St. Joe recently promoted Nick Cassala as vice president and project manager of its North Florida residential operations. This move brings Cassala full circle, returning to where his career in real estate and development began nearly 20 years ago.
Cassala is responsible for overseeing planning and design, construction, community development, government permitting and marketing strategy for both RiverTown and St. Johns Golf & Country Club.
For the past four years, Cassala has had similar responsibility managing residential operations for St. Joe in Northwest Florida that included its WaterColor and WaterSound Beach developments. In his new role, he will oversee the build-out of the 799-home St. Johns Golf & Country Club and the planning and development of St. Joe’s 4,170-acre RiverTown community in northwest St. Johns County.
“My extended family is here in the Jacksonville area, and when the opportunity arose to lead St. Joe’s residential projects in my hometown, I jumped at it, said Cassala, who has worked for St. Joe’s residential development arm since 1997.
“Nick has distinguished himself on every project he’s led, setting high goals for himself and his team and then exceeding those goals, said Britt Greene, president of St. Joe’s residential development operations. “He’s the right person to help us bring RiverTown to life.
Cassala will help guide the development of RiverTown, a community of seven neighborhoods on 4,170 acres in northwest St. Johns County.
Bordered by 3.5 miles of the St. Johns River’s east bank, RiverTown’s neighborhoods will be linked by a riverfront park and the natural areas throughout the property, which has been owned by St. Joe since 1930. Design elements of time-proven historic neighborhoods will be incorporated in the design of the 4,500 home community, including a network of parks, an abundance of amenities and sites for schools.
Cassala said that one area of immediate focus is to ensure a smooth transition from a developer-managed community to one managed by property owners at St. Johns Golf & Country Club during the next year or so.
“The ultimate compliment to the job we’ve done will come years from now when St. Johns Golf & Country Club is recognized as a community that continues to interest people moving to the area and delivers value to future homeowners,” he said.
A graduate of the University of Florida, Cassala is the father of two and recently celebrated his 20th wedding anniversary. After earning an accounting degree, Cassala progressed quickly and assumed roles that involved managing people and projects, and has spent most of his career in residential development.
Prior to his recent position in the Panhandle, Cassala was general manager of Weston Hills Country Club in Weston, Fla., near Ft. Lauderdale. At Weston, he handled both the operation and financial management of the Athletic Club and the Country Club. Earlier, he was general manager of Jacksonville Golf & Country Club and was instrumental in its successful member-equity turnover. His general and project management experience also includes four years as COO and GM at Radley Run Country Club outside of Philadelphia, and over eight years with Gate Petroleum Company, where he spent the majority of his tenure as VP and GM of the Deerwood Club.