For the first time in its 56-year history, WC Smith will be led by someone outside the family.

Chris Smith, CEO and chairman of the D.C.-based real estate firm, is set to be replaced by the company’s chief operating officer, Brad Fennell, the company announced Monday. Fennell is scheduled to begin in the role on Jan. 1.

“Brad brings essential qualities to the CEO position: deep institutional and professional knowledge; extensive experience working with industry, local and community leaders; and critical skills as a collaborator and convener of teams across divisions within WC Smith,” Smith said in the release.

Smith will remain chairman and will maintain “a full and active role focusing on strategic planning for the company,” the release said.

His father — William Smith — founded the company in 1968, and Chris Smith took the helm as CEO in 1993.

“This is change, yes,” Smith said. “But it’s also a continuation. We’re fortunate that we can embrace this change under the guidance of someone who is so closely associated with all the factors that have made us a success.”

Fennell has been with the company his entire 37-year career after being hired straight out of college, the Washington Business Journal reported. Fennell took the role of COO at the beginning of 2023.

He has spent the last two decades managing the company’s real estate development, including 6,000 residential units and 1M SF of commercial and retail space.

The company owns or manages 9.5M SF of real estate, including 8,700 residential units, and it has more than 500 employees.

Many of the company's holdings are in Navy Yard, where it is headquartered. WC Smith developed a trio of mixed-use multifamily buildings totaling 1,140 units on the east side of Navy Yard, called The Collective, as well as two large office buildings in the neighborhood.

It has plans to build a 520-unit apartment building on New Jersey Avenue SE and another 350-unit property on South Capitol Street. Last year, WC Smith purchased another development site, approved for over 600 units, from JBG Smith near Nationals Park.

This year, WC Smith company delivered Terrace Manor, a 130-unit affordable development in Ward 8 and broke ground on the final phase of Skyland Town Center, an 18-acre site planned for 340K SF of mixed-use development in partnership with Rappaport. It also partnered with Rappaport on the 419-unit Avec mixed-use building on H Street that delivered in 2020.