Stephen Owens, president of Swire Properties, announced Wednesday that he will retire effective January 2017.
Owens, 68, has spent the last 31 years as the president of Swire Properties, which is the U.S. real estate subsidiary of Hong Kong conglomerate Swire Pacific.
He first joined the company in 1976 and wore several managerial hats before climbing the ranks to president in 1985, according to a press release about his retirement. Owens played a key role in developing Brickell Key, a man-made island off Brickell that Swire bought most of in the 1970s. It’s now home to multiple high-rise luxury condominiums, office buildings and the Mandarin Hotel.
The announcement comes as Swire’s flagship development in Miami, the $1.05 billion Brickell City Centre, gears up for the completion of its first phase. With an opening date set in November and Owens’ planned retirement in January, he will at the very least see his company’s baby through to the finish line.
Stepping in for Owens will be Kieran Bowers, another Swire veteran who joined the company in 1998. He currently serves as general manager of Hong Kong’s Cityplaza, a massive mixed-use project that’s similar to Brickell City Centre in its scope. The 3.27 million square foot project has three office towers, a lifestyle hotel and Hong Kong’s biggest shopping mall.
Although Owens won’t be president anymore, he’ll retain his position on Swire’s board for the foreseeable future. He’ll also be able to lend counsel to the company as it begins to develop Brickell City Centre’s future phases, which are expected to be massive. — Sean Stewart-Muniz