by Liz Daube
Staff Writer
Kevin Setzer is the reason Kentucky real estate developer Aslan decided to open a Jacksonville office.
“I wouldn’t move,” said Setzer, a former vice president of the local division of Pulte Homes. “That’s been the primary driver (in my career). I didn’t want to leave here.”
Aslan, a Louisville-based company with more than $2 billion in projects, recently named Setzer executive vice president in charge of acquisition and development. Setzer said his new office in the Wachovia tower on the Southbank will operate all development activities for Aslan’s upscale coastal, master planned communities and mixed-use properties throughout the Southeast.
The office plans to grow to 20 employees over the next 18 months, according to Setzer, who is also a former manager of the St. Joe Co.’s commercial division. He said he’s lived in a dozen states, but Jacksonville is his favorite location.
“It’s the relationships I have with people here,” said Setzer. He added that family and social ties are a priority he’s maintained throughout his 17 years in real estate development: “The most important thing is balance. We work hard during the day ... but there are no 10 o’clock nights here.”
Setzer said the Jacksonville area has been a source of real estate opportunities, as well. From his Southbank office, he can still see the St. Joe building on Riverside Avenue that he helped develop.
“I love the creation of things,” said Setzer. “You can drive by and see it (my work).”
Aslan has an upscale residential community, Aslan Beach House, underway in South Ponte Vedra Beach and coastal condominiums planned for Vilano Beach. The company also has two other projects – pending feasibility and due diligence – slated for the First Coast area, according to Setzer.
He said the Jacksonville area has a stable housing market, and he doesn’t plan to target specific neighborhoods for development.
“I don’t see areas; I see market segmentation,” said Setzer. “People are growing and moving ... I quit falling in love with property a long time ago. I don’t see, ‘The northside is growing, wherever is growing.’ Every place has an opportunity.”
Setzer said Aslan’s company name comes from the lion character in the C.S. Lewis book, “The Chronicles of Narnia.” He said the lion resonates with the way the company strives for integrity. Every detail of a building matters, Setzer said.
“There’s a tremendous responsibility,” he said. “The livelihood of that building is the people in it. They’re going to live, breathe or function in something that we create.”
Setzer added that he often tells employees, “Imagine you just bought your mother her first house. What do you want it to be like? ... You want it to be the best experience they’ve ever had. That’s our goal.”
To keep a close eye on projects, Setzer said he gets involved with every project at least twice a day.
“That’s my internal rule,” he said. “You’re not going to miss what’s going right or wrong with it.”
Despite a busy schedule – Setzer also volunteers with United Way – he said he enjoys his work because he learns something new every day.
“If you’re not having fun at what you do, do something else,” he said. “I can’t think of anybody who wakes up to have a bad day, so just take it off the list.”