Doug Buzbee joined SWD in May 2005
responsible for sourcing development
opportunities and managing projects in the
forward planning stage. From 2002 Mr. Buzbee
worked at KB Home as a land acquisition
manager, due diligence manager, and forward
planner. During the 1990s, Mr. Buzbee served
as a Civil Engineer Corps officer in the
U.S. Navy at different points overseeing
infrastructure construction in the
Philippines, managing infrastructure
maintenance and public works operations in
Spain, overseeing environmental compliance
for naval facilities in the San Francisco
Bay Area, and managing navy housing assets
and public works operations in Ventura
County, Southern California.
Mr. Buzbee received a B.S. in Civil
Engineering from the University of Colorado
at Boulder in 1990, a M.S. in Civil and
Environmental Engineering from the
University of California, Berkeley in 1996,
and an MBA from the Haas School of Business
at U.C. Berkeley in 2002. Mr. Buzbee is a
licensed Professional Engineer and a
licensed Real Estate Broker, both in the
State of California.
Douglas C. Buzbee Vice President of
Acquisitions
&
Property
Development
Derek Farmer joined SWD in February 2008 and
is responsible for managing projects in the
forward planning and land development
phases. Prior to joining SWD, Mr. Farmer
worked as a Forward Planner for KB Homes
where he was responsible for obtaining
tentative maps, final map and planned
development approvals; overseeing consultant
teams, contracts and development budgets; as
well as managing the incorporation of
homeowners’ associations. Prior to KB Homes,
Mr. Farmer was an Associate Planner for the
Counties of Santa Clara and San Mateo.
Mr. Farmer holds a master of Urban Planning
from San Jose State University and a B.A. in
Communication Design from California State
University, Chico.
Derek M. Farmer Director of Land
Development &
Forward Planning
Gary Porter oversees all construction
operations of SWD. This effort continues at
varied degrees of intensity from the land
acquisition through the disposition of a
property.
Mr. Porter joined Silverwing Development in
1989 and during that time has either
directly or indirectly managed construction
that has resulted in property dispositions
in excess of $750 million in both Texas,
California and Nevada representing 1900
housing units, 2500 lots in additional to
over 350 acres of commercial property. Mr.
Porter’s primary effort is to manage and
coordinate the, construction budgeting,
project contracting, scheduling and customer
service departments.
Mr. Porter has over 30 years of construction
experience ranging from hands-on
construction to project supervision, general
supervision and overall construction
management in a multiple project
environment. Mr. Porter holds a B-1
Contracting and C-10 Electrical license.
Gary Porter Director of
Construction
Elizabeth Witt is responsible for the asset
management of the investment portfolio.
Elizabeth brings over 30 years of real
estate experience to SWD Advisors.
Ms. Witt co-founded Silverwing Development
in 1986, a real estate development company
specializing in residential land development
and home building in Northern California and
Nevada in 1984. She is the Sales and
Marketing Director and her responsibilities
include overseeing all Sales and Marketing
efforts on residential projects, including
the layout, design, advertising, signage and
option selection functions, as well as sales
personnel management.
Ms Witt’s prior experience includes the
Director of Asset Management for AMB
Investments responsible for the management
of commercial real estate properties
purchased on behalf of pension funds and
offshore clients. Also Ms. Witt was a Vice
President with the E.F. Hutton Real Estate
Investment Banking Group in San Francisco
where she was responsible for the asset
management of a $750 million portfolio of
commercial real estate. In addition, Ms.
Witt spent five years at a large Boston law
firm specializing in financial real estate
transactions.
Ms. Witt, who graduated from Boston College
with a Bachelor of Science Degree and
holds the CPM designation, as well as a
State of California Real Estate Broker’s
license. Ms. Witt, is active in the training
adult leaders in the Mt. Diablo Silverado
Council BSA and was awarded the Silver
Beaver Award. She has also been on the board
and remains active of a variety of other San
Francisco Bay Area charitable organizations.
