|
Philip E. Aarons attended Columbia College and the Columbia University School where he was an Editor of the Law Review.Following law school, Aarons became an associate at the law firm of Nickerson, Kramer, Lowenstein, Nessen, Kamin & Soll, concentrating in the real estate area. In early 1978, he was invited to join the Administration of Edward I. Koch as an Assistant to the Mayor.In mid 1979, Aarons was named President of the Public Development, a position he held through 1983. Under his leadership, the company grew from a small vehicle for the negotiated sale of City-owned industrial property into the City's lead development agency, overseeing projects including South Street Seaport, Marriot Marquis Hotel, and Carnegie Hall Restoration. The Corporation also contributed to the City's economic revitalization by assisting private development projects with design, construction and public approvals.In late 1983, Aarons moved out of public service and became President of the real estate subsidiary of the General Atlantic Corporation, a privately held investment firm. The General Atlantic Realty Corporation, in partnership with Christopher M. Jeffries, was a pioneer in the construction of low-income housing, financed through its linkage to luxury housing, building over 1,000 units throughout the City. During his tenure at General Atlantic, Aarons also led the restructuring of a portfolio of commercial properties owned and managed by the company in San Francisco and undertook the development of Bayside Village, an 865-unit residential project on the Embarcadero.In 1990, Aarons, with Philip H. Lovett and Christopher M. Jeffries, formed Millennium Partners for the purpose of developing the $275 million first phase of the major West Side development now called Lincoln Square. The partnership has since grown to include real estate development, hotel and management companies, employing more than 50 professionals, with major mixed-use developments completed and underway in San Francisco, Boston, Washington, D.C., Miami and New York with a total cost in excess of $3 billion. | 