Douglas Development Corporation
Douglas Development Corporation is a family-owned Washington, DC-based commercial real estate developer that acquires, redevelops, and manages over 19 million square feet of office, retail, residential, and hotel properties across seven states plus DC, specializing in adaptive reuse of historic buildings.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1985
- HeadquartersWashington, United States
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Douglas Development Corporation does
Douglas Development Corporation is a privately held, family-owned commercial real estate development and management firm headquartered in Washington, DC, founded in 1985. The company acquires, redevelops, leases, and operates real estate across multiple asset classes — trophy office, retail, market-rate and adaptive-reuse residential, hospitality, and parking — totaling over 19 million square feet across seven states (Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia) plus the District of Columbia. Its defining capability is the adaptive reuse of historic and underutilized structures (e.g., Wonder Bread Factory, the Woodies Building, Hecht Warehouse, Uline Arena, Central National Bank Building) into modern mixed-use assets, frequently leveraging Federal and state historic tax credits, C-PACE financing, and construction lending from partners such as PNC, HSBC, Bank Hapoalim, BHI, and Nuveen Green Capital.
The business generates revenue through recurring streams — commercial leasing of office and retail space, hotel operations at three branded Marriott, Kimpton, and Hyatt properties, and residential rents across ~1,000+ units — together with one-time property sales and ongoing development and redevelopment services. Notable active projects include the $158 million Eighth & Main tower conversion in Richmond (288 market-rate apartments and a 210-room Marriott AC Hotel, financed via a $56M BHI construction loan and $38M Nuveen Green Capital C-PACE facility) and a proposed 2715 M Street NW Georgetown conversion into six townhouses and two penthouse condominiums. Leasing is executed via direct in-house contacts and broker networks (Cushman & Wakefield, CBRE), while management leverages third-party operators such as Drucker + Falk for select assets.
Technology, AI, and software products are not material to the business: the company explicitly indicates 'no proprietary technology,' holds no patents, and operates with a small headcount of 51-100 employees consistent with a principal-led family owner-developer model. Key named customers span government (GSA), retail (H&M, Harris Teeter, Target, Wegmans), technology (Anduril), professional services (Fish & Richardson, PhRMA), hospitality (Marriott), and banking (PNC). The firm's positioning is anchored by 40+ years of operating history, multiple industry preservation awards (DC Preservation League, DC AIA, Mayor's Historic Preservation), and a track record of navigating complex entitlement environments in jurisdictions such as Georgetown and other DC historic districts.
Douglas Development Corporation firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Douglas Development Corporation
- Legal name
- Douglas Development Corporation
- Website
- https://douglasdevelopment.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1985
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- Douglas Development Corporation is a family-owned Washington, DC-based commercial real estate developer that acquires, redevelops, and manages over 19 million square feet of office, retail, residential, and hotel properties across seven states plus DC, specializing in adaptive reuse of historic buildings.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Douglas Development Corporation industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Commercial Real Estate Development
- NAICS
- Land Subdivision (23721), Lessors of Real Estate (5311), Residential Remodelers (236118)
- SIC
- Real Estate Dealers (For Their Own Account) (6532), Land Subdividers & Developers (No Cemeteries) (6552)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Real Estate Development Asset Management (Project/Construction-to-Stabilization) (BPAJAMAL)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Real Estate Investment Management (Acquisitions & Dispositions) (BPAJAMAK)
Keywords
Where Douglas Development Corporation is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Washington
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Douglas Development Corporation business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Property Sales: Sale of developed and redeveloped commercial real estate properties including office buildings, retail centers, and residential complexes.
- Commercial Leasing: Long-term and short-term leasing of office, retail, and residential spaces across their portfolio of over 19 million square feet of properties.
- Hotel Operations: Operation of hotel properties including the Canal House Hotel in Georgetown, Monaco Baltimore Kimpton Hotel, and Hyatt Regency Buffalo.
- Development and Redevelopment Services: Major redevelopment projects including the $158 million conversion of 708 E. Main St. in Richmond (Eighth & Main tower) and various adaptive reuse projects.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels4 records
Douglas Development Corporation product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Douglas Development Corporation acquires, redevelops, and manages commercial real estate properties across multiple asset classes including office, retail, residential, hotel, and mixed-use. The company specializes in adaptive reuse of historic structures, preserving architectural character while modernizing for contemporary use, with a portfolio of over 19 million square feet across 7 states and the District of Columbia. Revenue is generated through property sales, commercial and residential leasing, and hotel operations.
Product overview
Douglas Development Corporation is a commercial real estate development company managing over 19 million square feet of office, retail, and residential properties across 7 states and the District of Columbia. The company operates a diverse portfolio of mixed-use properties, Class A office buildings, residential apartments, and boutique hotels. Key property types include trophy office buildings (The Woodies Building, The Atlantic Building, 655 New York Avenue, Center650), residential properties (The Glade on Laurel Street, The Treasury Apartments, Police Apartments, Residences at Richmond Trust, Addison Row), hospitality assets (Canal House Hotel, Monaco Baltimore, Hyatt Regency Buffalo), and historic adaptive reuse projects (Hecht Warehouse, Deco at CNB, Wonder Bread Factory). The company specializes in preserving historic buildings while modernizing them for contemporary use.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Quantifiable outcome
- Over 19 million square feet of office, retail and residential properties developed and managed
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Douglas Development Corporation
Customer profileNamed customers10 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Douglas Development Corporation technology and API
TechnologyAPI detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Douglas Development Corporation partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Two partnerships are on record, tiered major.
