LI Press: Wilbur Breslin the CEO and chair of Breslin Realty dies at 99

‘Wilbur Fred Breslin will be deeply missed by all who knew him. His legacy of vision, integrity,  and generosity will endure for generations,” Breslin Reality said in a statement about his death.

Breslin was born on Nov. 10, 1926, in the Bronx to Pauline and Harry Breslin, who ran 12 fruit markets based in Hempstead, which helped inspire Wilbur Breslin to enter the real estate industry.

Wilbur Breslin opened his first real estate office in 1953, launching what would become a remarkable career as one of the state’s premier commercial real estate developers. Breslin played a key role in transforming Long Island’s retail landscape, bringing several top brands to the region, with his centers going on to include Modell’s, Toys “R” Us, Marshalls, The Gap and 7-Eleven.

In the 1960s, Breslin set out to build Franklin Plaza, the first Long Island shopping center to feature on-site parking, which eventually opened in 1970.

In 1973, Breslin purchased 2,000 acres of vacant land in Yaphank, intending to build a regional mall and residential community, and through a 20-year process, he helped pave the way for the 1993 Long Island Pine Barrens Act, which established over 100,000 acres of state-protected land in Suffolk County.

The rise of small strip centers led Breslin to expand into larger retail plazas, residential communities, and commercial developments across New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Mississippi, and  Louisiana as well.

Breslin Realty has developed 30 shopping centers and 12 residential communities across five states, including notable Long Island properties such as Woodbury Plaza in Plainview,  Clearmeadow Plaza in East Meadow, and Smith Haven Plaza in Lake Grove.

Breslin also supported several schools and causes during his lifetime.

His name is honored at Hofstra University’s Dorothy and Wilbur F. Breslin Hall and at St. Francis Hospital’s  Wilbur F. and Dorothy Breslin Catheterization Suites. He also donated the Smith Estate manor house and 35 acres to the Town of Brookhaven, as well as land and a building for the Suffolk  County Jail and Station House.

He also donated to support the Northwell Health Foundation, Ronald McDonald House, Long Island Jewish Medical Center, and multiple scholarship funds.

Breslin is survived by his wife, Dorothy; daughter, Karen Cooper, and son-in-law, Steven Hess; son, Kenneth Breslin, and daughter-in-law, Joy Breslin; six grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren.