Louis Lesser facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Louis Lesser
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| Born | June 15, 1916 Los Angeles, California, U.S.
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| Died | January 29, 2013 (aged 96) |
| Occupation | Real estate developer |
| Spouse(s) | Jeanne Lesser |
| Children | 4 |
Louis Lesser (born June 15, 1916 – died January 29, 2013) was an American businessman. He was known for building and managing many properties across the United States. Most of his projects were in the Los Angeles area. One of his biggest projects was Barrington Plaza. At the time, it was the largest apartment building complex built by a private company in the western U.S.
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Early Life and First Jobs
Louis Lesser was born and grew up in Los Angeles, California. His family was Jewish. He went to Hollywood High School. Even as a student, he was good at making money by selling magazines.
After finishing high school, he turned down a job offer from the magazine company. Instead, he joined his father's business, which made women's clothing. Louis helped his father's business grow a lot. He focused on selling clothes in large amounts to big stores.
Louis Lesser's Business Adventures
Starting New Businesses
Louis Lesser left his father's clothing business in 1945 when he joined the army. After his time in the service, he started new ventures. In 1947, he bought farms that produced meat and fruit. He expected prices for fruit to go up after World War II, and he was right! He made a profit just five days after buying the farms.
A few years later, he sold the farms. Then, he bought several gas stations and other related businesses. His gas stations were unique because they were self-service. Eventually, his gas station businesses joined with a company called Sunset Oil Company. Louis worked there briefly as a vice-president. He retired at age 36, thinking he was done with work.
Building Homes and More
Louis Lesser's retirement didn't last long! In 1952, he started a new company called Louis Lesser Enterprises. This company bought, built, and sold real estate. By 1960, it became a bigger company.
Louis estimated that he had developed properties worth $500 million across nine states. His company grew its value from $200,000 to $60 million. This shows how successful he became in real estate.
Building for the Military
Louis Lesser used a special law called the Capehart Act. This law helped him get money to build homes for military families. He built over 3,000 homes at 14 military bases across the U.S. These projects were worth about $35 million.
Developing Business Parks
In 1956-1957, he built an industrial center near the Los Angeles International Airport. He leased these buildings, which were worth $9 million, to different companies. In 1959, he started building an extension for a company called Convair in San Diego. This project was worth $7.5 million.
He also bought the Beckman Instrument Plant in Newport Beach in 1958. It was worth over $12 million. He then leased this large property to the Hughes Aircraft Company.
The Famous Barrington Plaza
In 1959, Louis Lesser became a partner in building Barrington Plaza. This was a huge apartment complex. By 1961, he became the only person in charge of the project.
Barrington Plaza was finished in 1962. It had 712 apartments in three tall buildings. One building was 27 stories high, and two others were 17 stories. This made it the largest and tallest apartment complex built by a private company west of Chicago. The first loan for this project was $15.2 million, which was a very large amount at the time for an urban renewal program.
Other Big Projects
In 1960, Louis Lesser worked with another developer, Irvin Kahn. They built two motels on Shelter Island in San Diego. This project cost $5.7 million.
In 1961, he was also involved in the Casa Conejo development. He was the biggest builder there, constructing 1,000 homes. Louis Lesser also helped build many bowling alleys in California. By 1962, he was one of the most active developers in this area.
In 1964, he developed a large student housing center for California State University, Los Angeles. This center was worth $118 million and could house over 3,000 students.
He started building a 22-story apartment building called "Lesser Towers" in 1962. It was planned to cost $7 million. However, the project faced legal problems and stopped for more than three years. A new builder was brought in to finish it in 1965.
In 1964, Louis Lesser bought the Phillips Ranch near Pomona for $17.5 million. This ranch was huge, covering 2,241 acres. It was one of the largest undeveloped pieces of land in Los Angeles County. He planned to build 10,000 homes there over five years.
After two years of financial losses, Louis Lesser stepped down as the head of Louis Lesser Enterprises in 1967. Another businessman, Henry Salvatori, helped the company, and it was renamed Western Orbis Company.
Personal Life
Louis Lesser was married to Jeanne Lesser. They were married from before 1945 until her death in 2006. They had four children: Craig, Therese, Kathy, and Francine.
Louis Lesser passed away on January 29, 2013.
