Robert E. Walkup (November 14, 1936 – March 12, 2021) was an American politician who served as the 40th
mayor of Tucson from 1999 to 2011.
Early life and career
Walkup was born in
Ames, Iowa
Ames () is a city in Story County, Iowa, United States, located approximately north of Des Moines, Iowa, Des Moines in central Iowa. It is the home of Iowa State University (ISU). According to the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, Ames ha ...
, on November 14, 1936. His father was a professor of engineering at
Iowa State University
Iowa State University of Science and Technology (Iowa State University, Iowa State, or ISU) is a Public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Ames, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1858 as the Iowa Agricult ...
. He obtained a
bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree (from Medieval Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six years ...
in
industrial engineering
Industrial engineering (IE) is concerned with the design, improvement and installation of integrated systems of people, materials, information, equipment and energy. It draws upon specialized knowledge and skill in the mathematical, physical, an ...
from Iowa State University, before serving in the
US Army Corps of Engineers
The United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) is the military engineering branch of the United States Army. A direct reporting unit (DRU), it has three primary mission areas: Engineer Regiment, military construction, and civil wor ...
.
Upon his return from military service, he worked in the aerospace industry for 35 years.
He was employed by
Rockwell International
Rockwell International was a major American manufacturing conglomerate (company), conglomerate. It was involved in aircraft, the space industry, defense and commercial electronics, components in the automotive industry, printing presses, avioni ...
,
Fairchild Republic, and
Hughes Aircraft Company
The Hughes Aircraft Company was a major American aerospace and defense contractor founded on February 14, 1934 by Howard Hughes in Glendale, California, as a division of the Hughes Tool Company. The company produced the Hughes H-4 Hercules air ...
.
[ While working at Rockwell International, Fairchild Republic, he oversaw the production of the Fairchild Republic ]A-10 Thunderbolt II
The Fairchild Republic A-10 , also infamously known under the nickname , is a single-seat, twinjet, twin-turbofan, straight wing, straight-wing, Subsonic aircraft, subsonic attack aircraft developed by Fairchild Aircraft, Fairchild Republic ...
. He also served as the chairman of the Tucson Economic Council.[
]
Mayoral career
Walkup was first elected on November 2, 1999, defeating Democratic former City Councilwoman Molly McKasson and local businessman Bob Beaudry. Benefitting from a split in the Democratic vote, he was sworn into office on December 6, 1999, succeeding two-term Tucson mayor George Miller, who retired from office as the city's longest-serving official. He became the first Republican mayor of Tucson since 1983.
During his first term as mayor, Walkup intervened after both the University Medical Center and Tucson Medical Center announced the closure of their trauma centers in 2001. He phoned every hospital in the city and hosted a meeting at his office, where plans were formulated for a new world class trauma center, opened on January 8, 2008.[ He oversaw Tucson's resumption of using ]Colorado River
The Colorado River () is one of the principal rivers (along with the Rio Grande) in the Southwestern United States and in northern Mexico. The river, the List of longest rivers of the United States (by main stem), 5th longest in the United St ...
water in 2001, which was suspended in the 1990s after it corroded residents' pipes. The city corrected this issue by diminishing its salinity and mineral levels. The reintroduction added to the potable supply and decreased reliance on groundwater.[
Walkup was re-elected for a second term November 4, 2003, narrowly defeating Democratic former mayor Tom Volgy. During this tenure, he became the first mayor in his state to sign the U.S. Mayors Climate Protection Agreement and presided over the development of Tucson's ]solar energy
Solar energy is the radiant energy from the Sun's sunlight, light and heat, which can be harnessed using a range of technologies such as solar electricity, solar thermal energy (including solar water heating) and solar architecture. It is a ...
capability.[ Although his proposal of a transportation tax was defeated at the ballot box, this paved the way for a similar tax of half a cent across ]Pima County
Pima County ( ) is a County (United States), county in the south central region of the U.S. state of Arizona, one of 15 List of counties in Arizona, counties in the state. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 1 ...
that was approved by voters in 2006. He introduced fees for waste collection
Waste collection is a part of the process of waste management. It is the transfer of solid waste from the point of use and disposal to the point of treatment or landfill. Waste collection also includes the curbside collection of recyclabl ...
and for development impact, and shifted the library system to the county. He was partly responsible for amalgamating the economic development agencies into a single regional organization in 2005.[ He was re-elected for a third term on November 6, 2007, defeating a ]Green Party
A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as environmentalism and social justice.
Green party platforms typically embrace Social democracy, social democratic economic policies and fo ...
candidate with 72% of the vote after the Democrats opted not to field a candidate.
Walkup announced on February 22, 2011 that he would not seek re-election after his current term ended in December. Democrat Jonathan Rothschild
Jonathan Rothschild (born 1955) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the 41st mayor of Tucson, Arizona from 2011 to 2019. From 2001 to 2011, Rothschild was managing partner at the law firm Mesch Clark Rothschild.
Early life and ed ...
won the election
An election is a formal group decision-making process whereby a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold Public administration, public office.
Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative d ...
and was sworn into office on December 5, 2011.
Personal life
Walkup was married to his second wife,[ Beth LaRouche for over 30 years until his death.][ They met while working at the Children’s Museum Tucson, and had five children.][
Walkup died on the night of March 12, 2021, at his home in midtown Tucson. He was 84, and had ]idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis
Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) synonymous with cryptogenic fibrosing alveolitis is a rare, progressive illness of the respiratory system, characterized by the thickening and stiffening of lung tissue, associated with the formation of scar ...
.
References
External links
Tucson Mayor's official website
Mayor Jonathan Rothschild a/o 2012-09-16.
"Walkup" search of Tucson city website
167 mentions a/o 2012-09-16.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Walkup, Bob
1936 births
2021 deaths
20th-century American engineers
20th-century mayors of places in Arizona
21st-century mayors of places in Arizona
American aerospace engineers
Arizona Republicans
Deaths from pulmonary fibrosis
Iowa State University alumni
Mayors of Tucson, Arizona
Military personnel from Iowa
Politicians from Ames, Iowa
United States Army Corps of Engineers personnel