WPCNR Milestones. Special From Geoff Thompson. March 31, 2002 – Harry A. Halpern, patriarch of one of Westchester’s most prominent real estate and development families and a pioneer in the construction of low and moderate income housing as well as office space in Westchester County, died today at his home in Palm Beach, FL. He was 91.
As the senior member of the Halpern family beginning in the 1930s, and working in tandem with his brother-in-law, Fred Stillman, Harry Halpern expanded a residential apartment construction company founded by his father, Morris, into one of the largest residential and commercial development companies in the region.
Halpern’s real estate enterprises include Halpern-Stillman Development Co., H&S Management Co., that manages more than 6,000 units of low and moderate income housing in Westchester County, and Halpern Real Estate Development Co., which owns Westchester development parcels that could yield more than two million square feet of commercial office space.
In the 1960s, Halpern and his son, Joel, partnered with baseball legend Jackie Robinson to become one of the leading developers of low and moderate income housing in New York State under the Urban Development Corp. (UDC) housing program. Following Robinson’s death in the early 1970s, his widow, Rachel, became the Halpern’s partner and was involved in roughly half of the thousands of units of UDC housing they built.
In the 1970s, working with Joel, who died in a boating accident in 1981, the senior Halpern was a pioneer in the development of office space in Westchester County. Together they developed and managed a portfolio of office space that at its peak totaled more than three million square feet of office space, primarily in Tarrytown and White Plains.
In 1994, the company’s office portfolio was sold to Reckson Realty Associates, a publicly traded real estate investment trust, which is now one of the largest office space owners in Westchester.
Jon Halpern, who eventually succeeded his father, Joel, as head of the company, said that his grandfather remained a strong presence within the family businesses virtually until the end of his life. “Harry was always behind the scenes. My father got a great deal of publicity, and in later years, I did, as well. But, frankly, without Harry, there really wouldn’t have been anything to talk about. He built the company and financed its growth.”
Jon Halpern added that his grandfather twice provided the financial and emotional underpinning that allowed the family business to expand. “Harry had the confidence and the interest in my father to give him the backing that enabled us to enter the office market in a big way. When his only son died so unexpectedly, my grandfather stepped into the office aspect of the business to a far greater degree than he had ever imagined he would need to. With his son-in-law, my uncle, Warren Lesser, he kept the company together. When I finished college and entered the business, he once again provided the backing and support that made it possible for me to move the company forward. He showed a great deal of courage through some very difficult times.”
Harry Halpern was born Jan.10, 1912, in New York City to Morris and Yetta Halpern. Upon graduation from the New York University school of law, he joined his father in the real estate development business. From the 1920s to the 1940s, the company built thousands of apartments in 30 to 40 buildings in the Bronx.
In the 1950s and ‘60s, Harry Halpern joined with his brother-in-law, Fred Stillman, and together they moved north building dozens of six- to eight-story apartment buildings mostly in Yonkers, particularly along the Bronx River Parkway corridor.
When his son, Joel, entered the business, the company expanded its role housing construction, with particular focus on the low and moderate income sector.
Then, when the suburban office market in Westchester was in its infancy, Joel, with the backing of his father, created a separate company that pursued the office market. The company, along with Schulman Realty and the Robert Martin Company, quickly emerged as one of the big three office developers in the Interestate 287 (Cross Westchester Expressway) corridor. From the early 1970s through the sale to Reckson in 1994, Halpern Enterprises dominated office development on the western end of the highway corridor.
“Harry was a pioneer in affordable housing construction, and then in the development of the office market in Westchester, which to this day is the backbone of Westchester’s economy,” said Jon Halpern. “Beyond that, however, he was dedicated to his family. For six decades and for four generations of our families, he has been the leader. He had two interests, family and business, and his legacy lives on.”
In addition to his grandson Jon Halpern of Purchase, NY, and son-in-law, Warren Lesser of Harrison, NY, Harry Halpern is survived by his wife of 66 years, Sylvia Stillman Halpern of Palm Beach; his daughter, Linda Lesser of Harrison; grandchildren, Julie Cook of Alabama, Jason Halpern of Purchase, Mark Lesser and Beth Lesser of New York City; and 10 great grandchildren.
Harry Halpern and his wife lived in New Rochelle for 40 years before they began dividing their time between Palm Beach and Westchester over the last decade. In New Rochelle they were very active members of the Beth El Synagogue-Center, where the religious school is named after them. He also generously and quietly supported Hadassa and the UJA.
A funeral service will be held at the Beth El Synagogue this Wednesday at 10:30 a.m.
