John E. Zuccotti ’59

John died Nov. 19, 2015. Born in Manhattan, he attended La Salle Military Academy. As a freshman at Princeton, John won the Spencer Trask Debating Prize. A history major, John was a member of WPRB, Orange Key, the Young Democrats Club, and Whig-Clio. He ate at Tiger Inn.

After graduating from Princeton, John fulfilled his military commitment before attending Yale Law School (he graduated in 1963) while also working as an assistant to Sen. Jacob Javits. In 1966, he became an assistant to the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development. He returned to New York City in 1970 to establish the law firm of Tufo, Johnston, and Zuccotti. That same year he was appointed to the New York City planning committee by Mayor John Lindsay; he served as chairman under Mayor Abe Beame. In 1975, he became first deputy mayor and played a major role in saving New York City from financial collapse.

He was chairman of the New York Performing Arts Center, the Downtown-Lower Manhattan Association, and the Real Estate Board of New York, and a member of the National September 11 Memorial & Museum. A half-acre park in lower Manhattan, headquarters of Occupy Wall Street protesters in 2011, now bears his name.

John is survived by his wife, Susan; three children; and eight grandchildren. We have sent condolences.