Ala Moana buyer
names CEO

Bloomberg News

CHICAGO -- General Growth Properties Inc., which is buying Ala Moana Center, has promoted Executive Vice President John Bucksbaum to chief executive, succeeding his father, Matthew Bucksbaum, one of the pioneers in the mall-development business.

John Bucksbaum, 42, will take over as CEO on July 1, the Chicago-based real estate investment trust said. Matthew Bucksbaum, 73, will remain chairman.

Chicago-based General Growth is one of the largest shopping-mall companies in the United States. Earlier this month the company said it was buying Ala Moana Center, which it manages, from financially troubled Daiei Inc. of Japan for $810 million. General Growth expects to complete the deal by the end of July.

Matthew Bucksbaum and his brother, Martin, who died in 1995, were pioneers in the development of shopping malls in the 1950s and 1960s along with the late Edward DeBartolo and the Simon brothers of Indianapolis.

John Bucksbaum has been responsible for arranging many of General Growth's $5.7 billion of acquisitions in recent years. The company now owns and manages 125 malls in 39 states with a total of 100 million square feet of space.