What Summit Smith Development does

Summit Smith Development is a privately held, full-service commercial real estate development firm founded in 1992 and headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The company plans, finances, develops, owns, and manages commercial real estate on behalf of public and private clients, operating across healthcare, government, senior living, student housing, mixed-use, multi-family, office, retail, parking, and P3 verticals. Service offerings span the full project lifecycle — feasibility assessment, turnkey development, site selection, design-build, build-to-suit, ownership and financing structuring, and ongoing asset and property management. The firm has developed more than 11 million square feet across 19+ U.S. states over 32 years, with signature projects including the 3,125,000 sq. ft. Madison Yards and 2,503,000 sq. ft. Kenosha Harbor District mixed-use developments in Wisconsin. Named customers include the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (outpatient clinics in 8+ cities), the State of Wisconsin (608,000 sq. ft. P3 state office building), Whole Foods Market, and Kadlec Regional Medical Center. Revenue is generated through a mix of development fees, build-to-suit transaction fees, asset and property management fees, and returns on owned real estate, with the firm willing to assume 100% of ownership risk on certain projects. The business is relationship-driven, project-based, and operates with a lean 1-10 employee team supported by an extensive developer/contractor ecosystem.

Name

Summit Smith Development

Legal name

Summit Smith Development

Website

https://summitsmith.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1992

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Milwaukee

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Development Fees: Fees charged for development services including turnkey development, site selection, budget creation, financial forecasting, facility planning, and entitlement approvals.
2. Asset and Property Management: Ongoing fees for lease administration, facility maintenance, financial reporting, cash management, and operational services for owned or client properties.
3. Build-to-Suit Transactions: Custom facility development for clients who occupy the completed property. Can be structured as lease, lease/purchase, or outright purchase upon construction completion.
4. Real Estate Ownership Returns: The company occasionally develops, owns, and manages commercial real estate, assuming 100% of ownership risk and responsibility for debt and equity, generating returns through property appreciation and rental income.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

Summit Smith Development is a full-service commercial real estate development firm that plans, finances, designs, builds, owns, and manages commercial properties for institutional clients. The firm delivers turnkey development, design-build, build-to-suit, ownership and financing structuring, feasibility assessment, and ongoing asset and property management across healthcare, government, residential, mixed-use, and retail verticals.

Product overview

Summit Smith Development is a full service commercial real estate development company that has been helping clients implement facility solutions since 1992. The company operates as a single integrated service offering rather than a platform-plus-modules architecture. Their core services include Development Services (turnkey development, site selection, budget creation, financial forecasting, facility planning, zoning and entitlement approvals), Ownership & Financing, Built-To-Suit, Design Build, Asset/Property Management, and Feasibility Assessment. These services are organized around distinct project verticals including Healthcare, Senior Living, VA Outpatient Clinics, Student Housing, Mixed-Use, Multi-Family, Office & Corporate, Parking Structures, Public Private Partnerships (P3), and Retail. The company has developed over 11 million square feet across the country and maintains a portfolio that includes physician's offices, outpatient healthcare facilities, commercial office buildings, mixed-use developments, multi-family developments, and retail developments.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Development Services Comprehensive development services including turnkey development, site selection and evaluation, budget creation, financial forecasting, detailed workplans and schedules, facility planning, financial and capital planning, financing and ownership options evaluation, structuring and implementation, and zoning, regulatory, permit and entitlement approvals for institutional commercial real estate clients.
• Ownership and Financing Assists clients in identifying ownership and financing alternatives for new projects and current real estate holdings, including cost benefit analyses, ownership structure recommendations, and implementation of financing solutions. The firm is also prepared to develop, own, and manage commercial real estate assuming 100% of the risk of real estate ownership and 100% of the responsibility for the debt and equity.
• Build-to-Suit Custom facility design and development allowing clients to occupy facilities meeting their unique operational requirements, with full accountability for development, financing, architecture, engineering, and construction. Transactions can be structured as a lease, lease/purchase, and/or purchase upon construction completion. Completed for corporate clients, healthcare providers, and state and federal government agencies.
• Design-Build Project implementation placing full accountability for architecture, engineering, and construction in one set of hands, with overlapped design and construction phases, eliminated bidding periods, early procurement, and fast-track scheduling. Delivers singular accountability, cost savings, time savings, early and firm costs, and improved risk management.
• Asset and Property Management Complete range of asset and property management services including lease administration, planning and budgeting, rent collections, operating expense reconciliations, cash management, accounts payable processing, debt payment processing, lender compliance coordination, construction management, facilities maintenance, capital improvements, energy management, and financial reporting for owned and client properties.
• Feasibility Assessment Customized strategic real estate planning services including market analysis, vision and scale assessment, operations model evaluation, technology planning, site expansion analysis, zoning and entitlement review, facility planning, budget development, and financial analysis. Includes validation of existing plans with an integrated, objective, fact-based approach.
• Healthcare Development Healthcare facility development including outpatient clinics, VA outpatient clinics, hospitals, medical office buildings, women's centers, specialty clinics, oncology centers, and outpatient surgery centers for healthcare systems and federal agencies.
• Senior Living Development Senior living facility development including senior housing, assisted living, memory care, and skilled nursing facilities for residential real estate investors and operators.
• VA Outpatient Clinic Development Specialized development of VA outpatient clinic facilities for Veterans Affairs healthcare delivery across multiple U.S. locations including Pittsburgh, Green Bay, Billings, Peoria, Lewiston, Bangor, Wilmington, and Evansville.
• Student Housing Development Student housing facility development including undergraduate student housing complexes for universities and residential real estate investors.
• Mixed-Use Development Large-scale mixed-use developments combining multiple property types including multi-family, office, retail, hotel, public plaza, and parking structures for mixed-use developers and institutional investors.
• Multi-Family Development Multi-family residential development including apartment complexes and condominiums for residential real estate investors.
• Office and Corporate Development Commercial office building development including corporate offices and medical office buildings for corporate entities and commercial organizations.
• Parking Structures Development Parking structure development including multi-level parking facilities for institutional clients and mixed-use developers.
• Public-Private Partnerships (P3) Public-private partnership development projects involving government and private sector collaboration for institutional facilities including government offices, VA healthcare facilities, and forensic science centers.
• Retail Development Retail facility development including grocery stores, restaurants, shops, and retail centers for commercial tenants and retail operators.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 11 million square feet developed across property types

