Starrett Corporation facts for kids

Starrett Corporation is a well-known company that builds and develops large buildings and properties. It was once called Starrett Brothers, Inc. and Starrett Brothers and Eken. This company is famous for constructing many important buildings in New York City, including the Empire State Building, Stuyvesant Town, Starrett City, and Trump Tower.

Company History: Building Big Things

The Starrett Corporation started in 1922 and officially became a company in February 1929 in Dover, Delaware. When it first began, it had a lot of money to work with, around $40 million, including its smaller companies. Starrett Corporation bought a building company called Starrett Brothers.

The company focused on building and helping to pay for large projects in major cities across the United States. Paul Starrett became the head of the board, and William A. Starrett was the president.

In 1963, Robert Olnick took over as president. He changed the company's focus to building homes for people with low and middle incomes. These projects were often funded by the government, so they didn't need as much private money.

Later, in 1970, Henry Benach bought a large part of the company and became its president. He changed the name to Starrett Housing Corporation. The company continued to grow by buying other construction firms. In 1977, Starrett bought H.R.H. Construction. In 1978, it acquired Levitt Corporation, which was famous for building many homes after World War II. In 1995, the company's name was changed back to Starrett Corporation.

In the late 1990s, the company was sold to a group of other companies, including Lawrence Ruben Co. and Argent Ventures. After this sale, Joel Simon became the new chief executive officer.

Starrett's Other Companies

Starrett Corporation had several smaller companies, known as subsidiaries, that helped with its projects.

One of these, the Starrett Building Company of Chicago, Illinois, helped build the steel structure for the National Parking Garage in Chicago in 1929. Other subsidiaries included the Starrett Investing Corporation and the Wall and Hanover Streets Realty Company. The latter owned a tall, 35-story building at 59-63 Wall Street in Manhattan.

Another important subsidiary was the Levitt Corporation. This company was well-known for building many similar homes quickly, a style called tract housing, especially after World War II. More recently, Starrett's home-building business has been successful in places like Puerto Rico and Florida.

See also

In Spanish: Starrett Brothers & Eken para niños