Yesterday the Chicago Association of Realtors announced the two newest inductees into its Hall of Fame: Buzz Ruttenberg, founder of Belgravia Group, and Mike Supera, founder of Sandz Development and president of Supera Asset Management.
From a press release:
For more than 40 years, Buzz Ruttenberg has been involved in developing residential and retail/commercial properties principally located on Chicago’s North Side. Inspired by his father, David C. Ruttenberg, also a Chicago attorney and real estate developer with a passion for the arts, Ruttenberg practiced law before turning full time to real estate and completing developments that exceed $1 billion in total value. Many of his projects have redefined the city’s streetscapes, including the residences at 565 W. Quincy, the mixed-use Belden Centre and the retail/commercial Webster Place. Ruttenberg is also known for his support of several Chicago area civic and charitable organizations, including the Marwen Foundation, Francis W. Parker School, Erikson Institute and Museum of Contemporary Art.
In a real estate career spanning 50 years, Michael Supera progressed from managing an apartment building to managing, owning and developing thousands of multi-family units and helping transform Chicago’s Near North Side into one of the nation’s most desirable urban communities. Supera grew up in the real estate business, tending his father’s rooming houses and earning his broker’s license by age 21. In the early 1970s he and Richard Zisook formed Sandz Development and developed a number of notable properties, including Eugenie Terrace Townhomes and The Whitney. A founding member of the Lincoln Park Builders of Chicago, the recipient of numerous C.A.R. Good Neighbor Awards and a generous supporter of several charities, Supera has done much to benefit his industry and city.
Last summer Joe Zekas met up with Buzz, Mike, and Richard Zisook at their 600 Lake Shore Drive high-rises to talk about the market and their experiences as developers, and to burn the development’s mortgage, marking the payoff of loans on the $300 million project.