Cummings Properties Welcomes Lifelong Woburn Resident as Controller

Cummings Properties takes pride in its long history with its home city of Woburn, which makes its new controller, Bill Johnson, a perfect fit for the commercial real estate firm. Not only is he a lifelong Woburn resident, the experienced CPA is also a member of one of Woburn’s oldest families, and his great great grandfather, Edward Johnson, was the city’s first mayor.

A 2003 graduate of the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Johnson holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics-Accounting and a Master of Business Administration degree from Boston College.

Cummings Properties CFO Bill Grant attributed the need to create the controller position to the continuing growth of the entire Cummings organization.

“As the organization, especially Cummings Foundation, continues to grow, Bill’s breadth of experience will be an asset in meeting the ever-increasing internal and external demands placed on our finance team,” said Grant.

Johnson’s work will touch on all aspects of the 45-year-old organization, with a major focus on the financial pictures at New Horizons at Choate and New Horizons at Marlborough. These private not-for-profit retirement communities were established by the Foundation in 1990 and 1994, respectively, and provide homes for up to 600 seniors and employ approximately 250 people.

“This job affords me the opportunity to be involved with the commercial real estate side of the organization as well as the Foundation,” said Johnson. “On any given day I could be working on HR compliance and regulation issues, reviewing the financial information of a potential New Horizons resident, or assessing the financial repercussions of an issue in one of our facilities.”

Johnson will also oversee a staff of 10 within Cummings Properties’ Accounting Department.

He began his career in public accounting at PricewaterhouseCoopers. Subsequently, he moved into the private equity and venture capital industry, working initially at Summit Partners and then Kodiak Venture Partners.

As part of his role at Kodiak, he gained valuable operating experience serving as CFO of two of its portfolio companies, Lumicell, Inc. and Allegro Diagnostics. In September 2014, Johnson assisted in the acquisition of Allegro by Veracyte, Inc.

He has served on the board of directors at James L. McKeown Boys & Girls Club since 2008 and currently serves as its treasurer. The Club was renamed last fall in honor of Cummings Properties’ late president.

Johnson resides in the Central Square area with his wife, Kimberlee, and their daughters, Anna and Madelyn.

Cummings Properties’ 10 million square feet of prime space accommodates executive offices, healthcare facilities, laboratories, retail storefronts, warehouses, and more. With a portfolio of this size and variety, the firm can meet almost any commercial real estate need, from 150 square feet to 300,000 square feet. Its in-house experts in design, construction, and property management offer “one-stop shopping” for leasing clients.

Photo: Lifelong Woburn resident Bill Johnson, controller at Cummings Properties, pictured next to a photograph of Place Lane Condominiums in Woburn, built by Cummings Properties in 1986.