VP of Development (Construction)

Vice President of Development

Company: Clear Summit Invest

Clear Summit Invest is a premier real estate development firm specializing in outdoor hospitality. Established in 2017 and headquartered in Honolulu, Hawaii, Clear Summit acquires and develops RV parks, glamping resorts, and wellness retreats located near major national parks and other high-demand outdoor destinations. With more than $3.3 billion in real estate developed, over 80 years of combined team experience, and a growing community of 150+ trusted investors, Clear Summit has built a strong reputation for delivering exceptional returns and unforgettable guest experiences.

Clear Summit Invest is seeking a Vice President of Development to lead the full life cycle of our commercial development projects — from deal sourcing and due diligence through entitlements, pre-construction, construction, and close-out. This role serves as the critical interface between our deal origination and vision team and our construction execution team, ensuring projects are properly vetted, engineered, budgeted, and delivered.

This is a strategic, business-minded leadership role rather than a hands-on trades position. The ideal candidate brings a strong project management and engineering-fluent background, deep experience in commercial construction and real estate development, and the operational discipline to manage multiple complex projects in parallel.

Key Responsibilities

Development Life Cycle Leadership

• Lead end-to-end development of custom commercial projects from site preparation, permitting, and entitlements through pre-construction, estimating, construction, and close-out.
• Own and continuously improve a clear development workflow: deal sourcing → viability assessment → engineering → budgeting → build/no-go decision.
• Ensure projects are viable, properly engineered, and budgeted before major capital is committed.

Acquisitions & Due Diligence

• Analyze and perform due diligence on acquisition and development opportunities, including site evaluation, regulatory review, and feasibility analysis.
• Partner with leadership on land acquisition strategy and pipeline development.
• Evaluate ROI potential and provide data-driven recommendations on whether to advance, modify, or pass on opportunities.
  

Budgeting & Financial Planning

• Develop and manage pre-construction budgets, capex plans, project timelines, and ROI models.
• Drive financial accountability across all phases of the project life cycle.
• Coordinate with accounting and finance partners to ensure accurate forecasting, cost tracking, and reporting.

Project & Team Management

• Manage multiple concurrent commercial development projects across various phases and geographies.
• Coordinate cross-functionally across construction, engineering, operations, and partner/operator teams.
• Collaborate closely with internal stakeholders, including executive leadership, construction leadership, project managers, superintendents, accounting, and external partners and operators.
• Serve as the primary liaison between the deal origination/vision side of the business and on-the-ground construction execution.
  

Entitlements, Permitting & Compliance

• Lead and oversee entitlement, permitting, and regulatory processes across multiple jurisdictions.
• Ensure compliance with all applicable regulatory, safety, and quality requirements.
• Identify and mitigate risks throughout the development and construction life cycle.
  

Partner & Stakeholder Engagement

• Maintain strong working relationships with contractors, engineers, consultants, operators, and investors.
• Be comfortable with direct, frequent interaction (including FaceTime/video) with partners, investors, and internal leadership.
• Represent Clear Summit Invest with professionalism and credibility across all external engagements.
  

Qualifications

• 5+ years of experience in commercial real estate development, acquisitions, and/or construction management, with full project life cycle ownership.
• Proven track record managing complex commercial builds from “dirt to delivery.”
• Strong real estate development and land acquisition background; prior owner’s consultant–type experience is a plus.
• Demonstrated understanding of entitlements, permitting, and regulatory/compliance processes.
• Experience running or operating within a construction company at scale.
• Background that blends business, engineering, and project management — this is not a trades-up role.
• Excellent leadership, communication, and problem-solving skills.
  

Skills & Traits

• Strong project management foundation with the ability to manage complex, multi-phase commercial builds.
• Highly proficient computer skills — well above average with software, documents, spreadsheets, charts, and project workflow tools.
• Fluent in the language of engineering; able to work shoulder-to-shoulder with engineers without needing to be one.
• Exceptional with spreadsheets, organization, documentation, and tracking many moving parts.
• Strategic and business-minded — able to tie together construction, budgets, and broader business plans.
• Comfortable operating at both the executive/strategic level and in the weeds of project details.
• High-caliber, “rock star” operator who thrives in a fast-paced, entrepreneurial environment.
• Detail-oriented with an unwavering commitment to quality, execution, and accountability.

Ideal Candidate Profile

• A strategic, engineering-fluent development leader with a “start-to-finish” mindset.
• Equally comfortable analyzing a deal, working through entitlements, and pressure-testing a construction budget.
• Strong leadership presence with the ability to align construction, engineering, operations, and partners around a common plan.
• Detail-oriented, organized, and disciplined — with the executive judgment to know what matters most.
• Thrives in a fast-paced, entrepreneurial environment where ownership, initiative, and resourcefulness are rewarded.
  

Compensation

• Base salary: $150,000–$200,000, commensurate with experience.
• Additional incentives and performance-based bonuses may be offered.
• Healthcare stipend