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Originally Posted by spyguy
I highly doubt that Peotone Airpot (or whatever they call it) is going to do much in balancing power between the two sides. A small airport catering to low-cost airlines is not going to cause large corporations to suddenly move to the south side and inconvenience a majority of their workers who live in the N & NW suburbs.
I don't know what you mean by short term option. You'd be a fool not to believe that O'Hare is a major component of business in the Chicago area because of shipping and air travel. If we don't continue to improve and expand O'Hare who knows how many countless opportunities Chicago will lose just to appease Jackson for an airport that many users have already stated that they wouldn't use. Just this week there was an article in the Sunday Trib that explained how Jet Blue wants to fly to and from Chicago, but none of the existing options at O'Hare work for them, and that they do not really want to go to a Midway controlled by Southwest. There remains the possibility that another Midwestern city could instead take advantage of the situation and get Jet Blue to fly from their airport.
Again, I think it's delusional to believe that Peotone airport is going to be stepping stone in re-establishing the city as THE place of business. The big boys (Motorola, Sears, Kraft, Walgreens, and now HSBC) aren't going anywhere, and that's something Chicago will have to accept. The suburbs are always going to remain competitive with the city, and this is probably an arrangement that works. The suburbs will have cheap space and possibly cheaper, more attractive housing while the city will maintain good transportation and amenities like cultural and recreational facilities, and so they'll each attract a variety of clients depending on the company's needs.
An airport that will chew up precious Illinois soil is not needed. I feel that all it will create is another Rockford-esque airport except it will cost us a fair penny. I think the best option is to expand O'Hare while looking at the three nearby airports and choosing one to redevelop.
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^I agree, but when did I say I support Peotone? I am in favor of expanding Gary. I think Chicago also needs a reliever airport, because lets face it--OHare is VERY congested and it's a problem that will get worse. And every time it expands it is going to face tremendous opposition--something that Chicago can't keep dealing with during every round of expansion.
Chicago is a major transportation hub and there is no reason why it can't support 3 regional airports, much like New York City. I agree that OHare will always dominate, but there is no reason why Gary can't capitalize on the fact that it has/will have transit access to downtown Chicago.