John W. Fenton, President & CEO
fenton@essexriverventures.com

Before forming Essex River Ventures in 2002, John Fenton was a founding partner and the Director of Acquisitions at Berkeley Investments, a Boston based real estate operating company. Starting in 1991, Mr. Fenton played a central role in the acquisition, management and disposition 100 non-performing loans, 3000 apartment units and four million SF of commercial properties.

Prior to a year long trip around the world in 1990, Mr. Fenton spent the first half of his investment career working on the institutional side of the business. He started in 1983 with Advest Inc. in Institutional Fixed Income Sales. By 1985 he had moved into commercial real estate investments as an Investment Officer with The Phoenix Mutual Life Insurance Company, where he had regional responsibilities for lending, joint ventures and acquisitions in Boston, Philadelphia and Washington, DC.

In 1987 Mr. Fenton continued his career in commercial real estate investments as an Asset Manager with The Copley Real Estate Advisors, where he managed a 4 million SF development portfolio in Boston, Philadelphia and Chicago.

Mr. Fenton is a member of ULI, NAIOP, the Greater Boston Real Estate Board and REFA. He holds a B.A. from Brown University.