How Bozzuto Wants To Grow Up Now That It's 25
Toby Bozzuto, who was just 14 when dad Tom founded Bozzuto Group in '88, just got promoted from president of the development arm to prez of the entire company, a new position. One of the things Tom wants Toby to do is grow the development biz north of Philly. Bozzuto Management, for instance, already manages four properties in New York and six in Boston. Toby has overseen $750M of development deals in his 12 years with the company (including last week's agreement to develop 200 apartments on Baltimore's Locust Point with Solstice Partners), and now he'll take over the management, construction, and land arms, too. Steve Strazzella, an 11-year Bozzuto vet, will step into Toby's previous role.
Another switcheroo: Company co-founder, vice chairman, and Bozzuto Land president John Slidell will depart, though Tom says John will retain an ownership stake and likely hang around a bit. Tom also tells us that John, always the company's cautious voice, wouldn't allow signage outside the office for the company's first five years--to avoid embarrassment should the firm flounder. Now, 25 years later, the company has grown from 22 employees to 1,400, and John's OK with it.
