What is your name, current location, and current occupation?
Anthony Flanagan
Location: San Francisco, California
Occupation: Real Estate Development
What was your affiliation with MIT?
M.Arch 1991, SM Real Estate Development 1991
What was your thesis title?
Name Unknown - Joint Thesis with CRED & MArch
What are you doing today?
I am the CEO for Boulevard Properties LLC, an international real estate development company. We focused on three pillars: (1) strategic planning for real estate ventures, (2) organizational development for global start-ups and large-scale developments, and most importantly, (3) the execution of major urban mixed-use development projects. We have worked in several global regions, such as: USA, Middle East, Asia, and Europe. The company focuses on collaborating with global partners and governments, providing a Managing Partner leadership and expertise in all core real estate development disciplines, and with an end-to-end commitment.
Do you think your career path has been unorthodox or nontraditional?
For sure my career path has been unconventional. For 24 of a 32-year career I have been committed to pioneering a new asset class, integrated-use experience based district development. Beginning with developments like: Santana Row, Treasure Island, The Shipyard, Candlestick Point, and the Whole Living Community, I’ve had a wonderful opportunity to explore deeply new concepts and principles for urban living. With Treasure Island and the Shipyard we were able to begin to incorporate meaningful applications in sustainability and regenerative development, which will surely benefit future generations. In 2006 we took these ideas world-wide with a small group of like-minded executives and have had some success in the USA, China, Europe, and more recently in the Middle East.
How did your time at MIT affect your career path?
My time at MIT was a game changer for me and my career. It provided me with the tools I needed to step into the development world with confidence and offered me a set of values that remain deeply embedded in everything I have done since.
What are you excited about in your career field today?
I firmly believe that the new millennium has brought into focus transformational change for cities worldwide, largely due to technology, urban migration, and the new millennials. I’ve traveled the world in my practice and everywhere I am witnessing the same trend in every city from San Francisco, to Beijing, and Riyadh. The challenge is for this generation of planners, designers, and developers to better understand this important transformation period. To use this opportunity to make places more livable and regenerative, and to implement solutions that put our cities on a better path for our future.
What advice would give to a new alum coming out of MIT?
Be bold, take chances, and embrace failure. To be a pioneer in any field one must be curious and prepared to explore new ideas. The fact is that many ideas will fail, but through that failure you may also find your way to success, however you define it. It is an adventurous process, and perhaps not for everyone, but for some, it is a wonderful life changing and fulfilling path to discover.
What are you trying to learn right now?
We’ve spent decades thinking about people in cities, and how to create a meaningful experience in our rapidly changing world. During this time we had some opportunity to incorporate concepts around sustainability and ICT. Today we are challenging ourselves on the meaning of sustainability. It’s a term with many definitions so we’re seeking to explore more deeply what it means for us. For the moment, we’re exploring more deeply the interrelationship between, social livability, economics and regenerative city-making and hope to incorporate these principles into our next development.
How can fellow alums reach you if they want to speak further?
Boulevard Properties LLC has a web site at: www.boulevardpropertiesllc.com and I can be reached at: aflanagan@boulevardpropertiesllc.com