Alumni & Friends Magazine Fall 2020
Shown above is a progression of the $350 million project Alan Hunt and Armada Hoffler undertook during a 10-month period between 2008 and 2009 involving construction of the Legg Mason Headquarters and Four Seasons Hotel and Residences in Baltimore, MD. Photo courtesy of Rick Preski/Armada Hoffler Properties.
Be a Life Changer ALUMNI
For many Pioneer alumni, Alfred State College is the place that changed their life and helped them lay the foundation for a bright future.
That certainly can be said of Alan and Mary Ellen Hunt, two alums who have built upon that foundation over the years to create a loving marriage and family, strong careers, and an endowed fund that will change the lives of fellow Pioneers for years to come.
Alan and Mary Ellen each grew up in western New York – Alan in a small town in the heart of the Finger Lakes called Gorham, and Mary Ellen in Spencerport, just outside of Rochester. Alan enrolled in Alfred State’s computer information systems program, and Mary Ellen became an executive secretarial studies major.
Looking back on his time at Alfred State, Alan noted that the college has impacted his life in many ways.
Alfred State College
Be a Life Changer ALUMNI
Pictured above is Baltimore Harbor Point as it appears today. Alan Hunt and Armada Hoffler have constructed all of the buildings in this area, including The Marriott Waterfront Hotel and Conference Center, the Legg Mason Headquarters, and the Exelon Headquarters.
Photo courtesy of Armada Hoffler Properties.
Alan Hunt,
executive vice
president of
construction at
Armada Hoffler,
a vertically
integrated,
self-managed
real estate
investment trust
headquartered in
Virginia Beach, VA.
“It isn’t just the curriculum that has helped,” he said. “All of the non-curricular courses have made a real difference, as well. The economics, accounting, calculus, and especially the public speaking courses really prepared me for life, something I never realized or appreciated as a student. Alfred State gave me the opportunity to enter the world that lay ahead with the right groundwork, tools, and confidence.”
While Alan and Mary Ellen’s Alfred State educations did overlap, they would not meet until several years later. Alan graduated in 1979 and moved to Richmond, VA, to begin a career in construction. He started as a laborer on a jackhammer crew, then quickly became a carpenter and then a carpenter foreman.
After he began working in the commercial construction field, Alan became a
superintendent by the age of 27.
“My first opportunity as a superintendent was completing a hotel in downtown Washington, DC,” he said. “The field team was let go, and I was challenged with completing the project that was 11 weeks behind schedule, with 16 weeks to complete. We finished three days ahead of schedule.”
Alan credits his background in computer programming with helping him to manage projects.
“Using what I had learned in programming allowed me to have the thought process for scheduling one activity at a time in the correct sequence,” he said. “The other abilities that I further utilized were physics and math. I could ace the calculus test but not the physics. I taught myself to manage in physics by visualizing the situation in my mind, similar to the labs. I developed the same thought process in construction. I can memorize the documents, correct the dimensions, and see the details in 3-D. I have the projects completely scheduled and built in my mind prior to starting.”
As fate would have it, while launching his career in construction, Alan met Mary Ellen at a wedding for a mutual Alfred State Pioneer and the two of them hit it off. Mary Ellen, a 1980 Alfred State grad, decided to move to Richmond with her son, Sean, in 1984, initially working as the executive assistant to the chancellor of the Virginia Community College System. Alan and Mary Ellen married in 1987 and later welcomed a daughter, Ashley, into the world.
Alumni & Friends Magazine Fall 2020
Be a Life Changer ALUMNI
“Alfred changed my life by creating a path that ultimately led to my success,” Alan said. “In a broader sense, meeting my roommate and moving to Richmond where I began my career would not have happened had I not gone to Alfred. I would not have met my future wife of more than 30 years had I not gone to Alfred. Call it destiny or luck. I call it Alfred.”
In 1991, Alan began working at Armada Hoffler, a vertically integrated, self-managed real estate investment trust that has four decades of experience developing, building, acquiring, and managing high-quality office, retail, and multifamily properties located primarily in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern United States.
At Armada Hoffler, Alan advanced from superintendent, to site manager, to partner and executive vice president of construction. Throughout his distinguished career at the company, Alan has been involved in some amazing projects, including overseeing the building of Harbor East, an upscale, multiple city block development on the waterfront in Baltimore. The construction value of the project was over $1.5 billion.
Alan has worked on projects from New Jersey to Georgia, including many high-profile jobs, such as the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Washington, DC; Brasstown Valley Resort in the North Georgia mountains; the Marriott Waterfront Hotel in Baltimore; and the Emory Conference Center and Hotel in Atlanta, GA.
Another signature project for Alan and the company was constructing the Legg Mason Headquarters and Four Seasons Hotel at the Baltimore Inner Harbor. This two-year, $350 million project included building five levels of below grade parking 20 feet from the harbor, and 28 floors above street level. The company completed the 500,000-square-foot project in 10 months, an effort Alan called “the challenge of a lifetime.”
Mary Ellen also built a strong career at Armada Hoffler where she began working in 1998 as a project manager assistant. She retired in 2019 but continues to support Alan’s daily schedule.
The couple is thankful for all that Alfred State has brought them over the years, from terrific educations, to rewarding careers, to a connection that resulted in a long, loving marriage. As a way to give back to the college, the couple decided to start an endowment fund to help building trades, automotive trades, and heavy equipment students at the Wellsville campus further their education.
“Our goal is to have a substantial fund that will help support the needs of the students for future generations. Both our son, Sean, and our nephew, Matt, have graduated from programs on the Wellsville campus and have very promising careers in the construction industry,” said Alan, whose brother, Jeff, is also an Alfred State grad.
Supporting the college that changed their lives and also being a life changer for current and future Pioneers is important to Alan and Mary Ellen.
“Everyone deserves the opportunity to further their education,” Alan said. “As you prepare for life after high school, Alfred State gives a solid platform to start that process, whether you elect to study at the main campus or the Wellsville campus for skilled trades. Alfred State provides the cornerstone for self-advancement. If Mary Ellen and I can financially help a student that may need support with college costs, we want to offer that assistance.”
Alfred State can certainly provide a strong foundation for an alum’s future, but what also matters is how you build on that foundation. Looking at their lives, careers, and the impact they are making on Alfred State students, it’s easy to see that Alan and Mary Ellen Hunt have built something very special.