Mission Viejo Realty Group’s Chief to Retire

Philip J. Reilly will retire Dec. 31 as president of Mission Viejo Realty Group after nearly 20 years at the helm of the huge development firm he helped start in 1963, company officials announced Tuesday.

Mission Viejo Co. President James Gilleran will succeed Reilly as chief executive of the realty group, which oversees the company’s development activities both in Orange County and at its 22,000-acre Highland Ranch project near Denver.

Reilly’s retirement was announced in a tersely written statement from officials of Philip Morris Cos., which purchased the Mission Viejo Co. in 1972.

Reilly, 57, refused to comment on his retirement beyond the written statement.

Reilly, who moved to Denver four years ago, will continue to serve on the Mission Viejo Realty Group’s board of directors and plans to advise Philip Morris on real estate matters.

Mission Viejo Co. was formed in 1963 to develop the 10,000-acre planned community of Mission Viejo, which was carved out of the huge Rancho Mission Viejo just north of San Juan Capistrano along the San Diego Freeway.

Philip Morris, based in New York, bought a major interest in the company in 1970, and in 1972 the Mission Viejo Co. became a wholly owned operating company of the huge conglomerate.

That led the way for expansion that included the 22,000-acre Highland Ranch project and the 6,600-acre Aliso Viejo development just across the San Diego Freeway from Mission Viejo.