Murray Kushner is an American real estate developer.
Early life
Kushner's parents,
Joseph Kushner
Joseph Kushner (maiden name, né Berkowitz; 10 October 1922 – 5 October 1985) was a Belarusian-born American real estate investor and developer. At the end of his career, he owned over 4,000 apartments, houses, and properties.
Biography
Kushne ...
and Rae Kushner were Jews born in eastern
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...
and
Holocaust survivors
Holocaust survivors are people who survived the Holocaust, defined as the persecution and attempted annihilation of the Jews by Nazi Germany and Axis powers, its allies before and during World War II in Europe and North Africa. There is no unive ...
, who came to America from the
USSR
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...
by way of Italy in 1949. His father worked as a construction worker and concurrently as an independent builder, while investing in real estate, eventually building a portfolio totaling 4,000 New Jersey apartments.Elkies, Lauren (November 1, 2007) "The Closing: Charles Kushner" . '' The Real Deal''. Retrieved September 28, 2011."Charles Kushner" ''Cityfile''.
Gawker Media
Gawker Media LLC (formerly Blogwire, Inc. and Gawker Media, Inc.) was an American Online and offline, online Mass media, media company and Link farm#Blog network, blog network. It was founded by Nick Denton in October 2003 as Blogwire, and was ba ...
. Retrieved September 28, 2011. The
Joseph Kushner Hebrew Academy
The Joseph Kushner Hebrew Academy is a coeducational Modern Orthodox Yeshiva Day School located in Livingston, New Jersey. The Academy is dedicated towards developmental education and religious growth, for both boys and girls from Pre-Kindergart ...
and the
Rae Kushner Yeshiva High School
Rae Kushner Yeshiva High School / Yeshivat HaTichonit Beit Yosef is a four-year private Modern Orthodox yeshiva high school located in Livingston, New Jersey, United States. The school serves students living in areas ranging from Livingston, We ...
, in
Livingston, New Jersey
Livingston is a township (New Jersey), township in Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, New Jersey. As of the 2010 United States census, 2010 U.S. census, the township's population was 29,366, reflecting an increase of 1,975 (+7.2%) from the ...
, built by Charles Kushner, are named after them."Mini Bio: Rae Kushner" Jewish Partisan Educational Foundation. Retrieved September 28, 2011. Murray Kushner has two sisters, Esther and Linda, and a younger brother, Charles. Murray graduated summa cum laude with a B.A. from the
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...
, and then went on to obtain a J.D. from the
University of Pennsylvania Law School
The University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School (also known as Penn Law or Penn Carey Law) is the law school of the University of Pennsylvania, a private research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is among the most selective and olde ...
.
Career
After school, he worked for the family real estate business, and after his father's death, he and his siblings equally divided ownership of the company. His relationship with his brother eventually deteriorated over investment decisions, especially Murray's veto on the purchase of Berkshire Realty, a firm that owned 24,000 apartments, which would have made Kushner Properties the largest privately held real-estate firm in the region. In 2000, the brothers decided to no longer work together as business partners. His firm The KRE Group, has since grown to more than 100 full-time employees, with a portfolio of 9,000 apartments and 6 million square feet of office and industrial property.
KRE has developed projects throughout the
Northeast Corridor
The Northeast Corridor (NEC) is an electrified railroad line in the Northeast megalopolis of the United States. Owned primarily by Amtrak, it runs from Boston through Providence, New Haven, Stamford, New York City, Philadelphia, Wilmington, a ...
, with several located in
Downtown Jersey City
Downtown is an area of Jersey City, New Jersey, which includes the Historic Downtown and the Waterfront.
Historic Downtown
Historic Downtown was an area of mostly low-rise buildings to the west of the waterfront, but by the 2000s a number of h ...
. In July 2014, the company began construction on the first phase of
Journal Squared
Journal Squared, or J2, is a 3-tower retail and residential complex under construction at Journal Square in Jersey City, New Jersey Upon completion, the complex will consist of buildings of 54, 60, and 70 stories, among the tallest buildings in ...
, a residential development adjacent to the
Journal Square Transportation Center
The Journal Square Transportation Center is a multi-modal transportation hub located on Magnolia Avenue and Kennedy Boulevard at Journal Square in Jersey City, New Jersey, United States. Owned and operated by the Port Authority of New York and ...
. The project will be constructed in three phases, and is approved for a total of 1,838 units, including a 70-story building, which will be one of the tallest buildings in
Jersey City
Jersey City is the second-most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey, after Newark. and they raised their children in
Modern Orthodox Judaism
Modern Orthodox Judaism (also Modern Orthodox or Modern Orthodoxy) is a movement within Orthodox Judaism that attempts to synthesize Jewish values and the observance of Jewish law with the secular, modern world.
Modern Orthodoxy draws on sever ...
. He has two sons, Jon and Marc. His first wife died and he remarried. His wife came into the marriage with a son and daughter. His son Jonathan Kushner has taken over The KRE Group. His son
Marc Marc or MARC may refer to:
People
* Marc (given name), people with the first name
* Marc (surname), people with the family name
Acronyms
* MARC standards, a data format used for library cataloging,
* MARC Train, a regional commuter rail system o ...
is an architect and married Christopher Barley in a Jewish ceremony in 2012. Kushner is a prominent supporter of governor
Chris Christie
Christopher James Christie (born September 6, 1962) is an American politician, lawyer, political commentator, lobbyist, and former federal prosecutor who served as the 55th governor of New Jersey from 2010 to 2018.
Christie, who was born in Ne ...
. His wife was diagnosed with
multiple sclerosis
Multiple (cerebral) sclerosis (MS), also known as encephalomyelitis disseminata or disseminated sclerosis, is the most common demyelinating disease, in which the insulating covers of nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord are damaged. This d ...
in the mid-1990s, and they dedicate much of their philanthropic activities to finding a cure. He remains estranged from his brother
Charles Kushner
Charles Kushner (born May 16, 1954) is an American real estate developer, former federal inmate, and disbarred former attorney. He founded Kushner Companies in 1985.
In 2005, he was convicted of illegal campaign contributions, tax evasion, a ...
.
See also
*
Kushner family
The Kushner family is an American family involved in real estate development. The family originated from Novogrudok, Second Polish Republic, Poland, and is based in the New York metropolitan area. After surviving the Holocaust and settling in th ...
Murray
Murray may refer to:
Businesses
* Murray (bicycle company), an American manufacturer of low-cost bicycles
* Murrays, an Australian bus company
* Murray International Trust, a Scottish investment trust
* D. & W. Murray Limited, an Australian who ...