Len Hill, a partner for 16 1/2 years in Linear City Development, an urban-centric real estate group, died June 7. He was 68.
“Len’s commitment to the city of Los Angeles and the desire to influence our modern history in a positive way allowed a legacy that would last for a long time,” Yuval Bar-Zemer, a friend and partner at Linear City Development, wrote in an email. “[The] company tackled some of the most interesting and rewarding projects of urban renewal in downtown Los Angeles and afforded me the rare opportunity of
seeing the transformation of a derelict neighborhood into a flourishing living environment.”
Los Angeles-based Linear City Development, established in 2001, focuses on developing high-density, mixed-use projects in the central city area.
Hill was born Oct. 11, 1947, at Cedars of Lebanon Hospital in Los Angeles, according to the firm’s website. A 1965 graduate of University High School, he received his bachelor’s degree from Yale University and a master’s from Stanford.
The website says Hill began his professional career as a writer for television, eventually working as a network executive at NBC and ABC before starting an independent production company, Leonard Hill Films (LHF), in 1980. LHF produced more than 50 television movies and three series with a combined production budget exceeding $300 million.
Hill was the founder and chair of Allied Communications Inc., a television distribution company that was sold in 1994, the website says. He also was a Cornerstone Founder and past board member of the Los Angeles Conservancy.
Services were held June 9 at Hillside.
Hill is survived by his wife, Dr. Patricia Gordon, and brothers Andy Hill (Janice) and Rick Hill (Marna).
Donations can be made to J Street (jstreet.org) or Violence Intervention Program, 2010 Zonal Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90089.
More news and opinions than at a Shabbat dinner, right in your inbox.