No action taken yet on Chicago Executive Airport head

Wheeling and Prospect Heights officials met in Wheeling Tuesday to discuss the fate of Chicago Executive Airport board Chairman Kevin Dohm.

Dohm's dismissal had been requested by one of the Wheeling representatives on the board, David Kolssak. Both towns have jurisdiction over the airport, and it would require the consent of both to dismiss Dohm.

Wheeling officials have expressed frustration over being left out of the loop over the planning of the airport.

There has also been question about Dohm's dealings with consultant John P. Kennedy of New Jersey-based Airport Corporation of America. At a recent airport board meeting, Wheeling Village Manager J. Mark Rooney questioned whether Dohm had been given the authority to hire Kennedy.

After about two hours of discussion in closed session Tuesday, however, the only action taken was to adjourn the meeting.

Following the meeting, neither Prospect Heights Mayor Rodney Pace nor Wheeling Acting Village President Judy Abruscato offered comment on the proceedings.

Meanwhile, at the beginning of the joint meeting, held at Wheeling village hall, a presentation was given by Jim Kirby, who apparently has been serving as a behind-the-scenes consultant at the airport.

Kirby outlined the steps the airport should take in order to develop a master plan for the airport.

A plan is necessary, for example, if the airport receives a business proposal. "If you don't have a plan, you're answer is going to look arbitrary."

Pace said Kirby has been part of a group that included Pace, Dohm, Airport board Vice-Chairman L. James Wylie and former Wheeling Village President Greg Klatecki. Pace said discussions have gone on for probably a little more than a year.

"We were trying to come up with a process in order to go forward with doing a master plan and also sort of an overall plan for both municipalities and the airport," Pace said.

Rooney, however, said he only met with Kirby once, in May, but discussions did not reach beyond the topic of annexed land.

And Wheeling Trustee Dean Argiris said of the plan, "It's the first I've seen," adding, "I think they're about six months too late showing it to us. What's the secret? They showed it to everybody tonight. What held you back?"

Kirby said he is retired and has a background in real estate development. He said he became involved in the master plan talks through a friend who knows Charles Priester of Priester Aviation Co., which is headquartered at the airport.

Kirby said he was not hired as a consultant. Indeed, he said, "Nobody owes me a dime for the work I have put into this," Kirby said.

But Argiris asked, "Who is he working for? You mean that guy did a presentation working for nothing?"