Puleo joins Arc Building Partners to lead construction firm’s New Jersey office

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Construction management firm, Arc Building Partners said Jan. 26 that James Puleo joined the company to lead its New Jersey office as executive vice president and regional manager. In his role as EVP, Puleo will primarily be focused on leading pre-development and pre-construction efforts with project stakeholders, in addition to driving excellence in operational performance in New Jersey and the New York City metro area.

“As our New Jersey office grows, James will help us take our operations to an even higher level. His proven track record of improving efficiencies and adapting quickly to achieve success will strengthen our firm’s ability to expand regionally, as we continue to deliver complex, high-profile projects for clients in New Jersey,” said Frank Ciminelli, president and chief executive officer of Arc Building Partners. “As a company that relies on trusted partnerships and delivering certainty under compressed timelines, his experience will prove to be invaluable to our growth.”

With nearly 25 years of experience in the construction and development industry, Puleo most recently worked with Los Angeles-based Cypress Equity Investments where he ran and built its East Coast real estate development operations. He oversaw the firm’s projects in Boston, New Jersey, Florida and elsewhere, and he implemented strategies to enter new markets in the Mid-Atlantic and Texas.

Previously, the Colgate University graduate worked at BNE Real Estate Group and ran its construction division. During a critical phase in the firm’s evolution, he built out its operational infrastructure, implementing new processes for pre-construction budgeting, purchasing, scheduling, document management, and change-order control systems. Early in his career, Puleo worked for New York City-based Plaza Construction, rising to the role of project manager before moving to Miami to help open the firm’s South Florida office.

“Arc Building Partners has demonstrated an impressive ability to deliver complex construction projects and grow rapidly in new and existing markets. Even while facing the challenges of this last year, the firm has found a way to make great things happen for its clients,” Puleo said. “I’m excited to join the team and help accelerate its success and growth in the New Jersey market and beyond.”

In 2019, Arc Building Partners merged with Far Hills-based Claremont Construction Group and acquired its backlog of projects. It was part of a strategic partnership agreement with Claremont Companies – which now focuses on its real estate development business – to become its construction partner of choice on future projects. The deal led to Arc Building Partners’ rapid expansion and to the opening of its new office location in Morristown.

In recent years, Arc Building Partners completed renovations to the Buffalo Bills’ training facilities and stadium; the historic redevelopment of the Barton House on the Darwin Martin House Complex in Buffalo, N.Y.; and the construction of Resorts World Catskills in Sullivan County, N.Y. Among its current projects in New Jersey are the Somerset Brownstones, an affordable housing complex in the Central Ward neighborhood of Newark; the Edge Bayonne in Bayonne; the Rivet II luxury apartment building in Jersey City, N.J.; and a large mixed-use development project in Park Ridge.