Charles Benenson dies at 91.

Charles B. Benenson, one of the most active and influential figures in the real estate industry over the last 50 years and a world-class philanthropist, died Feb. 22 at his home in West Palm Beach. Mr. Benenson, who also lived in New York City, was 91.

A legendary personality within the New York City business community, Benenson held a leadership role in his industry and his city, closing thousands of deals, pioneering transaction types, founding influential civic organizations and supporting dozens of charities.

Benenson Capital Partners, LLC is a privately held firm engaged in real estate investment and development. One of the pioneers of the triple net lease, Mr. Benenson oversaw the creation of a portfolio that today includes 200 properties located across the continental U.S. and leased to some of the nation's most prestigious corporations.

The properties include office and industrial buildings, shopping centers, residential developments, senior housing and hotels.

The firm also pursues strategic relationships and value-added transactions with corporate tenants, lenders, and joint venture partners, capitalizing on opportunities in undervalued assets, build-to-suit projects, new development and redevelopment.

Benenson remained active in the firm as chairman emeritus until his death, providing strategic guidance and direction based on his many years of experience at the pinnacle of the industry.

Among the signature properties in the Benenson portfolio or developed by the Benenson company are the Beacon Centre in Miami; the World Bank building in Washington D.C.; the Cross County Shopping Center in Yonkers, N.Y.; 1600 Summer Street in Stamford, Conn..; 400 Park Ave. and the Metropolis in Manhattan; and countless others.

Mr. Benenson's company dates to its founding in 1905 by his father Benjamin. Entering the business in 1933 and taking over as its head after his father's death in 1938, the younger Mr. Benenson began his career during the severest economic downturn in U.S. history. Based on his tenacity and skills, the company is still prospering after six decades.

Mr. Benenson's appetite for deal making was unrivalled in the industry, at rates that at least once--in January 1946--topped four a week. Under his leadership, the company steadily expanded its real estate portfolio, maintaining a keen contrarian eye for long-term values. The firm acquired undeveloped land inexpensively in the 1960s and 1970s.

Decades later, the Benenson family used this land for highly profitable developments.

During the 1990s, the firm focused on developing its management depth, while upgrading its technologies and forming strategic relationships with leading corporate tenants, lenders and joint venture partners.

Benenson's career and the actions he took to advance his company and real estate as an industry frequently reflected the tenor of the times. In the early 1970s, for instance, he and Lew Rudin founded the Association for a Better New York in response to the city's fiscal crisis.

Benenson was not afraid to take on powerful interests. He was especially proud of his inclusion on Richard Nixon's "enemies list," the result of his buying a table at lunch for Businessmen Against the War in Vietnam.

In 1977, unhappy with the condemnation of the Willard Hotel In Washington, D.C., he sued the U.S. government, and in a landmark decision achieved the first inverse condemnation.

In the 1980s, he founded the Coalition Against Double Taxation to fight a proposal in Congress to eliminate the deductibility of state and local income taxes. The coalition, having won its battle, later evolved into the National Realty Committee, which today, as the Real Estate Roundtable, is perhaps the most influential and prestigious voice speaking out on the industry's behalf.

Benenson was held in high regard in the business community for his real estate expertise. He was a longtime member of the Board of Directors of Loews Corporation--and its first outside director--and served as a real estate advisor to that company.

An inveterate art collector, Benenson was said to have an eye for art that rivaled his sense for real estate. Among his 800 pieces are Some of the best examples of modern art. He was an early and frequent patron of Saul Steinberg and acquired many of Red Grooms' biggest and most important works.

Two favorite pieces were masterpieces he owned by Kurt Schwitters (Merzbilde med regnbue, 1939) and Stuart Davis (Combination Concrete #2, 1958). He also had the world's foremost collection of African art. On the cutting edge he owned pieces by Jean Michel Basquiat and Jonathan Barofsky.

His collection of outdoor sculpture included large works by Noguchi, Louise Bourgeois, Jim Dine, Mark Di Suvero and David Smith. Much of his collection has been promised to the Yale University Art Gallery.

Benenson's philanthropic activities spanned a broad range and he was especially committed to the Inner City Scholarship Fund, the organization dedicated to sending under-privileged children to college.

He was also a trustee of Chess-in-the-Schools and was on the board of United Cerebral Palsy.

His lifelong love of tennis, a sport in which he was nationally ranked when he was 14, was reflected in his work with the New York Junior Tennis League, on whose board he served.

He also was a leader in organizing real estate industry support for worthy causes. He helped found Lincoln Center's Real Estate and Construction Council and was its co-chair with Peter Malkin and John Avlon.

He was a founding member of the Realty Foundation and co-chair of the Realty Council for the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

An alumnus of Yale University, he was the chairman of the Board of the Yale University Real Estate Committee and arranged the purchase of Yale's 50 percent interest of 717 Fifth Ave.

He is survived by his wife Jane; three sons, Lawrence and Fred of New York City and Bill of Santa Monica, who are all actively involved in Benenson Capital Partners; his brothers Lawrence and Raymond; and his grandchildren, Stephen, Frederick, Alexander and Amand.