Director of Development

A rare and comprehensive real estate development platform offering exposure to the full lifecycle of large‑scale master‑planned community development. This role provides a unique opportunity to deepen expertise in real estate feasibility analysis, financial modeling, development budgeting, and cost tracking across multi‑phase infrastructure execution. The Director of Development will gain hands‑on experience navigating California State Map Act requirements, processing raw un‑entitled land through tentative map approvals, managing map conditions, and delivering projects through final map recordation. The position offers direct involvement in transforming land from initial entitlement strategy through horizontal improvements and fully improved finished lots, providing an unmatched learning environment within a real‑world, large‑scale development setting.
Position Summary
The development entity is seeking an experienced and highly strategic Director of Development to lead the planning, entitlement, development, and horizontal construction execution of a large‑scale, master‑planned community located in Copperopolis, California.
The community is a transformative mixed‑use development consisting of approximately 1,900 residential units, championship golf courses, commercial village areas, recreational amenities, marinas, and private beach clubs. The Director of Development will play a critical leadership role in delivering this multi‑phase, multi‑asset community from entitlement through fully improved lot completion and vertical builder delivery.
This position reports directly to executive leadership and will oversee internal teams, consultants, engineers, contractors, public agencies, and strategic capital partners.
Key Responsibilities Master Planning & Entitlements
- Oversee land planning, site planning, and refinement of the master plan. - Manage entitlement strategy, vested tentative maps, final maps, and related approvals. - Interface with local, county, and state agencies to secure and maintain permits and approvals. - Ensure compliance with zoning, environmental regulations, and development agreements.
Development & Infrastructure Delivery
- Lead horizontal development execution including grading, utilities, roadways, drainage, golf course improvements, marina infrastructure, beach club facilities, and amenity construction. - Coordinate phasing and lot delivery schedules in alignment with builder takedown schedules. - Manage improvement plans, engineering design, value engineering, and constructability reviews. - Oversee budgets, schedules, and cost controls for all infrastructure and amenity components.
Financial Oversight & Capital Coordination
- Work closely with ownership and finance teams to manage development budgets and cash flow. - Coordinate with equity partners and debt providers regarding funding of horizontal improvements and amenity construction. - Support pro forma updates, feasibility analysis, and financial modeling for phased development. - Implement and monitor cost tracking systems across all phases of development.
Builder & Commercial Coordination
- Interface with the homebuilding division to ensure timely delivery of fully improved finished lots. - Coordinate commercial pad delivery and vertical developer integration. - Align infrastructure timing with residential absorption and commercial activation.
Team Leadership & Vendor Management
- Manage third‑party consultants including civil engineers, land planners, environmental consultants, traffic engineers, and surveyors. - Be involved with general contractors and horizontal contractors. - Establish development schedules, milestone tracking, and accountability systems. - Build and lead an internal development team as the project scales.
Risk Management
- Identify entitlement, environmental, construction, and financial risks and proactively develop mitigation strategies. - Maintain quality control standards across all phases of development.
Qualifications
- Minimum 10-15 years of progressive experience in large‑scale master‑planned community development. - Proven track record creating and working with consultants through the mapping process. - Demonstrated experience delivering multi‑phase residential communities of 1,000+ units. - Strong background in horizontal development, infrastructure installation, and amenity construction. - Experience with golf courses, marina, or resort‑style development is highly preferred. - Deep understanding of California entitlement processes and subdivision mapping (tentative and final maps), including State Map Act compliance. - Proven ability to understand complex capital structures including equity and debt financing. - Strong financial acumen with experience in feasibility analysis and cost management. - Strong leadership, negotiation, and stakeholder management skills. - Bachelor's degree in Real Estate Development, Civil Engineering, Urban Planning, or related field (Master's degree preferred).
Desired Attributes
- Strategic thinker with hands‑on execution capability. - Strong financial acumen and development modeling literacy. - Ability to operate in a fast‑paced, entrepreneurial development environment. - Collaborative leadership style with strong accountability standards. - Long‑term mindset aligned with legacy community building.