Our Focus

Our Services

Our Initiatives

Our Leadership


Dedication and integrity are the cornerstones of Balfour Beatty Communities' leadership.

Our leadership team spans all disciplines of development, planning, project management, operations, and facility management to ensure we can provide the finest quality residences, amenities, and services for our residents. 

Christopher Williams 
President

Christopher Williams is the President of Balfour Beatty Communities, the Organization’s military housing privatization division where he leads the long-term development, management and operations of the Company’s military family housing privatization projects throughout the United States. Mr. Williams is the key liaison who manages the partnership relationships with the Department of the Army, Department of the Navy as well as the United States Air Force. In addition, he provides leadership to a team of more than 900 development, construction community and facilities management industry professionals located on 48 military communities in 26 states and Washington DC. Under Mr. Williams’ care, the projects, with an Initial Development Period value of over $4.9 billion, have successfully completed construction of over 24,000 new and newly renovated homes on time and under budget. In addition to his role as President of Balfour Beatty Communities, Mr. Williams is also the Executive Vice President of its parent company, Balfour Beatty Capital Group. In this role, he is responsible for the implementation of its Safety and Sustainability Initiatives.
 
Prior to Balfour Beatty Capital Group, Mr. Williams was responsible for the development services for GMH Communities Trust Military Housing Division as well as its student housing division, College Park Campus Partners (CPCP)  which included  architectural planning and design, construction services, renovation solutions and re-use options, financing, housing operations, technology and telecommunications, housekeeping, maintenance and food service operations. He was also responsible for all facets of the facilities management of the GMH Communities Trust portfolio of properties nationwide, totaling approximately $1.5 billion including preventative, routine, and emergency maintenance, capital improvements, project management, budget and risk management, estimation and cost analysis for acquisitions and dispositions, construction management and re-development management.

Richard Taylor
Executive Vice President

Richard Taylor is Executive Vice President of Business Development for Balfour Beatty Communities, responsible for leading the business development efforts. Prior to formation of the Company, Mr. Taylor served a similar position with GMH Military Housing, the military housing division of GMH Communities Trust, a real estate investment trust specializing in the management and operation of student housing and military housing throughout the United States. Under his leadership, GMH Military Housing successfully grew to one of the nation's premier providers of privatized housing to our armed forces and their families. Mr. Taylor also previously headed the commercial construction division for GMH Capital Partners, LP, an international corporate real estate company, where, he led the completion of several commercial projects, including GMH's Windsor Corporate Park in East Windsor, New Jersey, and a flight simulator facility for SimuFlite International in Dallas, Texas. Prior to joining GMH, Mr. Taylor held the position of Civil Engineer Corps Officer in the US Navy for over twelve years.


Denise Hubley 
Chief Financial Officer 

Denise Hubley is the Chief Finanical Officer for Balfour Beatty Communities, is responsible for the finance, accounting, asset management, information technology, human resources, legal and marketing/communications operations for the Company. In this position, Ms. Hubley works closely with her colleagues to develop business strategies that support the overall mission, goals and objectives of the company, while providing overall financial leadership and direction. Ms. Hubley is also responsible for assuring that appropriate financial systems, processes, controls and personnel are in place to successfully maximize business opportunities and manage risk. Relative to financing, Ms. Hubley is responsible for identifying appropriate financing opportunities and alternatives and works within the capital markets to negotiate complex financing arrangements. To date, Ms. Hubley has successfully managed in excess of $3.0 billion in debt placements. Additionally, Ms. Hubley is responsible for all project restructuring, of which the company has closed approximately $1 billion to date. Additionally, Ms. Hubley is responsible for making sure all of the funds, raised for the projects that are being financed, are invested appropriately to achieve maximum benefits with low risk. In addition, she is responsible for overall asset management of the project investment portfolio valued in excess of $4.9 billion which encompasses 48 military communities in 26 states and Washington DC.  Ms. Hubley joined Balfour Beatty (formerly GMH Communities Trust) in 1989. Formerly, Ms. Hubley was the Senior Vice President of GMH Capital Partners where she directed the financial operations of the Realty Services Division, Asset Services and Construction Divisions.

