Don MacKenzie

A real estate executive based in Denver, Colorado, Don MacKenzie recently joined Forum Real Estate Group as Managing Director and Chief Development Officer. Don MacKenzie, who brings more than three decades of real estate experience to the role, will help the full-service real estate investment firm to expand its activities in the Denver area. Forum Real Estate Group has invested in 34 properties nationwide, including branded communities such as Pearl Place, an LEED-Gold rated office complex that will become the location of Google’s campus in Boulder. The firm also developed Kent Place Residences, a luxury apartment community located in the upscale Cherry Hills neighborhood in Denver.

Don MacKenzie began his real estate career as the director of acquisitions and head of development with Wellsford Residential Property Trust, where ultimately became an Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer. As President of the firm’s property management division, he oversaw a team of 45 corporate staff and 700 employees tasked with operating the publicly traded real estate investment trust (REIT). He also played a central role in the merger of Wellsford Residential Property Trust with Equity Residential Properties Trust (EQR), a transaction valued at approximately $1 billion.

In 1999, Donald D. MacKenzie left EQR to form MacKenzie House, LLC, a real estate development company based in Denver. Recognized by the Denver Business Journal in 2007 as the fastest-growing Denver company, MacKenzie House developed more than $500 million in senior housing, single family, rental multifamily, and condominiums.

Don MacKenzie most recently served as head of West Coast development for UDR, a $14 billion market capitalization REIT.