“Father of Battery Park City,” Urstadt served
as BPCA Chairman from 1968-1979 & Board Member from 1996-2010
“It is
with sadness and a profound sense of gratitude that we mark the passing of
Charles Urstadt, whose leadership helped drive Battery Park City’s creation. As
BPCA’s first Chairman, Charlie was a visionary and tireless advocate for what
this new, 92-acre neighborhood could be, ably guiding development through the
many starts and stops of its early years. He returned in the mid-1990s and
served on the Board for the next decade plus as Battery Park City completed its
construction. A man of unrelentingly big ideas who never lost his eye for
detail, his wisdom, drive, and candor helped bookend the building of one
America’s great planned communities.
“In his
seminal work on the creation of Battery Park City, Charlie wrote: ‘People who
participate in the making of history are acutely aware that they have no
control over how the history of their time will be written.’ As we share our
condolences with his loving family and friends, we also assure them that
Charlie’s contributions to the making of modern downtown were – and will always
be – indispensable.”
Back to Blog Homepage
