He was among a handful of men who turned Ross into the powerhouse it is today. But he did even more, as he helped build an organizations of affiliates of small- and mid-sized firms that allowed them to better compete with the national firms, such as CB Richard Ellis and Grubb & Ellis. The organization he helped found today is called ONCOR International and is headquartered in Chicago. Ross is still an ONCORmember.

"He was someone I always admired and respected," Myron "Micky" Miller, who in the early 1980s developed three million sf of class A office space in the heart of downtown, and gave the leasing assignments to his long-time buddy, Bob Hackstaff. "Bob had an incredible amount of integrity," Miller adds. ""If he gave you his word, you could take it to the bank. And Bob could always see all sides. He could see his side, but he could also see your side." Miller, a couple years younger than Hackstaff, attended junior high school and high school with him.

Miller, whose firm has developed and purchased billions of dollars of first-class real estate since 1969, did his first deal with Hackstaff in 1963 when Miller was still practicing law. He was part of a group that developed the Avondale shopping center on West Colfax Avenue, near Federal Boulevard. It may have been the first urban renewal project ever in Denver, Miller says.

"Bob was a pivotal force in one of Denver's first urban renewal projects and was recognized by Mayor Tom Currigan upon completion of the Avondale Center," Box says.

Hackstaff joined Ross in 1951, after graduating from Dartmouth College in New Hampshire. He began working in the mortgage division and was soon traveling the country working with developers seeking construction and permanent financing from a large group of lenders the company represented, Box notes. Later he moved on to investment and development projects in the Denver suburbs with several office buildings in Cherry Creek and apartment building development on South Colorado Boulevard.

In 1970, Bob took the reins of the Ross Co. as its third president and CEO succeeding his father, Cyrus. "Bob moved quickly to make the company a competitive force with a narrower concentration on commercial real estate," Box says. He did away with the mortgage, appraisal and insurance businesses to focus energy on the brokerage and property management units.

"During the mid-70s because of his national experience as a mortgagelender, Bob could see the need for true national representation of clients," Box notes. "It truly was Bob Hackstaff who moved the Ross Co. into the 20th century and created the basic structure of the business we enjoy today."

Hackstaff retired form Ross as president and CEO in 1988, whichis when Box became only the fourth president of Ross. "We will misshis wise counsel," Box says "He truly loved this company and was vitally interested in its activities."

Instant Insights /

Robert P. Hackstaff Passes Away

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