49. James & Robert Coughlan

These two brothers, James and Robert Coughlan, have created a groundbreaking real estate company that has put a survey’s stake through the heart of Long Island’s defeatist attitude, typified by the pessimistic adage: “It’ll never happen.” Working with an array of commercial clients since 1986, with offices in Manhattan, Washington, D.C., and East Setauket, they’ve built mid-rise office buildings, hotels, medical facilities, industrial parks, and, perhaps most important in a region like ours where affordable housing is an all-too-rare luxury, multi-family residences. With their expertise and perseverance, the Coughlans have made TRITEC’s New Village at Patchogue a dream come true, and made Mayor Paul Pontieri’s vision for a revitalized downtown a reality. Could it become the coolest destination in Suffolk County west of the Hamptons? Why not?