Red Hook developer Gregory O’Connell dies at 83

Gregory C. O’Connell Jr., a progressive developer who was responsible for much of the revitalization of Brooklyn’s Red Hook neighborhood, died on August 2 at his home in Geneseo, New York. He was 83.  The cause of death was pancreatic cancer, his son Gregory T. O’Connell told The New York Times.  Born in Queens in 1942, O’Connell was the son of a police officer and a teacher. He made his first real estate venture when he was a student at the State University of New York (SUNY) Geneseo, investing $22,000 along with two friends to buy and renovate a building […]This article originally appeared on The Real Deal. Click here to read the full story.