Who We Are
GVP Development designs, builds and renovates urban residences in some of the most desirable neighborhoods of Chicago, including Lake View, Lincoln Park and Roscoe Village. Our firm has built over 80 properties for discerning city dwellers, from upscale condominiums up to $1 million in value to elegant single-family homes in the $1 million to $4.5 million range.
Marvin, Peter and Erick Grahn founded GVP in the early 1990’s. Collectively, they have in excess of 75 years of experience in the architecture, construction management, finance and real estate development fields.
Prior to establishing GVP, Marvin Grahn was a Vice President of Development for Bellemead Development Corporation, a subsidiary of The Chubb Corporation, a national developer of commercial office parks. He also spent eight years as the manager of the Properties Development Division of Continental Bank, where he had responsibility for all aspects of the Bank’s worldwide property space needs. He began his career at The Frank Klein Company, an architectural and engineering firm in Chicago, where he spent 8 years. Marvin obtained a Bachelor of Arts in architecture and Master of Science in architecture degrees from the University of Illinois. He also earned a Master of Business Administration degree in finance from Kellogg Graduate School of Business at Northwestern University. He obtained his Illinois Real Estate Broker license in 1982. Marvin is responsible for the architectural design of our properties and manages vendor and contractor relationships.
Peter Grahn’s prior career experience includes management consulting with Peterson Consulting, a firm specializing on the financial implications of disputes. At Petersen Consulting, he was a Senior Consultant in the Financial Group. Peter obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics and Real Estate Finance from the University of Illinois. He has also completed coursework in real estate finance from Northwestern University. He obtained his Illinois Real Estate Salesperson license in 1992. Peter manages the financial, administrative and strategic planning aspects of the firm.
Erick is also a graduate of the University of Illinois. He obtained his Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics. Erick has primary responsibility for the planning and day-to-day construction management of the properties. He also oversees our in-house team of carpenters and coordinates our client’s design specification implementation.