Master-planned community names new president

VENICE — Homebuilder Mattamy Homes has named Rick Severance president of its West Villages division.

Severance replaces former president Paul Erhardt. 

Severance will be responsible for all aspects of development and the phased sale of property at the master-planned community of West Villages, according to a press release. 

West Villages is a 9,650-acre property in south Sarasota County between Venice and North Port. Mattamy Homes and its minority partners purchased the property in 2014. The community is expected to eventually include about 20,000 homes as well as parks, recreation areas and 3 million square feet of non-residential space.

Severance was most recently president of Babcock Ranch. At Babcock Ranch, he was hired to launch the first solar-powered town in the U.S., the statement says. The town is entitled for 19,000 development units and 6 million square feet of commercial space.  

Previously, Severance was senior vice president of planning, development and operations for St. Joe Co. In that role, he led the company's residential and commercial portfolio, including design, sales and brokerage operations for 15 master-planned communities and 1 million square feet of commercial and retail holdings. He was also CEO of New Vector Limited, a consulting firm for new urban and master-planned resort communities and commercial town centers. Prior to his consulting career, he was CEO of Seaside Community Development Co., where he was responsible for the direction and development of Seaside. 

"Rick comes to Mattamy with a unique track record and understanding of customer-focused master-planned communities in Florida," says Mattamy Homes U.S. CEO Pete Skelly in the statement. "His talents and background will allow us to build upon the achievements already produced by our West Villages team and position us to deliver on the company's vision of a community and town center offering residents access to a wealth of housing, amenity, dining, shopping and recreational activity choices."

In the U.S., Mattamy Homes is represented in 10 markets, including Tampa, Sarasota and Naples. Its U.S. head office is in Orlando. In Canada, its communities stretch across the greater Toronto area, Ottawa, Calgary and Edmonton.