Orange County Real Estate Developer Donald Koll Dies at 78

Newport Beach resident and well-known commercial developer Donald Koll died this week after suffering a heart attack, according to City News Service.

Koll, 78, died Tuesday night at UCLA Medical Center. Koll designed the office core of Orange County and built the equivalent space of 30 Empire State Buildings. His Koll Co. and its affiliated firms built more than 90 million square feet of commercial space in Orange County, the rest of the nation, and around the Pacific Rim, the company said on its web page.

Koll founded the company in 1962, and originally specialized in buiilding custom homes. His firm also built the exact replica of Independence Hall at Knott's Berry Farm. Building warehouses and office buildings near the then-small Orange County Airport led Koll to start building massive centers, such as the Koll Center Newport. The firm also built the Hughes Aircraft Corporate Headquarters above Ballona Creek, now the headquarters of Loyola Marymount University, and the Carslbad Research Center, the largest researchand development plant in San Diego County. Funeral arrangements have not been released.

--City News Service