WHEREAS, James J. "Jim" McDonough, beloved husband of Jacqualine (nee Moynihan) for 57 years; loving father of Maureen (Dan) Curley of Western Springs, IL and Jim (Jennifer) McDonough of San Francisco, CA; proud grandfather of Marykate, jack and Tm Curley and Quinn Mcdonough; son of the late Maurice and the late Mary McDonough (nee Burke); brother of the late Therese (Bob) Dillon, and the late Marge (Mitch) Koziana; fond uncle to many nieces and nephews, has gone on to his eternal reward; and
WHEREAS, the Chicago City Council has been informed of his passing by Alderman Edward M. Burke; and
WHEREAS, Jim was a builder and pMlanthropist whose leadership in both the public and private sectors played a transformative role in almost every major public works project in the Chicago area over the past half-century; and
WHEREAS, a lifelong Chicagoan and graduate of the city's St. Ignatius High School, Jim earned his degree in business from John Carroll University, where he was a member of the school's ROTC and subsequently served in the United States Army as a First Lieutenant and an Area Transportation Officer in Korea; and
WHEREAS, Jim spent most of his life actively involved in Chicago's civic and political landscape, he took tremendous pride in the fact that his uncle introduced a fellow Chicagoan, Richard J. Daley, to local politics; and
WHEREAS, after returning from military service in 1957, Jim took the first of many positions with the City of Chicago, joining the Department of Streets and Sanitation in a supervisory role and eventually advancing to the positions of Deputy Commissioner and Commissioner; Jim was also the Chief Administrator of the Chicago Skyway Toll Bridge and later served as Chairman of both the Chicago Transit Authority and the American Public Transit Association; and
WHEREAS, in 1974 Jim became President and CEO of Murphy Engineering, which later became McDonough Associates, Inc., a full-service engineering and architectural consulting firm which he led for almost four decades; and
WHEREAS, Jim and his company spearheaded over 1,800 projects in the city and throughout the State of Illinois; He was involved in upgrading the city's water system, the modernization of both O'Hare and Midway airports, the reconstruction of Wacker Drive and McCormick Place, and the development of Millennium Park; and
WHEREAS, McDonough's civic and community involvement was enthusiastic and diverse; he served as a member and chairman of several boards, including the Mercy Foundation, the Chicago Convention and Tourism Bureau, Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Chicago, the Big Shoulders Fund, the United Way/Crusade of Mercy, and the J.L. Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University; now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED, that we, the Mayor and the members of the Chicago City Council assembled this Eighteenth day of September 2019, do hereby express our sorrow and extend deepest condolences to the family of James J. "Jim" McDonough on his passing, August 11th, 2019.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to Jim J. McDonough's family in remembrance.
Alderman Edward M. Burke Alderman, 14th Ward
o.