BY YANNIC RACK
William “Bill” Bernstein, a former city official who played a central role in shaping the country’s largest business improvement district for nearly two decades, died last week at the age of 64. The cause of death wasn’t disclosed.
As chief operating officer and chief financial officer of the Downtown Alliance — as well as its acting president on three occasions — Bernstein helped guide the BID through some of the most turbulent times in Lower Manhattan’s history, including September 11th, 2001, the recession of 2008 and, most recently, Hurricane Sandy.
A longtime resident of Flatbush, Brooklyn, Bernstein started working for the group in 1997 after a career in public service that included management and policy positions at the city’s Department of Housing Preservation and the New York City Loft Board, and more than ten years as the First Deputy Executive Director of the Department of City Planning.
Born in 1951 and educated at city public schools, including Stuyvesant High School, Bernstein graduated from City College of New York and New York University School of Business.
He is survived by his son Adam, who also works for the Alliance, and his sister Dava Jo Zavodnick. He lost his wife Donna in 2013.
“For Bill Bernstein, the Alliance was so much more than a job,” said Alliance President Jessica Lappin in a statement announcing Bernstein’s passing. “It was a personal and professional mission, a cause to which he devoted himself for nearly two decades. His wisdom and generosity helped build this organization and helped shape Lower Manhattan, many times behind the scenes. His impact was truly immeasurable, and we will miss him dearly.”
Following the attacks of 9/11, Bernstein helped devise a program to support more than 575 small businesses with a combination of grants, wage subsidies and low-interest loans. In the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy, he helped create another program that provided more than $1.5 million in grants to 105 small businesses in the neighborhood.
But according to the Alliance, Bernstein was involved in almost every aspect of the BID’s operations, and often referred to himself as “chief cook and bottle washer.”
