Regional Plan Association to Honor Howard Milstein

NEW YORK, April 5, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Regional Plan Association will honor New York State Thruway Authority Chairman Howard Milstein with the organization's 2013 Lifetime Leadership Award for his extraordinary contributions to New York and the region.

Howard P. Milstein, who has served as chairman of the New York State Thruway Authority since 2011, has been a major force in the development of New York City, the region and beyond. He is a leading figure in local, national and global affairs, marshaling business, government, philanthropic and family resources to drive a breadth of initiatives across health, civic, educational and security sectors.

At the Thruway Authority, under Gov. Andrew Cuomo's leadership, Mr. Milstein orchestrated the contract for design and construction of a new Tappan Zee Bridge -- the largest procurement in New York State history. He brought to bear a lifetime of private-sector experience in construction and large-scale development, initiating and leading a design-build process that saved New York nearly $2 billion from the original cost estimates.

Mr. Milstein's success at the Thruway Authority builds on his role as a business and philanthropic leader. Mr. Milstein's work, leading this generation of the Milstein family, has changed the skyline of New York, building or buying, along with his father, Paul, and their partners, more than 50,000 apartments, 20 million square feet of office space and 10,000 hotel rooms. Milstein family development has anchored and revitalized entire communities, as can be seen at Lincoln Center, Times Square and Battery Park City in Manhattan, Starrett City in Brooklyn and the New Jersey waterfront. Through his work, Mr. Milstein has repeatedly demonstrated a deep understanding of the role of responsible, sustainable development in improving the quality of life for all residents of the New York-New Jersey-Connecticut metropolitan region.

Mr. Milstein and his family have also played leadership roles and made significant philanthropic contributions to institutions including the New York Public Library, Columbia and Cornell universities, Weill Cornell Medical Center, Rockefeller University, the National September 11th Memorial and Museum, Lincoln Center and the American Museum of Natural History.

"For 90 years RPA has championed smart investments in infrastructure that support a growing and prosperous region. Chairman Milstein, with his extraordinary leadership of the NYS Thruway Authority, has taken an endeavor that was stalled for years and delivered the most significant project in a generation. The new plan will add an extra lane to the bridge, and save nearly $2 billion," said RPA Chairman Elliot Sander.

"Under Governor Cuomo's leadership, as Chairman of the Thruway Authority, Mr. Milstein used his extensive private-sector experience in construction and development to cut through red tape and complete permitting, design and selection of a construction team for the new Tappan Zee Bridge in less than one year -- saving taxpayers and commuters billions in extra costs and years of avoided congestion," said RPA President Robert D. Yaro.

Mr. Milstein said: "I am deeply honored to be receiving this award from RPA, a group I deeply respect and admire. Based upon Governor Cuomo's vision, our historic procurement of a contract for building the new Tappan Zee Bridge will serve as a model for public infrastructure development for decades to come. I congratulate everyone involved - including Bob Yaro and the RPA - for their role in a collaborative process that featured dramatic breakthroughs in speed, transparency, cost savings and environmental sensitivity. The design-build process for the new Tappan Zee will bring jobs and opportunity, foster additional development, and help sustain the competitiveness of our entire region consistent with Governor Cuomo's mandate."

The Board of Directors of Regional Plan Association established RPA's Lifetime Leadership Award in 2009 to honor individuals who have played a unique role in shaping the New York region's development and have made significant contributions to its continued success as a world hub of commerce, culture and quality of life.

Regional Plan Association has been proud to bestow this annual award to former Lt. Governor Richard Ravitch in 2009; RPA's honorary Chairman Peter W. Herman, Esq., in 2010; Tonio Burgos in 2011; and in 2012 to RPA's Vice-Chairman, former Governor James J. Florio.

RPA's 23rd annual Assembly, "A Resilient Region," will explore urgent challenges facing the New York-New Jersey-Connecticut region, including climate change, declining economic opportunity and fiscal uncertainty. View the full program for the Assembly at www.rpa.org/assembly.

Regional Plan Association is America's oldest and most distinguished independent urban research and advocacy organization. RPA works to improve the economic competitiveness, infrastructure, sustainability and quality of life of the New York-New Jersey-Connecticut metropolitan region. A cornerstone of our work is the development of long-range plans and policies to guide the growth of the region. Through our America 2050 program, RPA also provides leadership in the Northeast and across the U.S. on a broad range of transportation and economic-development issues. RPA enjoys broad support from the business, philanthropic, civic and planning communities. For more information, please visit www.rpa.org

SOURCE Regional Plan Association