Jay Cooper has joined Driftwood Capital as Managing Director of Development and Construction
Driftwood Capital (Driftwood), a vertically integrated commercial real estate firm providing superior risk-adjusted returns in hospitality, is pleased to announce that Jay Cooper has joined the firm as Managing Director of Development and Construction. In this role, Cooper will oversee all of Driftwood Capital's new, ground-up hospitality developments and value-add hotel renovations - a portfolio currently valued at more than $1 billion - along with providing commercial construction and development services to other hospitality-driven real estate sponsors.
Cooper, who has held senior leadership roles at firms including Kolter Hospitality and Turner & Townsend, brings more than 20 years of experience working across site management, design team consultancy, project management, owners' representation and development. He also holds expertise in sustainable construction practices, infrastructure work, and historic building restoration. Past projects include the Hyatt Centric Ft Lauderdale, Westin Sarasota, One St Petersburg Hyatt Place, and AC Marriott Downtown Orlando. Cooper has been part of the team to receive multiple awards including Hyatt "Strategic Partner" award (2016) and Hospitality Project of the year (2020) from ENR.
Cooper is presently overseeing pre-development of large Driftwood projects including the $388 million, 4.5-star Westin Cocoa Beach Resort and Conference Center, and the $185 million Riverside Wharf Dream Miami hotel complex. He is also overseeing the renovation of The Scottsdale Resort at McCormick Ranch, an iconic, hacienda-style resort with 326 guestrooms located in Arizona, as well as the Sheraton Old San Juan, a 240-room hotel in the heart of Old San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Cooper, who resides in Boca Raton, FL, holds a master's degree in civil and structural engineering from Bristol University in the United Kingdom.