Bert N. Mitchell to Join Board of Directors of The Rouse Company.

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COLUMBIA, Md.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 15, 2004

Officials at The Rouse Company (NYSE:RSE) today announced that its Board of Directors elected a new member, Bert N. Mitchell, who joins the Board effective immediately.

Mr. Mitchell is Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Mitchell & Titus, LLP, the nation's largest minority-owned public accounting firm and one of the 100 largest CPA firms in the United States, with offices in New York, Washington, DC and Philadelphia. Mr. Mitchell holds CPA certificates from the states of New York and New Jersey, as well as the District of Columbia. He received BBA and MBA degrees from Baruch College of the City University of New York, where he has also been a member of the accounting faculty. He is also a graduate of the Owner-President Management Program of the Harvard Business School. Mr. Mitchell serves on the Board of Directors of B.J.'s Wholesale Club, Inc., and as Chairman of the Board of Ariel Mutual Funds.

Over the past 30 years, Mr. Mitchell has been active as a writer and lecturer in the business and accounting field, and he has served in a variety of leadership positions in the accounting profession. In 1987 he was elected President of the New York Society of CPAs, a 30,000 member organization, making him the first African American to head a state society of CPAs in the United States. He has served as a member of the Board of Directors and as a member of the Governing Council of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, and he was a founding member and Chairman of the Board of the National Association of Minority CPA Firms. For ten years he was a member of the State Board of Accountancy for New York, and served as its Chairman. This organization is responsible for the licensing and oversight of the practice of public accountancy in the State of New York.

Mr. Mitchell has long been active in community affairs, philanthropy and politics, serving on the Boards of Directors of more than a dozen not-for-profit organizations and educational institutions, including The Greater New York Fund United Way, Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts' Consolidated Corporate Fund's Leadership Committee, The Baruch College Fund and The One Hundred Black Men, Inc. He also served as a member of the Visiting Committee of the Harvard Business School and has been a member of numerous commissions and committees, including the Mayoral Committee on Black New Yorkers and the Commissioner's Advisory Group of the Internal Revenue Service.

"We are indeed fortunate to be able to attract an individual with such high quality credentials, credibility and character," said Anthony W. Deering, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of The Rouse Company. "Bert brings a wealth of business and accounting experience to our Board, and I know he will be a valuable addition in all respects."

"I am delighted to be joining the Board of Directors of The Rouse Company," said Mr. Mitchell. "I have long been impressed with the Company's high standards of development, operation and business conduct, and I look forward to being part of the Company's exciting future."

A native of Jamaica, West Indies, Mr. Mitchell emigrated to the United States in 1958. He and his wife, Carole, live in Oyster Bay, New York.

Headquartered in Columbia, Md., The Rouse Company was founded in 1939 and became a public company in 1956. A premier real estate development and management company, The Rouse Company, through its numerous affiliates, operates more than 150 properties encompassing retail, office, research and development and industrial space in 22 states. The Company is also the developer of the planned communities of Columbia, Md., and Summerlin, along the western edge of Las Vegas, Nev., and a new project in Houston, Tex. The Company is also an investor in The Woodlands, a planned community in Houston, Tex.

This release includes forward-looking statements, which reflect the Company's current view with respect to future events and financial performance. These forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ materially from historical or anticipated results. The words "believe," "expect," "anticipate" and similar expressions identify forward-looking statements. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of their dates. The Rouse Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. For a discussion of certain factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from historical or anticipated results, including real estate investment risks, development risks and changes in the economic climate, see Exhibit 99.1 of The Rouse Company's Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2003.

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