Sep. 16, 2009 (United Press International) -- Midwest real estate developer Melvin Simon died Wednesday at the age of 82, the company he founded, Simon Property Group (NYSE:SPG PRJ) (NYSE:SPG PRF) (NYSE:SPG PRG) (NYSE:SPG PRI) (NYSE:SPG) , confirmed.

Simon and his brother, Herb, made a fortune developing shopping malls in Indiana after World War II and eventually built a company with 5,000 employees and control of 263 million square feet of retail space.

WISH-TV, Indianapolis, said funeral arrangements were pending.

Simon's crowning achievement was the Circle Centre Mall in downtown Indianapolis, which opened in 1995 after several years of planning and construction.

Simon also owned the Indianapolis Pacers for a time, donated regularly to Democratic candidates and has his name on the cancer research center at Indiana University.