Daniel Duggan, 89; Aided Expansion of Coldwell Banker

Daniel L. Duggan, an early partner in Coldwell Banker who helped the San Francisco-based real estate firm expand into other states and was a former president of the Los Angeles Realty Board, has died. He was 89.

Duggan died last Saturday of heart failure at his home in Los Angeles, said his son Dennis.

Duggan headed the Los Angeles Realty Board in 1957, after it had become the largest organization of its kind in the world with more than 1,900 members. Growth was burgeoning in residential and commercial real estate in Southern California, and Duggan was frequently asked to advise consumer groups about getting the most out of their investment property.

As the metropolis stretched toward becoming a megalopolis, he was called upon to reassure property owners in downtown Los Angeles that suburbanization would not destroy their businesses.

“The fact is that we are a growing, dynamic community with developments both in the downtown section and in the outlying communities,” he said in a speech to building managers in the mid-1950s. “This is to be expected. Otherwise, the residential periphery would suffer from the lack of branch banks and branch stores.”

To avoid deterioration of the downtown area, he advised, leaders must improve parking and transportation -- advice still echoed half a century later. Duggan also was one of the first to advocate “location, location, location” in selecting real estate that would be sure to increase in value. Born in Edmonton, Canada, Duggan, who lost an eye in a childhood accident, moved to Los Angeles with his family when he was 9. He worked his way through UCLA and USC law school.

Duggan was recruited when Coldwell Banker expanded to L.A. in the 1940s. By 1952, he was one of two new owner-partners added to its earlier group of 10.

Duggan helped expand the firm throughout the state, then to Phoenix, Houston, Chicago, New York City and other locations. He helped to convert the firm from a partnership to a corporation. The firm went public in the 1960s.

Duggan retired in 1973 and turned his attention to civic and UCLA alumni organizations and real estate investment with his family. A planner of Pauley Pavilion at UCLA, he was a chamber of commerce board member and also served on boards of the Boy Scouts and Hathaway Home for Children.

He is survived by his wife of 60 years, Jean Druffel Duggan; sons Dennis and Richard; a daughter, Joan; and five grandchildren.

The family has asked that memorial contributions be sent to Los Angeles Childrens Hospital, 4650 Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90027; or to St. John’s Health Center, 1328 22nd St., Santa Monica, CA 90404.