The Lewis Cenker Award is the highest honor given by the HBA to an individual who has made a lifelong contribution to the advancement of the homebuilding industry in Atlanta. The award is named after Lewis Cenker, who was president of the National Association of Home Builders in 1974 and is the only Atlantan to have held this prestigious office. The 2010 Lewis Cenker Award recipient is Barry Burney.
Barry Burney, owner and president of Burney Homes, Inc. and Burney Realty Company, has earned a reputation as one of Atlanta’s premier custom home builders and remodeling contractors. During his more than 40-year career, Barry has built and renovated more than 800 homes in the metro Atlanta area.
The son of home builder E.B. Burney, Barry was destined to become a home builder. As a toddler, Barry was a frequent visitor at his father’s construction sites, and by age 8, he was spending holidays and summer vacations working with his father’s foundation, framing, and brick crews, literally learning from the ground up. Barry worked part time for his father’s company as a teenager, eager to learn more about the entire building process.
Following graduation and certification in the mechanical trades, Barry put his experience to work as lead building superintendent for E.B. Burney Construction Company. By age 30, Barry was vice president of the company, as well as vice president of North Metro Land Development, specializing in land acquisition, development and sales. In 1992, Barry formed Burney Properties to focus on residential remodeling and renovation projects, and in 1998, he founded Burney Homes.
As a child, Barry attended his first HBA meeting in 1958 with his father, and from then on, he was a regular at HBA meetings. Following in his father’s footsteps, Barry continued the family tradition of industry advocacy and community service through his involvement in the HBA. In 1988, he served as secretary of the DeKalb Chapter, and in 1991, he was elected as president of the DeKalb Chapter. He co-chaired the construction committee to build a group home for mentally challenged young women in DeKalb County and later chaired a committee to renovate the property. In 1993, Burney was honored as the DeKalb Chapter Builder of the Year.
Barry has served on the HBA Board of Directors for 19 years and was elected as a Life member of the Board in 2002. He has held many leadership positions within the HBA, including chairman of both the Education and Ethics committees. A Life Spike, Barry has participated on the Membership Committee, Government Affairs Council, Nominations Committee, and the Homeowner Handbook Task Force.
Barry and his father together were honored to be selected as the builder for the HBA’s first Housing Center, and Barry served as co-chair of the Building Committee for the HBA’s current Housing Center. Burney Homes is also a Housing Center sponsor.
A charter member of the Certified Professional Home Builder program (CPHB), Barry participated on the task force that created the program, and he was a member of the original CPHB Board of Governors. Barry served as treasurer and vice president of The Housing Institute’s Board of Directors, and he also chaired the CPHB Certification and Dispute Resolution committees.
Barry has served the industry at the state level since 1990 as a member of the Home Builders Association of Georgia’s Board of Directors. A Life member of the National Association of Home Builders’ Board of Directors, Barry’s national involvement includes co-chairing the International Builders’ Show Tour Committee in 1989 and 1990.
Clearly devoted to his profession and industry, Barry is best described as an authentic, honest and sincere individual with a zest for life. An avid sportsman, he enjoys hunting, fishing and an occasional round of golf. Barry and his wife, Connie, live in Johns Creek with Molly, their boxer puppy.