Immigrants’ son strikes gold with shopping malls
BORN: Oct. 15, 1925, in Washington. The son of Mayer, an immigrant from Palestine, and Ethel. Ted was their oldest child, followed by siblings Lawrence and Esther.
FAMILY: Married to wife Annette. The couple splits their time between Palm Springs, Calif., and Chevy Chase, Md., and celebrated their 58th wedding anniversary last Wednesday. The Lerner children and in-laws — son, Mark, and wife, Judy Lenkin Lerner; daughter Debra Lerner Cohen and husband, Edward; daughter Marla Lerner Tanenbaum and husband, Robert — are all principal owners of the Washington Nationals baseball club.
EDUCATION: Graduated from Theodore Roosevelt High in 1944, where he took a gym class taught by future NBA coach and Hall of Famer Red Auerbach. Later graduated with an A.A. degree from the George Washington University and also earned a law degree from GW in 1949.
BUSINESS CAREER: Founder of Rockville-based Lerner Enterprises — the largest private real estate development company in the Washington area. The company has developed shopping malls at Tysons Corner, Dulles Town Center, White Flint, Wheaton Plaza and Landover. Lerner ranks No. 105 on Forbes magazine’s list of the 400 wealthiest Americans, with an estimated net worth of $3.5 billion.
BASEBALL: Bought the Washington Nationals baseball team from Major League Baseball in 2006 for $450 million. Since the Lerners purchased the team, the Nats have won 71, 73 and 59 games. The 2009 club entered the weekend with the worst record in baseball.
DONATIONS: Ted and Annette Lerner have donated two buildings to his alma mater, George Washington University — the Annette and Theodore Lerner Family Health and Wellness Center and Theodore N. Lerner Hall at the George Washington University Law Center. They are also founding members of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.
