Land Development Manager

About Destination Homes

Destination Homes, a premier Utah home builder since 2001, specializes in building exceptional homes and creating lasting communities. Destination Homes strives to promote an energizing workplace that is passionate about beautiful architecture and well-designed communities that enrich the lives of its homeowners and their families. Destination Homes is a portfolio company of Larry H. Miller Real Estate.

FLSA Exemption: Exempt/Salaried

Reports to: Director of Land

Job Description

The Land Development Manager will manage the entitlement and development of our communities, including the due diligence of new acquisitions. They will be responsible for leading and managing all aspects of land development projects.

Primary Duties

• Assist in vetting and contracting all new land acquisition opportunities
• Lead the due diligence function in new acquisitions, including the establishment of entitlement approvals and the preparation and execution of the project schedule

• Develop and maintain positive, professional relationships with staff and elected officials of municipalities and agencies with jurisdictional control over land use

• Understand local ordinances, general plans, zoning laws, and other municipal guidelines

• Lead in negotiating contracts, supervise and coordinate with project consultants, including land planners, engineers, landscape architects, soils and environmental engineers, and other consultants throughout the acquisition and entitlement process
• Facilitate project approvals/entitlements/land use and zoning changes through coordination with sellers, brokers, third-party consultants, municipality staff, governmental agencies and internal stakeholders

• Assist in preparing materials and presenting in city meetings

• Track, monitor, and update project timelines, including contracted deadlines, to ensure the timely execution of projects
• Negotiate, establish, and maintain accurate project development budgets
• Overseeing daily land development field operations including management of contractors, verifying work completed/monitoring progress
• Coordinate land development work with homebuilding operations

• Protect the legal, financial, and moral well-being of the LHM Group and the portfolio companies
• Be a teacher to support the efforts of other employees to be successful, which includes training and managing internships
• All other duties as assigned

Experience & Skills

• 5 years of relevant work experience in land acquisition, entitlement and/or development
• Construction Management, Civil Engineering, or superintendent experience is a plus
• Strong knowledge of land development processes, regulations, and best practices
• High caliber written correspondence, ability to persuasively present information to groups
• Ability to read municipal code
• Ability to read and understand construction plans
• Must be able to perform general takeoffs from civil documents related to land development
• Ability to work on multiple projects simultaneously and prioritize the process appropriately
• Proficient in MS Excel, MS Word, and Bluebeam
• Ability to interact and communicate with internal clients, co-workers, and vendors in a professional manner
• Must possess the ability to maintain information confidentiality
• Must be results-driven, team-oriented, and an individual/organizational capacity builder
• Excellent interpersonal and written communication skills
• Outstanding organizational skills and attention to detail
• Ability to work in a fast-paced environment
• Exemplary time management skills, with the ability to prioritize time-sensitive tasks

Physical Requirements

• This position requires frequent walking, standing, and climbing stairs in/around construction site, apartment homes, models, and properties
• Must have the ability to read and comprehend large quantities of information, operate computer equipment, speak, hear, bend, stoop, reach, lift, move, and carry up to 25 lbs. independently.
• Regularly required to sit, stand, bend, reach, and move about the office setting
• To perform other duties as required

To perform the job successfully, an individual should demonstrate the following competencies to perform the essential functions of this position.

Manage Complexity: Make sense of complex, high quantity, and sometimes contradictory information to effectively analyze situations and identify solutions. 

Collaborates: Builds partnerships and works cooperatively with others across the organization to achieve shared objectives.

Plans and Aligns: Plan and prioritize work to meet commitments aligned with organizational needs and goals. Includes ability to break down objectives into appropriate initiatives and actions while anticipating and adjusting effective contingency plans.

Instills Trust: Gains the confidence and trust of others through honesty, integrity, and authenticity by following through on commitments, keeping confidences, and showing consistency between words and actions.

Strategic Mindset: Sees ahead to future possibilities and translates them into breakthrough strategies. Achieved by anticipating future trends and implications accurately and articulating credible pictures and visions of possibilities that will create sustainable value.

Note: The need may arise to revise, supplement, or rescind portions of this job description, and Destination Homes reserves the right to do so at any time. Employee shall be required to meet the qualifications and perform the duties of any revised job description.