VAN OLIVER
MOORESTOWN
Summary
Real estate and construction management executive with a robust track record of delivering projects ahead of schedule and within budget. Expertise in developing site evaluation systems, managing large-scale acquisitions, and fostering high-performing teams. Strong communication skills enhance collaboration with stakeholders at all levels.
Overview
29
29
years of professional experience
Work History
Regional Director of Real Estate and Construction
Equipment Share LLC
Columbia
01.2024 - Current
- Oversaw real estate acquisitions and managed rollout of new stores from Washington, DC, to Maine, ensuring alignment with company growth strategy.
- Directed the full acquisition process, including conducting site and property condition assessments, negotiating purchases and leases, defining scopes of work, establishing budgets, and securing all necessary licenses, permits, and zoning approvals.
- Managed comprehensive construction projects from inception to completion, hired architects, engineers, and consultants, and prepared bid packages and RFPs.
- Developed and implemented company-wide site evaluation and construction budgeting system, streamlining project assessments and enhancing financial planning.
- Expanded Equipment Share's footprint in the Northeast, opening more than a dozen new branches across seven states (DE, ME, NY, CT, PA, NJ, and MA) and more than tripling the company's regional presence in less than two years.
- Expanded regional vendor and consultant pool by vetting prospects and negotiating contracts, improving service options and cost-effectiveness.
Senior Project Manager
Mavis Tire Supply
Millwood
01.2022 - 01.2024
- Successfully completed two dozen remodels and rebrands in the Orlando, Florida market following the acquisition of Action Gator and Tuffy Auto Repair franchises by Mavis.
- Managed the rebranding and remodeling of newly acquired Mavis locations throughout the Eastern United States.
- Established a reliable network of contractors and vendors in the Orlando area to support ongoing and future projects.
- Assisted the store planning department with the development of responsibility schedules, key notes, general notes, equipment schedules, and finish schedules for inclusion in project plans and bid packages.
- Established punch-list protocols that improved consistency and quality across projects.
- Revised bid packages and contracts to reduce change orders and secure accurate, competitive contractor proposals.
- Applied value engineering principles to projects, achieving cost savings through elimination of unnecessary expenditures.
Director of Real Estate, Facilities, & Construction
TerraCycle-US LLC
Trenton
01.2020 - 01.2022
- Led the search and acquisition of TerraCycle's new World Headquarters, securing a 260,000 square foot office tower that played a key role in revitalizing downtown Trenton and strengthening the company's commitment to community and sustainability.
- Developed leasing strategy for 100,000 square feet of unoccupied space in new World Headquarters, enhancing asset utilization and supporting corporate objectives.
- Negotiated leases for the company's corporate satellite offices and production facilities, supporting business growth and operational needs.
- Prepared and managed budgets for a variety of property maintenance and construction projects, both large and small, ensuring financial efficiency and organizational oversight.
- Conducted due diligence on property acquisitions, completing environmental studies, property assessments, and operating cost analyses to support informed decision-making.
- Oversaw closure and clean-up of 110,000 square foot warehouse, transitioning operations to smaller facilities within sixty days to minimize disruption.
- Created and implemented protocols for the company’s 30 offices worldwide, including life safety and emergency evacuation, onboarding, deliveries, storage, pest control, preventative maintenance, and COVID-19 sanitization and prevention.
- Collaborated with the retail team to establish a new brand partnership with the world's largest retailer by researching and designing recycling hubs in over 400 locations.
Director of Construction
Signature Acquisitions
Cranford
01.2019 - 01.2020
- Recruited to direct all capital and tenant improvement activity across Signature’s New Jersey office properties, totaling 5,000,000 square feet of office space.
- Oversaw the buildout of Key Foods’ new corporate headquarters in Matawan, NJ—a 40,000 square foot office fit-out featuring a commercial test kitchen, gym, and café, with a total project value exceeding $3.5 million.
- Successfully managed the expansion and remodeling of more than 200,000 square feet of office space within Signature’s New Jersey office portfolio.
- Modernized the company’s construction protocols by creating comprehensive, portfolio-wide construction guidelines and bidding procedures.
- Prepared project budgets, negotiated and managed contracts and work letters, estimated costs, and drafted detailed scopes of work to facilitate project execution.
