SAN BERNARDINO, CA-Hillwood Investment Properties has named John Schaefer as development director, responsible for overseeing the entitlement and development of large scale industrial projects in the Inland Empire. Hillwood, a Perot company, is the developer of the 2,000-acre AllianceCalifornia project here, as well as the 17,000-acre AllianceTexas and the 4,474-acre AllianceFlorida at Cecil Commerce Center.

Hillwood senior vice president John Magness, in an announcement regarding Schaever's appointment, commented: "John brings a breadth of large-scale commercial development experience to our company, and his background is a perfect complement to our ongoing West Coast business strategy and leadership team."

Schaefer was most recently project manager at LNR Property Corp., where he led redevelopment efforts at the 2,400-acre Meridian Business Park in Riverside County, as well as other mixed-use projects in Southern California. Before joining LNR, Schaefer served as project manager and design engineer of two development and civil engineering firms, which led him to Florida, Texas and California to manage commercial, industrial and residential projects.

Early in his career, Schaefer worked with architect Frank Gehry as an architectural assistant, creating architectural models and meeting with architects to improve and complete model designs. He is a registered civil engineer in California and an active member of the National Association of Industrial and Office Properties and the American Society of Civil Engineers. He has a bachelor of science in civil engineering from Texas A&M University.