Pioneer Companies spread like a chestnut tree, The

CNY Business Journal (1996+), Oct 20, 2006

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow may not have had The Pioneer Companies in mind when he penned "The Village Blacksmith," but the Falcone family has spread its business branches like a chestnut tree from Arizona to Connecticut. Michael J. Falcone, now serving as the chairman of the board, was the original corporate smithy. Instead of a hammer and anvil, he forged his real-estate empire by nurturing ideas, emphasizing creativity, and following conservative investment principles.

* History: Falcone, a Syracuse native, began his real-estate career in Syracuse in the early 1960s by focusing on shopping centers and apartment buildings. In 1969, he co-founded the Pyramid Companies - a shopping-mall developer - with Robert Congel. Falcone left in 1975 to establish The Pioneer Group and to concentrate on office development. In 1998, Falcone and his sons - Michael P. and Mark - created The Pioneer Companies, which together with its affiliates, is a vertically integrated, real-estate operating company. Pioneer builds, owns, manages, leases, and operates properties nationwide.

* Growth: From its humble beginnings in the 1960s, the Falcone family enterprise has been responsible for the construction of nearly 20 million square feet of real-estate projects with a value exceeding $1.5 billion. In Syracuse, Pioneer's properties include landmarks like its six-story downtown office headquarters on South Clinton Street, The Hilton Garden Inn in East Syracuse, Annesgrove in Camillus; and Liberty Commons in Manlius. The company also developed and subsequently sold area landmarks like Pioneer Park, the Unity Mutual complex in Franklin Square, and the office tower at 300 South State Street. In Rochester, Pioneer is best known for its development with Eastman Kodak of the 300-acre, mixed-used Canal Ponds Business Park. The Park consists of 2 million square feet of industrial and office segments and 500,000 square feet of retail, hotel, and restaurant facilities.

* Diversification: The Falcone family has been careful to diversify as the market changes. From retail and apartment buildings, it has spread into the office market, assisted-living facilities, mixed-use projects, student housing, hotels, and industrial projects. The Pioneer Companies has also diversified geographically, investing across the country.

* The future: In 1998, The Pioneer Companies formed a division called Omni & Co., whose purpose was to explore new investment areas outside the traditional real-estate market. To date, these have included investments in a regional cinema company, boutique hotels, and campus housing.

* Giving back to the community: In June 2002, Thomas J. Costello, then auxiliary bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Syracuse, thanked God for Michael J. and Noreen Falcone. He called them a gift to Syracuse because of their commitment to family, faith, and community. The Falcone family has endowed a gallery at the Everson Museum, the library at Le Moyne College, the Hospice building, and the Center for Entrepreneurship at Syracuse University, to name just a few examples of giving back to the community.