CEO

Investor, architect, real estate broker and longtime contractor Patrick Smith has been CEO of WestPac since 1998. In that time, the California-based real estate investment and development firm has grown to include operations in California, Hawaii, Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, and Michigan, and even locations in Australia.

During Patrick Smith’s tenure, WestPac’s projects have included more than 5,000 apartments, seven hotels, two resort communities in Aspen, CO, five communities for seniors, and a range of condos, office buildings, and single-family subdivisions. Projects completed during the Patrick Smith WestPac era have accounted for over $7 billion, while achieving environmentally conscious and energy-efficient LEED certifications for new developments along the way.

Executive Vice President

Jonathan G. Branoff, CCIM, is Executive Vice President of WestPac Communities. He has a wide breadth of experience ranging from asset management and acquisitions, to transaction management and investor relations, as well as providing oversight of architectural design and entitlements. Mr. Branoff’s area of expertise is in real estate finance and investment, deal structuring, securing capital, investment strategy, and financial modeling and analysis. Mr. Branoff’s creativity coupled with his extensive real estate background across many disciplines allows him to generate innovative real estate solutions that optimize value for the projects that he works on.

Asset Manager

Mr. Burrows, Asset Manager of WestPac Communities, joined the company in 2016. After initially working from the Michigan office, he relocated to San Luis Obispo in order to lead the turnaround of a portfolio of unstabilized assets. His primary focus is on leasing/tenant procurement, property management, client relations, and strategy execution. Mr. Burrows attended the University of Montana where he studied Business Administration prior to joining WestPac Communities. He is currently pursuing his CCIM designation and is involved in multiple philanthropic groups throughout the community. As a native of nearby Santa Barbara, California, he has multi-generational network throughout the Central Coast and beyond.

Entitlements & Land Planning

Chuck Braff joined WestPac Communities in 2014. Chuck graduated from the University of Pennsylvania and holds an MBA and an MRED from the University of Southern California. Chuck manages Entitlements, Land Planning, Leasing and Construction Management.

He has a wide breadth of experience with a primary focus on entitlements and construction management. Chuck has developed real estate in Canada and the US at a completed value of over $1 billion dollars. His rigorous education, ground-up construction and real estate development experience, sense of responsibility to the community add a level of detail and depth to the projects that stakeholders appreciate.

Mr. Braff has built and developed master-planned communities, long-term care facilities, apartment complexes, student housing projects, schools, custom homes, ski-in/ski-out condo developments and casinos.

Project Manager

Michaela Denny, Project Manager at Smith & Company, joined the company in 2022. Prior to Michaela joining the team at Smith & Company, she worked as a Project Engineer on Public Works, CalTrans, and private projects around Santa Barbara county and San Luis Obispo County. On these projects, she was responsible for construction budgets, schedules, and planning for projects in excess of $150 million. Michaela has a strong aptitude for civil work, utilities, site development, and vertical construction. Today, she is currently pursuing her E.I.T and LEED certification while managing construction for multiple residential projects in San Luis Obispo. Michaela’s passion for the industry drives her to foster strong relationships with multiple jurisdictions, subcontractors, and tenants in San Luis Obispo and push our projects forward with a keen eye to schedule and budget.

CFO

Business Operations

Project Accounting

Property Management

Construction Manager

Project Manager

Construction Accounting

Property Manager

Property Manager

Property Manager

Hotel General Manager