Business leader V.H. "Pooch" Nusbaum Jr. dies

NORFOLK

He was known as "Pooch" to friends, and V.H. Nusbaum Jr. made many of them. Even without the moniker, though, his last name stood out.

It's found on office buildings and shopping centers all over Hampton Roads, though the heart of S.L. Nusbaum Realty Co. began and still beats loudest in Norfolk.

Virginius Harding Nusbaum Jr., the third-generation leader of the company, died of Parkinson's disease Monday at age 83.

He was still in his 20s when he took the helm of the real estate company his grandfather founded in 1906. Its growth under his leadership was astronomical, his brother said Wednesday.

Robert C. Nusbaum, a Norfolk attorney, sees all that his brother had a hand in, from Wards Corner to Lynnhaven and beyond. Sometimes it was the transfer of the property. Sometimes it was the development, he said.

Pooch Nusbaum - his father gave him the nickname - had the confidence of builders to bankers, his brother said.

"When he did a major sale, the buyers were happy and the sellers were happy. I think that was his trademark."

By the time Nusbaum was in his 40s, his company was overseeing thousands of apartments, a half-dozen high-rise buildings, and several shopping centers, according to a newspaper story in 1968.

Harvey L. Lindsay, another Norfolk real estate leader, said he became friends with his competitor when they were on the city's real estate board in the 1960s.

Both were working to grow their companies. And both, Lindsay said, were playing a part in the development of Norfolk's downtown. Lindsay called his friend bright, hardworking and honest - a man short on criticism and long on praise.

They worked on several deals together - and competed on some, too.

"But it was always a good competition, a friendly and good competition," Lindsay said.

Nusbaum carried his enthusiasm for the city over into service on the City Council.

"After World War II, Norfolk went through some very difficult times," Lindsay said. "He had a role and played a part in the revitalization of this city."

In 1968, Nusbaum was appointed to serve the term of a council member who had died. At the time, news accounts show, city leaders sought someone with a record of community involvement.

Nusbaum had been vice chairman of a Citizens Advisory Committee established to improve race relations. He had led efforts to get real estate owners and agents to practice open housing.

An editorial writer at the time described Nusbaum as the committee member "who most often, after the presentation of a problem, asked the question: 'How can we help?' "

Nusbaum, who left the council in 1974, played a part in persuading Walter Chrysler to give his art collection to the city and was active in founding the Norfolk Neptunes professional football team.

Through it all, the Nusbaum company grew. It hopped from one generation of downtown office buildings to another as it expanded. Today it is based in a new 22-story office tower, the Wells Fargo Center.

Pooch Nusbaum was proud of his son's work putting that building together in a difficult economy, his brother said. The son, Alan B. Nusbaum, took over as chairman of the company in 1991.

Today, Miles B. Leon is president of the Nusbaum firm. He called Nusbaum "the original gentleman."

He treated his partners, clients and employees as if they were his best friend, Leon said.

John "Jack" Gibson, who founded First National Bank of Norfolk with Nusbaum and other Norfolk leaders, called him the "dearest friend" he had ever had.

"I wish to hell the rest of the world were like him."

Janie Bryant, (757) 446-2453, janie.bryant@pilotonline.com