William J. Levitt, Suburban-Housing Pioneer

MANHASSET, N.Y. - William J. Levitt, who pioneered the notion of affordable suburban houses with the development of Levittown on Long Island, died yesterday of kidney failure.

Levitt, 86, died at North Shore University Hospital, hospital spokeswoman Laura Green said. He had recently been in poor health and had been living at the hospital's Extended Care and Rehabilitation Center in Manhasset.

The developer, who was named one of the 100 most important Americans of the 20th century by Life magazine, fell on hard times in the late 1970s and 1980s and was accused by New York state officials of looting millions of dollars from a charitable foundation.

Levitt built over 17,000 houses in the years after World War II, mostly for returning veterans. He sold his development companies to his sons in 1968 and later lost millions in a series of failed business ventures, including projects in Iran, Nigeria and Venezuela.