Project Developer, Renovations & Interiors

ARCO Companies; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 90,000 - 125,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

ESOP

401k (Traditional & Roth)

Tuition reimbursement

Scholarship for children

Sabbatical after 5 years

Volunteer leave

Healthcare benefits

Parental leave

Job summary

ARCO/Murray National in Chicago is seeking a Project Developer to lead renovation and interior development projects for entertainment and hospitality spaces. You will manage due diligence, entitlements, permits, and preconstruction in collaboration with project managers and design teams.

You will interface with brokers, advise on layout and cost paths, and coordinate with attorneys and partners to balance schedule, budget, and client needs.

Qualifications

• Bachelor degree in Civil/Mechanical/Electrical Engineering, Architecture, or Construction Management.
• 2–4 years of construction PM or MEP design experience.
• Experience delivering projects on schedule and within budget.
• PE license preferred; ARCO/Murray supports licensure.
• Proficiency in MS Office, especially Project and Excel.

Responsibilities

• Oversee due diligence of existing site conditions (surveys, asbestos, MEP/structural review).
• Manage real estate entitlements and permits to start and execute projects.
• Interface with brokers to facilitate lease or purchase and risk mitigation.
• Serve as single client contact during preconstruction and coordinate with design teams.
• Advise clients on site layout, building design, and entitlement path.
• Coordinate with real estate lawyers, landowners, and development partners; manage budgets.

Skills

Project management

Client relationships

Budgeting

Communication

Education

Bachelor of Science in Civil/Mechanical/Electrical Engineering, Architecture, or Construction Management

Tools

Microsoft Project

Excel

Microsoft Office Suite

Job description

Project Developer, Renovations & Interiors

Chicago, IL, US

About You:

Do you take pride in making the construction process as painless as possible for your clients from beginning to end? Are you passionate about anticipating and solving the problems that can slow down a construction project before they ever happen? If the answer is, “Yes!” then we have an opportunity that will impress you. Who are we? We are ARCO, The Design/Build Experts.

ARCO/Murray National is currently seeking a Project Developer to join our team based in Chicago to support the pursuit and development of entertainment- or hospitality-related interior renovation projects. As a Project Developer at ARCO/Murray, you have high visibility to clients and are expected to manage your clients' projects from site identification and due diligence through contract negotiations and preconstruction in collaboration with ARCO/Murray Project Managers as well as internal/external design teams.

A Day in the Life:

• Manage due diligence of existing site conditions including surveys, asbestos studies, MEP/Structural review, etc.
• Manage real estate entitlements and permits as necessary to start and execute on the project; including preparation of necessary documents for regulatory agencies to obtain required permits
• Interface with customer’s brokers to facilitate the lease or purchase transaction, often by way of landlord work letter, scope clarification/dollarization, and overall risk mitigation that benefits ARCO’s Customer
• Be the single point of contact for the client during the preconstruction process and represent the development team to all external parties
• Act as an advisor to clients on site layout, building design, and entitlement path to best fit their timing and cost needs
• Coordinate with real estate attorneys, land owners, and development partners
• Financial management of all due diligence and design cost; including management of the owner’s development budget (hard and soft costs) and cash flow analysis
• Create and manage preconstruction schedules for individual projects and/or pipelines of work where appropriate
• Prepare and maintain preliminary cost estimates for both design and construction
• Research and develop design alternatives and value engineering solutions and provide client with associated cost estimates
• Oversee the preparation of engineering studies and report conclusions to design and construction team
• Identify opportunities for business development by cultivating and maintaining client relationships, implementing marketing initiatives, and public presentations

Necessary Qualifications:

• Bachelor of Science in Civil/Mechanical/Electrical Engineering, Architecture, or Construction Management preferred
• 2-4 years of construction project management or MEP design experience in support of restaurant, hospitality, or entertainment-related construction projects
• Experience should demonstrate successful project delivery including schedule and budget management
• Professional Engineer (PE) license (preferred but not required), ARCO/Murray will support the pursuit of licensure for EIT
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite, specifically Project and Excel

What We Can Offer You:

We are dedicated to the well-being of our associates and are proud to be consistently recognized as a Best Place to Work. Our compensation and benefits package not only supports our associates and their families but benefits local communities and communities around the world.

• Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP)
• Traditional and Roth 401k
• Tuition reimbursement for associates
• Scholarship for associates’ children up to $28,000 per child
• 1-month paid sabbatical after every five years of employment, plus $5,000 for travel
• 1-week paid volunteer leave each year
• Medical, dental, and vision insurance coverage
• Paid parental leave

Typical base compensation for the Project Manager role is between $90,000.00 and $125,000.00. Candidates with extensive experience may exceed this range. In addition to base salary, the role is eligible to receive discretionary bonus compensation based on individual and company performance.

At ARCO, our first core value is to treat people fairly and do the right thing. We are committed to building and sustaining a culture that supports diversity and inclusion. We are proud to be an equal opportunity employer, and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment.

From recruiting, training, and hiring practices to selecting our subcontractors, we understand that diversity of all those involved in the construction process enhances our ability to deliver the best solutions to our customers. We hire the best and the brightest from across the country – constructing a team of experts in architecture, design, engineering, project management, and business services.

MAKE YOUR MOVE

We are proud to be one of the fastest-growing, privately-owned companies in America, celebrating over 30 years of experience as design-build experts. We have completed over 7,500 design-build projects nationwide. We ranked #9 on ENR’s Design-Build Firms list and #34 on ENR's Top 400 Contractors list of 2026. Most importantly, our clients like us, trust us, and want to do business with us. We are looking for people with the same enthusiasm, passion, and respect for the hard work that brought us to where we are today. Are you a person who can make a difference at ARCO? If the answer is “Yes!” we look forward to meeting you.

ARCO does not accept unsolicited resumes from individual recruiters or third-party recruiting agencies without pre-approval from ARCO’s Human Resources team. Pre-approval is required before any external candidate can be submitted. ARCO will not be responsible for fees related to unsolicited resumes and for candidates who are sent directly to our hiring managers. Agencies must have a fully executed vendor agreement in place as well as written approval to submit candidates from an ARCO TA Manager for a specific position before submitting candidates.

We do not discriminate on the basis of any protected group status under any applicable law.

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A "disabled veteran" is one of the following: a veteran of the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service who is entitled to compensation (or who but for the receipt of military retired pay would be entitled to compensation) under laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs; or a person who was discharged or released from active duty because of a service-connected disability.

A "recently separated veteran" means any veteran during the three-year period beginning on the date of such veteran's discharge or release from active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval, or air service.

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