AWARD WINNING EDITORIAL
INCLUDING THE HUDSON VALLEY JUNE 20, 2022 VOL. 58, No. 25
BY PETER KATZ
westfaironline.com
RXR SEES COMMUNITY SUPPORT AS CONSTANT IN A CHANGING REAL ESTATE WORLD
CEO, Scott Rechler, who for many years has been active in community and government affairs. Among the organizations with which he’s been involved are: the Long Island Children’s Museum; the Tribeca Film Institute; the Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research; the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey; the Regional Plan Association; the MTA; and the 9/11 Memorial. In New Rochelle, where RXR has been master developer for the city’s downtown revitalization, the company established a Covid Relief Fund with $1 million in seed money to help the city’s residents, businesses and nonprofits. This month, it announced a new $500,000 grant program in New Rochelle. There was a July 1 deadline to apply for a grant. “The pandemic exacerbated the need for impactful and meaningful programs to support New Rochelle’s children and families,”
Pkatz@westfairinc.com
T
here’s no doubt that RXR Realty is big and getting bigger, but at the same time it reinforces its position as a driving force in real estate development and it also has gone to great lengths to establish itself as a member of the communities in which it is working. RXR’s portfolio now includes 88 commercial real estate properties and investments with a value of approximately $22.6 billion, comprising approximately 30.4 million square feet. It has a multifamily portfolio with about 7,600 units under operation or development. In addition, it controls the development rights for another approximately 3,800 residential units. RXR has more than 500 employees. At least part of the interest the company takes in communities can be viewed in context with the actions of RXR’s chairman and
RXR REALTY
Rendering of One and Two Clinton Park in New Rochelle
6
EXCLUSIVE: Bob Stefanowski details the strategy in his campaign for Connecticut governor BY PHIL HALL Phall@westfairinc.com
I
n 2018, Republican Bob Stefanowski lost the election for governor of Connecticut to Democrat Ned Lamont in a 49.38% to 46.21% margin. Stefanowski, a former chief executive of financial services companies, including GE Commercial & Industrial Finance and Dollar Financial Group, is back for a second go-round against Lamont. In an interview with the Business Journals, Stefanowski explained why he has thrown his proverbial hat into the polit-
ical ring again and forecasted why this year’s election will turn out in his favor. The first question is an obvious one: Why are you running for governor for a second time in four years? I don’t know how much of my background you know, but I grew up in New Haven. My mom and dad worked at the Southern Telephone Co. for 40 years — they saved for myself and my three sisters to go to school, and I worked at General Electric and Price Waterhouse and some great companies. And I’ve been fortunate to live and raise a
family here. I’ve got three terrific daughters. The state’s been really good to me. At this point in my career, I thought it’d be good to give back. And I think I’ve learned a lot in our state. I’m certainly grateful to our state. And I don’t think kids today have the same opportunities I had when I was growing up. It’s a different environment now with high gas prices and inflation, lack of affordability and crime. And I’d like to get Connecticut back to what it used to be. What were some of the lessons that you learned in the 2018
campaign? Well, one of them is to spend more time in Fairfield County. I didn’t spend enough last time and it’s one of the many reasons I chose Laura Devlin as my running mate — she is a Fairfield County representative who knows people there. I look forward to working with Brenda Kupchik and Fred Camillo and all the mayors down there to get to know the people better. I think the second thing is a broader platform. Taxes are a big deal in Connecticut, but it’s not just taxes — it’s utility bills, it’s the cost of gasoline, it’s
the cost of groceries, the added taxes that the governor has put on prepared foods and other things that is stretching people these days. The third one is public safety, particularly with the rise in homicides that we see in Bridgeport, Hartford, New Haven and other places. We’ve seen juvenile crime with respect to stealing cars and catalytic converters, and I don’t think Connecticut is where it should be. So we’re going to come up with a much broader platform this time, get out there more, get our message directly to the people.
EXCLUSIVE
7