Franklin A. Martin
Senior Advisor
Frank Martin is the managing principal of Martin Community Development, LLC in Boise, Idaho and a senior advisor to Greenstreet Ltd. For more than 35 years, Frank has been a community developer and home builder, known nationally as one of the pioneers in conservation-based approaches to community development.
Frank recently completed the development of Hidden Springs, a $375 million, 1,756-acre rural new town of 850 homes in the Boise front foothills. Amenities include a charter school (K-7), preschool, fire station, library, community barn, pools and clubhouse, DSL connectivity, a mercantile, café, bed and breakfast, a community supported organic farm and a local heritage museum on the National Register of Historic Places. The community has received national recognition as a model for smart growth from such organizations as the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, the Sonoran Institute and the National Association of Home Builders for its combination of integrated planning, environmental sensitivity and resource efficient infrastructure systems.
Prior to Hidden Springs, Frank was responsible for the development of nearly $1 billion of new development and 3,000 homes, primarily in the metropolitan Chicago market. Frank has served as Executive Vice President of Home by Hemphill and The Shaw Company and president of McKeon Construction and Shaw Homes, Inc. in Chicago. During this period he oversaw the development of several award-winning communities, including Adare Farm, Inverness on the Ponds, Luther Village, and The Reserve at the Merit Club.
Among his more groundbreaking projects, Frank oversaw the development of Prairie Crossing, a $110 million 667-acre conservation community of 362 energy-efficient, single-family homes and over 400 acres of protected open land in Grayslake, Illinois. Frank also completed Garibaldi Square, a $25 million, 128-unit high-density urban residential community just west of downtown Chicago, which received the Urban Land Institute’s Award for Excellence. He oversaw the development of Homan Square, a $215 million, 55-acre redevelopment initiative in partnership with Sears, Roebuck and Co. encompassing 300 units of new affordable housing and renovation of one million square feet of commercial and institutional space to stabilize an inner-city neighborhood of Chicago, which also received ULI’s Award for Excellence.
A long-time member of the Urban Land Institute, Frank was a founding member of the Institute’s Environmental Committee in the mid-1990’s and served as chairman of ULI’s Sustainable Development Council and chairman of ULI’s Idaho District Council. He has been an advisor to nine communities in the United States through ULI’s Advisory Services program. Frank is a licensed real estate broker in Idaho and Illinois and received a bachelor’s degree in economics from Hanover College and an MBA in finance from the Graduate School of Business at the University of Chicago.
