SDH Happenings

Lois Haverstrom is General Counsel to Southern Development.  She assists in numerous areas of both the development and the home building companies.  Lois’ primary responsibility to the development team involves the extensive legal drafting required in the development approval and start-up process.   Having the resource of in-house counsel allows the development team to navigate more quickly through the regulatory approval process.  Lois also handles the corporate and regulatory affairs for the operations of the company.  Lois is a graduate of the Villanova University School of Law and was first licensed in Pennsylvania.  She started her career as corporate counsel in the insurance industry.  Her work in the insurance industry ranged from policy drafting, regulatory matters, operations and claims support, as well as mergers and acquisitions.  During her corporate career she worked for FIC Insurance Group in their Philadelphia, PA and Austin, TX offices and for Sisters of Mercy Health Systems in St. Louis, MO.  Upon arriving to Charlottesville, Lois shifted her career to real estate, including real estate sales and four years in private practice with an emphasis on real estate closings, related property matters, business formation and estate work.

Mr. Lancaster manages projects through the entitlement process and through permitting.  This process consists of creating conceptual designs, coordinating with engineers and working with local governments from the application phase through final approvals.  Prior to joining Southern Development, Mr. Lancaster worked within the Division of Zoning and Current Development for Albemarle County.  He has a bachelor’s degree from Colorado State University – Pueblo.  Mr. Lancaster has served on the Rivanna River Basin Commission for the City of Charlottesville and is the recipient of the Virginia Certified Planning Commission program and the Virginia Certified Board of Zoning Appeals program.  He lives in Albemarle County with his wife, Kristy, and their two children, Anna and Jack.

Charlie Armstrong is the Vice President of Land Development at Southern Development and manages all aspects of the development process, including acquisitions, finance, site design, governmental approvals, and project management during construction. He holds a bachelor’s degree in environmental science from the University of Virginia. Charlie is a past President of the Blue Ridge Home Builders Association and the Free Enterprise Forum, and has served on the Board of Directors of the Home Builders Association of Virginia and the Charlottesville Regional Chamber of Commerce. Mr. Armstrong also served as 5-year Chairman of the Charlottesville City Council Housing Advisory Committee and actively serves on the Boards of several Charlottesville area charitable non-profits and associations. Charlie, his wife, and four children live in Albemarle County.

Shannon Hughes is the Architectural Designer for Southern Development Homes. Shannon is responsible for creating new floor plan concepts, drawings, and models of our homes. After graduating in May 2013 from Virginia Tech’s top-ranked architecture school, she joined Southern Development Homes. Shannon brings hands-on building experience after participating in Virginia Tech’s Design/Build program, where she helped design and physically construct a farmers market in Covington, Virginia. Shannon has a love for Charlottesville, especially the “city meets country” atmosphere, and she loves going downtown for great food and live music or going wine tasting in the nearby mountains.  Shannon conveniently lives within walking distance of the downtown mall and loves being a Hokie in a UVA town.

Dale Garrison works for Southern Development Homes as a carpenter and punch-out laborer.  He assists with jobsite clean-up, light trim and punch out work, and other final touch up tasks as needed. Dale is a native of Albemarle County and has worked in the construction industry for over 20 years.  In his spare time, Dale enjoys playing pool and riding motorcycles.

Mark is the Customer Service Manager for Southern Development Homes and handles our customers’ warranty issues, concerns and questions.  He joined the team in 2013 and is involved in the final walkthroughs of each of our homes and explains how the home works to our new home owners.  Mark grew up in Charlottesville and is a graduate of Western Albemarle High School.  Mark played Semi-Pro baseball for 13 years.  He now lives in Gordonsville with his wife and their four children and enjoys softball and golf and spending time with his family.

Amy joined Southern Development in April of 2011, as the Contracts Coordinator, where she oversees the processing of new and amended contracts. Her previous position as the Permits Clerk for the Fluvanna County Building Inspections Office has given her the knowledge and understanding of building and development process that provides a unique asset to our Production and Development Teams.  She is a 2001 graduate of Piedmont Virginia Community College with an Associate’s Degree in Business Administration.  Amy is a lifelong resident of Fluvanna County, where she lives with her husband Robbie, and their son Bailey. She is an Adult Leader for the Virginia 4-H Program and a member the Palmyra Volunteer Fire Company’s Ladies Auxiliary.  In her spare time, Amy enjoys baking, photography, working with horses and hunting and fishing.

Garnett Harris is a Project Manager for Southern Development Homes.  Garnett has been with Southern Development since 2002 and has been active in the construction industry for over thirty years.  He is a native of Louisa County.   In high school, Garnett was motivated to layout and build custom cabinets for his parents home – which are still there today. After high school, his first job was building townhouses – overseeing the process from raw lot through clearing, footers, framing and completion.  Garnett went on to build single family residential homes with the same company.  When the residential construction market slowed, Garnett, at age 22, assisted in the building of his first commercial building, a waste burning power facility in Lorton, Virginia. While working there, he became the youngest member of the carpenter’s union. After leaving the carpenter’s union, he went back to his previous employer to assist in the completion of another commercial building, this time an office complex in Stafford, Virginia. Garnett returned to his true passion, building homes, for the next 10 ½ years. In that position, Garnett worked as a Superintendent building subdivisions, roads, and single family homes – approximately 125 homes per year.  Garnett began working with Southern Development on the weekends and evenings, putting in foundations for new homes, trimming homes and framing.  It wasn’t long before Garnett became Southern Development’s first full time employee.  Starting as a foreman, Garnett moved to Superintendent and then Project Coordinator.  Since his time with Southern Development, Garnett has constructed hundreds of homes, multiple commercial buildings, and numerous subdivision roads.  He prides himself on knowing every aspect of his job, the jobsite and each home his builds.  Garnett enjoys boating at Lake Anna and restoring the luster and character of older homes.

Doug Morris is a Construction Manager for Southern Development Homes. Doug has been with Southern Development since 2001. Doug has worked in the construction industry for over 30 years, beginning in high school as an assistant Brick Mason. In his thirty plus years in the industry, Doug has worked in nearly every trade in the business, making him an expert in all aspects of home construction.  In 2009, Doug oversaw the construction of more than 40 homes for Southern Development, including managing construction of an apartment building. In his free time, Doug enjoys hunting, gardening, woodworking and hiking with his two sons.