Theresa Edelman
Senior Vice President of Community Management

Teresa Edelman is Senior Vice President of Community Management for Balfour Beatty Communities, responsible for overseeing the implementation and execution the Community Management, Operations, Maintenance and Resident Services plans on all of the military installations managed by the Company. Prior to formation of the Company, Ms. Edelman served a similar position with GMH Military Housing, the military housing division of GMH Communities Trust, a real estate investment trust specializing in the management and operation of student housing and military housing throughout the United States. Formerly, Ms. Edelman also served as Vice President of Residential Management for GMH Capital Partners, LP, an international corporate real estate company. During that time she managed two separate portfolios that each required extensive capital improvement to position the properties for sale and repayment of debt. She identified the areas of capital improvements that would provide the most significant value enhancement, led and implemented the improvements, increased revenues, and oversaw the operations until liquidations were completed. The property sales proceeds netted $93 million.


Mark Lavin
Senior Vice President of Project Management

Lieutenant Colonel (retired) Mark Lavin is Senior Vice President of Project Management for Balfour Beatty Communities, responsible for leading, planning, and executing efforts for the Company's privatization endeavors. Mr. Lavin is also responsible for supervising ongoing privatization projects and coordinating all team efforts involving design, construction and renovation activities for the Company's Army and Navy Portfolios. Prior to formation of Balfour Beatty Communities, Mr. Lavin served a similar position with GMH Military Housing, the military housing division of GMH Communities Trust, a real estate investment trust specializing in the management and operation of student housing and military housing throughout the United States. Mr. Lavin served as Project Director for the Fort Hamilton, NY Residential Communities Initiative and CDMP Program Manager for the Fort Stewart/ Hunter Army Airfield, GA Residential Communities Initiative. Mr. Lavin also formerly served as the Senior Project Manager for GMH Construction Services Group. Mr. Lavin retired from the US Army after twenty-four years of military service. In his final assignment, he served as the Deputy District Engineer, Norfolk District, US Army Corps of Engineers. He was responsible for the execution of $260 million of design and construction contracts in support of military installations throughout Virginia.


Ron Nestor
Senior Vice President of Project Management

Ron Nestor is Senior Vice President of Project Management for Balfour Beatty Communities, responsible for leading the privatization efforts for the Company’s Air Force projects. with over twenty-five years in real estate development, acquisitions and residential construction. Prior to formation of the Company, Mr. Nestor served in several operational positions with GMH Communities Trust, a real estate investment trust specializing in the management and operation of student housing and military housing throughout the United States. While with GMH, Mr. Nestor served as Vice President of Development for GMH Military Housing, responsible for every aspect of new development projects from entitlement to construction, and as Vice President of Development for College Park Communities, the student housing division. With over twenty-five years in real estate development, acquisitions and residential construction, Mr. Nestor has experience in real estate development, acquisitions and construction for the residential, retail and commercial sectors of the industry. He has acquired and developed retail, commercial, industrial, and residential properties for top-tier investment realty firms including Landmark Investment Group, where he served as Regional Manager of Acquisition and Development. While there, Mr. Nestor was responsible for identifying prime locations for the development and redevelopment of retail properties, including assessing feasibility studies and estimating the growth potential of a property’s value.


Leslie Cohn
Senior Vice President and General Counsel

Leslie Cohn is Senior Vice President and General Counsel for Balfour Beatty Communities. She is responsible for oversight of legal matters affecting the Company, including transactional, finance and compliance matters, as well as the preparation and review of all legal documentation covering the Company’s privatization projects. Prior to formation of the Company, Ms. Cohn served as Senior Vice President and Associate General Counsel of GMH Communities Trust, a real estate investment trust specializing in the management and operation of student housing and military housing throughout the United States. While at GMH, Ms. Cohn was responsible for corporate, securities and transactional matters, including secured financing arrangements, corporate governance, and administration of all public company reporting requirements and compliance under SEC and NYSE regulations. In addition, Ms. Cohn served as a legal team leader for various military housing projects and assisted with compliance review for the military housing division. Prior to joining GMH, Ms. Cohn was an associate in the Business and Finance group of Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP, where her practice focused on corporate matters, mergers and acquisitions, securities and venture capital finance. Ms. Cohn has extensive experience in registered equity and debt offerings and private placements. She received her Juris Doctorate from The University of Michigan Law School and holds Bachelor of Arts degrees in both Political Science and History, with honors, from Emory University.


