Chandler Aden is a seasoned executive with over 25 years of extensive experience in the construction and development industry across Florida. As the Owner of Aden Development LLC, Chandler leads a real estate development and construction consulting company dedicated to representing owners, developers and equity investors. Before founding Aden Development, Chandler served as Vice President of Development for all Florida market-rate multifamily projects at Gilbane Development Company – a vertically integrated, full-service real estate development firm. There, he honed his expertise in managing comprehensive development processes from inception to completion.
Prior to his experience as a developer, he was a partner at KAST Construction, one of the largest general contracting firms in Florida. Over the last 25 years, he has developed strong relationships with developers, designers, land use attorneys, land planners, government officials, contractors and industry entities, resulting in significant new business opportunities. He has extensive experience in all facets of real estate, construction and development.
CONSTRUCTION EXPERIENCE
Chandler was a key partner and member of KAST’s executive committee, significantly influencing corporate strategic planning. He joined KAST when it had 16 employees and $27 million in revenue, and upon his departure, the company had grown to 265 employees with $700 million in revenue. Chandler played a crucial role in securing nearly $1 billion in sales in 2019. He built the preconstruction department from scratch, leading a 32-person team, and fostering strong subcontractor relationships. Chandler cultivated corporate culture while helping to establish new offices in Tampa (2017) and Miami (2018). During his tenure at KAST he interviewed & hired staff across all departments, including executive positions. Chandler also led training initiatives and focused on process improvement as part of the Operations Committee.
CONSTRUCTION KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
- Strategic Planning: Set the overall strategic direction of the company, including long-term goals, growth initiatives, and market positioning.
- Financial Management: Oversee budgeting, financial reporting, cash flow management, and profitability analysis.
- Business Development: Identify and pursue new business opportunities, cultivate client relationships, and expand the client base.
- Project Oversight: Provide direction for major projects, ensuring they are completed on time, within budget, and to client satisfaction.
- Risk Management: Assess and mitigate project risks, including regulatory compliance, safety issues, and contractual disputes.
- Human Resources: Manage hiring, training, and retention of talent, oversee performance evaluations and development.
- Legal and Compliance: Ensure compliance with laws, regulations, and industry standards, including contract negotiation and management.
- Client Relations: Maintain strong relationships with clients, address concerns, and ensure client satisfaction.
- Quality Control: Establish and enforce quality control standards to meet or exceed client expectations and industry standards.
- Community Engagement: Represent the company in industry associations and community events, engage in outreach efforts.
Chandler’s leadership at Aden Development ensures that clients receive top-tier development and construction services, executive leadership, and project management expertise, fostering successful and profitable real estate ventures.
DEVELOPMENT EXPERTISE
At Gilbane Development Company, Chandler was Vice President of Development was responsible to independently lead multifamily development projects across Florida, ensuring the timely and profitable completion of each phase. He was Responsible for timely success of every phase of the “cradle-to-grave” development process from market analysis, acquisitions, due diligence, entitlements, design/development, construction, finance, operations, and disposition. While at Gilbane, he procured land, conducted comprehensive plan amendments, facilitated rezoning, obtained site plan approval, managed design and permitting processes, and negotiated equity terms for projects in Florida.
DEVELOPMENT KEY RESPONSIBILTIES
- Market Research and Analysis: Conduct market research to identify emerging trends, assess demand for specific types of real estate, and evaluate the competitive landscape.
- Acquisitions and Dispositions: Lead the identification, evaluation, and negotiation of property acquisitions and dispositions, including due diligence, financial analysis, and deal structuring. Cultivating relationships with property owners, civic organizations, government officials, other developers, and brokers to identify development opportunities.
- Economic and Regulatory Analysis: Analyzing and interpreting economic research, zoning regulations, and conceptual design plans.
- Stakeholder Management: Build and maintain relationships with key stakeholders, including investors, lenders, partners, government agencies, community groups, and tenants.
- Legal and Compliance: Ensure compliance with all applicable laws, regulations, and permitting requirements throughout the development process, including negotiating real estate and construction-related legal documents, managing contracts, leases, entitlements, zoning approvals, and representing the organization’s interests in tax abatement and development agreement negotiations.
- Risk Management: Identify and mitigate risks associated with development projects, including market risks, regulatory risks, construction risks, and financial risks.
- Industry Engagement: Monitoring industry trends and participating in events to stay informed about market dynamics and emerging opportunities.
- Financial Planning: Leading proforma underwriting and due diligence processes to ensure projects align with investment objectives.
- Pre-Development Activities: Directing all pre-development activities, including design, entitlement work, and resolving due diligence issues.
- Sustainability and Environmental Responsibility: Integrate sustainable design principles and environmental best practices into development projects to minimize environmental impact and enhance long-term value.
- Community and Government Relations: Communicating with local citizen groups, elected officials, and government staff as the primary community representative.
- Investment Committee Requests: Preparing capital investment and pre-development expenditure requests.
- Public Relations and Marketing: Represent the company in public forums, engage with the media, and promote the company’s brand and projects through marketing and communications initiatives.