- Led modernization and upgrades across Signature’s portfolio, improving amenities like cafés, conference rooms, restrooms, main entrance lobbies, and common-area lounges.
- Reviewed tenant submittals for compliance with building criteria and local codes, ensuring project alignment with regulatory standards.
SENIOR CONSTRUCTION MANAGER
CEDAR REALTY TRUST LLC.
PT Washington
01.2012 - 01.2019
- Established and managed construction budgets for shopping center portfolio, overseeing annual expenditures exceeding $20 million.
- Directed all construction activity for Cedar’s Philadelphia portfolio, which included more than twelve grocery-anchored shopping centers.
- Developed detailed bid packages minimizing change orders and saving over $1 million annually by ensuring bids accurately reflected actual scope of work.
- Reduced construction costs by expanding the contractor pool and negotiating cost-plus and master work contracts.
- Hired architects to expedite drawing and permit process, reducing lost time and rent revenue.
- Represented both tenants and landlords during variance hearings with local zoning boards.
- Represented the portfolio of properties at national real estate conferences.
CONTRACTED CONSULTANT
ARCC RETAIL CONSTRUCTION CONSULTANTS
CT
01.2009 - 01.2012
- Directed tenant buildouts and space turnovers for five Westfield regional malls in New York and Connecticut, overseeing a total of 2,300,000 square feet of Gross Leasable Area (GLA).
- Acted as Field Manager and Owner’s Representative on more than a dozen high-profile retail developments, leveraging industry experience and contacts to ensure tenant buildouts met 'Grand Opening' deadlines.
- Cultivated relationships with building department officials and trade unions to accelerate construction timelines and facilitate openings for over 2 million square feet of retail space.
- Streamlined plan review and permit expedition process, reducing downtime by 20% and enabling faster store openings.
- Updated construction guidelines, Lease Outline Drawings (LOD), and space utility matrices, enhancing work letter precision and expediting construction activities.
DIRECTOR OF TENANT CONSTRUCTION
VORNADO REALTY TRUST
NEW YORK
01.2007 - 01.2009
- Led and developed the tenant construction and space turnover program for Vornado’s regional mall portfolio, covering twelve properties and over 10 million square feet of retail space.
- Established budgets for all landlord work and tenant improvement allowances, and managed core and shell turnovers for cold dark shell, turn-key, and vanilla box spaces from job buyout through grand opening.
- Monitored tenant construction for compliance with design criteria, construction rules and regulations, base building systems, and local building codes.
- Created and implemented construction rules and regulations across more than a dozen properties, ensuring compliance and consistency in tenant construction practices.
- Launched tracking systems to monitor tenants' design and construction status and established a tenant-accessible database of existing conditions and construction documents, streamlining processes and enhancing rent revenue potential.
- Facilitated communication with city agencies, building departments, and local utilities to secure necessary approvals for tenants' merchandising and stocking operations.
DIRECTOR OF TENANT CONSTRUCTION
ATCO PROPERTIES, LLC
GLENDALE
01.2005 - 01.2007
- Represented the owner and operator of The Shops at Atlas Park, New York City’s first lifestyle center, featuring 60 retail tenants, 8 restaurants, 12 food-market tenants, 2 athletic clubs, and an eight-screen movie theater.
- Managed core and shell turnover and landlord’s scope for CDS, turn-key, and vanilla box tenant spaces to ensure timely delivery and tenant satisfaction.
- Re-engineered and relocated over 70% of the project’s mechanical systems to meet tenant requirements and maintain cost efficiency, resulting in more leasable spaces with minimal impact on budget and an expedited construction schedule.
- Developed a Temporary Tenant Program that resulted in 75% of leasable space being filled in less than six months.
- Restructured inexperienced leasing team, overseeing predevelopment lease-exhibit negotiation and pricing through final close-out documentation and contract-deposit reconciliations, boosting leasing activity.
- Implemented tracking system for GLA and coordinated targeted three-deep program for each available tenant space, enhancing visibility and accessibility for potential tenants.
CONTRACTED CONSULTANT
ARCC RETAIL CONSTRUCTION CONSULTANTS
NY
01.1997 - 01.2005
- Provided field management for the Queens Center Mall—a 1,000,000 square foot, $400 million renovation and expansion of one of the nation’s busiest shopping malls by sales per square foot.
