Katherine Farley, a top executive at Tishman Speyer and wife to co-founder Jerry Speyer, is leaving the firm, The Real Deal has learned.
Farley, who oversees the development giant’s operations in Brazil and China as well as its global corporate marketing division, will step down after more than 30 years at the company and focus on her roles at various nonprofits, according to an internal company memo. A spokesperson for Tishman Speyer confirmed the news Monday.
Earlier this month, Farley – who has served as chair of Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts since 2011 — was named co-chair of the International Rescue Committee, a humanitarian aid and relief organization where she already served on the board of directors.
The following day, on Feb. 12, Tishman Speyer CEO Rob Speyer sent a company-wide internal memo announcing that Farley “has decided to step down from Tishman Speyer so she can fully focus” on her work with both the IRC and Lincoln Center.
Farley started her real estate career at Turner Construction Company and joined Tishman Speyer in 1984. She got married to Jerry, who now serves as the firm’s chair, in 1991.
In a similar company-wide internal memo sent in September, Jerry announced that he would step down from the co-CEO role he had shared with his son, Rob, since 2008.
Tishman Speyer’s 98 million-square-foot portfolio includes more than 50 million square feet in North America, more than 17 million square feet in China and more than 12 million square feet in India, according to its website. In New York, the firm controls more than 16 million square feet and is developing a $3.2 billion mixed-use tower at Hudson Yards.
Rob added in the memo that while Farley will be moving on from the company, she “will be keeping her current office” at the firm’s global headquarters at 45 Rockefeller Plaza.