NEW YORK CITY-The Howard Hughes Corp., formally spun off from General Growth Properties two weeks ago, has named David R. Weinreb as CEO and Grant Herlitz as president. Both men have been working for the company on a contract basis since August 2010.

In a statement, board chairman Willaim Ackman says Weinreb’s hire was based on his “proven track record” and his performance on an interim basis. “David assembled an exceptional team of real estate professionals who quickly evaluated our assets and prepared the company to emerge as an independent entity,” Ackman says. He adds that Weinberg and Herlitz comprise “an entrepreneurial leadership team that is tailor made for our needs. Bringing them on board gives us the benefit of their knowledge of our portfolio and allows the company to focus on maximizing the value of its assets for the benefit of our shareholders.”

Both Weinreb and Herlitz come to Howard Hughes from Dallas-based investment firm TPMC Realty Corp. Weinreb specialized in acquiring and repositioning underperforming real estate assets during his 17 years as TPMC’s CEO, while Herlitz has served as CFO and more recently as president during a decade-long tenure.

Created from a subset of 34 former GGP properties, Howard Hughes assets include master planned communities, operating properties and development opportunities. Its operating properties, primarily retail, include the South Street Seaport in New York City along with partial ownership in the Woodlands in Houston; Columbia Town Center in Columbia, MD; and Ward Centers in Honolulu.