Mt. Prospect in way of airport expansion

Here we go again. We just got rid of the O'Hare Airport noise and smell and now Prospect Heights and Wheeling want to build a 7,000 foot runway at Chicago Executive Airport for "corporate jets."

Make no mistake, that new runway will be used mostly by FedEx for their cargo jets. These will be large jets capable of international flights, not corporate jets. The runway will extend over Palatine Road to a point east of the FedEx facility that is just across Wolf Road. A simple depressed conveyor system would move packages directly to and from a FedEx cargo terminal at the runway south end. They are not fooling anyone with the corporate jet story. That's just smoke and mirrors.

We, the Mount Prospect residents south of Seminole will suffer the most, because the condos and commercial areas in Prospect Heights will be taken down for the runway leaving us alone to buffer the noise and smell.

So who wins in this scenario? Clearly it is Prospect Heights and Wheeling and of course FedEx. Who loses? The residents of Mount Prospect and the taxpayers footing the $1 billion bill for an unnecessary runway.

I hope that you, Prospect Heights and Wheeling, enjoy the riches that this will bring you and your towns. It certainly will cost Mount Prospect residents in lost property values and peaceful enjoyment of our homes, and safety, if the airport's past record is any indication.

Why not make the runway east and west? That would channel most of the noise over your towns and maybe even the homes of the board members. The necessary relocation of the existing service buildings to the south end of the airport could possibly provide us with a small noise barrier from the jet blast nuisance.

Jim Mack

Mount Prospect