Venable attorney David Rutstein remembered Washington real estate developer, sports team owner and philanthropist Abe Pollin in a November 25 Washington Post story recounting the legacy of Pollin, who died yesterday at age 85.

Pollin’s construction of the Verizon Center, which is located across the street from Venable’s Washington, DC office, is credited with sparking the rehabilitation of Washington, DC’s downtown area from a ghost town in the mid-1990s to a vibrant business and entertainment district today.

Pollin was a pioneer in many other ways. In the 1950s, Pollin was among the first Washington-area builders to use integrated construction crews. He supported numerous philanthropic groups, and pursued raising money to help children in developing nations around the world with the same zeal he showed raising money to help Washington’s less fortunate.

"I know of no biases that Abe Pollin has except the bias for action," said Rutstein, who worked closely with Pollin as chairman of the Greater Washington Board of Trade.