MacMillan to head CSURF real estate office

One of Northern Colorado’s most prolific commercial real estate developers recently took the helm at the Colorado State University Research Foundation’s real estate office.

Stuart MacMillan, president and CEO of Everitt-MacMillan Commercial LLC, accepted the position of director of CSURF’s real estate office, filling an almost yearlong vacancy. MacMillan has already started in his new position but plans to continue his work on development projects with which he is currently involved.

“It seemed like a bit of a change would be good,” MacMillan said. “Right now, I’m in a pretty steep learning curve.”

MacMillan spent the last 30-plus years working on commercial development in Northern Colorado – first at Neenan Cos. before joining Everitt Cos. about 25 years ago. He is now wading through a world that ties together academia, the public sector and the private sector.

CSURF gets real (estate)

The real estate office was formed several years ago and is charged with the overall administration of the real estate assets of CSURF, the CSU Board of Governors and the CSU System. The department was involved not with the day-to-day management of properties, but instead focused on the overall stewardship and supply input on acquisition, use and sale of real estate.

The office was headed by Victor Holtorf until April 2009, when he officially “separated” from the organization, leaving with a severance package. At the time, CSURF indicated  the real estate office was being reorganized. Holtorf’s departure came about six months after the abrupt resignation of CSU President Larry Penley. Kathleen Henry, president and CEO of CSURF, said the prospect of a new era of administration at the university led to some changes for CSURF’s real estate office.

“We decided it was a good opportunity to look at the organizational structure as well as the philosophical structure,” she said. “It’s a very different political and economic environment now than it was several years ago when we formed the real estate office.”

Community stewards

Henry said the board of CSURF, of which MacMillan was a member for about three years, decided that the stewardship function of the real estate office should focus on a long-term, thoughtful, collaborative approach with more input from the various players impacted by the university’s holdings.

“We decided we wanted to look for a real estate executive that could help us move to that change in philosophy and maximize the value of the assets,” she said.

After several months of searching to fill the position, Henry said the board honed its vision for the leadership role. They wanted a seasoned real estate professional with a record of success who knew commercial real estate “from the top down and the bottom up.” Henry added that the ability to build partnerships and form collaborative relationships also rose to the top of the attributes list. The more descriptive the list of requirements got, the more the board began to look at MacMillan, she said.

CSURF offered MacMillan the position in late December, when he resigned from his role on the board of directors.

“I dearly love CSU and think it’s the lifeblood of our community,” MacMillan said of his decision.

Both MacMillan and CSURF acknowledge there would be a time of transition while he continued work on a variety of projects in various phases of development. MacMillan was very insistent that none of his projects would get less attention.

“I’ll transition and do more and more things for CSU and CSURF in the time ahead,” MacMillan said.

Slow transition

For Everitt-MacMillan, as a whole, things will transition slowly as well.

“It looks to me that for the foreseeable future things will be status-quo,´ said David Everitt, president and CEO of Everitt Cos. “As time permits and projects dictate, we hope to have him continue to be involved.”

Everitt-MacMillan will continue to exist as an entity. MacMillan will continue to work on projects he is involved with that are in the preliminary stages or well under way. Everitt sees MacMillan’s new role as a good fit for his business partner and the community.

“Stuart’s the perfect choice for that role,” Everitt said. “We’re happy to be able to see him apply his skills there.”

MacMillan is coming to the CSURF job with several big projects on his plate. The wind farm project on Maxwell Ranch saw its partnership dissolve at the end of 2009 when the developer, Wind Holding LLC, failed to secure financing to move forward as required by the contract. Additionally, CSURF will be devising a plan for a 143-acre parcel at the southwest corner of Prospect Road and Interstate 25, which the university picked up in a land swap deal with the city of Fort Collins in 2007.

“I think that has to be a priority,” MacMillan said.

MacMillan would like to see the Prospect property become something different and creative to set it apart. Ideas for a research and business park for CSU-related start-ups have been floated since the transaction occurred.

“One of the things we will concentrate on is economic development for the whole area,” Henry said. “What’s good for Northern Colorado is good for Colorado State University and vice versa.”

Fiscal focus

Revenue generation will also become a key factor in weighing the risks and rewards of real estate for CSURF.

“I’ve seen the university grow and get better and better,” MacMillan said. “I think there are real challenges ahead for revenue and we have to leave no stone unturned.”

Henry agrees that, with the tight higher education budget, the real estate office will focus on how it might provide additional revenue. CSURF is partly funded through operating agreements with CSU but also generates funds through technology licensing, leasing real estate, etc.

With MacMillan at the helm, CSURF will also be saving a substantial amount on salary. When he left the position, Holtorf had an annual salary of $235,000. The salary for the position is now $120,000 to $165,000.

For MacMillan, the prospect of diving into a new role outside of his comfort zone was too much to pass up.

“After 20-some years, I thought a new challenge would be fascinating,” he said.

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