Abe Pollin, Verizon Center Developer, Dies at 85

In case you haven’t spotted the news over at City Desk (or every other outlet covering D.C.), I thought I should mention D.C.’s biggest, late-breaking news this afternoon: Abe Pollin, developer extraordinaire, sports team owner, and philanthropist, has passed away.

He suffered from  corticobasal degeneration, according to the Washington Post.

Among his many accomplishments, Pollin developed the Verizon Center “risk(ing) much of his fortune to build the arena in a neglected D.C. neighborhood, [which] has spearheaded a revitalization of downtown Washington since its opening in 1997,” as the Associated Press reports. Pollin also owned the Washington Wizards, now part of the holdings of his company Washington Sports and Entertainment, and he previously owned and sold the Washington Capitals and the Washington Mystics.

City Paper’s Mike DeBonis has collected numerous statements from councilmembers and others mourning his passing over here.

Tags: Abe Pollin, Associated Press, Mike DeBonis, Verizon Center, Washington Capitals, Washington Post, Washington Wizards