Takeoffs and landings at the Abraham Lincoln National Airport in Peotone are still years away, but the long-sought third airport for the Chicago area is now a critical step closer to reality.
In his recent State of the State address, Gov. Rod Blagojevich gave his blessing to Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr.’s plans for the airport. Blagojevich praised Jackson’s “innovative” ideas for using private investment to build the airport gradually as market demand grows.
Jackson has been the driving force behind the new south suburban airport, developing the plan, finding broad community support and securing promises of funding from developers. He has long believed it could boost economic development in the south suburbs and South Side of Chicago, much like O’Hare International Airport has done for the northwest suburbs and Northwest Side.
The governor could not have been clearer in his remarks: Nothing should stand in the way of expanding O’Hare. Jackson’s plan for Peotone won’t, in part because it won’t compete with O’Hare for federal dollars. This page has strongly supported the expansion of O’Hare and has argued that a south suburban airport should be built as well.
Neither project alone will answer all of the region’s long-term aviation capacity needs. So it’s a good sign that both are moving along. The Federal Aviation Administration is preparing to hold regional hearings on O’Hare expansion next week. The state plans to submit to the FAA within weeks a Peotone airport development plan that, with minor technical changes, amounts to the Jackson plan.
Blagojevich has directed Illinois Transportation Secretary Tim Martin to meet with Jackson, Will County Executive Larry Walsh and state Sen. Debbie Halvorson (D-Crete) to resolve lingering disagreements about the structure and control of the new airport. That meeting is scheduled to take place on Monday. Will County officials have objected to the makeup of the new airport’s governing commission because they won’t be in charge and because it will include Elk Grove Village and Bensenville, two northwest suburbs known more for their ardent opposition to O’Hare expansion.
Everyone else seems to understand what the governor said: The state is backing the Jackson plan. Yes, Will County officials should play a role, a reality Jackson has long understood. He asked the governor on Thursday to appoint Walsh and a mayor from one of the communities that abut the airport property to the governing commission.
Walsh was quoted in the Tribune earlier this month as acknowledging that the Jackson plan for the airport is far more advanced than anything Will County has put together. But then he said, “This isn’t about who came forward with a plan first. … This is about what plan can best serve the needs of our region.”
We couldn’t agree more. The plan that can best serve the needs of the Chicago area has been developed over the years by Jackson and his municipal allies. It has community support and a private source of funding. The state is backing it and it should go forward, with or without Will County’s involvement.
