If it’s big, chances are Chris Paladino had something to do with it. As president of the New Brunswick Development Corp., Paladino has set the standard for what it means to be a developer in New Jersey. Under his leadership, DEVCO has initiated, developed and managed nearly 5.4 million square feet in residential, commercial, academic and institutional activity valued at over $2 billion by focusing on a unique brand of public-private joint venture partnerships.

In New Brunswick alone, Paladino’s company has overseen nearly $1.6 billion of investment. And that effort is continuing. Next on tap: Big work in the Hub City that will see the delivery of the $665 million, 550,000-square-foot New Jersey Innovation and Technology Hub at the site of the former Ferren Mall. DEVCO is the lead developer on the project, which is looking at a 2025 completion date. “We are building an extraordinary ecosystem where collaboration, discovery and creative collisions can occur not only in the laboratory but in cafes, outdoor plazas and in an array of innovative social spaces that will be located throughout the project,” Paladino said when work broke ground in October.

DEVCO is helping to bring the state’s first freestanding cancer hospital to New Brunswick in conjunction with RWJBarnabas Health and Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey. The 510,000-square-foot Jack and Sheryl Morris Cancer Center will house inpatient, outpatient and ancillary services, as well as state-of-the-art laboratories. Elsewhere in the city, DEVCO and Pennrose LLC opened the $172 million, 23-story New Brunswick Performing Arts Center and residential tower in September 2020 — a partnership with Rutgers University, the George Street Playhouse, Middlesex County, the Crossroads Theatre and American Repertory Ballet.

Down south, Paladino is completing the $220 million Atlantic City Gateway project with ACDEVCO, of which he is also president, which brought Stockton University to the seaside resort. Last May, a $54.550 million bond closed, clearing the way for Phase 2 of Stockton’s campus, which includes a dorm. The project also encompasses the headquarters for South Jersey Industries – a utility giant whose board of directors Paladino also sits on.