Robert McLaughlin
Chief OPERATING Officer
Robert McLaughlin has been responsible for managing the Western US operations of several Fortune 1000 Companies and has been active in the development and build out of some of the most successful Urban Infill and Master Planned Communities in the Region. Combined, his projects have resulted in the construction, rental or sale of more than 18,000 housing units, and the acquisition, entitlement and/or development of $4.8 Billion in Land.
Prior to founding New Albion Group in 2012, Mr. McLaughlin served as the Regional President of Meritage Homes, where he was responsible for transforming the Company's West Coast operations into one of the most profitable regional developers in the United States. During his tenure at MTH, Mr. McLaughlin increased Sales by 600% and Earnings by nearly 10 times, generating $1.4 Billion in Annual Revenues and One-Half of MTH's Total Corporate US Earnings. In response to the Region’s affordability crisis, he also co-founded Meritage's Metropolitan Living Brand Division to address the mounting need for infill Multi-Family Housing in urban markets throughout California.
Previous to MTH, Mr. McLaughlin served as Regional President at Shea Communities, UDC, and Kaufman and Broad. Over the course of his career, he has gained more than 30 years of experience in all aspects of Project Planning, Entitlement, Permitting, and Development. Having spent most of that time as a senior manager, he is accustomed to public speaking and has successfully represented numerous projects before City Councils, County Boards of Supervisors, Planning Commissions, Building Departments, Utility Providers, hundreds of neighborhood stakeholder groups and a host of public and private environmental agencies.
In the process, Mr. McLaughlin has worked closely with Federal, State and local authorities to secure thousands of project permits and entitlements, negotiating with (among others) the California, Nevada, Arizona, and US Departments of Fish and Wildlife, the US Army Corps of Engineers, the Regional Water Quality Control Board, the CA Department of Toxic Substances, EPA, BLM, OSHA, LAFCO, and various State Departments of Transportation. As a result, he has firsthand knowledge of the challenges companies face in navigating their way through the confusing and sometimes impenetrable labyrinth of government regulations.
At New Albion Group, Mr. McLaughlin is responsible for Acquisitions & Entitlements, Project Development, Venture Capital Investment, and Sustainability Compliance. He holds an MBA in Finance from the Wharton School and a BA from Dartmouth College. His additional professional credentials are listed below.
SUSTAINABLE BUILDING AND DESIGN
Graduate Certification Program in Green Architecture, Sustainability and the Built Environment
University of California - Davis, School of Regional Planning & Resource Management
MEMBERSHIPS
Urban Land Institute (ULI), US Green Building Council (USGBC), San Francisco and Bay Area Urban Research Group (SPUR), Non-Profit Housing Association of Northern California (NPH), 'Build It Green'