According to the members of Pinkard's preconstruction department, the best affordable housing projects share one thing in common: they are predictable. They also agree that accurate and transparent estimates are the only way to accomplish this.
Since becoming Director of Preconstruction in 2017, Mark Bokhoven has established a culture of accountability. His approach stresses humility, selflessness, and transparency for the client's good.
On Thrive Affordable Housing for Denver Housing Authority, Bokhoven and the Pinkard preconstruction team helped guide the budget to a 0% variance between schematic development documents and the GMP. This budget consistency is no small feat, requiring input and cooperation from the design team, client, and subcontractors.
"With this zero percent variance, DHA was able to incorporate add-alternates to enhance Thrive's value to future tenants and DHA," said Bokhoven. "During preconstruction, Pinkard collaborated closely with DHA, the Shopworks team, and our chosen MEP/fire and earthworks design-assist partners to refine the scope and pricing from the design development phase through GMP."
Bokhoven and his team know how important these numbers are to the funding process of an affordable housing project, often assisting the client with the paperwork necessary to apply for low-income housing tax credits.
"Estimates and construction financing need to be in a CHFA-approved format for their tax credit application." Said Leighton Neff, Senior Preconstruction manager. "We actually worked with CHFA to create the forms and therefore have intimate knowledge on how to present it correctly and in precisely the way they need it to submit."
Ultimately, Bokhoven believes a strong foundation of trust allows his team to work so seamlessly with the architect and the client on these projects.
"We spend a lot of time defining expectations," he said. "I want them to trust that we are being 100% transparent and that our ultimate goal is to bring everyone to the table to make sure we make every dollar count."
Bokhoven says this approach is how the housing project, and ultimately its residents, win in the end.
