Quantity surveyor James Costello has been development director of Elevate Property Group for the past two years and is now taking on more responsibilities as managing director to free up founder Steve Dodd to chase new deals and grow the business as chief executive.
Elevate Property Group currently has six live residential sites across Birmingham, Derby, and Nottingham – more than £165m worth of residential developments – including the restoration of Old Heaton House in Birmingham’s Jewellery Quarter.
James Costello said: “Working alongside Steve Dodd, I’ve really got to know the DNA of Elevate over the last two years and this promotion will give me the opportunity to take a greater role in day-to-day operations and the management of our development team.
“Importantly, it will also free Steve up to pursue a host of exciting development opportunities we have identified and to shape the future strategy of the business. Yes, we develop residential schemes, but we like to think we do it a little bit differently, with a passion for painstakingly restoring run-down buildings to their former glories.
“The recent announcement of The Silk Yard, our first foray into Derby, takes current activity to approximately 650 new homes across cities in the East and West Midlands, ranging from townhouses and penthouses, to one, two and three-bedroom apartments. All benefit from fantastic locations in the heart of city centres.”
He continued: “My role will be to ensure these developments remain on time and to explore ways in which we can improve the buyer journey even further.”
Before joining Elevate in 2021, James Costello was a partner and head of cost consultancy at construction consultant Rider Levett Bucknall.
Steve Dodd said: “James has delivered the flagship Priory House scheme in Birmingham and kicked-off several high-profile projects since joining us as development director, most of which have been managed against the backdrop of rising build costs and interest rates.
“Despite these unprecedented challenges, we have kept our promise of creating properties that leave lasting legacies in the communities they are built in – this is really important to us.
“Our pace of expansion means we needed James to step-up to MD and I’m looking forward to what he will achieve with the outstanding senior management team we have in place.”
He concluded: “It took us 10 years to build 1,000 new homes, which was a major milestone at the time. At the last count, we will be completing the next 1,000 units in just three years.”
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