Dallas' Granite Properties Announces CEO Transition

Granite Properties announced that Will Hendrickson, currently senior managing director and Dallas market leader, will become the company’s chief executive officer, effective Jan. 1.

The Dallas-based commercial real estate investment, development, and management company said Michael Dardick, founding partner & CEO, will transition on that date to become Granite’s executive chairman.

“Following a months-long and thoughtful succession process, I’m thrilled to announce that our current Dallas market leader and senior managing director, Will Hendrickson, will be Granite’s next CEO,” Dardick said in a statement. “Will is a trusted leader and the right person to effectively guide Granite forward. He has a proven record of growing our Dallas platform and brings a breadth of skillsets important to Granite’s future. Elevating and realigning our leadership team with Will at the helm is the key to our continued success for the next 30-plus years.”

An aerial rendering of Granite Properties’ planned 26-story tower, 23Springs, in Dallas’ Uptown. [Rendering: Granite Properties]

Dardick said that he’s excited about his new role as executive chairman.

“It’s an honor to work with such talented and dedicated people every day. I’m proud of what we’ve achieved together navigating the ever-evolving real estate industry while always putting the experience of our customers first,” Dardick said.

Granite said that in addition to the CEO transition, the following leadership changes are being made to best position the company’s growth strategy for the future, also effective Jan. 1:

Bill Brown, currently chief investment officer, will be promoted to President and continue his role as CIO focused on advancing the company’s growth.
Paul Bennett, currently senior director of investments, will be promoted to senior managing director and the Dallas market leader succeeding Will Hendrickson.
Jason Purvis, currently senior managing director and the Southern California market leader, will add responsibilities as head of Capital Raising. As part of this move, all the firm’s capital activities are consolidated under Ace Roman, chief financial officer, and Jason will report to Ace.
Greg Fuller, Scott Martin and Sheryl Troiani will continue to serve respectively as chief operating officer, executive managing director, and chief administrative officer.

Two decades at Granite

Granite said its executive committee will be led by Hendrickson and consist of Roman, Brown, Fuller, Martin, and Troiani.

“I’m honored to serve as Granite’s next CEO,” Hendrickson said in a statement. “I look forward to working with our talented team to continue delivering the highest quality office space to our customers and creating value with our partners. I want to thank Michael for his leadership, guidance and friendship. He embodies the values of our company: Passion to lead with integrity, dedication to serve, drive to create opportunities, and never-ending pursuit of improvement. I look forward to continuing to work together and drive Granite’s growth through developments and acquisitions,” he added.

Hendrickson began his career at Granite as an investment analyst in 2003.

He rose to the role of senior director of investments leading Granite’s investment activities in Atlanta, Austin, Denver and Houston, which included acquisitions, dispositions, development and financial structuring.

Hendrickson was promoted to lead the Dallas office as senior managing director in 2017. He has led the day-to-day operations and growth in Dallas, including the development of three Class-A+ office developments in Uptown, Plano and Southlake, and the acquisition of a large Class-AA mixed-use project in Uptown.

Hendrickson is a NAIOP NTX board member, a ULI National Product Council member, a TREC Board of Directors and ALC Steering Committee member, an Uptown Dallas Inc. board member, and a University of Texas Real Estate Advisory Council Executive Council member.

Growing beyond its Dallas roots

As executive chairman, Dardick will continue to be fully engaged in the company, ensuring a smooth transition, and providing guidance, external relations, and investor management, the company said.

Dardick founded Granite in 1991, along with the Schusterman family, a longtime leader in the oil and gas industry.

Granite said their vision of building a company based on sound investments, strong relationships, and a strong sense of giving back to the community has been the foundation of Granite’s success.

The firm started in 1991 with an office building acquisition in Dallas and grew to complete more than 30 million square feet of real estate development and acquisitions in Dallas, Houston, Atlanta, Denver, Southern California, Boston and Nashville.

Placing high value on both people and culture, Dardick and his team created a successful firm known for providing high-quality, highly-amenitized, and well-located office buildings.

Under Dardick’s leadership, Granite developed such projects as Granite Park, a 90-acre master planned mixed-use campus in Plano; Midtown Union, a transformative mixed-use project in Midtown Atlanta; and Factory Six03, transforming the landmark West End Marketplace into creative Class-A office space in Dallas.