Larry Wartur greatly enjoyed his work as an engineer, making his mark with projects like miles and miles of guardrails on the Belt Parkway, a huge waterfront bulkhead in Yonkers, the reconstruction of Staten Island’s Richmond Parkway, and his favorite, the design and reconfiguration of Central Avenue in Yonkers.
Mr. Wartur, who died at home in Springs on June 27, deeply loved his family, including Susan Wartur, his wife of nearly 63 years, and his daughter, Lisa Rachel Wartur. He had advanced Parkinson’s disease for 12 years, and was in hospice care for the last 13 months. His family was by his side when he died, at the age of 88.
“He retained his devotion to his family and his enthusiasm for food and movies, for friends and music and shows, for the Mets and East End vistas, for parties, and for reaching beyond his illness to keep touch with his life,” Susan Wartur said. “He awed all in his orbit with his strength and courage.”
She recalled meeting a “warm, tweedy, pipe-smoking, adorable guy, fresh from two years as a first lieutenant with the Army Corps of Engineers.” His reputation, she said, was that of an excellent, astute, ethical engineer and supervisor who could get the job, no matter how big, done on time.
Charles Lawrence Wartur was born in New York City on Jan. 24, 1934, to M. Harry and Bertha Wartur. He graduated from Erasmus Hall High School in Brooklyn, and went on to study at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. There was no liberal arts program there back then, so he would take literature classes at other colleges in the summers. He joined the Corps of Engineers in 1956 and stayed for about three years.
Mutual friends introduced him to his future wife, and they were married in August 1959. While living full time in Queens, they bought a boat, docked it here, and allowed their daughter to name it. They lived seasonally aboard the “Love Boat,” as she called it, for 10 years. They built their house in Springs 35 years ago.
Mr. Wartur also worked as a consultant for East Hampton Town’s Planning Board and supervised projects for East Hampton Village, including work on Toilsome Lane, Railroad Avenue, Gingerbread Lane, Race Lane, Cooper Avenue, North Main Street, and the Reutershan parking lot.
He and his daughter, Lisa, who now lives in Lakewood Township, N.J., had a remarkable family resemblance. He would tell ghost stories at Halloween, she said, and host warm and welcoming gatherings for her and her friends. He was also a good friend to his niece and nephew, Ellen Wolfson of Boston and Roger Wolfson of Los Angeles, and his son-in-law, Steven Lance.
“A man ahead of his time,” Ms. Wartur said, her husband was a skilled ice skater, tennis player, potter, boater, and cook. He enjoyed trains and trolleys, coached Pee Wee hockey, and enjoyed traveling. He didn’t love opera at first, but eventually became an expert, thanks to his aspiring-soprano wife. He was chairman of the board of the Shore Line Trolley Museum in East Haven, Conn.
Mr. Wartur was also a baseball fan, and although he never forgave the Dodgers for leaving Brooklyn, he did catch Mets fever later in life — even cheering for a Mets grand slam after a steak dinner on a recent evening.
A graveside service was held on June 30 at Temple Adas Israel’s Chevra Kodetia Cemetery. The family has suggested memorial donations to the Trolley Museum (17 River St., East Haven, Conn. 06512); Temple Adas Israel Hebrew School (P.O. Box 1378, Sag Harbor 11963); East End Hospice (P.O. Box 1048, Westhampton Beach 11978 or eeh.org), or the Stony Brook-Southampton Center for Parkinson’s Disease (240 Meeting House Lane, Southampton 11968).
This obituary has been updated since it was first published to correct information about Mr. Wartur's work in East Hampton.
