Do or Die for South Suburban Airport

Do or Die for Airport 
FAA gathering info before making decision 

Thursday, December 4, 2003
Chicago Daily Southtown, IL

The south suburban airport finally will be getting a thumbs up or a thumbs down 
from the Federal Aviation Administration.

The approval process for the airport reached the home stretch Wednesday when 
the FAA hosted a public hearing at Governors State University about the 
environmental impact of the project. 

Testimony collected at the hearing will be weighed before the FAA decides if 
there is a purpose and need for an airport of one runway and a terminal near 
Peotone. The decision is expected to take two years. 

"This is it," said Christine Cochrane, manager of the airport project for the 
state. "There is no turning back now. The FAA is committed to issuing a record 
of decision. For once and for all, we are going to get an answer."

The forum embodied the debate that has hung over the proposed airport for 
decades. 

Supporters touted the potential for thousands of new jobs, while detractors 
pointed to the possibility of polluted water and air.

About 165 parcels — some farms, some houses — are being bought by the 
Illinois Department of Transportation for the initial phase of the airport. 

Barbara Sturges of Park Forest regularly bicycles near the site of the airport 
footprint.

"I see deer. I see hawks. I see pheasant," she said. "I don't know why a study 
is needed."

Fred Wolter, whose great-great-grandparents settled in Peotone Township, 
testified about a 1968 newspaper article recently unearthed in a piece of 
furniture. The subject was building an airport to serve the south suburbs. 

"The impetus for an airport should be about aviation," Wolter said. "It has 
been about business and politics from the start."

Several speakers, however, said the project is required to boost the ailing 
economies of the south suburbs. Mayors and local officials spoke of residents 
making daily commutes of 45 minutes because they could not find jobs in the 
region. 

"We have the highest tax rate in Will County. We are struggling to build an 
economic base," University Park Trustee Al Penn said. "I say we build the 
airport because it is viable for this particular region."

Also attending were advocates for diverting more traffic to the Gary and 
Rockford airports.

The hearing marked the beginning of the second stage in a two-step 
environmental approval process. 

The first stage, blessed by the FAA last year, covered the ramifications of 
buying the necessary land to develop the airport. 

The second stage will delve into the impact of building a runway, terminal and 
airfield infrastructure. 

Tony Molinaro, FAA spokesman, said if the airport is going to get stuck in 
Washington, D.C., it will happen during the second stage. 

Among the issues the FAA will analyze are the impact the project will have on 
noise, air quality, light emissions, wetlands, flood plains, aquatic life, 
water quality, cultural resources, local infrastructure, endangered species, 
and hazardous and solid wastes. The agency will study the potential social and 
socioeconomic effects, too.

Also explored will be the merits of using other airports, such as Gary, 
Rockford or a bigger O'Hare International Airport. 

"This is all the major issues," Molinaro said. "This is the major piece."

Future additions to the airport would require a whole new round of 
environmental studies. 

U.S. Rep. Jerry Weller (R-11th) of Morris appeared at the hearing to throw his 
support behind the project. 

Weller said Will County officials are preparing to form a new governmental 
authority to develop and operate the airport using public money. U.S. Rep. 
Jesse Jackson Jr. (D-2nd) of Chicago recently formed an authority of south 
suburbs — and two northwest suburbs opposed to O'Hare expansion — to do the 
same things with private money. 

Whomever emerges to build the airport will not sway the FAA approval process, 
officials said.
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