Little Neck-Douglaston Parade The Douglas S. MacKay Community Service Award

Bernard Haber, PE has had two outstanding simultaneous careers, his 48 year professional career and his 35 year civic career. In both he has been honored as one of the outstanding engineers in the New York metropolitan area and one of the most involved and knowledgeable citizen in New York City affairs.

Bernard Haber is a CCNY Civil Engineering graduate of the class of 1951. Until his retirement in 2001 he was the Managing Partner in the 18 year old firm of Hardesty & Hanover, LLP, Consulting Engineers, NYC, the oldest and one of the largest bridge design firms in the country. He started with the firm in 1953 after his discharge as a Lieutenant from the U.S. Air Force.
Mr. Haber specialized in the design, inspection and rehabilitation of bridges, highways and transit systems. In 1961 he became an Associate of the firm and in 1972 he was invited into the partnership becoming a Senior Partner in 1981 and Managing Partner in 1995.

Under his direction his firm designed, inspected, rehabilitated or reconstructed thousands of bridges throughout the US and especially in the New York Metropolitan area. A few N.Y.C. bridge design, rehabilitation and reconstruction projects under his responsibility were as follows: The Cross Bronx Expressway, Bruckner/Cross Bronx Exp./Hutchinson River Pkw. Interchange, the Whitestone/Van Wyck Exp./Grand Central Pkw. Interchange, the Third Ave., Willis Ave., Greenpoint Ave. Movable Bridges, and the rehabilitation of the Whitestone, Throgs Neck, Verrazano and George Washington Bridges.

He served as Chairman of the American Consulting Engineering Council's [ACEC] National Transportation Committee and was a Director and Vice President of NY Association of Consulting Engineers. He is a past President and a current Director of the Planning & Design Division of the American Road and Transportation Builders Association. He is a Fellow and life
member of the American Society of Civil Engineers, and the National Society of Professional Engineers and is a licensed professional engineer in many States. Mr. Haber retired as a Lieutenant Colonel from the U.S. Air force Reserves after 23 years of service.

Mr. Haber has published more than 40 professional papers on engineering and civic issues and helped author the book for the long range plan for New York City, "New York Ascendant" while he was a member of the ³Mayors Commission on the Year 2000", 1984 to 1988. He has lectured extensively at most local engineering schools and at public forums on bridges, infrastructure rehabilitation, zoning and community involvement and "Why Bridges Fail".

His second career, Community Involvement, is as important as his professional career was, having carried on both simultaneously. In the 1960s, Mr. Haber became an active participant in New York City affairs. He was appointed to the newly established Community Board [1969] in his district of northeast Queens, elected as the first Vice Chair and became its Chair in 1972 when the chair, Claire Shulman moved to Borough Hall to eventually become the Queens Borough President. Mr. Haber served as the elected Chair of the Board [CB 11], involved in every aspect of the life of his district in northeast Queens for more than 30 years, retiring in 2002. He remains on the Board chairing the transportation committee. During that time he also served on many other City boards and commissions notably the "Mayors Commission on the Year 2000² [1984-88) and the NYC Industrial Development Agency, [1986 -] where he continues to serve as a director of the agency. After his retirement as Community Board Chair, he continues to serve as the Chair of the Queens County Traffic Safety Board, Co-Chair of the Queens County Zoning Task Force, and a member of the NYC Procurement Policy Advisory Board. He is also the Vice Chairperson of the New York State Northeastern Queens Nature & Historical Preservation Commission [NYSNEQC].

As Chairman of Community Board 11 [1972 -2002], he was responsible fordeveloping the plans for the integrity and welfare of Bayside, Douglaston and Little Neck [population 120,000]. This included recommending approval of capital construction, variances, zoning changes, park development, transit, sewers, and other public works for the community, preparing reports, holding public hearings, conferring with federal, state and local public officials, initiating the NYC expense and capital budget for the community board district, monitoring the delivery of services, responding to complaints and supervision of the Board staff. [3]. The Board held monthly meetings. In addition he developed a functional committee system which met regularly to deal with transportation, environment, health, parks, zoning, community facilities, budget, housing and economic development issues in the community.

Locally he is a life member of the Bayside Historical Society, a Director of the Douglaston Civic Association and the Udalls¹ Cove Preservation Committee. In May of 2002 he was elected President of the Douglas Manor Association, a 600 home residential area. In 2003, he was elected to the Board of Directors of St. Mary's Hospital for Children, Queens

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