171: Stephen Skolas, Managing Director | Head of Residential Development @ Davis

Stephen Skolas went from designing 96-story skyscrapers to figuring out how to fund, permit, and deliver projects at that scale. This skill range is rare in the industry. It’s exactly what Davis brought him into leverage.

Now Managing Director and Head of Residential Development at Davis, Stephen’s career has been interdisciplinary from the start. He holds a Master of Architecture from Wentworth Institute of Technology and is a licensed architect in multiple states with NCARB accreditation. He began at the Mitchell Architectural Group, working on healthcare and advanced technology projects across New England, before moving to Rafael Viñoly Architects, where he contributed to 432 Park Avenue – a nearly 1,400-foot supertall in Midtown Manhattan – and Marble Arch Park in London.

In 2013, he joined Related Companies, stepping into a role spanning the full development lifecycle in New York and Boston through acquisitions, construction, and asset management. 

Stephen’s industry fluency is now at work at Davis, where he climbed from Vice President to his current role as Managing Director | Head of Residential Development. He leads a vertically integrated team across residential, industrial, and science and technology projects nationally.

Stephen and Rens dig into the multi-layered reality of moving a project from site acquisition through team assembly, financing, permitting, and delivery. Every stage depends on the one before to move successfully.

A central theme in Davis’ approach to planning: starting with a clear picture of the end goal before the first decision gets made.  As Stephen points out, cohesion across a project lifecycle doesn’t happen by accident. It is the result of a clear vision and proactive planning.

If you build, develop, or invest in real estate, this one’s worth your time. 

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They also dig what it takes to navigate the regulatory complexity of Boston and New York – including challenges like rent control – without losing momentum on a project.

Thank you so much for listening and thank you for joining the Design Development community. Don’t forget to subscribe to hear about the latest episodes dropping every Wednesday. If this episode resonated with you, share it with a friend.

Our goal is to help people in the industry identify opportunities for growth by sharing the journey of top performers. There is no one path. Success isn’t a straight line. There is something to learn from everyone’s story.  Let’s go!

Leave your thoughts in the comments and reach out if you want to be a valuable guest on the show!

Follow us on LinkedIn, Instagram & YouTube

Find out more at https://h-o.engineering/podcasts/