Procopio Cos. Scores Four at PRISM Awards; Wins Reflect Dynamic ‘22 for Middleton Firm

December 01, 2022 — By Joe Clements

Mosaic Apartments, 75 Baldwin St., Lynn MA

MIDDLETON—Despite myriad challenges facing construction in a post-pandemic world, The Procopio Cos. is celebrating a banner 2022 with multiple milestones such as completing a large mixed-use project in seaside Winthrop; expansion beyond New England; and personnel moves ranging from key promotions to the hiring of fresh talent as the fourth-generation firm continues in new directions pivoting off 70 years specializing in single-family development to multifamily oriented projects.

Reflecting continued success in that shift, the Middleton-based concern secured a quartet of wins at the 2022 PRISM Awards Gala held recently by the Builders and Remodelers Association of Greater Boston (BRAGB). The Mosaic, a Lynn project which TPC reaped $67 million via its September sale, won a top PRISM prize for its thoroughly modern construction while three Procopio Cos. professionals were recognized with individual commendations, those being Jon Mills as Superintendent of the Year; Collin Ravenelle as Most Valuable Team Member; and newcomer Chris Dandreo, tabbed BRAGB’s Rising Star of 2022. Separately, CEO Michael Procopio was recognized as a 40-under-40 mover-and-shaker by Building Design + Construction Magazine after revenues for TPC skyrocketed under his guidance from $5 million in 2016 to $388 million in 2021.

Among the built environment’s leading yearly awards programs, BRAGB gave out its ranking of Best Use of Smart Home Technology award to The Mosaic, a newly constructed building in downtown Lynn featuring street-level retail with apartments above Baldwin Street where it came on line in 2021. The project received its BRAGB prize after cash had already validated TPC’s vision for The Mosaic when entrepreneur Seth Priebatsch picked up the building for his real estate investment fund known as Groma just as construction was finalized. Shelby Procopio, the firm’s Director of People and Culture, says one reason for supporting the awards program is it “represents the best in the business,” part of the firm’s core mantra.

“At Procopio, our mission is to create the most distinctive places to live by finding creative and unconventional solutions to seemingly unsolvable real estate obstacle,” observes Shelby Procopio in a release detailing the winning evening, adding,. “The award recognition our team and projects have received is a testament to our unwavering commitment and dedication towards this mission and our successful execution.”

Procopio also took steps on the personnel front by working to reward existing employees and adding new professionals such as the hiring of Shad Brook as the firm’s new Director of Operational Excellence and Neil Geary, TPC’s first CFO. Brook is an Iowa State alum who supplanted his Industrial Engineering degree and work as a licensed journeyman electrician with an MBA from Mount Mercy University while spending 15 years at Raytheon and then a little company called Suffolk Construction where he oversaw, developed and improved its quality assurance and quality control programs,

“We are thrilled to welcome Shad to the Procopio team,” Michael Procopio said in citing “extensive experience in operational efficiency and quality assurance which will be invaluable in ensuring our company’s operations are streamlined across the portfolio, and that every Procopio project is an extraordinary place to live.” Brook relays that a “passion with Procopio’s core values made this the perfect opportunity to utilize my skillset to keep quality at the forefront of the company’s operations.”

Geary, who brings a quarter-century of experience to his position, “will play a pivotal role in Procopio’s continued growth across New England and beyond as he oversees all financial aspects for the firm,” Michael Procopio relays in welcoming Geary, a graduate of the F.W. Olin School of Business at Babson College, member of the Real Estate Finance Associaton and the Urban Land Institute.

Geary’s knowledge comes from working at a REIT in Washington, DC, and a trio of Boston-based private development groups with work across multiple asset classes from hotels and residential to ground-up and mixed-use projects. Financial activities include construction loans, private equity investments and permanent loans, and Geary aligns with Brook that the upward curve of TPC influenced his career move to a platform “striving towards bigger and better” in the immediate cycle. “Procopio is well-positioned to continue its award-winning track record in multifamily and mixed-use development, and I look forward to supporting the firm’s continued expansion,” says Geary.

Already in the firm, Greg Procopio has been promoted to Executive VP, Angelo Antidormi has become Director of Acquisitions; PRISM Rising Star Chris Dandreo moves up from Financial Analyst to Acquisitions Associate, working to support the firm’s financial decision-making and manage acquisition activity. Mark Procopio has become the firm’s new Pre-Development Manager from his previous position as project manager. According to Shelby Procopio, he will be responsible “for estimating and supporting” the development processes.

“These individuals have displayed extreme ownership of their work commitment to the company and have represented our core values well,” she says. “We are excited to see them in their new roles.”

In another early autumn move, TPC in September feted the firm’s newest mixed-use development at 10 Somerset Ave. in Winthrop, a 22,000-sf, zero-lot-line apartment project featuring 29 residential units and 1,125 sf of ground-level retail space to downtown. It was at 35 percent occupancy upon opening, pacing ahead of projections.

“Our vision for this property was to create a new standard for apartment living in Winthrop, an extremely desirable oceanside town just north of Boston,” Greg Procopio says in further describing it as “a fantastic addition to our competitive portfolio of developments in transit-oriented locations across New England.” The MBTA Blue Line connecting to Logan International Airport and downtown Boston is accessible via two Winthrop buses a short walk away.

The Somerset offers studios, and one- and two-bedroom units ranging from 500 to 1,300 sf. It also has in-demand apartment and community amenities such as private decks, in-home laundry, quartz counterparts, a fitness center, coffee bar, garage parking and bike storage, and is also pet-friendly.

Almost exclusively focused for most of its existence on Boston’s North Shore, TPC has done work in all New England states except Vermont and has increasingly taken a liking to Portland in the Great State of Maine, but company officials also announced this year a program to pursue additional opportunities outside the region, with the southeastern states including North Carolina in its current sites.

“We just view it as existential for us,” Michael Procopio says in a press release announcing the strategy. “We cannot limit ourselves to New England,” he observes. “The deals are too thin and there is not enough yield.” Initial explorations have centered around Raleigh, North Carolina, and that state’s Research Triangle, but other prospects are being considered in northern and central Florida, plus parts of Kentucky near Nashville, TN, and down into Texas. “We want to identify some markets that can be another Boston for us, where we can do a bunch of deals,” Michael Procopio outlines. “We are not interested in a one-and-done.”