Louis DeRogatis
Senior Vice President of Finance

Louis DeRogatis is Senior Vice President of Finance for Balfour Beatty Communities, responsible for the financial aspects of all of the Company’s military housing privatization projects from business development phase through transaction closing. Specifically, Mr. DeRogatis is responsible for underwriting, due diligence, debt procurement, asset management, fee negotiations, municipal negotiations, and the coordination and oversight of closing documentation. Prior to formation of the Company, Mr. DeRogatis served in a similar position within GMH Military Housing, the military housing division of GMH Communities Trust, a real estate investment trust specializing in the management and operation of student housing and military housing throughout the United States. He joined the student housing vision in 1997 as Vice President of Development in which he was responsible for design, development and management. Prior to joining GMH, Mr. DeRogatis was an Asset Manager with Real Property Consultants, a regional real estate firm that specialized in the management and disposition of commercial real estate assets on behalf of the Resolution Trust Corporation.


Marina Dikos
Senior Vice President and Chief Accounting Officer

Marina Dikos is the Chief Accounting Officer of Balfour Beatty Communities, responsible for oversight and management of the Company’s accounting and financial reporting processes and systems. Prior to formation of the Company, Ms. Dikos served as Senior Vice President and Chief Accounting Officer of GMH Communities Trust, a real estate investment trust specializing in the management and operation of student housing and military housing throughout the United States. Prior to joining GMH, Ms. Dikos served as Senior Manager-Audit and Business Advisory Services practice of KPMG LLP, and prior to that as an Experience Senior Manager with Arthur Andersen LLP. In addition to extensive SEC reporting and financial systems management, Ms. Dikos has significant experience with Sarbanes-Oxley compliance, due diligence on potential acquisitions and public and private equity raises. Ms. Dikos is a member of the AICPA, PICPA, NAREIT and is a licensed certified public accountant in Pennsylvania. Ms. Dikos holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Management from Gettysburg College.


Kathleen Grim
Senior Vice President of Marketing & Communications

Kathleen Grim is Senior Vice President of Marketing & Communications for Balfour Beatty Communities, responsible for the marketing and communications function for the Company. Prior to formation of the Company, Ms. Grim served in a similar position with GMH Communities Trust, a real estate investment trust specializing in the management and operation of student housing and military housing throughout the United States. Ms. Grim possesses over twenty years of experience in marketing, communications, sales, advertising and public relations in both the commercial real estate field and the consumer products market. Ms. Grim has formerly served as Vice President and Director of Marketing for GMH Capital Partners, LP, an international corporate real estate company. Prior to joining the GMH and its affiliates, Ms. Grim was the Director of Marketing and Public Relations for the O’Neill Properties Group where she was responsible for creating and developing a formal marketing and communications department. Prior to her tenure at O’Neill Properties, Ms. Grim directed internal, external and financial communications and public affairs for the Tasty Baking Company as Director of Corporate Communications.


Rosemary Phillips, SPHR
Senior Vice President of Human Resources

Rosemary Phillips is SVP Human Resources for Balfour Beatty Communities, responsible for all employee related matters for the company including, compensation, health and welfare benefits, employee and labor relations, organizational development, performance management, and recruitment. Prior to formation of the Company, Ms. Phillips served as Vice President of Human Resources of GMH Communities Trust, a real estate investment trust specializing in the management and operation of student housing and military housing throughout the United States. Ms. Phillips also formerly has served as Executive Director of Human Resources for Cenveo, Human Resources Director for Aramark, Vice President Human Resources for The Big Party and Regional Human Resources Manager for Toys R Us. Ms. Phillips has twenty years of experience in human resources, and is adept in change management issues relating to mergers and acquisitions, labor relations, training and leadership development.


