Prospect Heights approves plan for Chicago Executive Airport that would eliminate a runway
Prospect Heights City Council members Monday night narrowly approved a controversial new layout plan for Chicago Executive Airport that includes eliminating one of the facility's runways.
By a 3-2 vote, Prospect Heights joined the Wheeling village board in giving the layout proposal a thumbs-up. Chicago Executive is co-owned by Wheeling and Prospect Heights, which is why the elected officials in those towns needed to vote on the airport's proposal before it goes through federal and state channels.
Controversy has swirled since several small-plane pilots began speaking at public meetings this year, citing safety in wanting the facility's only east-west runway to remain - the same reason airport officials say it should be closed.
Members of the Chicago Executive Pilots Association Pilots and others contended Runway 6/24 allows them to avoid dangerous crosswinds.
However, Chicago Executive infrastructure consultant Crawford, Murphy and Tilly Inc. of Aurora states in a report that the Federal Aviation Administration considers the area where Runway 6/24 meets the airport's other two runways to be a confusing "hot spot" that should be eliminated. Officials also said the runway accounts for only about 2% of an average 211 daily takeoffs and landings at the facility.
Airport Executive Director Jamie Abbott said after Monday's vote that Runway 6/24 cannot be shut immediately. He said the layout proposal will now go before the FAA and the Illinois Department of Transportation.
"It'll go through a review process," Abbott said. "The FAA, they do a very thorough job, so it could be several months before we get any comments back and get that document finally approved. But since it's in that pending-approval process, we can go ahead and work with the state of Illinois on scheduling projects associated with the (plan)."
The plan also calls for about 1 million square feet of new hangars, an area dedicated to stormwater management improvements and no expansion beyond the current borders of Hintz Road on the north, Milwaukee Avenue to the east, Palatine Road and on the south and Wolf Road on the west. An environmental review will be part of the process.
Prospect Heights Aldermen Kathleen Quinn and Michelle Cameron were the dissenters in the 3-2 vote. Both women said Chicago Executive could have done a better job in taking public feedback.
"I think it's our job to listen to the people who are using the airport," Quinn said to Chicago Executive officials at Monday's meeting. "And I understand that you've had open houses and you've had stakeholder meetings so that you're in compliance with the rules and regulations that are out there. But that's not meeting and sitting down with your customers."
Rhett Dennerline, a commercial pilot who advises aviation companies and has been flying from Chicago Executive for 32 years, was among those to reiterate the safety concerns and opposition to the elimination of the Runway 6/24 to the Prospect Heights council.
"And I'm proud that I fly for the Coast Guard Auxiliary and fly patrols out of the airport," Dennerline said. "I'm actually a member of the Department of Homeland Security in that role, and we go through a lot of training on safety. It's a No. 1 priority for us."
Wheeling village board members approved Chicago Executive's layout plan in January.