Rechler hires former Vornado controller as finance director

Plainview-based Rechler Equity Partners said Friday it has hired Gerard DelBene, the former controller for Vornado Realty Trust, as its director of finance.

DelBene worked for four years at Vornado, a publicly traded real estate investment trust and one of the largest owners of commercial space in the U.S.

At Rechler, which is one of the largest owners of commercial real estate space on Long Island, DelBene will oversee accounting and budgeting.

Gregg Rechler, a managing partner at Rechler, said DelBene's hiring would aid the company in a time of "substantial growth" as its embarks on a billion dollar development pipeline. Earlier this week, Rechler broke ground on the Hamptons Business District industrial park project in Westhampton Beach -- a new development that will add 440,000 square feet of commercial space, including office buildings, medical space, a hotel and restaurants, in the shadow of Francis S. Gabreski Airport.