Meet Chris Peterson, CFO/COO of Mount Vernon Towers

14 Mar Meet Chris Peterson, CFO/COO of Mount Vernon Towers

As Chief Financial Officer / Chief Operating Officer of Mount Vernon Towers, the independent living community in the heart of Sandy Springs, Chris Peterson has one rule of thumb: “Every decision we make is for the good of our residents.”

After serving six years in the Marine Corps as a Radar Intercept Officer, stationed mainly in Beaufort (SC), Peterson got his degree in Management Information Systems, Finance and Accounting and is a Certified Public Accountant.

While still in school, a running buddy asked Peterson if he would consider a job with R. J. Griffin, a large ($750 million) general contracting firm in Atlanta. He did! Peterson quickly rose to CFO of the company and enjoyed a stellar 20-year career there.

While at R. J. Griffin, Peterson was invited to join the Board of Mount Vernon Towers, a volunteer position he held for 10 years. In 2010, leaving R. J. Griffin to work as a private consultant, he became more and more involved with all financial aspects of running the Mount Vernon Towers community, until finally, in 2012, he accepted a full-time position as Mount Vernon Towers’ CFO/COO.

“I had a magnificent twenty years at R. J. Griffin, but I am happy to say that I like this new job just as much, though it is completely different,” says Peterson. “This is a multi-faceted function. Not only am I in charge of all financial aspects of running Mount Vernon Towers, but I am also much more involved with the ultimate customers – our residents.

“I love the opportunity to creatively find solutions that are best for our current as well as for our prospective owners. Recently, we have seen a major increase in sales and leasing activities at Mount Vernon Towers, and that in turn helps me recommend sound financial decisions for Mount Vernon Towers.”

Peterson and his wife have two sons, one who is studying architecture at Georgia Tech, and one who is getting ready to enter UGA. “We are very proud of our kids, both Eagle Scouts, both voted ‘friendliest’ in their respective senior year in high school,” says Peterson, who has been a Scoutmaster himself for twelve years.

And, he notes, he is also proud to be part of the team at Mount Vernon Towers. “It was a big life decision to accept this position here, and it’s been the right one. Every morning I look forward to going to work.”