The real estate industry lost an icon with the passing of Hank Spaulding this past week.  Even that statement does not do justice to the impact this man had on our region and our industry.

He was one of the many influential alumni from the master real estate development firm, Cabot, Cabot & Forbes that included Gerald Blakeley, Mort Zuckerman, Ed Linde, Moose Mansfeld, Don Chiofaro, Terry Considine, Arturo Gutierrez, and others. (NAIOP will be honoring Gerry Blakely and CC&F’s “offspring” at NAIOP’s Annual Meeting on Thursday, December 15.) He then went on to co-found Spaulding & Slye, one of the most prolific full service real estate companies.

His influence on the cityscape of this area was already established by then, but his influence around the world was set into motion with his establishment of the MIT Center for Real Estate that opened in 1984. Hank knew that our business was becoming more complex and required a broader understanding of the numerous components that went into creating housing and commercial spaces. What it needed was a graduate program designed to train real estate developers. The school has been a tremendous success educating real estate professionals from around the world.

Hank Spaulding gained the respect of everyone he ever dealt with through his generosity and wisdom. He will be missed by all of us who knew him.