Warren was raised in Dunwoody, a suburb of Atlanta, Georgia. During High School, Warren could be found on the football field in the fall, where he first developed his reputation as an individual destined to win. Summers found him in New Home Developments, building homes, the first one when he was only 16 years old. “Dad would sit down with me in the evenings and tell me what the next step was, who to call, and what to do”. Pete Jolly was instructive and influential in helping Warren define his career. At 17 years old, Warren built two homes during summer vacation, and at 18 years old, his very upscale construction project was featured in the Atlanta Journal.
After high school, Warren entered Auburn University with the intention of studying Civil Engineering. However, early in his studies he realized the difference between theory and application and changed his major to Building Science, where field experience became his best teacher.
During college breaks, Warren worked for a major Atlanta builder. It was in this environment that he quickly absorbed an understanding of the processes for land development. Warren quickly learned everything from managing subcontractors to managing a business. It was just prior to graduation in 1986 that Warren and Pete Jolly sat down to discuss going into the land development business.
The first project occurred in 1987 when Warren found land in the Stone Mountain area. His intent was to develop the parcel and sell it to a building company. The company with whom he contracted went out of business, so Warren built all of the homes in the entire neighborhood, and successfully sold out. That began his official career in the development/building business, building an average of 160 homes a year in the suburban Atlanta market.
It was 1995 when Warren decided that he wanted to concentrate more on the development side of the business and less in the homebuilding side of the business. His vision was to concentrate on close-in (to Atlanta) markets with higher density. One of the hallmarks of Warren’s personality is that he never backs down from a challenge! The higher density developments require much more planning and creative problem solving.
A major part of Warren’s success lies in his ability to work closely with neighborhoods, zoning officials and municipalities because “we do what we say we’ll do”. “In this industry, your reputation is a critical component in dealing with business partners, the real estate industry, the community, builders, land owners, home owners and municipalities”. Integrity is at the core of his personal code and business model.
Warren has his finger on the pulse of what’s happening with zoning, building and development codes, as well as construction trends. As a visionary, he is able to adapt quickly and plan years in advance. With the trend toward town home and mid-rise condominium flats on the increase, Warren has evolved into these markets seamlessly. They are more complex in planning and development and ultimately in the construction, which offers him challenges.
In 2001, with demand increasing, Warren made the decision to get back into the construction end of the business in a big way. Planning for 2003-2004 where he would have over 1000 units under construction, he added a homebuilding division to the business – The Providence Group. Warren’s vision will keep Jolly Development and The Providence Group on the leading edge.
Warren lives in Duluth, Ga. with his wife Kim and his three children: Kendall, Kayla, and Cole.
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