By: Felipe Rivas
2 min read October 2020 — While the national real estate and development sector continues to adjust to the ever-changing pandemic landscape, this period is also a time to strategize and think about future opportunities and expansions. To that end, Charlotte often tops the list for developers and service providers looking to expand their operations across the Southeast.
Factors such as the Queen City’s robust banking sector, access to capital, growing population, educated workforce and sound public transit infrastructure are driving the region’s development activity and owner representatives like Claro Development, a South Florida-based development services firm, are taking notice. Claro Development has its eyes set on the Queen City as it seeks to expand its expertise in commercial, residential and hospitality development across the Southeast.
“Charlotte has a tremendous foundation in finance and banking and the city is growing in so many sectors. With our experience in project and construction management we feel this is an excellent opportunity to be a part of that growth,” Sandor Scher, owner of Claro Development, told Invest: Charlotte.
With a strong focus on client relationships, having a client request representation cemented the decision to expand into the Queen City, Scher said. “The most important thing to Claro Development is our client relationships and so when the opportunity arises to go where clients need us, we welcome that relationship of trust and confidence. As with our expansions, it happened organically. A client asked for our help and here we are, looking forward to bringing our knowledge, experience and expertise to this historical city.”
The firm’s previous experience working with projects in the North Carolina and Atlanta metro market made the expansion into Charlotte the natural next step. Claro Development recently completed the Even Hotel in Alpharetta, Georgia. The IHG-branded hotel has 16 locations and Claro Development is providing project management services on the 150-room Even Hotel in Akers Mills, Georgia. In South Florida, the firm has managed over $1 billion in hospitality and commercial developments with notable engagements at Soho House, Faena, The Raleigh and The Standard.
“We look at Charlotte as being a great place to invest, with access to capital, excellent population growth and the fact that it is pro-business. We also greatly admire how the city has held onto its heritage and its historic structures,” Scher told Invest:Charlotte.
Hospitality and historic restorations is where Claro Development thrives, as evidenced by the firm’s work in Miami Beach. In fact, historical preservation is a major part of the company’s expertise and has been its bread and butter for the last 15 years. “Miami Beach itself is the largest historic district in the country and because of that, and because of our expertise with these historic buildings, we’ve carved out quite a niche for ourselves,” Scher said. It’s a niche that could serve Charlotte’s historic restoration needs. “No other firm comes close to the number of high-quality, historic renovations that we’ve accomplished in the last decade.”
The company is also looking forward to bringing its knowledge and experience to the hospitality, office, retail and multifamily segments in the Charlotte market. Although the COVID-19 pandemic is a concern, planning for the expansion in the current landscape was not terribly difficult, Scher said. “We have excellent talent that is local and we have a very strong financial base to leverage off of with our existing clients. (The pandemic) certainly changes our expectations in terms of growth but this is a long-term commitment, so it is built on the same foundation regardless,” he said.
To learn more, visit: https://www.clarocorp.com/