- CBG Building CompanymajorGeneral contractor for Canal House Hotel renovation in Georgetown.
- Fillat+majorArchitecture firm for Canal House Hotel project.
Scale indicators6 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Douglas Development Corporation competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Tishman Speyer: Global real estate owner, developer, and investor with major trophy office and mixed-use holdings including Rockefeller Center. Comparable to Douglas Development's trophy office and adaptive reuse approach, but at significantly larger scale and global reach with institutional capital backing.
- Brookfield Properties: Global real estate developer and operator across office, retail, multifamily, and logistics with major trophy holdings. Comparable to Douglas Development's mixed-asset trophy strategy, but at massive institutional scale with public market and sovereign capital backing.
- Vornado Realty Trust: NYC/DC-focused publicly traded office REIT operating trophy Class A office assets in Manhattan and the DC CBD. Comparable as a trophy office operator overlapping with Douglas Development's trophy office holdings and DC presence, with a much larger and publicly traded capital structure.
- Boston Properties: Publicly traded office REIT (BXP) and trophy Class A office owner-developer in DC, NYC, Boston, San Francisco, and LA. Comparable to Douglas Development's trophy office focus and DC presence, but operates nationally with significantly larger institutional capital base.
Direct peers
- The Bernstein Companies: Mid-Atlantic commercial real estate owner, developer, and manager headquartered in the Washington DC area with a portfolio spanning multifamily, office, retail, and mixed-use assets. Comparable as a regional commercial real estate operator with similar asset class breadth and DC-Mid-Atlantic concentration.
- Akridge: Washington DC-focused commercial real estate developer, owner, and manager with a mixed portfolio of trophy office, multifamily, and mixed-use assets. Highly comparable to Douglas Development given the shared DC geographic focus, trophy asset focus, and family/privately held ownership structure.
- Penzance: Washington DC-based real estate investment, development, and management firm focused on institutional-grade mixed-use and office assets in the Mid-Atlantic. Comparable to Douglas Development due to shared DC focus, mixed-use development approach, and trophy asset positioning.
- JBG Smith Properties: Washington DC-metro focused REIT and developer with major mixed-use, multifamily, and office holdings including the National Landing/Monumental redevelopment. Comparable to Douglas Development as a major DC-metro mixed-use owner/developer, though structurally a publicly traded REIT with broader scale.
- The Donohoe Companies: Washington DC-area real estate development and construction firm with mixed-use, multifamily, and hospitality holdings. Comparable to Douglas Development due to long-standing DC regional presence and similar mixed-use, adaptive reuse style of development.
- LCOR: Northeast/Mid-Atlantic mixed-use and multifamily real estate developer and operator. Comparable as a privately held mixed-use developer operating trophy infill and repositioning projects in supply-constrained East Coast urban markets similar to Douglas Development's footprint.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Douglas Development Corporation social profiles
Digital presenceDouglas Development Corporation financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Douglas Development Corporation leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Douglas Development Corporation funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Douglas Development Corporation M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Douglas Development Corporation
What does Douglas Development Corporation do?
Douglas Development Corporation acquires, redevelops, and manages commercial real estate properties across multiple asset classes including office, retail, residential, hotel, and mixed-use. The company specializes in adaptive reuse of historic structures, preserving architectural character while modernizing for contemporary use, with a portfolio of over 19 million square feet across 7 states and the District of Columbia. Revenue is generated through property sales, commercial and residential leasing, and hotel operations.
Is Douglas Development Corporation a public or private company?
Douglas Development Corporation is a private company. It is classified as family owned and is currently operating.
When was Douglas Development Corporation founded?
Douglas Development Corporation was founded in 1985. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is Douglas Development Corporation based?
Douglas Development Corporation is headquartered in Washington, United States, in the North America region.
How does Douglas Development Corporation make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Property Sales are the primary driver. The others are commercial Leasing, hotel Operations and development and Redevelopment Services.
Who are Douglas Development Corporation's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Tishman Speyer, Brookfield Properties, Vornado Realty Trust and Boston Properties. Direct peers are The Bernstein Companies, Akridge, Penzance, JBG Smith Properties, The Donohoe Companies and LCOR.
Does Douglas Development Corporation have an API?
No public API is recorded for Douglas Development Corporation.
What industry is Douglas Development Corporation in?
Douglas Development Corporation's product category is Commercial Real Estate Development. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAJAMAL, Real Estate Development Asset Management (Project/Construction-to-Stabilization), with a secondary code of BPAJAMAK, Real Estate Investment Management (Acquisitions & Dispositions). Its NAICS code is 23721 and its SIC code is 6532.