Jona Goldrich

Jona Goldrich (a.k.a. Jona Goldreich) (September 11, 1927 – June 26, 2016) was a Polish-born American real estate developer and philanthropist. Born in Lviv, Poland (now Ukraine) in the late 1920s, he emigrated to Israel in the midst of World War II, where he served in the 1948 Arab–Israeli War and worked for a labour union. By the 1950s, he emigrated to the United States, and he became a real estate developer and investor in Los Angeles County. A Holocaust survivor, he supported Jewish causes in Israel and the United States.

Spouse:

Doretta Goldrich

Children:

Melinda Goldrich
Andrea Goldrich

Relatives:

Avram Goldrich (brother)
Barry Cayton (son-in-law)

Early life

Jona Goldrich was born on September 11, 1927 in Lviv, Poland. He received a degree in mechanical engineering from Technion – Israel Institute of Technology.

In 1942, in the midst of World War II, he escaped from the Nazi invaders by trekking across Europe to Israel with his brother, Avram Goldrich. However, another brother and both his parents were murdered by the Nazis in concentration camps. Goldrich was thus a Holocaust survivor.

Goldrich served in the 1948 Arab–Israeli War. He also worked for the labour union Histadrut in Haifa. He then immigrated to the United States, travelling to Los Angeles, California by bus in 1952.

Career

Goldrich started his career as a window screen installer in Los Angeles. In 1954, he founded Active Cleaning & Maintenance, a company focusing on cleaning up construction sites. By 1957, he developed an apartment building in North Hollywood. In 1978, his company "was fined $5,000 [...] for filing false payroll forms with the Department of Housing and Urban Development." It went bankrupt a few years later.

Goldrich co-founded a real estate development and management company known as Goldrich & Kest Industries with Sol B. Kest, a Holocaust survivor. In 1964, they developed Eldorado, a residential building located at 4425 Ventura Canyon Avenue in Sherman Oaks. They also developed Sutton Terrance, another residential building located at 6251 Coldwater Canyon Avenue in North Hollywood. Another apartment complex they developed, Sepulveda Village in Mission Hills, comprised 18 buildings, with the reception located at 10023 Sepulveda Boulevard. A year later, in 1965, they developed Northridge Village Townhouses, an apartment complex in Northridge, California. Additionally, they owned hotels in Tenderloin, San Francisco.

With Mel Grau, Goldrich and Kest developed a new marina in Sunset Beach, California in 1969.

With Sheldon Appel, Goldrich and Kest redeveloped the former General Motors plant in South Gate in the 1980s. Meanwhile, they also turned land near the Long Beach Airport into offices and retail spaces.

With Nathan Shapell, Goldrich and Kest developed some buildings in the Bunker Hill area of Downtown Los Angeles, including Promenade Towers, Grand Promenade and the California Plaza. Moreover, they owned Kings Villages, a low-income housing project in Pasadena which they later sold to Thomas Pottmeyer. Additionally, they owned Green Hotel, a retirement home also located in Pasadena, and a government-subsidized retirement home in Santa Monica.

Goldrich was a member of the California Housing Council, the Community Redevelopment Agencies Association, and the Governmental Affairs Council of the Building Industry Association.

Philanthropy

Goldrich served as the Chairman of the Western Region of the American Friends of Tel Aviv University (TAU) and on the Board of Governors of TAU. He endowed the Goldreich Family Institute for Yiddish Language, Literature, and Culture, the Goldreich Chair in International Banking, the Goldreich Family Theater Archives, the Goldreich Multipurpose Sports Center, the Goldreich Family Health and Fitness Center, and the Sender Goldreich Fitness Room at TAU. He was the recipient of an Honorary Doctorate from the university in 2005. He was recognized as one of four "philanthropic visionaries" alongside Guilford Glazer, Izak Parviz Nazarian and Max Webb by the American Friends of Tel Aviv University at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel in 2013.

Goldrich supported the Los Angeles Museum of the Holocaust. He was a member of the Society of Fellows of American Jewish University in Bel Air.

Goldrich was the 1985 recipient of the "Good Scout" Award from the Los Angeles County Boy Scouts. He made campaign contributions to Tom Bradley when the latter was the Mayor of Los Angeles. He served on the Executive Committee of the Los Angeles Police Crime Prevention Advisory Council.

Personal life

Goldrich was married to Doretta Goldrich. They resided in Beverly Hills, California. They had two daughters, Melinda and Andrea. Their daughter Andrea is married to Barry Cayton, the owner of Audio Command Systems.

Goldrich died on June 26, 2016.