Sean Kent
Senior Vice President of Construction and Renovations

Sean Kent is Senior Vice President of Construction and Renovations and for Balfour Beatty Communities. In this role, he is responsible to lead the Construction and Renovation teams to provide the highest quality of new product for the company. Prior to joining the Company, Mr. Kent served as Director of Middle East Operations for Secure Global Engineering providing engineering services on major infrastructure projects in the United Arab Emirates, Iraq and Afghanistan. Preceding this project, Mr. Kent served as Project Director for the Navy Region Northeast project for GMH Military Housing where he was responsible for overseeing construction, renovations and operations of family housing. He is a former active duty naval officer and is currently affiliated with the U.S. Navy reserves as a CEC lieutenant commander. Mr. Kent has over 20 years of experience in project management, construction management, facilities maintenance, design-build construction, building systems implementation and automation systems installation.


Roland Savage
Director of Information Technology

Roland Savage is the Director of Information Technology for Balfour Beatty Communities. In this role he is responsible for designing, developing and implementing the company's technology architecture. He is also responsible for the development of custom solutions to support and differentiate the business. Prior to formation of the Company, Mr. Savage served as the Director of Information Technology for GMH Communities Trust, a real estate investment trust specializing in the management and operations of student housing and military housing throughout the United States. Prior to joining GMH, Mr. Savage was responsible for the advanced technology projects of a Fortune 500 transportation company. He has also consulted and developed software for clients in several industries, including Banking, Transportation, Distribution and Technology. Mr. Savage has over 25 years in the Information Technology industry and holds several professional certifications.


Jennifer Shannon
Director of Information Services

Jennifer Shannon, the Director of Information Services for Balfour Beatty Communities, is responsible for overseeing the Company’s operations of the Information Technology department and ensuring its operation aligns with the business objectives of the Company. She works closely with the Director of Information Technology to identify and support cost-effective technology and application solutions for all aspects of the organization. Prior to formation, Ms. Shannon served as Manager of Business Information Technology Integration of GMH Communities Trust, a real estate investment trust specializing in the management and operations of student housing and military housing throughout the United States, responsible for data conversions, BA analysis, Sarbanes-Oxley Act (Section 404) internal audit and compliance , management of the IT help desk and training. Ms. Shannon joined GMH in 2000 as Manager of Portfolio Administration for GMH Capital Partners, a business affiliate of GMH Communities Trust, and was responsible for the integration and customization of MRI real estate software with client business structures to capture lease data. Prior to joining GMH, Ms. Shannon engineered the installation of a new U.S. sales office for a European food ingredient company. Earlier, Ms. Shannon was responsible for the creation and maintenance of advertising databases for multiple offices of Fox & Lazo, Inc. Realtors.

Jim Jefferson
Vice President, Facilities Management
Balfour Beatty Communities – Canada

Jim is responsible for all facilities management activities related to DBFM project bid pursuits and for overseeing all concessions. Since 2004, he has bid, negotiated and supported efficient delivery of hard and soft facilities management solutions for over 15 PPP projects in Canada. Prior to joining Balfour Beatty Communities – Canada in 2011, Jim was President of Sure Solutions Inc., assisting clients in managing, operating and constructing facilities in the most efficient means. He has also directed facilities management activities in some of Canada’s largest and most complex facilities including The Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, Apotex Inc (Canada’s largest pharmaceutical) and Trillium Health Centre in Mississauga.

Peter Campbell
Bid Director, Facilities Management
Balfour Beatty Communities – Canada

Joining Balfour Beatty Communities – Canada in 2011, Peter has more than six years experience as a project manager working in teams tasked with developing business solutions for PPP projects across Canada. Peter utilizes his experience in working with integrated, multi-disciplinary teams in the pursuit of sustainable business, optimizing whole-life considerations. Peter holds a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from Queen’s University.