don't see ceiling heights that get up much
beyond 18 feet, but if you get up to 24 feet, that opens the door for businesses
like distribution facilities that handle large commodities like furniture,' says
Jans.
As a flex building, Westlinks enables McGarvey to divide units
according to customer needs. 'We simply put a wall to the nearest demising
point, usually on a column line, and we'll give them that space, and then we can
do the inside office configuration in any fashion they require,' Jans says. 'We
offer a fully fire-sprinklered building. Tilt-wall construction gives them
security. We have an insulated roof on all of these buildings. Large overhead
doors in the back are conducive to well-run distribution.'
Clearly,
McGarvey doesn't believe in merely constructing a commercial building and hoping
people show interest. Instead, through customization and innovative design, the
company works to ensure that prospective tenants will be enticed enough to make
commitments.
Caption:
One example of McGarvey Development's work is
Westlinks Business Park, which consists of 10 'flex' buildings and more square
footage on the way
Consider the Riverview Corporate Center in Bonita
Springs, a Class A office development with nine buildings. McGarvey purchased a
larger piece of land than it normally would have - a 24-acre site on a river.
The company incorporated retail space in an effort to not only capture the
traffic from the main road, but also to provide support services, such as
catering, real estate, interior design and an upscale restaurant. Additionally,
the company built the only parking garage in the market.
Tenants of
McGarveys developments have taken notice.
Says Henry Cohen, a partner in
Cohen & Grigsby, P.C., a business located in McGarvey's Riverview Corporate
Center: 'Our experience with McGarvey has been wonderful. The organization has
been responsive. They do what they say they're going to do, and they do it
without a lot of pulling of teeth.'
Yet, despite its develop/build/own
stance, its personal touch with tenants and its fast Florida track record, the
company still has challenges. One challenge for the company is even keeping up
with its own growth.
Caption:
' You've got to really understand what's
happening with the market it's d very vibrant and changing thing, and if you see
the market take a new direction, be prepared and know where to go.'
- Charles
Jans, vice president McCarvey Development Co.
'In a good market, you've
really got to staff up to keep pace with it because 80 employees won't get the
job done and then your delivery time on these buildings will start to suffer,'
he says. 'The challenge is to try to stay well-staffed, see what's coming and be
prepared for it.
'Conversely, that means if we start to see a slowing of
that market, then let's redirect our efforts to where we need to be redirecting
them, and we may have to cut staff.'
For answers to challenges, Jans
points to the company's management team, which also includes Bill Price, senior
vice president, who handles many of the company's financial matters, and Dan
Gerner, an executive vice president, who oversees residential
development.
Ultimately, though, Jans contends the key to continued
success rests with the person for whom the company is named, John McGarvey,
president and owner.
'John McGarvey is a very astute individual and has a
very keen eye for detail,' Jans concludes. 'Knowing that's how he likes to see
the company run, everybody understands what it is that we need to be doing. We
need to be paying attention to the details.'
The details, indeed, are
making a difference - as well as making McGarvey Development a different kind of
developer.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
McGarvey Development
can be reached at (239) 738-7800 For those seeking market and general support in
the commercial development industry, one good source is the National Association
of Industrial and Office Properties in Herndon Va. Known as NAIOP, the
association consists of more than 10,000 members in 48 chapters around the
country. NAIOP represents the interests of developers and owners of industrial,
office and related commercial real estate. NAIOP can be reached at (703)
904-7100 or www.naiop.org.
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