Stephen Lebovitz newly elected ICSC Chairman

Stephen D. Lebovitz, president and CEO of CBL & Associates Properties, Inc. of Milton, Mass., was elected Monday to be ICSC’s chairman for the 2015–2016 term, at ICSC’s annual meeting of members at RECon in Las Vegas. He was nominated Jan. 22 during the Board of Trustees’ midwinter meeting, in Newport Coast, Calif.

Lebovitz, along with his two brothers — Alan, the firm’s senior vice president for asset management; and Michael, who is executive vice president for development and administration — have overseen the significant growth of CBL since it went public in 1993. Today the firm boasts a nearly $10 billion market capitalization and some $4.5 billion in equity value, and a portfolio of about 80 malls or large open-air centers, plus an additional 50 smaller community, power and open-air centers.

Stephen Lebovitz is the son of Charles B. Lebovitz, CBL’s chairman, who served a term as ICSC chairman himself in 1996–’97. Lebovitz the son, ICSC’s 56th chairman, has been active in the organization since the very beginning of his career. Shortly after graduating from Harvard Business School and setting up CBL’s Northeast office, in Boston, he was invited to get involved and become the organization’s state director for Massachusetts, by ICSC Past Chairman Stephen Karp, now chairman and CEO of New England Development. Lebovitz was subsequently named ICSC’s Eastern divisional vice president and has also served as an ICSC state operations chairman, an ICSC trustee and a member of the Executive Committee. In addition, Lebovitz has been an active ICSC faculty member.

“CBL has really grown under Stephen’s leadership, despite some pretty challenging economic times,” said Michael P. Kercheval, ICSC’s president and CEO. “ICSC has similarly benefited from his insights and extraordinary energy. I am excited at the prospect of him leading our organization in the coming year.”

Before Lebovitz joined CBL, he worked summer jobs during his years at Stanford University, at such companies as JMB Realty Corp., Trammel Crow Co., and — between college and Harvard Business School — Goldman Sachs.

Lebovitz, 54, is a trustee of Milton (Mass.) Academy. He is a former director, campaign chairman and committee chairman for the Combined Jewish Philanthropies of Greater Boston and received that organization’s Edwin Sidman Leadership Award in 2014. He was president of the Jewish Family & Children’s Service from 2000 to 2002 and president of Congregation Or Atid, in Wayland, Mass., from 2010 to 2012. He is also a former member of the Trust Board of Boston Children’s Hospital.

At the Meeting of Members held in Las Vegas on Monday, new trustees were also elected to the ICSC Board of Trustees: See full press release here