Longtime Uptown Community Board Member Dies From Coronavirus

MORNINGSIDE HEIGHTS, MANHATTAN — A longtime member of the Morningside Heights and West Harlem community board has died from the new coronavirus, according to the board chair.

Walter South, who was on Community Board 9 for nearly 40 years, passed away Sunday at Mount Sinai Morningside hospital from a COVID-19 infection, Chair Barry Weinberg said in an email to the community.

South, who sat on the Housing, Zoning and Land Use Committee, was a "permanent fixture" of Community Board 9 known for his "passion and principled positions," Weinberg said.

"I don't think I had ever imagined the board without his presence," the chair wrote. "...From reducing greenhouse gases by advancing passive housing as a building technique, to advocating for a right for all people to live in and enjoy the city, to historic preservation and the importance of community-drive planning, Walter was an essential source of institutional memory and expert knowledge for many issues at our Board."

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The board — which extends over Morningside Heights, Manhattanville and Hamilton Heights — has asked its community members to send in memories about Walter at the request of his wife, Patricia South.

Those who have memories to share can send them to info@cb9m.org with the subject line "Walter South Memories."

Weinberg shared his own memories about Walter, who he said always ordered pizza for committee meetings out of his own pocket and brought individual gifts for each board member during the holiday season from Mondel Chocolates.

"Many of you will also remember what a kind, unassuming, and personable guy Walter was in those moments outside of our formal floor debates and votes," Weinberg wrote. "...Walter was the one who would introduce himself at a meeting as 'just a guy who's a member of the committee,' saying nothing about his many degrees in urban planning, his long and storied career as a developer and manager of affordable housing, or his current pursuit of his PhD."

Walter's wife, Patricia, thanked the hospital staff at Mount Sinai for their "heroic efforts" while Walter was in the hospital, Weinberg said. He promised to let the community know about any upcoming memorials or services for Walter.

Latest city figures show there were 38,087 coronavirus cases that had tested positive in the city as of Monday evening. Of them, 914 had died. Both the mayor and Governor Andrew Cuomo have said they expect those numbers to worsen over the next couple of weeks.

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