September 30, 2021
Iconic real estate developer Rusty Lyon Jr. wanted to help future generations realize their educational and professional dreams. One of the ways he did this was through what he knew best – real estate.
Lyon was a real estate visionary who began his career at his father’s brokerage firm, Russ Lyon Realty, after serving as an Air Force pilot in the Korean War. He founded Westcor Companies in 1964 and has developed more than 12 Valley Malls in his career. Lyon specializes in hospitality development and is credited with designing and building the Boulders Resort and Spa and others.
The primary residence of La Cienega Ranch, 77.25 acre property donated to the ASU Foundation that was recently sold.
He ran Westcor for nearly 40 years before selling it to mall developer Macerich in 2002. He then retired to spend more time at his 77.25-acre La Cienega ranch at the foot of the Mogollon Rim near Payson, Arizona. The ranch was a place for Lyon, his wife Rosie and their children and grandchildren to relax and escape the hustle and bustle of the big city.
Rosie Lyon died in 2008, and when her husband’s health deteriorated in 2016, the family donated La Cienega Ranch to the ASU Foundation for A New American University to help Arizona State University. Rusty Lyon died a few months later.
The foundation’s real estate subsidiary, University Realty, recently sold the ranch, which comprised nearly 15,000 square feet of living space between seven houses, a barn with horse stables, helipad, pond, and group ramada, for $ 4.5 million.
Real estate gifts are increasing for universities because of the many benefits they offer to alumni and other donors. According to survey data from the Council for Advancement and Support of Education, U.S. public and private colleges and universities received more than 3,630 real estate gifts valued at $ 928.3 million from donors from fiscal years 2016 through 2020.
“Real estate gifts can provide donors with income, tax benefits and an opportunity to make a difference,” said Brad Grannis, portfolio and asset manager at University Realty. “There are several ways you can donate property, depending on when you want to transfer the property and whether you have money owed for it.”
Over the years, Grannis helped the ASU Foundation receive several real estate gifts that were used to fund scholarships and enrichment opportunities at ASU.
For the Lyons, it made most sense to donate the ranch to ASU.
“It all depends on each individual’s wealth, but it can certainly have tax benefits,” said Scott Lyon, one of the Lyons’ sons and founder of Westroc Hospitality. “Back then the market was pretty weak and it’s such a tight market for those who would buy such a property. If they (my parents) sold them, they would have to pay capital gains taxes. If they kept it. ”In the family, we would have to pay inheritance tax on the value of the ranch and not be able to sell it in time before the taxes are due.
Lyons support the ASU
Lonnie Ostrom, former president of the ASU Foundation, has fond memories of the Lyons and their ranch. He and his wife Martha became friends with the Lyons and regularly visited their ranch, where they played bridge and enjoyed the amenities of the property.
“They were just really humble, down to earth people,” Ostrom said. “You were very wealthy and you would never know.”
Ostrom recalls taking development officials from ASU’s Teachers College – now Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College – to lunch at Charleston’s restaurant, and he invited Rosie Lyon to join them.
“She always brought coupons,” said Ostrom. “I would say, ‘We’ll pay for it,’ and Rosie said, ‘I know, but that makes it a little less.’ She had a great sense of humor and they loved ASU. “
The Lyons have been longtime supporters of ASU attached to Athletics, WP Carey School of Business, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College, Arizona PBS, Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts, and other entities and donated programs.
Rosie Lyon holds a degree in elementary education from Arizona State College, the forerunner of ASU. She was inducted into the ASU College of Education Hall of Fame in 2004, received the Alumni Service Award in 2006, and became a lifelong member of the ASU Alumni Association. She was a member of the Executive Committee of the ASU Campaign for Leadership from 1995 to 2001 and was a member of the Adopt A Devil Program.
Rusty Lyon served on the boards of the ASU Foundation and University Research Park and was active for the university for a while, Ostrom said.
source https://www.bisayanews.com/2021/10/01/real-estate-developers-donated-ranch-aids-universitys-mission/
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