Named customers4 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Hunt Companies: Hunt Companies is a national real estate developer with deep public-private partnership (P3) and federal/military housing expertise, including VA and government healthcare facilities. It is a highly comparable peer to Summit Smith given overlapping P3, healthcare, and government verticals, plus willingness to develop, own, and manage assets long-term.
• Gilbane Building Company: Gilbane is a privately held, family-owned firm offering design-build, real estate development, and facility management across healthcare, government, education, and mixed-use sectors. It mirrors Summit Smith's integrated development + design-build + property management model and similar target verticals.
• Trammell Crow Company: Trammell Crow is one of the largest U.S. commercial real estate developers, with a national footprint spanning healthcare, office, mixed-use, and multi-family development. It is directly comparable as a fee-based and principal commercial real estate developer serving institutional and corporate clients.
• Opus Group: Opus is a vertically integrated commercial real estate developer and design-build firm delivering office, healthcare, mixed-use, and multi-family projects nationwide. Its integrated design-build + development + ownership approach closely parallels Summit Smith's operating model.
• Mortenson: Mortenson is a privately held builder, developer, and real estate investor with strong healthcare, government, and P3 capabilities. It is comparable to Summit Smith in its integrated delivery, federal/healthcare exposure, and willingness to take on ownership risk.
• McCarthy Building Companies: McCarthy is a 100% employee-owned design-build general contractor with a national healthcare, education, and government practice. Its design-build delivery model and healthcare/government vertical mix directly mirror Summit Smith's core services.
• Clark Construction Group: Clark Construction is a large privately held general contractor and developer serving commercial, healthcare, government, and mixed-use markets nationally. Comparable in P3 and design-build execution at scale across the same institutional client base as Summit Smith.
• W.E. O'Neil Construction: W.E. O'Neil is a privately held, mid-sized design-build general contractor with healthcare, senior living, and mixed-use expertise in select regional markets. It mirrors Summit Smith's boutique, design-build-led delivery for institutional clients at similar scale.

Broad incumbents

• The Related Companies: Related is a national large-scale mixed-use, affordable housing, and P3 developer with a much broader portfolio scale than Summit Smith. It is comparable as an incumbent in the same mixed-use development category where Madison Yards and Kenosha Harbor compete.
• JLL (Jones Lang LaSalle): JLL is a global real estate services and investment firm offering development, project management, and asset/property management to institutional clients. It overlaps Summit Smith in development advisory, project/development services, and property management, though at vastly greater scale and as part of a broader services platform.

Market position

Strengths1 record

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/summitsmithdevelopment

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Summit Smith Development