FARMINGTON HILLS, MI - City Club Apartments (CCA) announced that it will begin managing its $2 billion, 10,000-unit apartment and penthouse portfolio. City Club Apartments CEO Jonathan Holtzman made the announcement.
"This is a historic day for our customers, investors, partners and the industry," said Holtzman. "We are executing on the final piece of our CCA vision—rethinking, redefining and delivering the ultimate urban and suburban-urban apartment experience. From the outset, we committed to a design, hospitality, service, amenity and value creation plan that is unequaled. And, as we move closer to full execution, we know there is no one who will care as much about our residents and our communities, or fully- realizing this big, bold and disruptive vision as we do. We are completing the 'relationship' with our customer."
Beginning May 1, CCA will begin managing the first five of its 30 properties.
Those properties include: Ann Arbor City Apartments, Ann Arbor; Central West End Apartments, St. Louis; Plaza Club City Apartments, Kansas City; 800 Tower City Apartments, Louisville and CCA, CBD, Cincinnati. All of these communities will be rebranded as City Club Apartments and the rest of the communities will transfer to CCA Management by year-end. "This is a great story," said Holtzman. "It's the beginning of the next 100 years of a company that has been innovating, elevating and creating since 1919."
The CCA brand, which began less than a year ago with 20 employees, is expected to grow to more than 275 people by the end of 2017. "We are recruiting the very best hospitality and apartment talent in North America," said Holtzman. "It's no coincidence that our executives are all owners. It's critical that the interest of the company is always aligned with our customers and investors."
That is reflected in CCA Management's first two hires. Dale Phillips, a 23-year industry veteran and former President of Mark Taylor Residential joined CCA earlier this year as President and COO of City Club Apartments Management. Phillips is nationally recognized for his hospitality and business acumen and his ability to develop and execute on industry-leading and award-winning employee engagement, loyalty, training and growth and performance programs. He is also credited for driving tremendous value creation for the Mark Taylor portfolio. According to Phillips, one of the most integral components of his team realizing CCA's bold vision is the fact that the company controls its real estate. "Stability is everything in our business and our ownership team manages for value and thinks generationally. That is a true differentiator," he said.
Don Gillette, CCA's Senior Vice President of People and Culture, joined the company after nearly five years with MGM Resorts and 15 years with Four Seasons, where he set the international bar for the delivery of uncompromising people centric service. "We are attracting highly engaged, like-minded leaders and staff that always put the resident first, think differently, are hungry to learn and grow and wake up every morning saying 'I want to find a better way,'" said Gillette. "In return, we are providing them with unlimited opportunities and will invest heavily into their growth. Highly engaged employees create highly engaged residents."
This announcement follows the June 3, 2016 announcement that Jonathan Holtzman was leaving Village Green with all of the company's real estate but one, and the entire $500 million new development pipeline.