Philip sides with DuPage Airport board on tech park
One of the political architects of the deal to create a business park south of the DuPage Airport for high-tech companies is supporting plans to loosen development restrictions at the nearly vacant site.
Former state Sen. James "Pate" Philip's support of the DuPage Airport Board's position on the future of the tech park land was accompanied by some harsh words for DuPage County Board Chairman Bob Schillerstrom, who opposes relaxing development regulations.
"We need more leaders like you and your fellow commissioners that will stand up for the taxpayer and draw a line in the sand against wasteful spending," Philip wrote to airport board Chairman Dan Goodwin. "Schillerstrom's scheme to give the DuPage Technology Park Board taxpayer land and taxpayer money without accountability is one of the worst ideas I have heard of in my 33 years of public service."
The tech park land is owned by the DuPage Airport Authority.
Schillerstrom has been invoking Philip's name along with former U.S. Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert's when arguing for maintaining the high-tech emphasis for development at the site. Schillerstrom has repeatedly said it was always the trio's vision to build a technology-based business park at the site and that's why the three worked together to secure $34 million in grant funds for infrastructure work on the 450-acre parcel.
Schillerstrom was not surprised to learn Philip was not in his camp because the former Republican legislator "hasn't had anything good to say about me for years."
"Pate Philip has been out of the loop for 10 years and has no idea what's going on with this," Schillerstrom said. "This is something Dan Goodwin's public relations firm put together and stuck in front of Pate to sign his name to."
Philip said Wednesday the letter was his own. He said he stands behind the sentiment as well as Goodwin and tech park board Chairman Peter Huizenga, who also supports relaxing the development regulations.
"I've known both of those men for a long time and trust their judgment," Philip said.
Hastert could not be reached Wednesday.
The feud between Schillerstrom and the airport board erupted in recent weeks after Schillerstrom vetoed the airport's budget because it didn't call for funding of the tech park administration. Schillerstrom wanted to strip the airport board of any oversight of the tech park property because he claims they've "failed to build a technology park." He wants the tech park board to have sole decision-making powers and lower the asking price for the land.
Philip said the tech park board was only created to administer the infrastructure grant funds.
Goodwin argues the tech park board would be able to meet in private and there would be no accountability. He said Schillerstrom's idea of lowering the land's price would cost taxpayers more than $20 million and jeopardize Federal Aviation Administration funding.
The airport board has received letters of support from West Chicago Mayor Michael Kwasman, the state Department of Commerce and Economic Development, Republican county board chairman candidate Dan Cronin and most recently county Treasurer Gwen Henry who said "it is time for the (airport board) to take full control of the tech park and develop a plan that would get positive development going that would contribute to the economy and not be a continued drain."