1969
Donald R. Kenney founded Triangle Investment Company.
1978
DRK & Company Realty championed the first major commercial real estate development in the northwest corridor of Columbus, which is now one of the fastest growing and most desirable residential and commercial regions in the state of Ohio. That was just the beginning.
1980s
DRK & Company Realty opened the Sawmill Athletic Club, which is now Premier at Sawmill, a 60,000 sf facility that has more than 7,500 members. We also opened the first Cross Country Inn motel in Columbus, Ohio, the first property in what became a first-rate, limited-service hotel chain that has grown to more than 3,000 rooms across 25 properties in Ohio, Kentucky, and Michigan, and is valued in excess of $113 million. DRK & Company Realty went on to make Columbus, Ohio real estate history for the largest single residential sale of 800+ multi-family units for $34 million. We spent the rest of the 80s developing and remodeling The Concourse Hotel and Port Columbus International Airport – 147 rooms, an athletic club, The Landings restaurant, and more than 30,000 square feet of convention and meeting space.
1990s
We began developing master planned communities in the Columbus, Ohio region, which today total more than 10,000 single family lots to date. We also opened a 129 room Hampton Inn and a 67 room Comfort Suites motel. In 1997, Mr. Kenney was recognized as the Entrepreneur of the Year in Central Ohio. In 1998, we launched Village Communities, a development of ranch and townhome condominiums, to meet the needs of a changing real estate market. We also planned and built our first golf course community, Scioto Reserve Golf & Athletic Club, a 700+ acre development with a 40,000 sf club facility, more than 1,200 single-family homes and an 18-hole golf course designed by Barry Sarafin. In 1999, our second golf course community was launched, a 900-acre development featuring the 30,000 sf Kinsale Golf & Fitness Club and an 18-hole golf course designed by Arthur Hills.
2000s
We opened another hotel property, a Hilton Garden Inn at the Port Columbus International Airport in 2002 featuring 156 rooms, and in 2004, we began the master planning of Golf Village North. In 2005, all hotel/motel properties were sold in order to simplify our business lines and allow us to concentrate on the development, construction and operation of multifamily and commercial property. From 2006 to 2007, Village Communities saw a 14% increase in revenue, launched a franchise division, and was named Building industry Association Developer of the Year. We also gifted the Westerville Athletic Club to Oakstone Academy so they could open a program for students with autism at this facility. In 2008, we started construction on 1,500 new multi-family units, and in 2009, Mr. Kenney received the National Association of Industrial & Office Properties Lifetime Achievement in Real Estate Award.
Since Then
DRK & Company Realty has been consistently recognized as one of the top commercial brokerage and property management firms in Columbus Business First’s annual Book of Lists publication, and both Village Communities and Ardent Property Management have also consistently received this recognition as well in their respective categories. Village Communities has been named the #1 Condo Builder in Central Ohio every year since 2010, and in 2012, Mr. Kenney, a founding director of Insight Bank who still serves on the board, was also named as a member of the Ohio State Medical Board. In 2013, we were named the #2 Commercial Real Estate Developer by Columbus Business First. DRK & Company Realty was recognized by the Columbus Board of Realtors for the largest office transaction of the year in 2014. In 2016, our student housing project, T-H-E GRIFF, received the Multifamily Development Project of the Year Award from the Central Ohio Chapter of the National Association of Office and Industrial Properties. In 2017, DRK & Company Realty was recognized as both the #8 commercial brokerage and the #8 commercial property management company by Columbus Business First.
Interested in personal guidance? Call us at 614.540.2404 to connect with with our experienced team to discuss your unique commercial real estate needs or email Jaimine Johnson with your inquiries.
