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Honorees-
The Zeckendorf Family
  
For more than half a century, the Zeckendorf family has been a
driving force in the local and national real estate industry. Through
his vision, energy and acumen, William Zeckendorf Sr. (left), became
one of America’s master builders, reshaping the urban landscape.
His company Webb & Knapp, remodeled whole sections of New York,
Denver, Washington, Montreal, and Dallas and moved the United Nations
to Manhattan. A brilliant developer and real estate planner, he
joined the University board of trustees in 1942. For more than two
decades he served as its chairman. In 1950, he urged the University
to purchase the Brooklyn Paramount Theater and the adjoining office
building, thereby establishing the present Brooklyn Campus. In 1954,
he helped found the C.W. Post Campus, enabling the University to
secure the estate of Marjorie Merriweather Post by donating the
$500,000 needed to purchase the property, along with other gifts
to help develop it. He also played an integral role in the establishment
of Southampton College in 1963. He remained on the board, working
ceaselessly to build and expand the University until his death in
1976.
In addition to his work with Long Island University, he served
on the executive boards of the America-Korea foundation, the Children’s
Village, the American Arbitration Association, the American Stock
Exchange, New York Infirmary and Manhattan Ear, Eye and Throat Hospital.
In 1956, he received an honorary doctorate from the Brooklyn Campus.
The C.W. Post Campus also established The William Zeckendorf Sr.
Award, which commemorates his devotion, brilliance and achievement
by recognizing annually an individual who embodies those values
of entrepreneurship and achievement that he held so dear. A New
York University alumnus, Mr. Zeckendorf also received honorary degrees
from American University, Wilberforce University and Chung-Ang University
in Korea. He was Chevalier of the Legion d’Honneur and Honorary
Member of the American Institute of Architects.
Like his father before him, William Zeckendorf Jr. (center) was
an important figure in the New York real estate industry. He played
an integral role in the redevelopment of Broadway, north of 86th
Street, by building Columbia, a condominium at West 96th Street.
His construction of Zeckendorf Towers in Union Square, set the tone
for a major redevelopment of that area. World Wide Plaza, a commercial,
residential and retail complex he developed during the late 1980s,
covers an entire city block and straddles two urban precincts, a
business district and a residential neighborhood. Its construction
played a key role in the redevelopment of Eighth Avenue. Mr. Zeckendorf
became a member of the University board of trustees in 1960. Serving
as its chairman from 1985-1992, he retired from the board in 1994.
He received an honorary doctorate from the C.W. Post Campus in 1992.
In 1994, the newly opened William Zeckendorf Health Sciences Center
was named in recognition of the many contributions he and his father
had made to the University over the years.
Today, the Zeckendorf legacy continues at the University and in
the world of real estate development. William Lie Zeckendorf (right)
joined the board of trustees in 2000. Mr. Zeckendorf, earned his
M.B.A. from the Harvard Graduate School of Business. He and his
brother, Arthur, represent the third generation of Zeckendorfs in
New York real estate. Together, they head Zeckendorf Realty LP,
a developer of luxury condominiums throughout the City, and Terra
Holdings, parent company of Brown Harris Stevens and Halstead Property,
one of New York City’s largest real estate firms.
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