Excerpts from Chicago Tribune obituary, 6 February 2015
Suhail al Chalabi, urban planner who helped city, suburbs, dies at 74
Urban planner and consultant Suhail al Chalabi was a master at analyzing the economic impact of developments, from high-profile proposals like those for a south suburban airport and the Illiana Expressway to more mundane and less visible infrastructure initiatives.
Mr. al Chalabi, 74, died of a rare form of leukemia Wednesday, Feb. 4, in the Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center at Northwestern University in Chicago, according to his wife, Margery. He was a resident of Chicago's Lincoln Park neighborhood.
Mr. al Chalabi was born and grew up in Baghdad in a large and prominent family. By scoring well on national examinations, he earned acceptance and a scholarship to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, graduating in 1962 with a bachelor's degree in architecture.
He went from there to Athens, Greece, to study urban planning and regional economics at the Athens Technological Institute, receiving a master's in 1965, according to his wife who was also a student there. The couple married in 1965.
The couple soon came to Chicago, where Mr. al Chalabi joined the urban planning department of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill. From there he moved to what was then the Northeastern Illinois Planning Commission, now part of the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning.
As research director at CMAP, he supervised socioeconomic, demographic and land use studies and developed a model for forecasting the social and economic impact of major infrastructure projects.
He then went to work for the Chicago Area Transportation Study, also now part of CMAP, where he worked on long-range regional transportation issues. In 1980, he was recruited to work in the administration of Chicago Mayor Jane Byrne, where he eventually became deputy commissioner of development and planning and commissioner of economic development, according to his wife. She also worked in the Byrne administration, on a comprehensive plan for the city called "Chicago 1992."
At the end of the Byrne administration, Mr. al Chalabi and his wife formed their own consulting firm, The al Chalabi Group Ltd.
Margery al Chalabi said her husband loved the Chicago region and always viewed its potential though the eyes of knowledge and creativity.
Mr. al Chalabi is also survived by sisters Dr. Ayser Hamoudi and Lina agha Jaffar and brother Dr. Jamil al Chalabi.
Suhail al Chalabi, urban planner who helped city, suburbs, dies at 74
Urban planner and consultant Suhail al Chalabi was a master at analyzing the economic impact of developments, from high-profile proposals like those for a south suburban airport and the Illiana Expressway to more mundane and less visible infrastructure initiatives.
Mr. al Chalabi, 74, died of a rare form of leukemia Wednesday, Feb. 4, in the Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center at Northwestern University in Chicago, according to his wife, Margery. He was a resident of Chicago's Lincoln Park neighborhood.
Mr. al Chalabi was born and grew up in Baghdad in a large and prominent family. By scoring well on national examinations, he earned acceptance and a scholarship to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, graduating in 1962 with a bachelor's degree in architecture.
He went from there to Athens, Greece, to study urban planning and regional economics at the Athens Technological Institute, receiving a master's in 1965, according to his wife who was also a student there. The couple married in 1965.
The couple soon came to Chicago, where Mr. al Chalabi joined the urban planning department of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill. From there he moved to what was then the Northeastern Illinois Planning Commission, now part of the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning.
As research director at CMAP, he supervised socioeconomic, demographic and land use studies and developed a model for forecasting the social and economic impact of major infrastructure projects.
He then went to work for the Chicago Area Transportation Study, also now part of CMAP, where he worked on long-range regional transportation issues. In 1980, he was recruited to work in the administration of Chicago Mayor Jane Byrne, where he eventually became deputy commissioner of development and planning and commissioner of economic development, according to his wife. She also worked in the Byrne administration, on a comprehensive plan for the city called "Chicago 1992."
At the end of the Byrne administration, Mr. al Chalabi and his wife formed their own consulting firm, The al Chalabi Group Ltd.
Margery al Chalabi said her husband loved the Chicago region and always viewed its potential though the eyes of knowledge and creativity.
Mr. al Chalabi is also survived by sisters Dr. Ayser Hamoudi and Lina agha Jaffar and brother Dr. Jamil al Chalabi.
