173rd Airborne Brigade wants to command Route 173

The 173rd Airborne Brigade's latest mission: Claim Route 173.

Illinois members of the brigade's association are asking municipalities from Zion to Rockford to designate the road "173rd Airborne Brigade Highway."

"We're working this like a military attack, diving right into the middle and then progressing left and right," said Bob "Ragman" Getz, association secretary.

Antioch approved the association's request Monday, joining Harvard and Richmond, both in McHenry County.

Antioch Mayor Dorothy Larson said designating Route 173 as "173rd Airborne Brigade Highway" was a no-brainer.

"These are the heroes of our country right now," Larson said. "They are the people defending our rights. I'm very, very honored to do this small thing for them."

The 173rd Airborne Brigade was formed in 1917 during World War I.

During World War II, the brigade served as part of General Patton's Third Army in the Battle of the Bulge and Rhine River Crossing.

The brigade was the Army's first in-last out combat unit during Vietnam, winning a presidential award for the only combat airborne assault during the war.

Since 2000, the group has been deployed for one tour in Iraq and two in Afghanistan, where they remain today.

Getz, of Elgin, who served with the unit during Vietnam, said the plan is to get seven or eight villages to agree to the renaming, then enlist the help of Lt. Governor Pat Quinn and Secretary of State Jesse White.

"We are going to ask them to represent us in the state legislature," Getz said. "The hope is to have the entire length of Route 173 designated for the Airborne Brigade."

The ultimate goal is for troops now serving in Afghanistan to parade down Route 173 -- stopping at each village hall -- when they return to the U.S. in the spring.

"Right now, we've got our feelers out all over trying to measure community support of this," Getz said. "So far, it seems like we've got a pretty good shot."