Peter Burton established a general contracting firm in California during the 1970’s following his tour of the country as a professional trumpet player. After earning a reputation as an accomplished commercial builder, he took the helm of the family’s property management company in 1980. Two years later, cousins Peter Burton and Robert Katzman formed a strategic alliance to grow the Burton-Katzman portfolio through the development of large-scale office parks, high-tech facilities, mixed-use properties, residential communities and condominiums. They immediately pushed the limits with the development of the one million square foot Arboretum Office Park and the 300-acre Copper Creek PUD with nearly 1,000 residences and a championship golf course, both in Farmington Hills, Michigan.