Opus Development Corporation Opens Office in St. Louis and Hires Joe Downs as Senior Director of Real Estate Development

10/30/2012

​ST. LOUIS, Mo. - Opus Development Corporation announced today it is opening an office in St Louis, Mo., and has hired Joe Downs as senior director of real estate development.

“We’re thrilled to add Joe to our team of professionals,” said Dave Menke, senior vice president and general manager at Opus Development Corporation. “He brings along a great resume of experience that will prove invaluable as he plays a key role in building our business in the St. Louis market, which is seeing renewed activity.” 

In his new role, Downs will be responsible for pursuing business opportunities in the St. Louis market across a variety of sectors, including office, industrial, multifamily, retail, higher education and government.

“I’m pleased to be joining Opus Development Corporation,” said Downs. “Opus’ momentum across the Midwest is palatable and their platform has great things to offer in this market.” 

Downs comes to Opus from The Love Companies, where he was a vice president and responsible for pursuing and executing real estate developments, sourcing investment opportunities for Limestone Real Estate Investment Fund and managing Heartland Bank’s real estate assets.

Prior to joining The Love Companies, Downs spent more than eight years at Opus Northwest, L.L.C., where he worked on the design-build side of the business, first as a project manager in Minneapolis and then moving to St. Louis to take on the role of director of construction, general manager. In St. Louis, he was responsible for the office’s business development, design and construction. 

A LEED accredited professional, Downs earned a bachelor’s of science in civil engineering from Marquette University and continued his education at the University of St. Thomas, where he graduated with a master’s in business administration.

About The Opus Group
The Opus Group® is a family of national commercial real estate companies headquartered in Minneapolis, with expertise in development, project management and construction, architecture and engineering, finance, sales and leasing. The Opus Group includes Opus Holding, L.L.C. and Opus Holding, Inc. and their operating subsidiaries, Opus Development Corporation, Opus Design Build, L.L.C. and Opus AE Group, Inc. Specializing in office, industrial, retail, residential living, institutional and government projects, The Opus Group has broad capabilities, deep experience and a proven design-build model that delivers solutions for customers on time and on budget. For more information, visit www.opus-group.com.