Elk Grove mayor makes nice with Daley

They were archrivals in a hard-fought battle over O'Hare International Airport's expansion plans.

Now, it's time to bury the hatchet and work toward a common goal - getting funding for a proposed western bypass around O'Hare linking I-90 and I-294 to a completed Elgin O'Hare Expressway, Elk Grove Village Mayor Craig Johnson says.

So he's making nice with his former nemesis, Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley.

In April, the village dropped its lawsuit against Chicago's airport expansion after the Illinois Department of Transportation dropped plans to build a connecting roadway through the heart of an Elk Grove business park.

Now, Elk Grove is running advertisements in major newspapers and radio station spots thanking Daley and area community leaders who helped resolve the biggest sticking point with the O'Hare expansion plan.

IDOT will build the south leg of the bypass connecting to I-294 east of the Union Pacific Railway tracks in Franklin Park. The north leg of the bypass will be constructed mainly on the west side of O'Hare and then head north to connect with I-90 at the Des Plaines oasis.

"We all finally worked together with one unified voice and we've come up with a unanimous decision with IDOT for the transportation needs of this region for the next 50 years and beyond," Johnson said. "It shows when you work together, you can solve things."

The advertisements cost Elk Grove $62,500 - peanuts compared to the roughly $6 million the village spent fighting the O'Hare expansion.

"In light of the millions we spent in the past, this is a very inexpensive investment now to move forward and work together to get this road built," Johnson said.

Despite the airport fight, Johnson said Elk Grove has worked with Chicago on many issues over the years and he now looks forward to working with Daley on lobbying for funding for the road.

"I'd be glad to travel to Washington, D.C., with him," Johnson said. "Heck, I'd even buy him lunch."