Tillerman LLC is an ethical real estate development, facilities planning and consulting firm focused on conservation, preservation and social equity. We envision regenerative communities and a cyclical economy, recognizing the interdependence of human and natural systems.

Frank Burdette

Co-Founder

It was at Southface that Frank learned to merge the concepts of building science and high-performance building with his knowledge of historic preservation and adaptive reuse. He served as Construction Manager for the development of the Southface Eco Office, Atlanta’s first LEED Platinum building, and recipient of the Urban Land Institute’s Sustainable Development Award in 2010. It was also at Southface that Frank developed the EarthCraft for Sustainable Preservation Program with The Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation to address retrofits in historic buildings. Through his passion for reuse, he became the founding Board member of Lifecycle Building Center, an Atlanta nonprofit promoting building material reuse and sustainable building education.

Since launching his project planning and management firm in 2015, Frank has served as the Construction Manager for the implementation of Woodlands Garden of Decatur’s Master Plan, conducted an adaptive reuse feasibility study on four Fort McPherson hospital facilities for multi-family residences and nonprofit offices, created a 10-year plan for sustainable building operations and maintenance at the new Drew Charter School Junior/Senior Academy, and begun working as a program specialist on the Decatur Legacy Project community land trust.

Frank resides in Decatur, with his wife, Jennifer Bates, and their two children. His other interests include social equity for access to healthy homes and locally-grown food. Having served as Board President of the Athens Land Trust, he is actively involved in the expansion of the community land trust model for permanent affordable housing and greenspace conservation. He is currently realizing a long-time vision in developing an intentional transit-oriented agri-centered co-housing conservation community with studio and performance space for artists.

As former Director of Sustainable Communities at Southface, an Atlanta non-profit supporting sustainability initiatives throughout the Southeast, Gray brings an extensive history of supporting developments in their sustainability planning and implementation from conceptual planning through to commercial operations and residential construction and occupancy. He engaged large groups of stakeholders to develop the EarthCraft Communities and EarthCraft Multifamily programs working directly with a multitude of mixed-use developments. He also served with other national sustainability initiatives, LEED-ND and Enterprise Green Communities, as a Technical Advisor.

This programmatic experience has been buttressed by direct project roles as a member of development teams on successful projects such as Vining’s Jubilee and Krog Street Market. As Director of Property Operations for Paces Properties, Intersouth Properties, and Bauman and Company in Atlanta, Gray was directly responsible for establishing, adjusting, and adapting budgets and operations for retail, office, medical office, and restaurant properties. This direct development experience gives a “boots on the ground” perspective which can be leveraged in helping clients establish and reach their goals.

Gray also has experience working in partnership with governmental and quasi-governmental capacities such as the City of Atlanta, Georgia Department of Community Affairs, Virginia Community Development Corporation, Midtown Alliance, MARTA, and others. In these efforts he has served as a bridge and translator between public and community interests and those of the private development community.

Gray lives in Marietta with his wife, Kim Blass, son Fisher and daughter Selia Tucker. Other related interests include working with locally-sourced building materials and activating the underutilized upper levels and alleyways of older buildings with new and creative uses.