R. Carlos Carballada dies at the age of 90

R. Carlos Carballada, who served Rochester in a variety of roles, has died at the age of 90.

Carballada was the city's acting mayor in 2011, and was tapped to be then-Mayor Lovely Warren's deputy mayor in 2016.

He also served as the city's neighborhood and business development commissioner. And he was a member of the New York state Board of Regents from 1978 to 1999, leading the board as chancellor from 1992 to 1995.

But his career was in banking. Carballada served as director of M&T Bank and M&T Corp. and was also the CEO/president of First National Bank and Central Trust Co. — and the “Oh yes you can!” pitch man on Central Trust’s television ads.

"He was a gentleman," former Mayor Thomas Richards said of his former colleague and friend. "The way he conducted himself and the way he dealt with others ... that had a huge impact on his success in the things that he did in the city. I'm sure in his life before then, as well.”

The two would end up playing key roles during a unique period in Rochester history.

"He would blame me for talking him into coming to work for the city," said Richards, who — like Carballada — came out of retirement in 2006, to join then-Mayor Robert Duffy's administration.

"The attitude I think that we both wound up taking was, well, the worst that could happen is we'd quit or get kicked out, and that'd be the end of it," Richards said. "We had the advantage of not being dependent on (the job). So I think that turned out to be a good thing. ... Some people, the job winds up owning them."

Richards started as corporation counsel, before shifting to deputy mayor as Duffy prepared to leave for Albany, having been elected lieutenant governor.

Rochester then had a stretch where it had three mayors in as many weeks: Duffy, then Richards as acting mayor before he resigned to run for mayor, leading to Carballada, who at that point assumed the role of acting mayor.

"He was a logical person to fill that role at that time," Richards said, "given his — as I would kid him — his maturity."

Richards ultimately was elected a few months later, and Carballada stayed on as the city's chief economic development official.

Carballada had been one of Duffy's key appointments. He brought a calming tone, sincerity, intelligence, attention to customer service, and respect. Duffy once remarked that when Carballada called, people picked up the phone, adding: "When he knocks, doors open."

"When he arrived at the city, he was a legendary business person, but he was the most humble leader that you could imagine," said Bret Garwood, who was the city's director of business and housing development at the time. "He was there to help everyone do their jobs better."

Added Richards: "He was someone whose bona fides weren't questioned."

In a statement, Mayor Malik Evans called Carballada "a champion for the city of Rochester, and a good friend."

"Mr. Carballada was a true public servant who dedicated his life to the betterment of our community," Evans said in a statement, noting his leadership was behind such projects as College Town, Brooks Landing, the Port of Rochester Marina and the revitalization of Midtown along with other key downtown developments.

From the archive: The non-retiring Carlos Carballada

Carballada had the unique ability to navigate his way through multiple city administrations relatively immune to the politics.

Carballada was named the Hispanic Business Person of the Year in 2010. He also was on the boards of several local nonprofit agencies. And he and his wife, Virginia, established an endowed scholarship fund for city of Rochester students.

"He was a good man," Richards said. "He really was a good man, you know, and that really was more important than all of this other stuff. You're going to have a long list of stuff that he accomplished, and all of it's impressive. But in the end, he was a good man."

A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 10 a.m. Aug. 16 at the Christ the King Chapel of Canisius University in Buffalo.