2022 Spring Issue - 31

Remembering
Wayne S. Doran
Wayne S. Doran passed away in
early February at age 87 in suburban
Detroit. He was a ULI Life
Trustee, Foundation governor, and
member of the Global Exchange
Council.
Doran's business acumen
helped develop landmarks such as
Detroit's Renaissance Center, the
Fairlane Town Center community,
and the TPC Michigan golf course
development in Dearborn, in addition
to West Coast developments
such as Irvine Ranch and the conversion
of a Ford assembly plant
into the Great Mall of the Bay Area
outside San Francisco. His initiative
is often credited with bringing a ULI
district council to Michigan in 1997.
" Wayne was always there for his
friends and built Ford Land into one
of the most successful corporate
real estate enterprises in history, "
says Eric Larson, president and
chief executive officer of the Larson
Realty Group and chief executive
officer of the Downtown Detroit
Partnership. " The truest testament
to the depth of his impact was the
reverence and presence he maintained
even after his retirement.
" Many of us were blessed by his
intellect and openness to our own
personal growth, " says Larson, who
is also chairman of ULI's Robert C.
Larson Leadership Initiative and ULI
Michigan Governance Committee.
A Phoenix native, Doran graduated
from Arizona State University
and went to work for hometown
John F. Long Homes. In 1963, he
joined Del E. Webb Corp.'s community
development division and
was a vice president in 1969 when
Ford Motor Co. chairman Henry Ford
II handpicked him as the first chair
of Ford Land.
With Doran working behind the
scenes, Henry Ford II orchestrated
the landmark deal to erect Detroit's
Renaissance Center along the city's
riverfront, its name symbolizing
the efforts to rebuild and rebound
from the city's devastating 1967
civil unrest.
" Doran helped cobble together
the complex partnership of 51
investors needed to make the
RenCen a reality and oversaw planning
and construction, " Detroit
Free Press staff writer John Gallagher
wrote in a 2006 article
titled " The Man Who Changed the
Face of Detroit. " " The building on
the downtown riverfront instantly
became the city's postcard image. "
Robert Taubman, chair and chief
Wayne S. Doran
executive officer of the Taubman
Centers, which owns 27 shopping
centers, calls Doran " extremely
confident and capable. " Taubman's
father, the late Alfred Taubman,
worked with Doran on creating the
Fair Lane Town Center in the 1970s
on 2,400 acres (970 ha) of soybean
fields once cultivated by auto pioneer
Henry Ford in Dearborn, just
outside Detroit.
Doran " did not have to be the
center of the room, but he was able
to accomplish a great deal, " says
Taubman. " He really was a quiet
giant in this community. "
Henry Ford II so valued Doran's
skills that he made Doran a Ford
Motor Co. vice president, " which
was very unusual with Wayne being
a non-car guy, " says Taubman. " He
had tremendous resonance and
clout within Ford. "
Ford Motor Co.'s backing was
essential in making development
ideas a reality, Doran acknowledged.
" Mr.
Doran played a significant
role in creating developments that
had lasting impact across communities
around the world, " Ford Land
said in a statement. " He leaves a
lasting legacy, and we are forever
grateful for his leadership and contributions
to Ford Land. "
Mark LoPatin, president of real
estate broker/developer LoPatin &
Co., says, " the reason ULI Michigan
is in existence is because of Wayne.
He formed a committee which met
in his office, and he planned the
inaugural meeting on June 26, 1997,
and made the opening remarks "
for the regional gathering. LoPatin
also credits Doran's fundraising
prowess for sparking the chapter's
growth from a few members to
more than 400.
Doran was keen on molding
talent and hired Ronald Lynn not
long after the onetime English
teacher acquired an MBA.
" Wayne Doran was one of the
most gracious people that I have
ever met, " wrote Lynn, who had a
30-year career at Ford Land. " He
had a ready smile, a quick wit, and
made everyone feel comfortable.
Without Wayne Doran there would
not have been a Ford Motor Land
Development Company or a Renaissance
Center. "
With a $1 million gift in 1997,
Doran established the Doran Community
Scholars Program at Arizona
State University to benefit firstgeneration
college students who
graduated from the Phoenix Union
High School District. More than
200 ASU students have received
scholarships since, according to the
university.
" Wayne Doran's life speaks to
the power of the American dream
and the transformative power of
education, " ASU president Michael
M. Crow said in a prepared statement.
" His personal experiences as
a first-generation college student,
Fortune 500 executive, and community
leader fueled his family's
education advocacy and decades
of generosity in support of his alma
mater and the Doran Community
Scholars. Wayne's friendship, compassion,
and steadfast dedication
to supporting student success will
be greatly missed. "
Doran is survived by his wife,
Maureen, and three children,
Roselle Brown, Susan Reisner (Joel),
Randy Doran (Lisa); and three
grandchildren. He was predeceased
by his daughter Rhonda Doran
and his grandson Wayne A. Doran.
Services were held February 17 in
Dearborn.
PATRICIA MONTEMURRI is a freelance writer
based in Detroit.
SPRING 2022
URBAN LAND
31
HOWE-PETERSON FUNERAL HOME
2022 Spring Issue

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