- Accelerated construction and opening of twelve at-risk stores behind schedule and over budget, meeting grand opening deadlines and preventing lease defaults.
- Directed the opening of more than 120 inline stores, 14 food court tenants, 2 restaurants, and 14 kiosks.
- Oversaw retail construction and tenant build-outs for projects, including Tom Colicchio’s first solo restaurant—Craft Restaurant on East 19th Street in Manhattan.
- Developed logistics plan to manage $25 million in building materials and debris movement in and out of four-story mall with limited vertical transportation.
Skills
- Real Estate Acquisitions
- Construction strategy
- Project management
- Feasibility Analysis
- Lease Negotiations
- Permits
- Site Selection
- Strategic Construction Management
- Project/Facilities Management
- Owner Representation
- Tenant Coordination
- Budget Management
- Cost Control
- Change Order Management
- Property Condition Assessment
- Risk Assessment
- Contract Negotiation
- Value Engineering
- Scope of Work Development
- Estimating
- Architectural Drawings
- Field Management and Supervision
- Team Leadership
- Mentorship
- Scope development
- Field supervision
- MS Project
- Procore
- Sage
- Wrike
- Builder Trend Trimble
- Stack
- Smart Sheet
- Slack
- Monday
- Team Gantt
- Google Suite
- MS Office Suite
- Adobe Acrobat
- Company Cam
Significant Contributions
Successfully expanded the portfolios of three different organizations in the Northeastern United States, navigating challenging and expensive real estate markets where opportunities for growth are limited., Played a key role in guiding a rapidly growing global conglomerate through the process of selecting a new global headquarters, which will soon be recognized as one of the world's most notable office buildings., Managed the construction of Celebrity Chef Tom Colicchio's first solo restaurant venture, Craft Restaurant, located on East 19th Street in Manhattan., Supported the opening of over 500 new stores across six major retail redevelopment projects, totaling more than 4 million square feet of leasable space and over one billion dollars in construction costs. All projects were successfully completed on tight budgets and accelerated timelines to ensure timely grand openings., Oversaw tenant construction management on behalf of owners, tenants, and general contractors in numerous regional malls throughout the Northeast., Developed comprehensive property-wide tenant construction standards for three major real estate development companies., Authored a preventative maintenance and facilities management manual for a company with 30 offices worldwide, standardizing best practices across all locations., Developed comprehensive staffing plans and assembled teams of direct reports, including Project Managers, Property Managers, Facilities Managers, Maintenance Technicians, Custodial Technicians, Tenant Coordinators, Lease Administrators, Leasing Agents, Foremen, Superintendents, Draftsmen, Estimators, and Administrative Assistants., Established property-wide tenant construction standards for three leading real estate development companies, ensuring consistency and quality across projects., Authored a comprehensive preventative maintenance and facilities management manual for a company operating 30 offices globally., Founded Tenant Coordination Departments for two major retail real estate developers, streamlining communication and operations between tenants and management.
Professional Development
- Certificate in Blueprint Reading & Estimating, B.O.C.E.S
- Certificate in the Use of Power Actuated Tools, Power Actuated Tool Manufacturers Institute
- Certificate in Hazardous Communications, OSHA
- License/Certificate in Asbestos Handling and Abatement, Hunter College
- Procore Certified
Timeline
Regional Director of Real Estate and Construction
Equipment Share LLC
01.2024 - Current
Senior Project Manager
Mavis Tire Supply
01.2022 - 01.2024
Director of Real Estate, Facilities, & Construction
TerraCycle-US LLC
01.2020 - 01.2022
Director of Construction
Signature Acquisitions
01.2019 - 01.2020
SENIOR CONSTRUCTION MANAGER
CEDAR REALTY TRUST LLC.
01.2012 - 01.2019
CONTRACTED CONSULTANT
ARCC RETAIL CONSTRUCTION CONSULTANTS
01.2009 - 01.2012
DIRECTOR OF TENANT CONSTRUCTION
VORNADO REALTY TRUST
01.2007 - 01.2009
DIRECTOR OF TENANT CONSTRUCTION
ATCO PROPERTIES, LLC
01.2005 - 01.2007
CONTRACTED CONSULTANT
ARCC RETAIL CONSTRUCTION CONSULTANTS
01.1997 - 01.2005