Balmoral Avenue would be extended west onto O’Hare International Airport property under the first phase of a project, advanced Monday by a City Council committee, that eventually would provide direct access to O’Hare from Rosemont and other nearby suburbs.
The first construction phase calls for extending Balmoral 1,600 feet over railroad right-of-way onto airport property just east of Mannheim Road. Two subsequent stages, to be completed in several years, would connect the street to the airport’s roadway system.
By providing direct access from the Rosemont area, traffic congestion would be reduced on Interstate Highway 190, officials said.
The measure, approved Monday by the council’s Aviation Committee, calls for an agreement between Chicago and Rosemont for the first phase of construction. The cost of the complete project, estimated at $25 million, would be shared by the city, Rosemont and the Illinois Department of Transportation.
A separate measure approved by the committee on Monday would grant Rosemont a 10-year lease for $59,000 annually on airport land adjacent to an extended Balmoral Avenue. The land would be used as a staging area for trucks delivering exhibits and other material to the Rosemont Convention Center and the Rosemont Theater.
