Centennial founder and CEO Steven Levin is retiring from the national real estate investment and operating firm he created nearly three decades ago — with plans to hand the reins of the Texas-based firm to fellow leader Paul Kurzawa.
Dallas-based Centennial, backed by Lincoln Property Co., has named Kurzawa as Levin's successor. Kurzawa currently serves as Centennial's president and will take on the additional role as CEO once Levin retires at the end of June. Levin is expected to help with the transition in an advisory role for one year.
The departure is "not a farewell by any means," Levin said in a statement, with him having "tremendous confidence" in Kurzawa and the firm's executive team as they lead Centennial "forward into the next chapter."
Kurzawa, who has known Levin for nearly a decade, joined Centennial as president in November 2024 at a time when the firm was investing millions of dollars into redeveloping large U.S. malls.
"It's not lost on me, the trust that comes from Steven in making this decision," Kurzawa told CoStar News. "He has inspired me personally, first and foremost with his genuine respect for people, whether that's our employees or our clients and partners.
"That is the genesis of his success," Kurzawa added. "He also brings a very thoughtful and deliberate approach to where and how you view real estate from the standpoint of creating value and making moves that are a bit bolder that others wouldn't do."
Levin established Centennial in 1997, the firm rooted in an owner's mindset with a retailer's perspective. Centennial oversees more than 25 million square feet of retail and mixed-use space across 18 states. The firm advises and manages properties on behalf of institutional and private owners.
Recently, Centennial, through a partnership, sold one of Maryland's largest malls to a major retail real estate investment trust in a $272 million deal. The "incredible result" in what was a "very short time" came about with the help of the right capital partner in Kildare Partners and the right leasing partner in Atlas Hill Real Estate, Kurzawa said.
"We had a very strong conviction in terms of the re-merchandising and what the vision of the asset was going to be," Kurzawa said about Centennial's plans for the mall when they bought it. "Most importantly, we executed on it. We worked tirelessly to put that in place, and we got a ton of momentum. It was great, and Main Street came in and said 'Hey, great job.'"
Lincoln backing
Kurzawa said the firm's future will be shaped in large part by Lincoln Property's backing of Centennial in a move to turn underperforming retail space into thriving mixed-use destinations. The partnership gives Centennial the ability to bring its retail expertise to larger mixed-use developments, interweaving shops and restaurants with apartments and office space.
"There's a lot of synergies that come with the partnership now that Centennial is a part of Lincoln," Kurzawa added. "Not only from an expertise standpoint, but also that Lincoln has given us access to capital relationships that we didn't have before."
One big project on Centennial's plate: the redevelopment of The Shops at Willow Bend, a Dallas-area regional shopping mall in Plano, Texas.
The mall is one of the top options being considered by a National Hockey League team, the Dallas Stars, for its future game day real estate. Currently, the Stars and the Dallas Mavericks both play at the American Airlines Center.
Kurzawa declined to speak about the Stars, but said generally that sports-anchored retail centers would be a bigger part of Centennial's strategy, with Lincoln Property's financial backing and development expertise bringing some capabilities to the table.
"Whether they are ground-up, open-air retail projects or mixed-use projects or grocery-anchored neighborhood centers, we have the capabilities to invest and develop those," he added. "We are really tapping into that expertise. Based on conversations we are having with various capital partners, there's a meaningful interest for investment in those products. We are shifting to where the market is taking us."