Larry Silverstein to step down as CEO of Silverstein Properties

Larry Silverstein is stepping down as chief executive of Silverstein Properties, the Wall Street Journal reported. 

“More and more I walk into rooms filled with real-estate people, and I recognize less and less of them as the years go by,” Silverstein told the Journal, and added: “I’m not going to be as active in the daily functioning of the company as I once was.”

After 60 years in the business, the 81-year-old Silverstein – known for his indefatigable energy – will make way for Marty Burger, a longtime executive at Related Companies who became Silverstein’s co-CEO in 2011, as The Real Deal previously reported.

“Marty is a terrific young guy, and his function is really going to be to grow the company,” Silverstein said. “We’re now moving in a whole series of new directions.”

Two of Silverstein’s children, Roger and Lisa, are involved in the business, but neither wanted their father’s position, they told the Journal.

“I think Lisa and I did some soul searching and decided we should look outside the family,” Roger said, and added he preferred to remain focused on the company’s leasing business.

Silverstein Properties currently has $10 billion worth of development activity projects in the pipeline, according to the Journal, including a Four Seasons Hotel Downtown on Church Street and a major central business district in Shenzhen, China. [WSJ]  –Hiten Samtani