Excerpts from Chicago Tribune obituary, 6 February 2015
Suhail al Chalabi, urban planner who helped city, suburbs, dies at 74
Urban planner and consultant Suhail al Chalabi was a master at analyzing the economic impact of developments, from high-profile proposals like those for a south suburban airport and the Illiana Expressway to more mundane and less visible infrastructure initiatives.
Mr. al Chalabi, 74, died of a rare form of leukemia Wednesday, Feb. 4, in the Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center at Northwestern University in Chicago, according to his wife, Margery. He was a resident of Chicago's Lincoln Park neighborhood.
Mr. al Chalabi was born and grew up in Baghdad in a large and prominent family. By scoring well on national examinations, he earned acceptance and a scholarship to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, graduating in 1962 with a bachelor's degree in architecture.
He went from there to Athens, Greece, to study urban planning and regional economics at the Athens Technological Institute, receiving a master's in 1965, according to his wife who was also a student there. The couple married in 1965.
The couple soon came to Chicago, where Mr. al Chalabi joined the urban planning department of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill. From there he moved to what was then the Northeastern Illinois Planning Commission, now part of the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning.
As research director at CMAP, he supervised socioeconomic, demographic and land use studies and developed a model for forecasting the social and economic impact of major infrastructure projects.
He then went to work for the Chicago Area Transportation Study, also now part of CMAP, where he worked on long-range regional transportation issues. In 1980, he was recruited to work in the administration of Chicago Mayor Jane Byrne, where he eventually became deputy commissioner of development and planning and commissioner of economic development, according to his wife. She also worked in the Byrne administration, on a comprehensive plan for the city called "Chicago 1992."
At the end of the Byrne administration, Mr. al Chalabi and his wife formed their own consulting firm, The al Chalabi Group Ltd.
Margery al Chalabi said her husband loved the Chicago region and always viewed its potential though the eyes of knowledge and creativity.
Mr. al Chalabi is also survived by sisters Dr. Ayser Hamoudi and Lina agha Jaffar and brother Dr. Jamil al Chalabi.
Suhail al Chalabi, urban planner who helped city, suburbs, dies at 74
Urban planner and consultant Suhail al Chalabi was a master at analyzing the economic impact of developments, from high-profile proposals like those for a south suburban airport and the Illiana Expressway to more mundane and less visible infrastructure initiatives.
Mr. al Chalabi, 74, died of a rare form of leukemia Wednesday, Feb. 4, in the Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center at Northwestern University in Chicago, according to his wife, Margery. He was a resident of Chicago's Lincoln Park neighborhood.
Mr. al Chalabi was born and grew up in Baghdad in a large and prominent family. By scoring well on national examinations, he earned acceptance and a scholarship to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, graduating in 1962 with a bachelor's degree in architecture.
He went from there to Athens, Greece, to study urban planning and regional economics at the Athens Technological Institute, receiving a master's in 1965, according to his wife who was also a student there. The couple married in 1965.
The couple soon came to Chicago, where Mr. al Chalabi joined the urban planning department of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill. From there he moved to what was then the Northeastern Illinois Planning Commission, now part of the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning.
As research director at CMAP, he supervised socioeconomic, demographic and land use studies and developed a model for forecasting the social and economic impact of major infrastructure projects.
He then went to work for the Chicago Area Transportation Study, also now part of CMAP, where he worked on long-range regional transportation issues. In 1980, he was recruited to work in the administration of Chicago Mayor Jane Byrne, where he eventually became deputy commissioner of development and planning and commissioner of economic development, according to his wife. She also worked in the Byrne administration, on a comprehensive plan for the city called "Chicago 1992."
At the end of the Byrne administration, Mr. al Chalabi and his wife formed their own consulting firm, The al Chalabi Group Ltd.
Margery al Chalabi said her husband loved the Chicago region and always viewed its potential though the eyes of knowledge and creativity.
Mr. al Chalabi is also survived by sisters Dr. Ayser Hamoudi and Lina agha Jaffar and brother Dr. Jamil al Chalabi.
Gravesite Details
A niche for his wife, Margery L. P. al-Chalabi, born 20 October 1938, still living in 2022, is next to Suhail's niche in this Chapel Columbarium.
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