Preferred Apartment's Co-Founder John Williams, Mourned

ATLANTA, GA—John A. Williams, co-founder, chairman and chief executive officer of Preferred Apartment Communities, died unexpectedly Monday. The company’s Board of Directors appointed vice chairman and chief investment officer Daniel M. DuPree to succeed Williams as chairman of the board and chief executive officer.  Leonard A. Silverstein, a co-founder of the company along with Williams, was appointed vice chairman of the board and will continue as president and chief operating officer.

In a statement, the company says it is “indebted to Mr. Williams for his strong leadership, real estate vision, outgoing personality and boundless energy.”  Williams is survived by his wife Nancy; three children, Jay, Sarah Brook and Parker, and two grandchildren, Jack and Harrison.

“John was a dear friend, partner, mentor and influence in our lives and careers.  He was a visionary and understood the importance of creating a company that is built on culture, associates, reputation and brand,” the company quotes Silverstein and DuPree as saying.  “We are committed to continuing John’s vision to create the preeminent real estate investment trust in the United States.”

Over the course of his career, Williams directed and coordinated the development, construction, and management of more than $15 billion in real estate developments.  Approximately $5.5 billion of this activity has focused on multifamily housing, with the balance in other property types including hotels, condominiums and offices. Williams founded Post Properties in 1970. He took Post Properties public as a REIT in 1993. When he resigned as chairman of Post Properties in 2003, the company had approximately 30,000 apartment units and had averaged funds from operations growth of 7% per year commencing with the Post Properties initial public offering. He was listed on National Real Estate Investor’s list of “The 20th Century’s Most Influential Developers,” and received the Atlanta Business Chronicle’s award for “Atlanta Residential Developer of The Decade,” for the 1990′s; and Harvard Business School’s ”Community Leadership Award” in 2000.

He received numerous honors and awards from Cobb County, GA, including, “The Mack Henderson Public Service Award,” in 2005. Williams was inducted into the Multi-Housing News Hall of Fame: First Class in 2004, and received The Four Pillar Award in 2007 from The Council for Quality Growth. In 2008, he was inducted into the Georgia State University J. Mack Robinson College of Business Hall of Fame and the Georgia Institute of Technology College of Management Hall of Fame.

Williams served on the board of directors of the Atlanta Falcons, of which he was a minority owner, and on a number of business and community boards.