Patrick Cusick

Patrick J. Cusick, Jr. (September 2, 1919 – February 26, 2018) was an American civil engineer and city planner who served as Executive Director of the Pittsburgh Regional Planning Association, General Manager of the Litchfield Park Land and Development Company, and President of the Greater Hartford Community Development Corporation.

Not to be confused with Patrick Cusack.

Patrick Cusick
Pittsburgh Regional Planning Association Executive Director
In office 1957–1964
Preceded by	Park Martin
Succeeded by	William Froehlich
Saugus, Massachusetts Temporary Town Manager
In office February 1, 1950 – March 31, 1950
Preceded by	James Shurtleff
Succeeded by	Carl A. Chapman (Temporary)
Personal details
Born	(1919-09-02)September 2, 1919 Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Died	February 26, 2018(2018-02-26) (aged 98) Phoenix, Arizona
Spouse(s)	Virginia Johnston Cusick
Alma mater	University of Pittsburgh Harvard University
Occupation	Civil Engineer City Planner

Early life

A native of Pittsburgh, Cusick attended the University of Pittsburgh, where he was president of the student-faculty association and played on the hockey team.[1][2][3] After graduation, he worked for Turner Construction.[1] During World War II he served as a lieutenant in the United States Navy's Civil Engineer Corps.[4] In 1949 he earned a master's degree in civil planning from Harvard University.[5] On July 9, 1949 he married Virginia Johnston.[6]

Saugus, Massachusetts

Cusick's first civil engineering position was in Saugus, Massachusetts, where he served as town engineer. On February 1, 1950, he was named temporary Town Manager after James Shurtleff resigned to take a similar position in Medford, Massachusetts. Cusick accepted the position with the condition that he would resign if he was not given the job permanently by March 31. The selectmen did not appoint him permanent manager by Cusick's deadline and he resigned.[7]

While working for Saugus, Cusick was appointed by Boston mayor James Michael Curley to serve on a special committee to find a location for a steel mill in the Boston area.[8]

Medford, Massachusetts

After leaving Saugus, Cusick joined Shurtleff in Medford as assistant city manager and planning director.[9]

Rockville, Maryland

Between his time in Medford and Pittsburgh, Cusick served as planning director of Montgomery County, Maryland.[1]

Pittsburgh Regional Planning Association

In 1953, Cusick joined the Pittsburgh Regional Planning Association (PRPA) as assistant director.[1] In 1957 he was promoted to executive director following the resignation of Park Martin.

During his tenure with the PRPA, Cusick helped plan many regional communities and developed Pittsburgh's Golden Triangle Master Plan.[10]

In 1961, Cusick was the founding Executive Director of the six county Southwestern Pennsylvania Regional Planning Commission (SPRPC), which was later incorporated into the ten county Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission (SPC).[11]

Litchfield Park, Arizona

Cusick left Pittsburgh in 1964 to become vice president and general manager of the Litchfield Park Land and Development Co., a subsidiary of the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company.[12] Goodyear planned to turn a 14,000 acre property they owned into a 90,000 resident community.[10] The plan called for 25,000 homes, a college, a junior college, eighteen elementary schools, ten junior high schools, and six high schools as well as improvements to the town's golf course and its harness track at an expense of at least $750 million.[13] Cusick left Litchfield Park in 1971.[9] Goodyear would later abandon their plans for Litchfield Park before they were completed and sold whatever land they could.[14]

Greater Hartford Community Development Corp.

In 1971, Cusick was named president of the Greater Hartford Community Development Corporation, a newly formed not-for-profit organization privately financed by members Hartford's business community tasked with finding out what people wanted in their city, developing new education, health, living, and transportation systems, and building three 30,000-person communities.[9][15]

Later career

Cusick left the Greater Hartford Community Development Corp. in 1973 to work for Hayden Associates Inc., where he remained until his retirement in 1985. He died on February 26, 2018 at his home in Phoenix, Arizona[16]

See also

• Renaissance I

References

1. "Cusick Appointed To Planning Post". The Pittsburgh Press. February 8, 1953. Retrieved 20 June 2012.
2. "Students Honor Pitt Grid Squad". The Pittsburgh Press. November 30, 1939. Retrieved 20 June 2012.
3. Edward H. Litchfield; Myron Cope (October 8, 1962). "Saturday's Hero Is Doing Fine". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved 20 June 2012.
4. "Virginia Johnston Becomes Engaged". The New York Times. January 4, 1949.
5. Planning. 37. 1972. Missing or empty |title= (help)
6. "Virginia Johnston Cusick". azcentral.com. azcentral.com. Retrieved 20 June 2012.
7. "Saugus Selectmen Name Temporary Town Manager". The Boston Daily Globe. April 4, 1950.
8. "Huge Steel Plant in Hingham Opposed by Town Officials". The Boston Daily Globe. September 29, 1949.
9. "Arizonan Heads Development Firm". The Hartford Courant. February 10, 1971.
10. "Planner Here Going West". The Pittsburgh Press. June 24, 1964. Retrieved 20 June 2012.
11. "Six-County Planning". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. January 25, 1961.
12. "Rubber Firm Hiring Cusick". The Pittsburgh Press. June 25, 1964. Retrieved 20 June 2012.
13. "22 Miles Of Arizona Luring Cusick From Planning Job Here". The Pittsburgh Press. August 16, 1964. Retrieved 20 June 2012.
14. Madrid, David (April 27, 2012). "Decline of Scout Park angers Litchfield Park neighbor". The Republic. Retrieved 20 June 2012.
15. "Hartford's bold program". Boston Globe. May 30, 1971.
16. "Patrick Cusick, Jr. Obituary, Phoenix, Arizona". www.qohcfh.org. Retrieved 19 July 2019.