NEW YORK CITY-Sherman Cohen, who founded Cohen Brothers Realty & Construction Corp.with his two brothers in 1959, died Jan. 22 at New York-Presbyterian Hospital here.  He was 91.

Born in Norfolk, VA, Cohen worked in his family's haberdashery stores before relocating to New York City in the late 1940s with his older brothers, Mortimer and Edward. The three Cohen brothers were the youngest Oldsmobile dealers in America after World War II before forming Cohen Brothers Realty & Construction Corp., which built, developed and managed many high-rise residential buildings on Manhattan's East Side.

Beginning in the late 1960s, the firm also started developing class A office towers in Manhattan. Under the leadership of Sherman's son, Charles, the company's national portfolio has expanded to 12 million square feet in New York, Los Angeles, Houston and Southeast Florida.    

Sherman Cohen and his wife Gloria supported many prominent charitable causes. Among them were: the Sherman and Gloria H. Cohen Pavilion at Greenwich Hospital; the Sherman and Gloria H. Cohen Career Center at the College of William and Mary; Lenox Hill Hospital; the State of Israel; Israel Bonds; United Jewish Appeal; the Albert Einstein College of Medicine; and the Sherman and Gloria H. Cohen Dialysis Center at the Rogosin Institute of New York Presbyterian Hospital, among others.

A resident of Manhattan and Palm Beach, FL, Cohen is survived by his wife; son Charles; daughter Robin; and six grandchildren.