Airport development moving ahead after 'painful year'
After "a very, very painful process," lasting more than a year, a large part of the $29 million in redevelopment planned for Chicago Executive Airport seems closer, airport manager Dennis Rouleau told the Prospect Heights city council and Wheeling village board Monday.
The project involves a $15 million hangar, office space, restaurant and infrastructure to be developed on the site of historic Hangar 1; a $10 million development with hangars, a fueling station and aircraft maintenance facility; and a $4 million extension of the Lima taxiway.
The painful part has been the controversy over the demolition of Hangar 1, which dates from the 1920s and is on Landmarks Illinois' list of endangered historic sites.
A public hearing on the project, by Sovereign Development Group of Massachusetts, will be held 4-7 p.m. Wednesday, July 1, at the airport. Questions and comments on the social, economic and environmental effects will be collected.
After three years of submitting proposals, Sovereign was selected in March 2008 for the $15 million project, over two other developers. The start of its lease has been extended till Sept. 30, and Rouleau hopes construction is under way before winter. The project will be built where hangars 1 and 14 are presently located.
A draft environmental assessment can be seen at chiexec.com, at the airport or at the Wheeling and Prospect Heights' clerks' offices. It includes letters indicating the airport and developer have reached agreements with state and federal agencies on demolishing and commemorating Hangar I.
Another developer, Brigadoon Aviation, which plans the $10 million fueling station, hangars and aircraft maintenance facility, also has had its start date extended to Sept. 30. However, its business plan depends on working with jets made by Eclipse Aviation, which is in bankruptcy. Construction will wait until Eclipse's fate is known, said Rouleau.
Meanwhile, the $4 million extension of the Lima taxiway is expected to start Monday, Rouleau. At least $2.3 million of that is expected to come from federal funds.
One bit of good news is that the fuel pollution that needs to be cleaned up in the construction area is relatively minor considering the site was used for 50 years, said Rouleau.
Other, future projects that depend on federal funding include another, final extension of the taxiway and noise abatement for homes around the airport, said Rouleau.
The airport is jointly owned by Prospect Heights and Wheeling. Both boards met with the airport board Monday to hear updates.
• In other business the airport board said that deciding how to pay for the construction of new T-shaped hangars for airport clients has been a difficult process that must be decided the next time the three governing bodies meet, possibly Aug. 31.
The hangars would probably be too expensive to recoup the costs through rent.
Old hangars will be torn down if the next, final expansion of Lima taxiway is funded, said Rouleau. It is possible the governing bodies will decide against building more new T-hangars, he said.
Allan Englehardt, chairman of the airport board, said solar-powered, wooden hangars the board has seen are attractive and less costly.
• The two municipal bodies also agreed on a new agreement for naming members of the airport board. It allows the council and village board more latitude in selecting its three representatives.
• Prospect Heights city council members said they want any elected official of the two municipalities to be able to attend executive or closed sessions of the airport board. Most Wheeling trustees objected, and Dolly Vole, mayor of Prospect Heights, suggested that only the mayors be allowed to attend. The compromise was accepted.