ENGINEER TO HELP RUN NATION'S
SECOND LARGEST CITY*

Chicagoans sat up and took notice recently when Mayor Daley announced that the newly-created post of deputy mayor had been filled by the appointment of John G. Duba, a graduate engineer and former instructor at Northwestern University, Illinois Institute of Technology, and University of Missouri.

Although Duba's appointment came as a surprise since he has no political background, the assignment was acclaimed by all Chicago newspapers and civic bodies.

Chester R. Earle, Editor of Power Engineering, discussed the new job with Duba and Mayor Daley in City Hall. What, Earle asked Daley, was the reason for selecting an engineer to fill this No. 2 spot in Chicago's city government?

"The city," said Mayor Daley, "is now carrying on the most far-reach-

Page 111 / Illinois Municipal Review / May 1958

ing public works and physical improvements programs in its history. These programs involve nearly every department and activity of local government. It just makes sense to pick an engineer with Duba's wide experience in these fields to help all the city department heads."

"As the No. 2 Administrator for the city," Daley continued, "Mr. Duba will supervise departmental operations, set up reporting procedures, and coordinate activities of city agencies."

Duba is a registered professional engineer in Illinois, and has had practical experience in transportation, city planning, highway engineering, water supply and sewerage, rivers and harbors, engineering economics, and contract negotiation. He has also served as municipal engineering and plan consultant for various municipalities, consulting firms, and industrial organizations.

In congratulating the Mayor on the appointment of Duba, Editor Earle pointed out that many municipalities will be watching the results of this step forward in city government. Engineers have served their communities in the past, remarked Earle, but few have been deliberately selected to fill such an important office in a large city.

There is considerable significance in this development for engineers in general. It begins to appear that the public at large is becoming aware of the importance of the engineer, his way of thinking, and the value of his training. There has been, in the past, too little awareness of the fact that the same qualities of mind and training which the public accepts as valuable in the lawyer or the physician, are attributes of men schooled in the engineering sciences.

Application of logic, ability to reason to a conclusion from a given set of facts, the faculty of organized analysis—all these are the mental stock in trade of the engineer. In the broader sense, the development of these abilities has been the purpose of his education and training—he is not trained for the purpose of memorizing formulas and steam table data.

It is rather obvious to us that such men are good, practical choices for office in government as planners and administrators. The time has now come for engineers themselves to realize their own potentialities for-public service.

Page 112 / Illinois Municipal Review / May 1958