Benny Caiola

Benny Caiola, who started B & L Management, which owns thousands of apartments throughout New York City, passed away last month after a sudden cancer diagnosis. He was 79. Caiola began his career as a plasterer after emigrating from Italy at the age of 17, and ultimately built a portfolio for B & L that today includes nearly three dozen apartment buildings. Caiola was also widely known for owning one of the world’s most extensive collections of Ferraris. He bought his first in 1977, along with more than 100 cars since. The garage at his Pelham Manor home currently holds some 30 exotic cars. Others are housed in various car dealerships and at Caiola’s second home in the Hamptons. Caiola’s properties include 21 Chelsea, the 210-unit rental building at 120 West 21st Street that he built with Jacobs; 312 East 30th Street, a 67-unit Murray Hill rental built in 1986; and more than two dozen small- to mid-size multifamily dwellings in the East 60s, 70s and 80s. Caiola is survived by his wife, Bettina; three sons, Benny, Luigi and Alfred; and a daughter, Rose, all of whom are partners in the family business.