Each year, Midwest Real Estate News inducts a new class in its Midwest Commercial Real Estate Hall of Fame. This year, we are running these profiles online. We look today at the busy career of William (Bill) Ebbing, president of The New Albany Company in New Albany, Ohio.
Bill Ebbing oversees the development of The New Albany Company’s extensive holdings as part of a 12,000-acre master-planned community — the largest master-planned business park in the Midwest — including a 4,500-acre business park, upscale residential neighborhoods, a country club and a village center mixed-use district.
In the competitive real estate industry, many companies point to construction costs and access to strong work force as formidable challenges. On the latter count, Ebbing considers himself lucky.
“We’re fortunate to work with a city government and regional partners that understand what it takes to create a positive business environment that helps companies grow, maintain and expand their employee base and enjoy success,” Ebbing said.
Under Ebbing’s leadership, the New Albany International Business Park, a 12-million-square-foot, $3.4 billion undertaking, has secured more than $3 billion in private investment. Since 1997, the business park has grown from under 1,000 jobs to more than 18,000 today with Fortune 100 global companies such as Amazon, Facebook and Google placing New Albany in the national spotlight as a leading location for mission-critical facilities.
Before joining The New Albany Company, Ebbing was Executive Vice President at the Edwards Companies, directing successful projects such as the restoration of the historic Brewery District and the Tuttle Crossing. Prior to that, he was project architect for the prestigious architectural firm, NBBJ.
“The first and perhaps most important key to success is to surround yourself with good people. I’ve been fortunate to work for two very visionary, successful business leaders in Pete Edwards and Les Wexner,” Ebbing said. “I also believe that my architectural background has provided me a solid foundation on which to build. Beyond that, I’ve always tried to develop a broad knowledge base across all aspects of real estate development. That doesn’t mean I have all the answers, but know what questions to ask.”
