Bartels, Robert J., of West Roxbury, MA, formerly of Orleans, MA and Syracuse, NY, died November 5th, 2016 in Roslindale at age 97. Born March 23, 1919 in Wilsonville, IL, he was the son of the late Henry and Eva (Jackson) Bartels. He is survived by his 4 sons, Andrew, Jonathan, Frederick, Steven and daughter Jennifer Mulstay, 8 grandchildren and 4 great grandchildren and by his dear friend Marie Foley. Robert is predeceased by his wife Jane (Hudson) and two sisters Barbara Hixon and Winona Memler.
Robert received his AB from the University of Illinois, and after World War II earned a Masters in Urban Planning from Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1949. He served in the US Army Air Corp during World War II as communications officer with a B-29 squadron in Guam.
His career in urban planning began with the Poughkeepsie Development Agency in Westchester County, NY, then with Shenango Valley Planning Authority in Sharon, PA, and then as head of the Hartford, CT, planning authority. In 1963, he became a professor of urban planning at Syracuse University, Syracuse NY, where he taught for many years and headed up the department.
He retired with his wife Jane to Orleans, MA, in 1981, where he was active in community initiatives related to low-income and supportive housing, serving for a number of years on the Housing Commission. Opas Way in Orleans is named in his honor. He was a member of the Town Democratic Committee, served several terms as President or Secretary of the Mayflower Point Association, and was a member of the Orleans Men’s Garden Club. He then lived at the Sophia Snow House in West Roxbury, MA. A private memorial service will be held in the spring. www.lawlerfuneralhome