Jeff Blackard
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| Jeff Blackard | |
|---|---|
 JeffBlackardAfrica.png Jeff Blackard while on a philanthropic trip to Africa | |
| Born | Jeffory Dean Blackard December 15, 1957 Peoria, Illinois |
| 🏳️ Nationality | American |
| 🎓 Alma mater | Northwestern University |
| 💼 Occupation | Real Estate Developer and CEO of Blackard Companies |
| 📆 Years active | 1981–present |
| 🏛️ Political party | Independent |
| 🏅 Awards | Friend of Croatia, Environmental Commendation from the United States Department of the Interior |
| 🌐 Website | blackard.net |
Jeffory Blackard is an entrepreneur and real estate developer working primarily in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex. He is the Chief Executive Officer and founder of Blackard Companies. His developments include Adriatica,[1] in which he intends to reproduce the look and feel[2] of an old-world southern European village[3] (most notably, an Adriatic coast Croatian village) in Texas.
Blackard was born in Peoria, Illinois, to Richard and Janice Blackard. He was the state decathlon champion for three years, running while in high school at Argenta-Oreana High School.[4] He attended Northwestern University on a track and field scholarship, later switching to a basketball scholarship during his sophomore year. Blackard was subsequently recognized as one of Northwestern's 100 most notable graduates.[5]
Real estate
After graduating from Northwestern University in 1981, Blackard moved to Texas, where he worked for Cambridge Companies. He eventually left to develop over 15,000 single homes through projects including Lakes on Legacy,[6] Griffin Parc,[6] and Pirates Beach and Cove[7] in Galveston, Texas.
After acquiring an interest in properties on the coast of Croatia, Blackard has focused much of his work on the evolution process of a village.[8] Adriatica, a $350 million vertically integrated, mixed-use development,[9] is located in McKinney, Texas and takes its inspiration from the Croatian fishing village of Supetar on the island of Brač.[10]
Since 2008, Blackard has undertaken new projects in villages like Entrada in Westlake, Texas,[11] Barisi,[12] the revitalization of North Beach[13] in Corpus Christi, Texas, and Wolf Lakes in Georgetown, Texas.
Environmentalism
Blackard received an environmental commendation from the United States Department of the Interior in association with the Delhide Cove Protection and Restoration Project that he undertook in the early 2000s.[14]
Blackard also donated an island north of Lafitte's Cove in Galveston, renamed The Robert M. "Bob" Moore Wildlife Sanctuary,[15] to the Galveston Bay Foundation in 2007 for the conservation, protection and enhancement of the South Texas Wetlands.[citation needed]
In 2017, Blackard founded a company named Zero Global Waste. The company is primarily active in Eastern Europe.[16]
Political activism
Blackard is also an independent political activist, who supported 2012 United States Presidential candidate Rick Santorum in response to his Christian policy positions. Blackard worked to bring Santorum to his village in McKinney, Adriatica, shortly after Super Tuesday in 2012 with Santorum leading in the polls. Santorum went on to become a business partner to Blackard in Zero Global Waste.[17]
In 2017, Blackard was awarded the Friend of Croatia Award from the Association of Croatian American Professionals. He has arranged meetings with high-level officials in American politics,[18] the president of Croatia,[19] and has lobbied for a double taxation avoidance treaty.
Philanthropy
In the mid 1990s, Blackard started the organization Amazon Outreach, a Christian charity that built a 90-foot river boat to provide medical services to underserved areas of the Amazon River Basin.[20] Blackard has also traveled to over 50 countries with e3 Partners,[21] a mission organization known for its "I Am Second" campaign,[22] including Ethiopia.[23]
In 2023, Blackard became a board member of Amazi Water, an organization which provides sustainable access to clean water to communities in Burundi.[24]
Personal
Blackard resides east of Dallas on his ranch in Sulphur Springs, Texas with his wife Donna. He has five children. He is an Evangelical Christian.
References
- ↑ "Jeff Blackard Is on a Mission – D Magazine". dmagazine.com. 23 June 2014. Retrieved 22 July 2016.
- ↑ "Adriatica: America's Most Surreal Development? | Washington City Paper". washingtoncitypaper.com. 14 September 2009. Retrieved 22 July 2016.
- ↑ "kSh Webserver Default Page: It works". Archived from the original on 18 March 2014. Retrieved 22 July 2016. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ "The Decatur Daily Review from Decatur, Illinois on April 12, 1978 · Page 89". Newspapers.com. Retrieved 2017-06-22.
- ↑ "Notable Alumni | Northwestern University School of Communication". communication.northwestern.edu. Archived from the original on 2017-08-21. Retrieved 2016-08-17. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ 6.0 6.1 "Blackard plans $100 million town center project in Frisco - Dallas Business Journal". Dallas Business Journal. Retrieved 2016-08-17.
- ↑ "A Line in the Sand" (PDF).
- ↑ Perez, Christine (2015-04-17). "The Evolution of Mixed-Use". DFW Real Estate Review. Archived from the original on 2015-07-06. Retrieved 2016-08-17. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ "Adriatica Croatian Village in Mckinney, Texas USA, founded by Jeffory D. Blackard". croatia.org. Retrieved 2016-08-17.
- ↑ "Adriatica Croatian Village in Mckinney, Texas USA, founded by Jeffory D. Blackard". croatia.org. Retrieved 22 July 2016.
- ↑ "Entrada project in Westlake is beginning to take shape | The Star-Telegram". star-telegram.com. Retrieved 22 July 2016.
- ↑ "Pharaoh Valley Development Proponents Get Signatures for Support - KiiiTV.com South Texas, Corpus Christi, Coastal Bend". kiiitv.com. 2014-07-23. Archived from the original on 19 April 2016. Retrieved 22 July 2016. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ "The future of North Beach". KIII. 26 July 2019. Retrieved 2019-08-15.
- ↑ "PIRATES Beach & Cove -- Galveston, Texas". piratesgalveston.com. Archived from the original on 2016-08-17. Retrieved 2017-12-08. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ [email protected]. "Galveston Texas Criminal Defense Attorney | Galveston Traffic Tickets | Personal Injury | Galveston Unlawful Driving". bobmoorelaw.com. Retrieved 2017-12-08.
- ↑ "American Entrepreneurs Seek Investment Opportunities in Croatia". www.total-croatia-news.com. Archived from the original on 2022-08-14. Retrieved 2020-12-23.
- ↑ "Jutarnji list - Tko je Jeff Blackard, pokretač najveće investicije u povijesti hrvatskog turizma i potencijalni kupac poslovnog carstva Petra Pripuza?". www.jutarnji.hr (in hrvatski). 2018-10-21. Retrieved 2020-12-23.
- ↑ "Vicenco Blagaić tvrdi da je upravo on, preko Jefforyja Blackarda, Kolindi Grabar-Kitarović sredio sastanke u Americi - Dnevnik.hr". Dnevnik.hr (in hrvatski). Retrieved 2017-06-22.
- ↑ "Businessman Bonded Croatia President to Trump Team :: Balkan Insight". balkaninsight.com. 21 January 2017. Retrieved 2017-06-22.
- ↑ "Reaching out in the rainforest". bizjournals.com. Retrieved 2017-06-22.
- ↑ "e3 PARTNERS | MISSION & IMPACT". e3 PARTNERS. Archived from the original on 2017-12-09. Retrieved 2017-12-08. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ Second, I Am (2012-08-16). "I Am Second". Retrieved 2017-12-08.
- ↑ "In Search of the Lost Ark". D Magazine. 28 September 2016. Retrieved 2017-12-08.
- ↑ "About". Amazi Water. Retrieved 2024-01-16.
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