With the acquisition of Pittsburgh-based National Development Corp. (NDC) in 2017, Beacon Communities grew its portfolio of affordable and market-rate housing to over 18,000 units, nearly doubled its team to over 1,000 employees, and expanded its presence into 14 states. This move catapults the Boston-based owner and developer into the top 10 of AHF’s owners list and sets the firm up for a busy year of integration.

Dara Kovel
Dara Kovel

“Adding 50% to one’s existing portfolio overnight is no small feat,” says Dara Kovel, president of Beacon Communities Development. “The work of incorporating these assets into our company, from the back-office integration to staffing to branding with the Beacon standard has been a lot of work. Our property management team has been working on these efforts for over a year.”

Kovel adds that over the next year Beacon will focus on the continuation of integrating the NDC team with employment engagement, improving automation and company processes, and streamlining communication.

On the property side, it is taking an asset-by-asset approach to develop reinvestment plans and work with existing investment partners to determine the best long-term strategies for the properties that were primarily built in the 1970s and ‘80s. “We now have an active pipeline out of this portfolio for redevelopment, reinvestment, and refinancing that will last us a decade,” Kovel says. “It’s been a very exciting time for the company.”

Beacon also recently broke ground on the conversion of an abandoned mill into a mixed-income, transit-oriented development in Windsor Locks, Conn., and anticipates breaking ground on a mixed-use, mixed-income development in Amherst, Mass., this spring.

“We have over 5,000 units, close to $1 billion in development and recapitalization efforts currently underway from Massachusetts and upstate New York to Virginia,” says Kovel.