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Joan W. Barr (née Worthy; later Barr-Smith; November 22, 1939 – March 21, 2015) was an American politician and the first woman elected as mayor of the city of Evanston, Illinois.[1] Barr Smith was elected in 1985 and sworn into her position on April 22, 1985, by Cook County Circuit Judge Michael Toomin.[2] Prior to her election to the role of mayor, she served eight years as an alderman to the city's Second Ward.[3]
Joan Barr | |
|---|---|
| 18th Mayor of Evanston, Illinois | |
| In office 1985–1993 | |
| Preceded by | James C. Lytle |
| Succeeded by | Lorraine H. Morton |
| Personal details | |
| Born | November 22, 1939 |
| Died | March 21, 2015 |
| Political party | Democratic M.B.A. Northwestern University |
| Education | B.A. Syracuse University |
Joan was the only child of James (a professor at Kellogg School of Management) and Mildred Louise Worthy (née Neritz).[4] The family lived in the Rogers Park neighborhood of Chicago while Barr was young.[5] The family relocated to the North Shore area when Barr was four years old.[3]
Barr attended New Trier High School in Winnetka, Illinois.[6] She continued her education at Syracuse University, where she earned a bachelor's degree. She subsequently earned her MBA from Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University,[3] becoming part of the class of 1996.[3][7]
She moved to Evanston in 1962, before serving two years as president of the Dewey Community Conference. In 1977, she was elected alderman from Evanston's Second Ward.[5] She served out her aldermanic term and was reelected for a second one in 1981.[5]
In 1985, she made a successful bid for the position of mayor against two individuals: the retiring alderman Donald Borah,[2] and Rev. John Frederick Norwood,[2][8] then pastor of the Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church in Evanston. Her election marked the first time in Evanston's history that a woman held the role of mayor.[2][9] Her inaugural address noted burdensome residential real estate taxes as a priority to address.[2] The amount of tax-exempt properties in the city was seen by the community as contributing to what was then one of the highest real estate taxes in the Chicago area.[2] She also noted economic development,[10] improving the relationship between the city and Northwestern University;[11] street gangs and homelessness were priority areas for her tenure.[2][3]
Mayoral tenure
While mayor, Barr remained active in numerous civic organizations. She served as President of the Northwest Municipal Conference and was a member of the Executive Committee of the U.S. Conference of Mayors. She served that organization as chair of the Woman Mayors group.[5]
During her tenure, she became known for fostering improved town–gown relations, partnering with Northwestern University on building a $400 million dollar research park in Evanston, and vetoing a proposed tuition tax on students at the University.[9][12] Stemming from her work in establishing the research park, Barr was called "a consensus builder" by Evanston Inventure (a city-wide development corporation) executive director, Ronald Kysiak.[13] According to the local newspaper, the Chicago Tribune, moderator and consensus builder also describe how Barr saw her own role. She was also viewed by others as non-confrontational in her style of government, focused on forging connections and non-partisanship community building.[7]
Barr was elected for a second mayoral term in 1989 and stepped down from the position in 1992.[14] Following her time as mayor, she worked for the Illinois Department of Revenue and the Illinois Department of Employment Security. She became a deacon in the Episcopal Church in 2008.[9][7]
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