Vertically integrated developer and operator Middleburg is moving into the next phase of its long-term geographic growth strategy—expanding its footprint into the West.
To lead the expansion, the firm has hired Scott Makee as regional development partner, West. Makee has been tapped to establish and scale the development platform across key high-growth Western markets, overseeing market entry strategy, team buildout, and development execution.
“Expansion into the West is not about planting flags,” said founder and CEO Chris Finlay. “It’s about expanding geography from a position of strength and at a time of clear opportunity. Scott understands how to enter markets, build strong local teams, and enforce capital and operational discipline with an eye toward long-term performance.”
According to Middleburg, Dallas and Phoenix will be an initial focus, with other near-term opportunities in select locations in Denver, Houston, and Las Vegas.
“The opportunity in the West is meaningful, but it requires leveraging capital and organizational infrastructure, local expertise, and operational control while empowering our development partners with entrepreneurial flexibility,” Finlay added. “Scott’s experience scaling development operations across multiple regions positions us to grow deliberately—without compromising the standards that have defined Middleburg for more than two decades—which is what makes him such an excellent fit for this role.”
Makee brings over two decades of multifamily and mixed-use development experience across the Mountain States, Southeast, Southwest, and Texas. With a focus on entering new markets, building out teams, and delivering urban and suburban communities at scale, he has led the acquisition, capitalization, and development of projects totaling more than $1.4 billion in aggregate value. Most recently, he served as senior managing director of Mill Creek Residential’s Denver office, where he reestablished and led the firm’s development operations in the state. Prior to that, he led multifamily expansion for Crescent Communities.
“The Western market expansion represents a meaningful opportunity to leverage the systems and processes already in place to continue building a diverse, flexible platform that can adapt to ongoing shifts in the capital markets,” noted Makee. “What attracted me to Middleburg is the ability to pair entrepreneurial market entry with institutional discipline. When you control the full lifecycle—from how capital is structured to how projects are executed and operated—you can move decisively while still protecting downside risk. My goal is to build a regional platform that is locally embedded, capital-efficient, and capable of generating durable performance as it scales.”
Middleburg, based in Vienna, Virginia, has delivered over 32,000 homes across nine states since 2004. The Western expansion builds on the firm’s broader growth strategy. In December, it announced Scott Zimmerly as regional development partner to drive development activity and platform expansion across the Southeast.