Walter Huntley Papers

Original Digital object not accessible

Identity elements

Reference code

US TxSaTua UA0501

Name and location of repository

Level of description

Collection

Title

Walter Huntley Papers

Date(s)

  • 1953-2018 (Creation)

Extent

7.5 linear feet (6 boxes)

Name of creator

(1948-)

Biographical history

Walter Robert Huntley, Jr. was born on October 13, 1948, in San Antonio, Texas to Walter Huntley, Sr. and Elnora Huntley. Huntley attended Cambridge Elementary School, St. Peter Claver Catholic School, and Alamo Heights and Highlands High School. He enrolled at Trinity University in the fall of 1966, completing his degree in Biology in 1971, and a Masters in Urban Studies in 1973 under the tutelage of Dr. Earl Lewis. In 1977, he completed post-graduate work at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Harvard University and received a Certificate of Advanced Study from the Department of Urban Studies and Planning at MIT. In 1999, he completed the Executive Leadership Seminar at the Aspen Institute.

In 1972, Huntley was granted a research internship opportunity at Research Atlanta, Inc. to focus on taxation and municipal finance issues in Atlanta and the metropolitan area. This opportunity enabled Huntley to perform policy work where he first entered politics as a volunteer in the 1973 mayoral campaign of Maynard Jackson, who became the first Black mayor of Atlanta. Following Jackson’s election, Huntley served from 1974 to 1982 as special assistant to Mayor Jackson, and was later appointed Deputy Chief Administrative Officer for the City of Atlanta and then Chief of Staff for the Mayor. As Deputy Chief Administrative Officer, he helped plan such projects as the expansion of Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport and other major projects in the City.

Huntley worked as a consultant during the administration of Harold Washington, Chicago’s first African American mayor. He also held cabinet positions within the administrations of two other Atlanta mayors: Andrew Young, and William Campbell. In 1986, Mayor Young appointed Huntley to serve as President of the Atlanta Economic Development Corporation (now Invest Atlanta) where he served from 1986 to 1997. Huntley also served on the Bid Preparation Committee for the 1996 Atlanta Summer Olympics and he was a board member for the 1996 Paralympic Games in Atlanta.

In 1997, Huntley founded and served as President of Huntley Partners, Inc. a development advisory firm that specialized in providing market analysis and implementation plans for public/private development. Huntley Partners, Inc. was later acquired by CHA Consulting, an international engineering consulting firm in New York. Huntley was a partner in the firm and served as CHA’s Senior Vice President and Director of Strategic Client Development from 2013 to 2015. Huntley continues to provide economic development consulting services as President of Huntley & Associates.

In 1996, Trinity University honored Huntley as the 1996 Distinguished Alumnus of the Year. Huntley has also been recognized for his athletic achievement. He is a former member of the UPI All-Texas Football Team, an Associated Press Small College Football All-American, a draftee of the Pittsburgh Steelers, and a member of the Trinity University Athletic Hall of Fame. In 1997, at the request of former President Ron Calgaard, Huntley became the first African-American Trustee of Trinity University. For more than two decades, Huntley has served on the Board of Trustees, including serving as Chairman of the Board for two years from 2010 to 2012. Additionally, Huntley has served on boards for a number of organizations. including The Fox Theater, Rabun-Gap Nacoochee School, the Georgia Department of Community Affairs, and the Georgia Cities Foundation.

Huntley resides with his wife, Joanne Doddy Fort, in Atlanta. Huntley has one daughter, Tyeise Huntley Jones, who works for the Chicago Public Schools and is married to the Honorable Daryl Jones, a judge on the Chicago Circuit Court; they are the parents of two boys – Justice and Chancellor.

Content and structure elements

Scope and content

Papers of Walter R. Huntley, Jr., city official, economic development specialist and civic leader, date primarily between 1983-2018. Most relate to economic development work that occurred while Huntley was President of the Atlanta Economic Development Corporation (1986-1997) and President of Huntley Partners, Inc., (1997-2013). The collection primarily consists of reports, tax allocation studies, assessments, research findings, and proposals for projects sponsored by Huntley & Associates in the metropolitan Atlanta area. Files include the development of the Atlanta-Chattanooga high-speed passenger rail and various projects in Eatonville, Florida, Savannah Georgia, Norfolk, Virginia, and Orlando, Florida.

Market analyses and implementation plans for public and private development projects are in the collection as well. Also included are some of Huntley’s personal files including newspaper clippings; personal photographs and correspondence and other material about Huntley’s activities with Trinity University, AEDC, the City of Atlanta and the private sector.

System of arrangement

The collection is organized into six main series: project financing materials, economic development analyses, city planning and reports, economic development plans, personal files, and photographs.

Conditions of access and use elements

Conditions governing access

This collection is open and available to the public for research in the Special Collections & Archives reading room. The materials are non-circulating.

Physical access

Technical access

Conditions governing reproduction

The materials in this collection may be protected by copyright law (Title 17, U.S. Code). The materials are available for personal, educational, and scholarly use. It is the responsibility of the researcher to locate and obtain permission from the copyright owner or his or her heirs for any other use, such as reproduction and publication.

Languages of the material

  • English

Scripts of the material

    Language and script notes

    Finding aids

    Generated finding aid

    Acquisition and appraisal elements

    Custodial history

    Donated to Coates Library by Trinity Board of Trustees member and alumnus, Walter R. Huntley, Jr.

    Immediate source of acquisition

    Appraisal, destruction and scheduling information

    Accruals

    Related materials elements

    Existence and location of originals

    Existence and location of copies

    Related archival materials

    Notes element

    Specialized notes

    • Citation: Walter Huntley Papers, 1953-2018. Coates Library Special Collections & Archives, San Antonio, Texas.

    Alternative identifier(s)

    Description control element

    Rules or conventions

    DACS

    Sources used

    Archivist's note

    Finding aid created by Jessica C. Neal, August 27, 2018.

    Access points

    Name access points

    Digital object metadata

    Master file

    Reference copy

    Thumbnail copy

    Digital object (Master) rights area

    Digital object (Reference) rights area

    Digital object (Thumbnail) rights area

    Accession area