Rob Speyer, the consensus candidate

REBNY’s newly named chairman will be the youngest to head the trade group

Rob Speyer
Rob Speyer

From the September issue: The selection process, one participant joked, bore a bit of a resemblance to the College of Cardinals selecting a new pope in Vatican City.

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One by one, the seven present and former chairs of the Real Estate Board of New York arrived at the trade organization’s Lexington Avenue headquarters and joined REBNY President Steven Spinola in the Harry Helmsley Boardroom. Then, over deli sandwiches and chocolate-chip cookies brought by developer Larry Silverstein, the conclave set to work selecting perhaps the closest thing New York real estate has to its own Holy Father — the titular head of REBNY, the group charged with lobbying for the industry’s interests. [more]