Alumni Profiles
Shedding Light on Times Square—and More
Ah, Times Square. The Crossroads of the World. The crystal ball descending each New Year’s Eve. Animated neon and LED billboards—spectaculars and jumbotrons without rival. Subject of songs. Home of theaters, restaurants, broadcast studios, retail stores, corporations. No other intersection says New York—or USA—more than Times Square. How cool is it then to learn that major sections of this area—1 Times Square, 2 Times Square, and 1600 Broadway on the Square, as well as many of those amazing signs, including the Coca Cola space—are owned/managed by real estate developer Jeffrey Katz ’69 (economics), CEO and principal owner of Sherwood Equities.
Over the past 30 years, Katz has acquired, developed and managed New York and Long Island properties valued in excess of $2 billion. In the process, his firm has won numerous design and building awards, including the Bard Award for Excellence in Architecture and Urban Design, the Builder’s Choice Award for Best Mixed Use Development and a Certificate of Distinction in American Architecture.
The College of Social and Behavioral Sciences is thrilled to have reconnected with Katz—and the feeling is mutual. “Looking back on my UMass experience, I realize how much it did for me,” he says. “The foundation was so strong, but until recently I really hadn’t thought much about it. When Dean Feldman came to visit, I realized that writing a check would be easy.”
Katz’s gift to SBS has given 20 students scholarship assistance for their travel abroad experience this spring. “Having a personal connection makes giving fun,” he says, “and knowing how much these funds mean to the students makes me feel really good. I really admire kids who try hard to advance themselves.”
Katz grew up on Long Island where his father became a developer after World War II, building houses in new suburban areas. “I loved going to work with Dad. Trucks, digging, construction—what could be more appealing to a kid. I guess I always knew that’s what I wanted to do. But Dad wanted me to become a doctor. I knew that wasn’t for me, but when we haphazardly started looking at some colleges, I picked UMass Amherst…I thought the campus was attractive.”
As an undergraduate, however, Katz was ambivalent about being in Massachusetts. “I really was a fish out of water,” he recalls. “Back in 1965, only 4% of undergraduates were out-of-state. I had come from a high school that was 90% Jewish and don’t think I’d ever met an Irish Catholic. Things were different then. It was a culture shock, and there wasn’t any support for us ‘foreigners.’ Actually, when it came to advising, as I recall, there wasn’t much for anyone. For example, I chose math as a major because it had the shortest line at registration. But I hated it.* When I finally switched to economics, things started to click academically. I experienced some of the best teachers I ever had. My senior seminar was amazing.”
But Katz didn’t enter the family firm after college. “Actually, the invitation to join didn’t come,” he recalls. “So I had to figure out another way to get into real estate development.” Katz went on to the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania for his MBA. “My plan was to work for a big company and then branch out. I did join a big company…and I hated it. Even though it was a good place to learn, it was so top down and I bristled at the organizational structure. After 9 months, I knew I couldn’t continue there. Basically, I was too entrepreneurial to thrive in that environment. That’s when Dad made me an offer. He was an incredible teacher. Five years later, in 1977, I took the next step and ventured into the city."
Katz started small. “I found a 22-unit renovation project. Lucky for me, it all worked out. From there it was incremental, finding good deals, fixing them up, making a profit and finding the next project. I’ve been fairly conservative in my approach. Taking gigantic risks can result in incredible payback in good times, but when the bad moments come—and I’ve seen several over my career—that’s when the bottom can fall out. So, step by step, making returns from one property pay for the next, larger one, is how I moved the business forward.”
“I love what I do,” says Katz, noting how important it is for individuals to find their passion and strength and then work hard at it. “I don’t ever feel like I’m working because it’s so much fun,” he says. “Real estate development really is a very creative process that incorporates many skill sets. It’s a good match for liberal arts graduates. I often compare it to producing a movie. You begin with an idea and thoughtfully work through every stage of development to execute results. If you manage the process really well, by following through and paying attention to details, you end up with something terrific.”
Under Katz, Sherwood Equities has grown to 50 employees who make sure no detail falls between the cracks, from administrative flow to physical plant to hunting for new deals—and of course, tending to Sherwood Outdoor that owns and manages the “best and brightest” branding locations on the north and south ends of Times Square.
* The out-of-state student population has grown significantly to about 20%, and a move is on to increase geographic diversity even more. Student advising too has come a long way since the 1960s. These days, to help students navigate their way through their academic experience, everyone has a faculty advisor; each department has a chief undergraduate advisor to make sure everyone is on the same page; and SBS has an undergraduate advising center where students receive general academic advising, related to course substitutions, late add/drop procedures, withdrawals, overload of credit, and so on.
January 22, 2010
