New O'Hare cargo center to bring 1,200 jobs
A Chicago project could benefit the suburbs as new jobs are created from a massive cargo center at O'Hare International Airport.
The city and a private developer will build a nearly $200 million air cargo handling facility on the airport's northeast side, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel and aviation Commissioner Rosemarie S. Andolino announced Monday.
It is expected to generate 1,200 construction jobs and 1,200 jobs at the facility in addition to 10,000 to 11,000 related jobs elsewhere in the region.
As the second busiest airport in the country, O'Hare is mostly known for its passenger traffic, but it's also a significant cargo hub, Emanuel said.
"This will help us achieve our goal of doubling exports over the next five years," he said at a news conference.
The city will split the costs with Aeroterm, a Montreal-based airport real estate development and management company. Aeroterm will spend $130 million to develop the site, and the city will pitch in $62 million.
O'Hare is the "No. 1 U.S. air cargo gateway for air imports from mainland China," Andolino said. "It's also the dominant gateway for air exports ... (handling) more than 25 percent of U.S. total."
The new facility is designed to accommodate a variety of needs with offices and warehouses, along with space to unload aircraft and move freight to trucks. It will include a taxiway that can take new, larger cargo planes, such as the Boeing 747-8.
The cargo center will serve existing freight customers and is expected to draw new business, Andolino said, adding that the facility is a spinoff of improvements to runways at O'Hare.
Des Plaines Mayor Marty Moylan is confident the project will create a ripple effect on employment.
"Any construction project makes jobs," Moylan said. "We have a lot of tradesmen in the area, which is why we're very happy this is being constructed at the airport."
The unemployment rate in the metropolitan region as of March was 8.7 percent, compared to 4.6 percent five years ago in 2007. "This is going to give some relief," Moylan said. "The economy is improving slowly, and this is another shot in the arm, which is needed."
Although the cargo center will be renting space to freight-related companies, Bensenville Village President Frank Soto said he expected it would coexist and not compete with cargo businesses in his town.
"DuPage County still offers some of the most competitive rates," he said.
And since the goal is to double shipments, "increasing capacity can mean an increase in employment," Soto said. "Regionally, collateral development will be there."